EIGHT YEARS ON … A RECORD OF GACACA MONITORING IN RWANDA 1 Penal RefoRm InteRnatIonal ISBn: 978-0-9535220-6-4 © Penal Reform International 2010 for all enquires please write to [email protected] PRI permits and encourages the free reproduction, distribution, and translation of any and all material in this book, providing due credit is given to Penal Reform International and this publication. Penal Reform International: www.penalreform.org Designed by Intertype: www.intertype.co.uk Printed and bound by Bell & Bain limited Contents Preface 4 acknowledgements 6 Glossary 7 Chronology of relevant events 8 Reports on Gacaca: Penal Reform International 11 1. Introduction 13 1.1 Why Gacaca? 14 1.2 PRI’s Gacaca research 17 1.3 Data collection methods 17 1.4 Research limitations 19 2. Establishing the truth: Gacaca in theory and practice 21 2.1 Gacaca structures and jurisdiction 24 2.2 The quality of evidence and State involvement in its gathering 27 2.3 Gacaca judges and their function 29 2.4 Public participation in Gacaca 32 2.5 The importance of confessing and the implications of the guilty plea 34 2.6 The role of ‘the Righteous’ 37 3. Quality of justice for all 41 3.1 Dealing with the innocent 41 3.2 Gacaca and crimes of revenge 43 3.3 Reparations: developing compensation and community service schemes 45 4. Reconciliation and living together again 49 4.1 Returning home: learning to live together again 51 4.2 The solidarity camps 54 4.3 Settling property offences 58 4.4 The impact of community service on survivors and perpetrators 60 5. Conclusion: balancing justice and reconciliation 63 Select bibliography 68 Eight years on … a record of Gacaca monitoring in Rwanda PrefaCe Penal Reform International (PRI), founded in 1989, is an international non- governmental organisation promoting penal reform worldwide. It has regional programmes in the Great lakes, the middle east and north africa, Central and eastern europe, Central asia and the South Caucasus, and representation in north america. PRI has Consultative Status with the United nations (Un) economic and Social Council and the Council of europe, and observer Status with the african Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. PRI seeks to achieve penal reform by promoting: • Development and implementation of international human rights instruments in relation to law enforcement and prison conditions • Reduction of the use of imprisonment throughout the world • elimination of unfair and unethical discrimination in all penal measures • abolition of the death penalty • Use of constructive non-custodial sanctions that support the social reintegration of offenders while taking into account the interests of victims PRI has been undertaking independent monitoring of the Gacaca courts in Rwanda since they became operational in 2001 in response to the crimes committed during the 1994 genocide. PRI’s monitoring has been formulated around a programme of ‘action research’, which has been designed to enable a team of local researchers to capture the perceptions and experiences of key stakeholders – namely genocide survivors, witnesses, detainees, civil society organisations and government staff – in the Gacaca process. With Rwanda’s Gacaca process drawing to a close, the purpose of this volume is to condense the findings of PRI’s research into an easily digestible form for use by anyone with an interest in Rwanda and Gacaca. the volume’s structure is intended to ‘flag up’ key themes and issues addressed during PRI’s research, to outline the key arguments, and to signpost where to go in the PRI literature for greater detail. 4 Disclaimer the opinions expressed in this report do not necessarily represent the policy of PRI. the names of all individuals quoted or referred to in this report have been removed to protect their identities, except where comments or statements made are a matter of public record. 5 Eight years on … a record of Gacaca monitoring in Rwanda aCknowledgements PRI is indebted to the dedication and hard work of its staff and others who have been involved over the years with the collection, analysis and preparation of its Gacaca research. for reasons of confidentiality, the names of individuals are not listed here, but their contributions to the research and its objectives are highly appreciated. Gratitude is also due to the many hundreds of individuals who agreed to be interviewed and freely gave their opinions during the course of this research. PRI gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the following government agencies for its Gacaca research programme: • UK (United Kingdom) Government’s Department for International Development (DfID) • Swiss agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) • Belgian ministry of foreign affairs PRI gratefully acknowledges the financial contribution made towards the cost of this publication by the Comité Catholique contre la faim et pour le Développement (CCfD). PRI would like to thank Jonathan Blagbrough for compiling and editing this publication. 6 glossary (Kinyarwanda: Rwandan language) Cell second tier administrative area, above the village (Umudugudu) level. Gacaca (Kinyarwanda): ‘grass’; the name given to a system of community-based courts for prosecuting genocide suspects. Ibuka (Kinyarwanda): ‘to remember’; the name of the largest organisation for Rwandan genocide survivors. Ingando (Kinyarwanda): ‘stopping place’; the term used for solidarity camps. Inkotanyi (Kinyarwanda): ‘tireless fighters’; the name adopted by the members of the Rwandan Patriotic army. Interahamwe ‘those who work together’; name given to (Kinyarwanda): genocidal militias. Intwali (Kinyarwanda): refers to a hero, a brave person who does not retreat before an obstacle. Shortened from intwali mu butatbazi, ‘a heroic rescuer’, also known as ‘the righteous’. Inyangamugayo ‘people of integrity’; Gacaca judges. (Kinyarwanda): Nyumbakumi most basic Rwandan administrative unit (Kinyarwanda): (replaced by Umudugudu (village)). each group of 10 houses was the administrative responsibility of a locally elected leader, called a nyumbakumi. Sector third tier administrative area, above the village (Umudugudu) and the cell. Umuganda mandatory communal work. Currently takes (Kinyarwanda): place on the last Saturday of each month. Umudugudu ‘village’; basic Rwandan administrative unit. (Kinyarwanda): 7 Eight years on … a record of Gacaca monitoring in Rwanda Chronology of relevant events (Sources: BBC News; PRI reports) 1300s: tutsis migrate into what is now Rwanda, which was already inhabited by the twa and Hutu peoples. Late 1800s: tutsi King Kigeli Rwabugiri establishes a unified state with a centralised military structure. 1890: Rwanda becomes part of German east africa. 1916: Belgian forces occupy Rwanda. 1923: Belgium granted league of nations mandate to govern Ruanda- Urundi, which it ruled indirectly through tutsi kings. 1946: Ruanda-Urundi becomes Un trust territory governed by Belgium. 1957: Hutus issue manifesto calling for a change in Rwanda’s power structure to give them a voice commensurate with their numbers; Hutu political parties formed. 1959: tutsi King Kigeli V, together with tens of thousands of tutsis, forced into exile in Uganda following inter-ethnic violence. 1961: Rwanda proclaimed a republic. 1962: Rwanda becomes independent with Grégoire Kayibanda as president. 1973: President Grégoire Kayibanda ousted in military coup led by Juvénal Habyarimana. 1978: new constitution ratified; Habyarimana elected president. 1990: forces of the rebel, mainly tutsi, Rwandan Patriotic front (RPf) invade Rwanda from Uganda. 1991: new multi-party constitution promulgated. 1993: President Habyarimana signs a power-sharing agreement with the tutsis in the tanzanian town of arusha, ostensibly signalling the end of civil war; Un mission sent to monitor the peace agreement. 1994 April: Habyarimana and the Burundian president are killed after their plane is shot down over Kigali; RPf launches a major offensive; extremist Hutu militia and elements of the Rwandan military begin the systematic 8 massacre of tutsis; Hutu militias flee to Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo, DRC), taking with them around two million Hutu refugees. 1995: Un-appointed International Criminal tribunal for Rwanda (ICtR) begins charging and sentencing a number of people responsible for the Hutu-tutsi atrocities. 2000 April: ministers and members of parliament elect Vice-President Paul Kagame as Rwanda’s new president. 2001 March: Gacaca law ‘for the prosecution of offences related to the crime of genocide and crimes against humanity committed between 1 october 1990 and 31 December 1994’ (organic law no. 40/2000) enters into force. 2001 October: Voting to elect members of traditional ‘Gacaca’ courts begins. the courts aim to clear the backlog of 1994 genocide cases. 2002 June: Start of Gacaca pilot phase. 2003 January: Presidential Decree provisionally releasing more than 20,000 prisoners. 2003 May: Voters back a draft constitution that bans the incitement of ethnic hatred. 2003 August: Paul Kagame wins the first presidential elections since the 1994 genocide. 2003 October: first multi-party parliamentary elections; President Kagame’s RPf wins absolute majority. 2004 June: 2001 Gacaca law is revised by organic law no. 16/2004, altering the 2001 legislation considerably. 2005 July: Government begins the mass release of 36,000 prisoners. most of them have confessed to involvement in the 1994 genocide. It is the third phase of releases since 2003. 2006 January: Rwanda’s 12 provinces