PROSECUTOR SHOWS VIDEOS OF REMAINS OF VICTIMS

Arusha, November 21, 2003 (FH) – Over 20 video footages showing theremains of victims of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, were on Friday displayedas evidence at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), in thetrial of four former ministers of the interim government. The trial groups together the former minister of health, Dr CasimirBizimungu, that of Public service Prosper Mugiraneza, Jerome Bicamumpaka(Foreign affairs) and Justin Mugenzi, former minister of Commerce.

1 min 13Approximate reading time

Each of the accused is charged with six counts of genocide and crimesagainst humanity. The videos were presented and commented upon by the prosecution's secondwitness, Eric Serge Rousseau from Belgium, who shot the images around thecountry in 1995. Rousseau, who descends, on his mother's side, from a Jewish family that wasdecimated during the Jewish holocaust, arrived in Rwanda in late July 1994. The witness roved the whole country as a member of a commission set up bythe government that was supposed to identify massacre sites and keep a tallyof the victims. According to Rousseau, the images show freshly exhumed corpses that wereretrieved from latrines and mass graves. “Survivors of the genocide helped us identify the sites”, revealed thewitness, often crying as he was commenting the images. According to him,some survivors, out of respect for the victims, refused to have the remainsof their close ones from being filmed. He continued that there came a time when he himself could not film theremains because of the strong putrid smell. The witness will continue presenting video evidence on Monday. At the beginning of the trial, the representative of the prosecutor, Paul Ng'arua from Kenya, had declared that the four accused were responsible forthe death of 1,270. 000 people. “Their visits were always followed by the massacres and disappearances ofTutsis”, he had alleged. All the accused plead not guilty. The trial is taking part in trial Chamber Two of the ICTR composed of JudgesAsoka de Zoysa Gunawardana of Sri Lanka (presiding), Khalida Rashid Khanfrom Pakistan and Lee Gacuiga Muthoga from Kenya. ER/KN/CE/FH (GVII'1121'e)