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Former UN investigator and prosecutor defends Peter Erlinder and pleads for truth disclosure about Rwanda genocide

Here is the “ill-informed” article written in the Guardian by Andrew Wallis, an unconditional admirer of Paul Kagame:

Genocide law on trial

Peter Erlinder, the US defence lawyer at the international court for Rwanda (ICTR), was arrested for breaking the law on genocide denial in Rwanda. This is not a matter of “repression” of freedom of expression by the government in Kigali (Rwanda genocide tribunal under threat after US lawyer’s detention, 9 June). Mr Erlinder has made clear in speeches defending key genocide perpetrators at the ICTR, and at conference events such as that held in Belgium two weeks ago which welcomed wanted Rwandan genocide suspects alongside him as speakers, that he believes there was no organised genocide in 1994.

Would Germany, with its strict Holocaust denial laws, be expected to allow genocide deniers to work and promulgate their views in its society and open court? Yet again it seems there is one law for the west and one for Africa when it comes to genocide. The western media would do better to focus on the dozens of Rwandan suspects living in Europe with the apparent complicity � or at least judicial and political apathy � of governments here.

Dr Andrew Wallis

University of Cambridge
in The Guardian, Monday 14 June 2010.

[About holocaust versus Rwanda genocide, read Rwanda Circa 1994 is No Nazi Germany by Aimable.]

To the Editor
Guardian Newspaper
London
15 June 2010

Dear Sir/Madam: I was stunned by the recent ill informed remarks of Dr. Andrew Wallis, University of Cambridge in your newspaper on 14 June 2010 regarding Rwanda’s arrest and prosecution of American lawyer Peter Erlinder for alledgedly denying the Rwandan genocide contrary to Rwanda’s domestic criminal code.

I am a former Investigations Team Leader with the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (’ICTR’) from 1996-1997. I and my colleagues were charged with investigating and arresting those persons involved in the widespread slaughter of countless thousands of civilians in Rwanda between January-December 1994. I was also charged with investigating those persons responsible for the fatal rocket attack on the Rwandan Presidential aircraft.

I feel qualified to speak in defence of Dr. Erlinder.

He is a UN defence lawyer. I am a former UN investigator and prosecutor. We effectively sit on opposite sides of the bar table before the international community. But we are one in our search for the truth about the real causes of, and culprits responsible for, the Rwandan Genocide.

I join the many lawyers and human rights advocates from around the world who now come to his defence.

I can tell you from personal experience that the ICTR has totally failed to investigate fully and impartially the real causes of the Rwandan genocide. It has failed to hold accountable all those responsible for the slaughter of an estimated 1,000,000 men, women and children in Rwanda in 1994. It has prosecuted only the losers of the genocide. It has buckled to international pressure to keep secret the involvement of foreign powers in the events which led up the to slaughter.
There is overwhelming credible evidence suggesting prima facie that Paul Kagame and his armed forces were involved the in slaughter of many thousands of civilians in Rwanda in 1994 and 1995.
There is significant credible evidence on the public record linking President Kagame with the shooting down of the Rwandan presidential aircraft in 1994 killing the Presidents of Rwanda and Burundi and all others on board.

Paul Kagame and his regime in Rwanda has for many years now successfully denied these allegations in the press accusing any and all who touches on them as ‘genocide deniers’. What Kagame and his administration are saying, in effect, is that anyone who points the finger at Kagame and his RPF regime alleging their complicity in the violation of international law (no matter how credible the evidence) is a ‘genocide denier’. The net effect is, a ‘genocide denier’ under Rwanda law, is someone who challenges the carefully crafted victor’s history in Rwanda that only one side slaughtered civilians and assassinated political opposition.

I am stunned at the way the West now embraces Kagame and how universities flock to award him for his leadership in Rwanda. Quite apart from the serious allegations leveled at Kagame and his troops for their involvement in war crimes in 1994, many respected human rights advocates have for years complained of his repressive regime and its intolerance of policitcal opposition. One need only look at the recent events concerning the arrest of prosecution of Rwandan opposition leader, Victoire Ingabire, the leader of the United Democratic Forces, who had been attempting to register her party and is now under house arrest for allegedly denying the 1994 genocide.

Kagame’s fingerprints are all over so much suffering in Rwanda and the Great Lakes Region and Dr. Wallis had the real opportunity to join the international struggle to properly document what really happened in Rwanda in 1994, as well as, call for a full independent international inquiry into Kagame’s involvement in the murders of Rwandan President Habyarimana, his counterpart Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira, and the many countless others who have perished in Rwanda.

If to speak of these topics is to be a genocide denier then I am one too.

Michael Hourigan
Attorney
Australia

11 comments

1 H.D.O { 06.16.10 at 12:13 pm }

Congratulation for speaking the truth to Michael Hourigan

2 susan phelps { 06.16.10 at 3:24 pm }

Thank you so much Mr Hourigan for speaking the truth about the Rwandan Tragedy !!!! Indeed a great tragedy so well covered by the Anglosaxon world for the past 20yrs !!!!

3 Timothy { 06.16.10 at 7:04 pm }

I’m glad the truth finally comes out. Now The question is how can The world bring all these criminals to justice. Many of them are still helping Mr. Kagame silence the Rwandan people and suppress any form of political opposition in Rwanda using their magical vague law on Genocide Ideology. Please support the emerging Highly Inclusive Inter Rwandan Dialogue (HIIRD). It has just held its first meeting in the Netherlands and plans to hold its second one in Rwanda before Kagame’s fake elections take place.

4 Cyitatire { 06.16.10 at 11:39 pm }

Thank you Mr Hourigan, if we had people like you in west who speak the truth,we will not had more than 4,000,000.00 Congolese killed by Kagame regime using money from USA and UK.

5 Beatrice { 06.17.10 at 12:18 am }

Oh, Mr Hourigan,You are again an other one Who really commit to say the truth. Many people are confused about what happened in Rwanda and others may keep shut up for secure reason.
However, the truth still be there and I see you as a Hero

6 Francis Muhoozi { 06.17.10 at 4:48 am }

Thank you Michael Hourigan!
Mr. Hourigan can only be compared to Jesus the Son of God who came into this world and allowed himself to be killed for the defence of the helpless, the poor, the neglected, the oppressed, the trampled on, and the tormented by fighting for the truth.
Please Mr.Hourigan keep on telling the truth about the real causes of, and culprits responsible for, the Rwandan Genocide, and your rewards are just kept in heaven.
Despite the overwhelming credible evidence suggesting prima facie that Paul Kagame and his armed forces were involved in the slaughter of many thousands of civilians in Rwanda in 1994 and 1995 and the assassination of presidents Habyarimana and Ntaryamira, friends of Kagame and other powerful people like Dr. Andrew Wallis of University of Cambridge are bent on hiding this very important truth from the world.
Mr. Michael Hourigan, may God bless you. You are my Hero too!

7 Bandibandi { 06.17.10 at 6:51 am }

Time has come to speak the truth and this will heal all of us Rwandans left in the hands of Kagame, the Great Manipulator.

To all of you who are committed to speak the truth about the tragedy in the African Great Lakes Region, keep this noble work up. Humanity will be grateful to you.

8 susan phelps { 06.17.10 at 4:41 pm }

Mr Hourigan, again “Thank You for the truth” but the worldl must know who Kagame is !! He is the aggressor ! He attacked,terrorized Rwanda for 4 years !!! The news of the invasion on October 1st 1990 never hit the headlines !!! Why ???
He was trained, armed and financed by the US to do the invasion !!!! and yet we use the word genocide concerning Rwanda !!!!! This has no sense ! A country defends its self when invaded and this is interpreted as genocide ! If America or England was attacked by another country and they defended themselves would this be interpreted as genocide ???? So why was this applied to Rwanda ?? Rwanda WAS NOT AT WAR !!! in 1990 so what are we talking about ” COLTAN ? “

9 celestin semasana { 06.17.10 at 7:20 pm }

This is what being a “Man” (not gender but courage) is about. Mr. Hourigan is helping Rwandans to get to a real reconciliation. Silence the truth about a problem is not a Solution. I think it is one of the worse remedies. As from a translated rwandan saying about the “right cure” to treat an abscess is to open it first to make sure the whole pus is out. This process is very hurtful of course but helpful. This is what Mr. Hourigan and other “Men” like him (including Mr. Peter Erlinder) are trying to do. This hurts Kagame but he needs to take the “unsweet pill” to free Rwanda which he consideres as his own property. Your sponsors should agree that they are dealing with a wrong guy and understand that they are on the wrong path.

10 Rwemalika { 06.18.10 at 2:42 am }

Guys, you speak like you are having fun about genocide. For those thousands that lost their loved one in the brutal, sadistic murder. its not a joke or fun. We pray for you because you do not know or understand what you are talking about !

11 sipho { 06.28.10 at 9:59 pm }

Thank you all for your insightiful comments.
kagame alone didn’t help carry out the rwandese massacres of 8million mostly hutus.
he had the help of the RWEMALIKAS (the blogger above).
To them that theory of genocide means a lot to them.
It has helped loot out congolese rich mines for years.
And with out it Kagame and his bunch of vampires(INKOTANYI)
EXTREMIST TUTSIS would not cling to power.
They have to continue to spread lies in order to arouse sympathy.
They kill in (the middle of the night) so many innocent hutus
and take their bones into memorial centres in order to get Bill Gates donation.
To mass Murderer Kagame and bunch of hangers on your day is long overdue.
long life to the people of Rwanda.

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