Rwanda asks UK to extradite genocide suspects amid successful migrant deal

Rwanda is demanding Britain allows the prosecution of five men in the UK who are suspected of genocide in a quid pro quo for the migrant deportation deal.

Johnston Busingye, Rwanda’s high commissioner, has urged Britain to extradite or facilitate the trial of the five men – all living in Britain – whom it has alleged were involved in the genocide in which more than 800,000 Tutsis died in 100 days of slaughter and ethnic cleansing in 1994.

At an event to mark the 30th anniversary of the genocide at the Foreign Office, Mr Busingye said the five could escape “their day in court” if there were further delays and urged the Government to apply the same joint commitment to the cases as they had to the deportation agreement.

It was held just three days after the Safety of Rwanda Act – designed to pave the way for the first flights to Rwanda in 10 to 12 weeks time – was granted Royal Assent.

The five suspects are currently under investigation by Scotland Yard’s war crimes unit that has sent officers to Rwanda to interview witnesses and sift through documentary evidence. It has been described by the force as a “protracted and lengthy process”.

The referral of the cases to the war crimes unit followed a ruling by High Court judges who blocked an extradition request for the five by Rwanda on the grounds that there was a risk they would not receive a fair trial if they were returned to the central African state.

Rwanda is pressing for a faster-paced investigation because of the age of the five suspects, all of whom deny the allegation of involvement in genocide.

Last year UN appeal judges ordered the war crimes trial of Felicien Kabuga, a 90-year-old Rwandan genocide suspect, to be indefinitely suspended because he has dementia. He was accused of financing Hutu militias, as well as encouraging hate speech to be broadcast on his radio station RTLM.

After years as a fugitive from international justice, Kabuga, who had a $5 million (£3.9 million) bounty on his head, was arrested near Paris in May 2020. He was transferred to The Hague to stand trial at the residual mechanism, a court that deals with remaining cases from the now-closed UN tribunal for Rwanda.

At the Foreign Office event, attended by Andrew Mitchell, the deputy foreign secretary, Mr Busingye said: “In the UK, a number of alleged genocide perpetrators remain at large, at the expense of the British taxpayer, hiding in plain sight. All we have always asked is that they have their day in court. We will not get tired of asking.

“Not long ago, the international residual mechanism for criminal tribunals in The Hague found Kabuga, a major genocide financier, too senile to stand trial. He will enjoy impunity the rest of his life. The longer the processing of the suspects in the UK is delayed, the older they get, the more justice recedes.

“We asked the same of every country where a genocide suspect was located. Most extradited, deported, transferred, or tried suspects on their soil. So there is no shortage of good examples.

“Now that Rwanda and the UK know what we are capable of achieving when we work together, I urge that the matter of these suspects be attended to in the same way.”

Suspects deny the allegations

The five, all in their 60s, are Celestin Mutabaruka, from Kent; Vincent Brown, also known as Vincent Bajinya, from Islington, north London; Celestin Ugirashebuja, from Essex; Charles Munyaneza, from Bedford; and Emmanuel Nteziryayo, from Manchester.

The suspects have been interviewed voluntarily by the police and deny the allegations. One of the suspects Celestin Mutabaruka, 68, has spoken out, saying he welcomed the chance to clear his name. He added: “I have nothing to hide.”

Mr Mutabaruka’s son Peter said his father was an outspoken critic of the Rwandan government and he believed that has made him a target. “This is politically motivated,” he claimed.

The suspects could still be extradited or tried at The Hague depending on the outcome of the police investigations and decisions by James Cleverly, the Home Secretary.

A Met Police spokesman said: “Active enquiries into those individuals and the allegations made against them are ongoing.”