French Court Sentences Ex-Rwandan Doctor to 27 Years for Genocide-Related Crimes

A French court has imposed a 27-year prison sentence on a former Rwandan doctor for offenses connected to the 1994 genocide in his homeland. Eugène Rwamucyo was convicted of complicity in genocide, complicity in crimes against humanity, and conspiring to prepare for those crimes by disseminating propaganda and attempting to conceal evidence of mass murder. The 65-year-old, who had been acquitted of direct charges of genocide and crimes against humanity, maintained his innocence. Reports from local media indicated that his legal team plans to appeal the decision. This trial represents the eighth such proceeding in France concerning the 1994 genocide, an event during which an estimated 800,000 individuals lost their lives. During the 100-day massacre, Hutu extremists targeted ethnic Tutsis and Hutus identified as politically moderate. Nicolas Peron, the prosecuting attorney, stated that no evidence demonstrated Rwamucyo personally conducted summary executions or acts of torture. However, Peron asserted that the former physician should not “escape his responsibilities,” emphasizing that one can “kill with words.” The prosecution alleged that Rwamucyo, who was born into a Hutu family, engaged in spreading anti-Tutsi propaganda. Furthermore, they cited witness testimonies accusing him of assisting in the burial of victims in mass graves, described as “in a final effort to destroy evidence of genocide.” The prosecution had sought a 30-year prison sentence for Rwamucyo, whereas representatives for survivors had advocated for a life imprisonment term. Angélique Uwamahoro, who was 13 years old during the genocide, testified that she observed Rwamucyo at a roadblock in the southern town of Butare and heard him inciting militiamen to kill Tutsi individuals, as reported by the Associated Press news agency. She stated, “He wanted to incite them to kill us so we don’t get out alive.” However, Rwamucyo declared to the court: “I assure you that I did not order the killing of the survivors nor did I allow them to be killed.” His defense attorneys contended that his participation in mass grave burials stemmed from a desire to prevent a “health crisis” that would have arisen had the bodies remained unburied. They further claimed that his prosecution was a result of his disagreement with Rwanda’s current government. In 2009, a Rwandan local court sentenced Rwamucyo to life imprisonment in absentia. Subsequently, a French court declined Rwanda’s request for his extradition. His arrest occurred in Sannois, located north of Paris, in 2010, following his attendance at the funeral of a former Rwandan official who had been convicted of war crimes committed during the genocide. Last December, another former physician, Sosthene Munyemana, received a 24-year prison sentence from a French court for offenses encompassing genocide and crimes against humanity. Munyemana had been accused of orchestrating torture and killings during the genocide.