Interahamwe man gets 20 years from the Hague

Rwanda’s request that convicts be relocated to the country has gained momentum after last week’s signing of an agreement between the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL) and Rwanda, whereby Kigali would host some convicts of the tribunal.

They will be held at the prison of Mpanga, in southern Rwanda, a detention centre built by the government to receive ICTR convicts.

The SCSL differs from the other tribunals created by the UN Security Council, in not being an ad hoc international criminal tribunal.

Whereas the international criminal tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and the ICTR have their headquarters in the Hague and in Arusha, respectively, the SCSL sits in the country where the crimes were committed.

It is part of the Sierra Leone legal system, though it receives international support and some of its judges are foreigners.

Article 26 of the Statute of the Tribunal stipulates that terms of imprisonment shall be served in Rwanda or any of the states that have indicated to the Security Council their willingness to accept convicted persons.

Fifteen prisoners of the ICTR, including former prime minister Jean Kambanda, are serving their sentences in Mali. Former Italian-Belgian radio presenter Georges Ruggiu, the only non-Rwandan to be convicted by the ICTR, is serving his sentence in Italy.

Other signatory countries that have not received any convict are Benin, Swaziland, France, Sweden and Rwanda.