Kabuga trial: Witness pins him as being behind hate broadcaster RTLM

In the trial of Felicien Kabuga, the notorious chief financier of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, witnesses minced no words in exposing his direct involvement in the genocide. Most especially he was the mastermind behind hate broadcaster Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines- RTLM’s, which was very instrumental in disseminating the hate campaign of extermination against Tutsis.

Kabuga, the 89-year-old who evaded justice for so long, attended his trial virtually. He seems to have been following proceedings from a distance in a wheelchair.

The witness, whose names prosecutor decided to conceal in different codes, took to the floor and stated that the suspect chaired most of the board and executive meetings of the radio mostly encouraging practitioners to mobilize listeners into killing Tutsis in their neighborhoods.

According to different testimonies, Kabuga had powers to defy and or disregard directives from Faustin Rucogoza the then minister in charge of information. Rucogoza was mentioned as an official who, on a repetitive basis, summoned leaders of RTLM and urged them to stop propagating and promoting hate speech targeting Tutsis people and inciting Hutus to exterminate them.

As a member of Akazu (a nucleolus cabal of Hutu-power members) Kabuga brushed off minister’s remarks and warnings. Instead, he chose to reward RTLM journalists who, on a daily basis, exposed and mocked officials who were not part of the genocide agenda to kill Tutsis or Hutus who were accomplice of RPF-Inkotanyi.

On 7th of April Rucogoza, a Hutu by ethnicity, was hunted down and killed. Prior to his death RTLM, Rucogoza, on orders of Kabuga was labeled treasonous just like his like-minded colleagues such as Theoneste Gafaranga, Serubyogo, Gasesero, Nkundabakize, etc. who were killed after RTLM mobilized killers to hunt them down.

The witness further detailed how Tutsis, through RTLM, were dehumanized in several broadcasts by calling them names like snakes, cockroaches and urged Hutus to kill them as a means of getting rid of them.

A reminder that Kabuga stands accused on a number of counts related to genocide, specifically genocide, complicity in genocide, direct and public incitement to commit genocide attempt to commit genocide and conspiracy to commit genocide. Other charges include persecution and extermination – both as crimes against humanity