Spanish Senator Pere Sampol and Human Rights Activist Juan Carrero leading protests against General Paul Kagame in New York. Sep 2010
” It took me so long to testify for three reasons: first, while I was a member of the [Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF)] government, doing so meant an automatic death sentence; second, even outside Rwanda , it is difficult to escape the control of Kagame and I did not want to go into exile so soon. I was born exile and had only lived inside my country for only five years ; third, as Chief of staff [or Rwandan General Paul Kagame] I had access and I wanted to uncover more information, before I could, one day, testify, ” Dr Theogene Rudasingwa told the Spanish High Court, known as Audiencia Nacional on Monday October 14, 2013.
Dr Rusasingwa was testifying as the key witness of the prosecution in the case against Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPA) and RPF leaders, now leading Rwanda. The RPF and RPA leaders are accused of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity committed in Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) from 1994-2000. The lawsuit opened in 2008 against the top 40 RPA military leaders. Current Rwandan dictator General Paul Kagame, although the head of the of the RPF and overall commander of RPA, is not among the 40 leaders since, as the head of state, he is protected by presidential immunity.
The case, opened in February 2008, is led by the Spanish High Court Judge Fernando Andreu Merrelles and falls within the provisions of Spain’s principle of universal jurisdiction in alleged cases of crimes against humanity, genocide, and terrorism.
During the testimony, Dr Theogene Rudasingwa accused General Paul Kagame of ordering the shooting down of the plane carrying the late Rwandan and Burundian Presidents, Juvenal Habyarimana and Cyprien Ntaryamira, massacring Spanish Catholic nuns and missionaries inside Rwanda, and genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
“General Kagame, as de facto President of Rwanda in 1994, is responsible for organizing, managing and executing most of the acts of genocide and war crimes committed in Rwanda in 1994,” Dr Rudasingwa told the Spanish Judge.
These testimony against Rwandan military leaders follows previous similar accusations (see AfroAmerica Network’ article: General Paul Kagame Assassinated President Juvenal Habyarimana, Former RPF Secretary General and Kagame’s Chief of Staff Say of October 1, 2013)
The testimony by Dr Theogene Rudasingwa is likely to generate more heat on the embattled Rwandan government and its leaders, recently accused of war crimes, involving recruiting child soldiers, by the Unites States Government (see US Government Suspends Military Aid to Rwandan Government Over Recruitment of Child Soldiers)
Dr Theogene Rudasingwa is not a small potato. He is a former general secretary of the Rwandan ruling party, Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF ), former ambassador to the United States from 1996 to 1999, and Rwandan dictator General Paul Kagame’s former chief of staff, from 2000-2004. He fled Rwandan in 2004 (see Rwanda: After Gahima, his brother Rudasingwa of February 23, 2004), after he and his brother Gerald Gahima fell off with General Paul Kagame. Once in exile, he founded, along with several former high ranking RPF and RPA leaders, the Rwandan National Congress, an opposition party based in exile. (see South Africa Police Confirms Kayumba Nyamwasa Escaped Second Assassination Attempt and Rwanda: When Seeking Peace Becomes Terrorism)
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