French officials accused of complicity in Rwanda genocide
FRANCE - French officials were complicit in the 1994 genocide of Rwanda’s Tutsi minority, and obstructed justice in subsequent investigations, according to a new report. The “Muse Report” written by Washington DC-based law firm Cunningham Levy Muse was commissioned by the government of Rwanda as part of its investigation into the role of French officials in the genocide, in which around 800,000 people were killed. The 52-page document draws on wide-ranging sources including diplomatic cables and witness testimonies to make a series of allegations. The report claims that French officials supplied weapons to government forces and militias implicated in massacres of Tutsis, despite having knowledge of these atrocities. French officials are also alleged to have provided support and shelter for Rwanda’s interim government, whose leaders were subsequently convicted of genocide charges. The report further accuses the French government of obstructing justice after the genocide by failing to release vital documents, and failing to extradite or prosecute suspected war criminals living in France. “Senior French officials were aware of and aided the actions and goals of both the Habyarimana government (before the genocide) and the génocidaires who seized power,” the report concludes. “A complete investigation into the full extent of the knowledge, conduct and complicity of French officials is warranted...There is no doubt that French archives are filled with documents and materials without which the full history of this era will never be known.” The Foreign Minister of Rwanda, Louise Mushikiwabo, called on the French government to provide transparency and accountability. “The Muse Report exposes a damning summary of conduct by French officials in Rwanda during the 1990s and thereafter, and we agree with the report recommendation that a full investigation into the role of French officials in the genocide is warranted,” she said. (CNN.COM)