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The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda: Its role in the African context

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 January 2010

Djiena Wembou
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Extract

In the face of the atrocities committed in Rwanda between April and July 1994, the international community committed itself to ensuring respect for international humanitarian law and trying those responsible for breaches of it. Thus, on 8 November 1994, the United Nations Security Council adopted resolution 955 creating the International Criminal Tribunal for the prosecution of persons responsible for genocide and other serious violations of international humanitarian law committed in the territory of Rwanda and of Rwandan citizens responsible for such acts committed in the territory of neighbouring States.

Type
The Rwanda Tribunal: its role in the African context
Information
International Review of the Red Cross (1961 - 1997) , Volume 37 , Special Issue 321: International criminal jurisdiction and international humanitarian law: the Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and for Rwanda , December 1997 , pp. 685 - 693
Copyright
Copyright © International Committee of the Red Cross 1997

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Footnotes

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Djiena Wembou is a Cameroonian living in Abidjan and serving as the ICRC Advisory Service's coordinator for Africa. A qualified teacher of public law with doctorates in both international relations and law, Mr Wembou has taught at several universities in Africa and the United States of America and held various posts in his country's diplomatic service.

References

1 For a more detailed analysis of the events in Rwanda in 1994, see Guichaoua, A., Les crises politiques au Burundi et au Rwanda (1993/1994), University of Science and Technology, Lille, 1995, pp. 523–531 Google Scholar; Ternon, Y., L'État criminel — Les génocides au XXe Siècle, Éditions le Seuil, Paris, 1995.Google Scholar

2 See communication by President Laity Kama, “Le Tribunal pénal international pour le Rwanda et la répression des crimes de guerre”, The United Nations and international humanitarian law, Actes du colloque international à l'occasion du cinquantième anniversaire de l'ONU, Éditions Pedone, Paris, 1996, pp. 249–258.

3 The clear lack of cooperation with, not to say suspicion of, the Tribunal on the part of certain African States emerges from President Kama's letters calling on the OAU Secretary-General to allow him to urge African Heads of States to arrest and extradite suspected criminals and make the necessary arrangements for detaining them in African prisons. See the Report by the Secretary-General to the Sixtv-fourth Ordinary Session of the OAU Council of Ministers, Yaounde, 1996.

4 Degni-Ségui, R., La création du Tribunal pénal international — Historique et enjeux Google Scholar. Statement to the OAU/ICRC Seminar on the Tribunal and the implementation of international humanitarian law. Addis-Ababa, 1997 (not published).

5 This agreement, signed by France, the United States of America, the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union, created the Nuremberg Tribunal for judging the leading Nazi criminals.

6 Mubiala, Mutoy, “Le Tribunal international pour le Rwanda”, Revue générale de droit international public. Vol. 99, 1995, p. 940.Google Scholar

7 Degni-Ségui, R., op. cit., p. 15.Google Scholar

8 In this connection see Tomuschat, C., “A system of international criminal prosecution is taking shape”, Review of the International Commission of Jurists, No. 50, 1993, p. 60.Google Scholar

9 Mubiala, Mutoy, op. cit., p. 948.Google Scholar

10 Report by the Secretary-General to the Security Council, S/1995/134 of 13 January 1995.

11 Introductory note to the Report by the OAU Secretary-General to the Thirty-third Ordinary Session of the Conference of Heads of States and Government and to the Sixty-sixth Ordinary Session of the Council of Ministers, Harare. Zimbabwe, 26 May–4 June 1997, p. 56.

12 Cooperation agreement between the OAU and the ICRC, 4 May 1992 (not published).

13 National seminars on the enforcement of international humanitarian law took place in the following countries in 1996: Cote d'lvoire, Togo, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Senegal (also in 1997) and Togo; and in 1997: Benin and Mozambique.

14 Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons which May be Deemed to be Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects, 10 October 1980.

15 Quoted by Mubiala, Mutoy, op. cit., p. 938 Google Scholar