\nArusha, 22 July 2009 (FH) - The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) deferred to 23 September the opening of the trial of the former Minister for Planning, Augustin Ngirabatware, who is also the son-in-law of the wealthy businessman and on the run, Felicien Kabuga, the alleged financier of the 1994 genocide.\n<\/p>\n
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\nIn a prior decision, the ICTR Chamber II had scheduled the beginning of the trial for 3 August.\n<\/p>\n
\nThe deferral, according to the new order, was to allow the new lead counsel of the accused, Briton Peter Herbert, to adequately prepare his client's defence.\n<\/p>\n
\nThe Registry terminated the contract of the former Counsel, American professor David Thomas, following the accused's lack of confidence in his lawyer.\n<\/p>\n
\nHerbert has already indicated, in a motion addressed on Tuesday to the Chamber, that he would not be ready on 23 September, until December or January 2010.\n<\/p>\n
\nArrested in Germany on 17 September 2007, the former minister has been in the custody of the ICTR since 8 October 2008, whereas his father-in-law is still at large, less than two years to the close of the tribunal.\n<\/p>\n
\nAccused of crimes of genocide and crimes against humanity, Ngirabatware claimed his innocence during his first initial appearance on 10 October 2008 on the basis of an indictment from 1999.\n<\/p>\n
\nFollowing the amendment of the text, a new appearance took place on 10 February, during which he once again pleaded not guilty.\n<\/p>\n
\nThe former minister was accused of having used public funds to finance the activities of the Interahamwe militiamen, the main armed element of the genocide.\n<\/p>\n
\nA doctor of economics from the University of Freiburg (Switzerland), Ngirabatware was, in his country, a teacher at the National University of Rwanda (1986-1994), then Minister of Planning (1990-1994).\n<\/p>\n
\nAfter his departure into exile in July 1994, he worked in various research institutes in Gabon and in France.\n<\/p>\n
\nThe Rwandan academic will be tried by a Chamber presided by the Tanzanian Judge William Hussein Sekule.\n<\/p>\n
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\nFour other ICTR prisoners, including a former minister during the genocide, are waiting to appear.\n<\/p>\n
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\nER\/MM \/SC\n<\/p>\n
\n© Hirondelle News Agency<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Arusha, 22 July 2009 (FH) - The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) deferred to 23 September the opening of the trial of the former Minister for Planning, Augustin Ngirabatware, who is also the son-in-law of the wealthy businessman and on the run, Felicien Kabuga, the alleged financier of the 1994 genocide.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[555],"tags":[],"ji_location":[],"class_list":["post-21672","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-hirondellenews"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n