PRESS RELEASE, by 2nd Lt. Aloys RUYENZI [1]

PRESIDENT PAUL KAGAME is indeed a war criminal

He committed some of his crimes under the disguise of INTERAHAMWE

Recently, press reports, quoting prominent experts of the Great Lakes region, raised again the issue of impunity of president Kagame, with regard to the war crimes that he committed or ordered for. The main point of this paper is to expose one of the hitherto unveiled faces of his crimes. Indeed, some of the crimes which were indiscriminately attributed to Interahamwe were in actual facts carried out by none other than Kagame and his henchmen. In their sinister plans, they would disguise as the notorious militia Interahamwe. This should however not be misconstrued to mean that the latter did not kill.

This is not a hearsays, I am ready to produce evidence and call other people who witnessed the crimes that occurred in the following places :

1. When 7th BN was deployed in areas of Rushashi, Tare, Mbogo, and Rurindo in 1998 the director of schools at Rwankuba, the Bourgmestre of commune Rushashi as well as the agriculture officer of that commune were murdered over the same night. RPF hurriedly blamed their death on Interahamwe insurgents, yet they had been killed by its own elements.

2. The same year of 1998 Kagame planned to kill all civilians who where watching the world cup tournament in the Hotel called "Pensez-Y" and again blame their death on insurgents. Fortunately the operations officer of 7th BN, Capt. Kwizera who had been assigned the task, got drunk and failed to properly coordinate the operation.

Indeed, when the soldiers who were to disguise as Interahamwe insurgents reached the Hotel, they found many RPF soldiers mixed with the civilian crowd which was watching the world cup tournament. They contacted the commanding officer, Major Eugène Nkubito, who angrily told them to tell all the soldiers present to report to their respective positions. When some civilians saw that, they suspecte! a foul play and also left the Hotel. A few moment later, the Hotel was burnt to ashes and so many civilians who remained watching the TV died. After the operation, Radio Rwanda announced that the Interahamwe had burned that hotel and killed many people.

Despite the number of casualties, Kagame was not happy because the plan did not go the way it had been hatched. He summoned himself Capt. Kwizera in the officers' mess, sent his own presidential jeep to collect sticks and beat captain Kwizera. The captain was given 100 strokes, demoted to the rank of private and put behind bars till he was dismissed from the army. This was done in public and many people watched the scene.

After that action of burning the Hotel "Pensez-y" and killing the civilians watching the world cup tournament they announced as anticipated that, the Interahamwe burnt the Hotel and killed so many people.

3. Another glaring example is the killing of western tourists in the Bwindi National Park, which prominently featured in western media. RPF immediately blamed it on the Interahamwe and so did the western media. Yet, they had been killed by RPF soldiers disguised as Interahamwe. The decision to kill western tourists venturing in that area had been taken manly for two reasons:

* The issue of Interahmwe would be more internationalised if they were accused of killing innocent western tourists. As a result, RPF would be given a free hand in fighting them the way it wants and wherever they are suspected to be;

* RPF suspected some Europeans of sympathising with Interahamwe by disclosing to them the positions of RPF. Moreover, the presence of foreigners near an insurgent area was hindering RPF atrocities perpetrated under the disguise of counter insurgents operations.

I got astonished when I heard the then attorney general, Gerald Gahima endeavouring to explain how the Interahamwe killed the tourists. I don't think that Gerald Gahima knew anything about the plan apart from being told what to say.

4. When the late Andre Kisasu Ngandu the vice-chairman of the late President Laurent Kabila was killed, the Government of Rwanda, which was fighting along side Kabila to overthrow the Government of Mobutu, announced that Kisasu Ngandu was killed in an ambush by the Interahamwe and the ex-FAZ (ex-Force Armées Zairoises). Yet, he was killed by the RPA officers and men who are up-to-date serving in the RPF army. His assassination was planned by James Kabalebe and Jack Nziza under the orders of Paul Kagame because Ngandu was opposed to the killing of refugees.

5. A group of Ugandans were detained in the former house of the director of special intelligence Senior Superintendent Gacinya and killed in November 2004. This house is one of the clandestine detention house, where they keep people incommunicado, until they decide their fate. The house is located at Muhima and is managed by Assistants Inspector of Police Munana and Nshuti.

The Ugandan victims were:

1. Rwemihigo

2. Waswa

3. Richard

4. Katongole

5. Mutume

6. Swaibu

7. and Kato.

After their murder, the bodies were taken to the Akagera National Park, burnt and the ashes thrown in the Akagera River. All these killings were ordered by General Kagame and his collaborators.

Regarding other human rights abuses, nearly 11 years after RPF takeover, people are still being killed and tortured in prisons by the security organs especially DMI and Special Intelligence using electric wires.

I once again appeal to human rights organisations and the international community to make their own counter investigations and insure that Kagame is held accountable for those crimes. It is the only way to put an end to impunity in the Great Lakes region.

Similarly, I call upon Rwandans to come out boldly and say the truth because not doing so will boost the impunity of criminals.

Tuesday, 18/01/2005

2nd Lt. Aloys RUYENZI

Mail: aruyenzi2000@yahoo.com

[1] Born on 1st March 1971 in Mbarara, Uganda of Rwandan refugee parents, Aloys Ruyenzi grew up in Uganda and joined the National Resistance Army of Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni in 1987. After a Basic Military and military intelligence he was posted in the 23rd battalion based in northern Uganda, as intelligence staff. A year later, He was called back to Kampala and posted at the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI), where Kagame was a senior officer. While in DMI, he was selected for another course called "the Intelligence and Self-Defence". When he fled the country, he was working in the Repu! blican Guard, an RPA (Rwanda Patriotic Army) special unit that provides elements for the Presidential Protection Unit. He was Second Lieutenant and his army number was OP1460.