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CANADIAN COURT GIVES LONGEST POSSIBLE SENTENCE IN HISTORIC RWANDA WAR CRIMES CASE
By Sidhartha Banerjee
The Canadian Press
Oct 29 2009
MONTREAL -- A Canadian judge has imposed the toughest sentence
possible on a man convicted of committing atrocities during the 1994
Rwandan genocide, described as the worst possible crime a human being
can commit.
In a historic case, Desire Munyaneza was sentenced Thursday to life
imprisonment without possibility of parole for 25 years.
Quebec Superior Court Justice Andre Denis handed down the sentence
in a case international legal observers followed closely because
of the implications it could have on similar prosecutions both here
and abroad.
He is the first person convicted under Canada's Crimes Against Humanity
and War Crimes Act, enacted in 2000.
Munyaneza's crimes included raping women, participating in the
slaughter of hundreds inside a church, and using sticks to beat
children tied in sacks.
"The accused, an educated man from a privileged background, chose to
kill, rape and pillage in the name of his ethnic group's supremacy,"
Denis wrote in his judgment.
"The sentence I am imposing is severe because the law considers the
crimes committed by the accused to be the worst in existence.
"History has shown that what happened there (in Rwanda) can happen
anywhere in the world, and that nobody is immune to such a tragedy."
With time already served since his arrest, the 42-year-old man will
only become eligible for parole in 2030.
The defence is appealing the verdict, but a hearing before the Quebec
Court of Appeal isn't likely until next year and both sides agree
the case will ultimately wind up before the Supreme Court of Canada.
"We've got what we believe to be a pretty strong appeal," defence
lawyer Richard Perras said outside the courtroom.
A life sentence was anticipated but the lawyers for the 42-year-old
father of two had asked for leniency, saying the acts were not
premeditated so parole eligibility should have come after 20 years.
But Denis ruled that the acts were clearly premeditated, despite the
accused's constant denials.
Denis said as much when Munyaneza was found guilty last May on seven
charges related to genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity
against minority Tutsis and moderate Hutus massacred between April
and July of 1994.
About 800,000 people were murdered.
Munyaneza, the son of a wealthy businessman from the Butare area,
was arrested by the RCMP at his Toronto-area home in 2005 after a
lengthy investigation.
He had arrived in Toronto in 1997 seeking refugee status but his
claim was rejected.
The nearly two-year trial involved hearings in Canada, Europe and
Africa, with 66 witnesses often heard behind closed doors. Human rights
advocates and genocide experts such as former Canadian general Romeo
Dallaire also testified.
The entire endeavour was quite costly and observers hope that the
government will continue to support other cases.
"I think the will is there among the independent observers of this
kind of trial," said Bruce Broomhall, a law professor at the Universite
du Quebec a Montreal who followed the trial closely.
"I hope concerned parliamentarians will put the question to the
government and we'll see an increase in the budget for investigations
and prosecutions in the future."
Crown prosecutor Pascale Ledoux said Thursday that she was satisfied
with the end result.
"It underlies the importance of the fight against crimes against
humanity and the application of law - no matter where those (accused)
are," she said.
As he pronounced his sentence, Denis also addressed genocide naysayers.
"Denying that a genocide occurred is killing the victims a second
time," Denis said, listing off 20th century atrocities in Namibia,
Armenia, Cambodia, the Balkans and Nazi Europe.
"So it must be said and repeated: there is no worse crime than
genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes which are still
occurring today."
A Montreal Rwandan genocide survivor support group that first turned
the RCMP's attention toward Munyaneza applauded the sentence and said
it would continue its efforts to pursue other criminals.
"We're going to keep working for justice for the survivors," Jean-Paul
Nylinkwaya said.
By Sidhartha Banerjee
The Canadian Press
Oct 29 2009
MONTREAL -- A Canadian judge has imposed the toughest sentence
possible on a man convicted of committing atrocities during the 1994
Rwandan genocide, described as the worst possible crime a human being
can commit.
In a historic case, Desire Munyaneza was sentenced Thursday to life
imprisonment without possibility of parole for 25 years.
Quebec Superior Court Justice Andre Denis handed down the sentence
in a case international legal observers followed closely because
of the implications it could have on similar prosecutions both here
and abroad.
He is the first person convicted under Canada's Crimes Against Humanity
and War Crimes Act, enacted in 2000.
Munyaneza's crimes included raping women, participating in the
slaughter of hundreds inside a church, and using sticks to beat
children tied in sacks.
"The accused, an educated man from a privileged background, chose to
kill, rape and pillage in the name of his ethnic group's supremacy,"
Denis wrote in his judgment.
"The sentence I am imposing is severe because the law considers the
crimes committed by the accused to be the worst in existence.
"History has shown that what happened there (in Rwanda) can happen
anywhere in the world, and that nobody is immune to such a tragedy."
With time already served since his arrest, the 42-year-old man will
only become eligible for parole in 2030.
The defence is appealing the verdict, but a hearing before the Quebec
Court of Appeal isn't likely until next year and both sides agree
the case will ultimately wind up before the Supreme Court of Canada.
"We've got what we believe to be a pretty strong appeal," defence
lawyer Richard Perras said outside the courtroom.
A life sentence was anticipated but the lawyers for the 42-year-old
father of two had asked for leniency, saying the acts were not
premeditated so parole eligibility should have come after 20 years.
But Denis ruled that the acts were clearly premeditated, despite the
accused's constant denials.
Denis said as much when Munyaneza was found guilty last May on seven
charges related to genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity
against minority Tutsis and moderate Hutus massacred between April
and July of 1994.
About 800,000 people were murdered.
Munyaneza, the son of a wealthy businessman from the Butare area,
was arrested by the RCMP at his Toronto-area home in 2005 after a
lengthy investigation.
He had arrived in Toronto in 1997 seeking refugee status but his
claim was rejected.
The nearly two-year trial involved hearings in Canada, Europe and
Africa, with 66 witnesses often heard behind closed doors. Human rights
advocates and genocide experts such as former Canadian general Romeo
Dallaire also testified.
The entire endeavour was quite costly and observers hope that the
government will continue to support other cases.
"I think the will is there among the independent observers of this
kind of trial," said Bruce Broomhall, a law professor at the Universite
du Quebec a Montreal who followed the trial closely.
"I hope concerned parliamentarians will put the question to the
government and we'll see an increase in the budget for investigations
and prosecutions in the future."
Crown prosecutor Pascale Ledoux said Thursday that she was satisfied
with the end result.
"It underlies the importance of the fight against crimes against
humanity and the application of law - no matter where those (accused)
are," she said.
As he pronounced his sentence, Denis also addressed genocide naysayers.
"Denying that a genocide occurred is killing the victims a second
time," Denis said, listing off 20th century atrocities in Namibia,
Armenia, Cambodia, the Balkans and Nazi Europe.
"So it must be said and repeated: there is no worse crime than
genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes which are still
occurring today."
A Montreal Rwandan genocide survivor support group that first turned
the RCMP's attention toward Munyaneza applauded the sentence and said
it would continue its efforts to pursue other criminals.
"We're going to keep working for justice for the survivors," Jean-Paul
Nylinkwaya said.