A Paris court has sentenced Eugène Rwamucyo, a 65-year-old former doctor, to 27 years in prison for his involvement in the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Rwamucyo was found guilty of “complicity in genocide,” “complicity in crimes against humanity,” and “conspiracy” to facilitate these crimes, although he was acquitted of the more serious charges of “genocide” and “crimes against humanity.”
Throughout the four-week trial, Rwamucyo maintained his innocence, denying any wrongdoing. The court proceedings drew significant attention, as several witnesses traveled from Rwanda to share their harrowing experiences during the genocide, which claimed the lives of over 800,000 people, primarily Tutsis and moderate Hutus.
One of the witnesses, Angélique Uwamahoro, who was just 13 during the genocide, testified against Rwamucyo, describing how she saw him at the scene of a massacre in a convent where her family had sought refuge. Uwamahoro recounted the deaths of family members and noted that Rwamucyo encouraged militiamen to kill Tutsi individuals at a roadblock in Butare. “He wanted to incite them to kill us so we don’t get out alive,” she stated.
Other witnesses provided graphic accounts of the aftermath of the violence, detailing mass graves and the forced burial of victims, including reports of wounded individuals being buried alive. The prosecution accused Rwamucyo of spreading anti-Tutsi propaganda and overseeing the burial of victims in mass graves, while Rwamucyo claimed his actions were motivated by hygiene concerns, denying any instances of survivors being buried alive.
Rwamucyo was arrested in 2010 in a suburb north of Paris, where he was practicing medicine at a hospital. His arrest occurred as he attended the funeral of Jean Bosco Baravagwiza, a key figure in the genocide who was convicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in 2003.
This trial marks the seventh case related to the Rwandan genocide to be heard in Paris over the past decade. In December 2023, another Rwandan doctor, Sosthene Munyemana, was also convicted of genocide-related charges and sentenced to 24 years in prison, a decision he has since appealed.
The sentencing of Rwamucyo highlights ongoing efforts to seek justice for the victims of the Rwandan genocide and hold perpetrators accountable, even decades after the atrocities occurred.
