22.02.11 - RWANDA/GREAT-BRITAIN - RWANDA TO RENEW ATTEMPT TO HAVE GENOCIDE SUSPECTS EXTRADITED

Kigali, February 22, 2011 (FH) - Rwanda announced on Tuesday that the Office of the Prosecution was going to renew his attempt to have British judiciary extradite genocide suspects currently living in Great-Britain.

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In 2009, the British judiciary refused to extradite Rwandan citizens on grounds that there was no guarantee that defence witnesses would be able to testify in good conditions, and that the accused could be sentenced to life in jail with solitary confinement .

London was relying on ICTR's earlier decisions on the same matter.

However, Prosecution spokesman Alain Mukurarinda speaking Tuesday on Radio Rwanda said that his country had abolished the solitary confinement sentence and adopted new rules for protecting witnesses, therefore there was no reason for Great-Britain to reject the extradition requests.

" Ideally, the suspects should be tried in Rwanda", he added, but he also confirmed that Great-Britain had recently established laws for trying genocide suspects.

Emmanuel Nteziryayo, former mayor of Mudasomwa (South), Célestin Ugirashebuja, former mayor of Kigoma (South), Charles Munyaneza, former mayor of Kinyamakara (South) and Vincent Bajinya, allegedly a former Interahamwe leader were arrested in Great-Britain on December 28, 2006.

They deny all the charges.

ER/GF

© Hirondelle News Agency