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New genocide trials open in Rwanda
2 former officials enter pleas; cases adjourned
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December 30, 1996
Web posted at: 11:00 a.m. EST (1600 GMT)KIGALI, Rwanda (CNN) -- Two former government officials will face trial in their native Rwanda for their alleged role in the 1994 slaughter of half a million people. Both appeared in court on Monday for the first genocide trials in the Rwandan capital but their cases were immediately adjourned.
The trial of Silas Munyagishali, a former state prosecutor, was adjourned to an unnamed date in 1997 and was moved to the town of Gitarama south of Kigali, court officials said.
The trial of Theodomir Ruzirabwoba, a former administrator in Kigali, was adjourned until January 3 to allow lawyers for his alleged victims more time to compile evidence.
Munyagishali is accused of helping organize Hutu civilian militias responsible for the massacres in Kigali of thousands of minority Tutsis and politically moderate Hutus.
The prosecution was required by law to move Munyagishali's trial so that the former Kigali prosecutor is not tried in a jurisdiction where he had practiced.
Ruzirabwoba faces charges of committing acts of genocide and crimes against humanity. He allegedly organized Hutu militias in Mbogo, a suburb of Kigali. He is also charged with leading massacres against Tutsi civilians in 1992 and 1993, before the 90-day genocide that lasted from April to July 1994.
Ruzirabwoba's attorneys said they only gained access to case materials on December 17 and requested more time to review them. Both men entered pleas, saying they were innocent of the charges.
Up to six people could stand trial in Kigali this week, said Rwandan Deputy Justice Minister Gerard Gahima.
Verdict in 2 other cases due soon
The first genocide trials in Rwanda opened on Friday in the southeastern town of Kibungo, where Deo Bizimana, a former medical assistant, and Egide Gatanazi, a former local administrator, both pleaded not guilty to organizing massacres.
The court adjourned until January 3 to reach a verdict.
More than 85,000 suspects are crammed into local jails, awaiting possible prosecution. So far, all the suspects scheduled for trial were on a government list of 1,946 people believed to have orchestrated the genocide.
All face the death penalty and are not allowed to plea bargain. Those who confess to following orders to kill will be offered leniency and a maximum seven-year sentence.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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