Opinion
Protais Mpiranya: The devil that died anonymously
The
recent discovery of Protais Mpiranya’s grave in Zimbabwe under the tombstone of
Sambao Ndume was good news, indeed. But this discovery sixteen years after this
monster died cheated Mother Justice. He should have been captured, tried and
paid for his heinous crimes. Death was too kind an exit for this monster of a
man.
Justice
should not only be done it should be seen to be done.
In
pursuit of justice, families of those who died at Mpiranya’s hands and at his
behest deserve better, to see justice done in order to deal with their
enormous, and perhaps everlasting trauma.
But
the wheels of justice turn ever so slowly.
The
discovery of Mpiranya’s grave in an overgrown cemetery outside Harare in
Granville cemetery, and the continued denial of Zimbabwean government officials
that they did not know of his presence in the country does not add up. It is
laughable, much as it is not the first time countries caught red-handed
harboring genocidaires have feigned ignorance.
Protais
Mpiranya’s grave in Zimbabwe under the tombstone of Sambao Ndume
To
this shameful list add France, Belgium, the Vatican, Malawi and many African
countries.
Kudos
to Serge Brammertz, the UN prosecutor who led the manhunt, and who has over the
years refused to give up in his quest to bring perpetrators of the genocide
against Tutsi in 1994 to book.
Serge Brammertz
We
are told Mpiranya died in October 2006, at 50, of a heart attack brought on by
tuberculosis. Karma is a bitch.
But
we must never lose hope. The fact that many of Mpiranya’s ilk — Kabuga,
Rusesabagina, Munyenyezi, Nyiramasuhuko, Mugesera and many other tragic figures
I don’t care to remember are behind bars is a good thing. Others like Ingabire,
Twagiramungu, Rudasingwa, Nyamwasa and many others have been rendered
irrelevant and will without a doubt, in due course be swept into the dustbins
of history.
Protais Mpiranya
Rwanda
has proved defiant and a power to contend with that our traitors’ supporters in
the West are slowly but surely taking que. We will not, and cannot be dictated
to, and nobody knows best what is good and right for us. We fought long and
hard to liberate our Motherland, and against great odds we triumphed. The fact
that there has not been victors’ justice speaks volumes to our just cause.
Yes,
history shall absolve us, because we will write it.
The
message is clear: there is a price to betraying Rwanda and attempting to
destabilize us. Many have tried and met the indomitable spirit of Rwandans. We
refuse to be defined by bloody events in our history, but rather by the
resilience of our spirit and our absolute contempt for subjugation and
continued pursuit of happiness.
The
new Rwanda is bursting at the seams with amazing developmental projects, good
exceptional clean governance and upholding the value of our women. Amidst a sea
of failed states on our continent we must guard against the arrogance of
success. Much has been accomplished but the journey is young.
Rwanda
is soaked in the blood of millions who died needlessly because of who they were
born. To them we owe much: knowing right from wrong, being each other’s keeper
and ensuring that we all strive for the greater good — One Nation, One People.
To those who much is given, much is expected. That, I dare say defines us.