Felicien Kabuga has been found unfit to stand trial
By Faida Idris
Kanempress
8th August 2023
UN appeal judges have ordered that Rwandan genocide suspect Félicien Kabuga be urgently considered for release and that the war crimes trial against him be indefinitely suspended.
Judges at a UN war crimes court had in June ruled Mr Kabuga was unfit to stand trial due to his dementia but recommended alternative procedures .
The appeal judges have now refused such suggestion, saying the UN war crimes tribunal made “an error of law” in June by deciding that Mr Kabuga should be tried via an alternative simplified procedure despite his state of health.
A lower trial chamber has been directed to work on releasing Kabuga.
Kabuga, a businessman and radio station owner, was one of the last suspects sought by the tribunal prosecuting crimes committed during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.
In in his late 80s, Kabuga is accused of spreading hatred through his radio station and motivating the killers who killed over 800,000 people in 100 days.
He was arrested in Paris in 2020, after two decades on the run. He pleaded not guilty.
The court has admitted this latest decision and it will be disappointing for the victims and survivors of the genocide but noted that justice can only be served with full respect for the rights of the accused.
