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Court rules, Kabuga unfit to stand trial

By IGIHE
On 7 June 2023 at 04:30

The International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) has declared that Felicien Kabuga, a suspect accused of role in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, is unfit to stand trial and suggested an alternative legal procedure that would not lead to a conviction.

Kabuga’s defence has persistently sought to have the case dismissed, citing concerns about their client’s health due to his advanced age.

Since his arrest in France in 2020, Kabuga has been detained in the Netherlands. The former businessman is accused of financing the genocide and being a co-founder of Radio Television Libre des Milles Collines (RTLM), a media outlet that incited hatred and mobilized for killings targeting Tutsis.

Kabuga, who is believed to be in his late 80s, had been on trial at The Hague branch of the United Nations mechanism that assumed responsibility for the operations of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda since September last year.

According to a decision published on The Hague court’s website, the trial chamber has ruled that Mr. Kabuga is no longer capable of meaningfully participating in his trial. Consequently, rather than terminating the proceedings, the judges have proposed establishing an "alternative finding procedure" that closely resembles a trial but does not allow for a conviction.

Kabuga has been detained in the Netherlands since his arrest in France in 2020.

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