Protais Mpiranya
Encyclopedia
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
n soldier, who is alleged to have participated in the Rwandan Genocide
Rwandan Genocide
The Rwandan Genocide was the 1994 mass murder of an estimated 800,000 people in the small East African nation of Rwanda. Over the course of approximately 100 days through mid-July, over 500,000 people were killed, according to a Human Rights Watch estimate...
.
Background and role in genocide
An ethnic HutuHutu
The Hutu , or Abahutu, are a Central African people, living mainly in Rwanda, Burundi, and eastern DR Congo.-Population statistics:The Hutu are the largest of the three peoples in Burundi and Rwanda; according to the United States Central Intelligence Agency, 84% of Rwandans and 85% of Burundians...
, Mpiranya was born in Gitarama
Gitarama Province
Gitarama was one of the former twelve provinces of Rwanda and was situated in the centre of the country, to the west of the capital Kigali....
prefecture. In 1993, he held the rank of major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
in the Rwandan Armed Forces and was second-in-command of military operations and intelligence (S2 and S3) in the Presidential Guard Battalion. Later the same year, he was appointed Commander of the Presidential Guard Battalion.
The ICTR indictment alleges that between 1990 and 1994, Mpiranya and other officers conspired
Conspiracy (crime)
In the criminal law, a conspiracy is an agreement between two or more persons to break the law at some time in the future, and, in some cases, with at least one overt act in furtherance of that agreement...
to exterminate the Tutsi
Tutsi
The Tutsi , or Abatutsi, are an ethnic group in Central Africa. Historically they were often referred to as the Watussi or Watusi. They are the second largest caste in Rwanda and Burundi, the other two being the Hutu and the Twa ....
civilians and political opponents, and helped to train interahamwe
Interahamwe
The Interahamwe is a Hutu paramilitary organization. The militia enjoyed the backing of the Hutu-led government leading up to, during, and after the Rwandan Genocide. Since the genocide, they have been forced out of Rwanda, and have sought asylum in Congo...
and militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
groups who committed the genocide.
On January 5, 1994, the day that the Broad-Based Transitional Government specified by the Arusha Accords
Arusha Accords
The Arusha Accords were a set of five accords signed in Arusha, Tanzania on August 4, 1993, by the government of Rwanda and the rebel Rwandan Patriotic Front , under mediation, to end a three-year Rwandan Civil War...
was to be sworn in, Mpiranya prevented the access of political opponents onto the premises of the Conseil national de développement, particularly Lando Ndasingwa
Lando Ndasingwa
Landoald 'Lando' Ndasingwa was a Rwandan politician, leader of the moderate Parti libéral du Rwanda. He was killed in the beginning of the Rwandan Genocide.Ndasingwa was a former professor at the University of Rwanda and ethnic Tutsi...
and his Liberal Party
Liberal Party (Rwanda)
The Liberal Party is a political party in Rwanda that adheres to Liberalism. Higiro Prosper is the party's chairperson.The Liberal Party supported President Paul Kagame in the 2003 presidential election. In the parliamentary election held on 30 September 2003, the party won 10.6% of the popular...
. This had the result that the only member of the Transitional Government who had been officially sworn in was President Habyarimana
Juvénal Habyarimana
Juvénal Habyarimana was the third President of the Republic of Rwanda, the post he held longer than any other president to date, from 1973 until 1994. During his 20-year rule he favored his own ethnic group, the Hutus, and supported the Hutu majority in neighboring Burundi against the Tutsi...
.
After Habyarimana's death and the start of the genocide, members of the Presidential Guard presumedly led by Mpiranya "tracked down, arrested, sexually assaulted
Sexual assault
Sexual assault is an assault of a sexual nature on another person, or any sexual act committed without consent. Although sexual assaults most frequently are by a man on a woman, it may involve any combination of two or more men, women and children....
, and killed" Rwandan Prime Minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana
Agathe Uwilingiyimana
Agathe Uwilingiyimana was a Rwandan political figure. She served as Prime Minister of Rwanda from 18 July 1993 until her death on 7 April 1994. Her term was ended when she was assassinated during the opening stages of the Rwandan Genocide...
. They also took into custody 10 Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
peacekeepers from UNAMIR who had been guarding her house, who were later killed. They were accompanied in this by members of the Para-Commando Battalion and the A company of the Reconnaissance Battalion, led by Captain Innocent Sagahutu
Innocent Sagahutu
Innocent Sagahutu is a former Rwandan soldier, who is chiefly known for his alleged role in the Rwandan Genocide.- Background and role in genocide :...
.
Simultaneously, other members of the presidential guard and other army units undertook similar actions against other opposition figures.
On the morning of 7 April, Mpiranya was told by members of the Presidential Guard that Faustin Rucogoza
Faustin Rucogoza
Faustin Rucogoza was a Rwandan politician and the Minister of Information in the Broad-Based Transitional Government between late 1993 and April 1994. He was killed at the beginning of the Rwandan Genocide...
, the Minister of Information, and his wife were presently being detained at the Presidential Guard camp. He allegedly responded by asking his soldiers why they were keeping them. Shortly afterwards, both were killed in the camp.
After the genocide
Mpiranya fled Rwanda after the RPF victory.In an indictment amended on 25 September 2002, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda is an international court established in November 1994 by the United Nations Security Council in Resolution 955 in order to judge people responsible for the Rwandan Genocide and other serious violations of international law in Rwanda, or by Rwandan...
(ICTR) charged Mpiranya with "conspiracy to commit genocide
Genocide
Genocide is defined as "the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group", though what constitutes enough of a "part" to qualify as genocide has been subject to much debate by legal scholars...
, genocide, crimes against humanity, and violations of the Geneva Convention."
For several years Mpiranya was still at large and believed to be with other Rwandan émigrés in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
or in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
.
On September 25, 2002, Mpiranya was indicted by the U.N.'s International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda is an international court established in November 1994 by the United Nations Security Council in Resolution 955 in order to judge people responsible for the Rwandan Genocide and other serious violations of international law in Rwanda, or by Rwandan...
(ICTR). He was charged with genocide
Genocide
Genocide is defined as "the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group", though what constitutes enough of a "part" to qualify as genocide has been subject to much debate by legal scholars...
, conspiracy to commit genocide, complicity in genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. Mpiranya remained at large and was one of the most wanted men by the Tribunal.
The U.S. government put a prize on his head in the Rewards for Justice Program
Rewards For Justice Program
The Rewards for Justice Program is the counterterrorism rewards program of the U.S. Department of State's Diplomatic Security Service . The Secretary of State is currently offering rewards for information that prevents or favorably resolves acts of international terrorism against U.S. persons or...
Shelter in Zimbabwe
In February 2010, Mpiranya was reported by Belgian authorities to be sheltered by the ZimbabweZimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
an government, operating businesses in Harare, on top of acting as mercenary
Mercenary
A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict based on the promise of material compensation rather than having a direct interest in, or a legal obligation to, the conflict itself. A non-conscript professional member of a regular army is not considered to be a mercenary although he...
for the ruling party ZANU-PF to silence the opposition.
In August 2010, Rwanda appealed for United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
intervention in its diplomatic row after the Zimbabwean government refused to extradite Proitas Mpiranya to the ICTR. Mpiranya allegedly stayed in Norton
Norton, Zimbabwe
Norton is a town in the province of Mashonaland West, Zimbabwe. It is located about 40 km west of Harare on the main road and railway line connecting Harare and Bulawayo. According to the 1982 Population Census, the town had a population of 12,360. This rose to 20, 405 in the 1992 census, and...
, about 40 km west of the capital Harare
Harare
Harare before 1982 known as Salisbury) is the largest city and capital of Zimbabwe. It has an estimated population of 1,600,000, with 2,800,000 in its metropolitan area . Administratively, Harare is an independent city equivalent to a province. It is Zimbabwe's largest city and its...
, where he allegedly stayed since his arrival in Zimbabwe in 2001. Security sources said that the Harare authorities were not keen on giving up the fugitive to whom they feel indebted over his reconnaissance role during the 1998-2001 Democratic Republic of Congo civil war. Mpiranya was instrumental during the DRC war after he worked side by side with southern African Allied forces, which included Zimbabwe, Angola and Namibia. He is believed to have supplied strategic information about the Rwandan military and also mobilised and trained Rwandans in refugee camps in eastern DRC to fight against the Rwandan army. Rwanda’s Prosecutor General Martin Ngoga said the International Criminal Tribunal of Rwanda (ICTR) should move and bring Proitas Mpiranya to book. The two nations backed opposite sides in the DRC war. The row escalated after Zimbabwe accused Rwandan secret agents of illegally entering the country in pursuit of Mpiranya. Kigali denied the allegations, saying it would follow proper procedures to seek the extradition of Mpiranya. This was the second time that Zimbabwe has refused to extradite African officials accused of genocide in their own countries. It has refused to hand over former Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
n dictator Mengistu Haile Mariam
Mengistu Haile Mariam
Mengistu Haile Mariam is a politician who was formerly the most prominent officer of the Derg, the Communist military junta that governed Ethiopia from 1974 to 1987, and the President of the People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia from 1987 to 1991...
who is wanted in his country for mass murder.