Rwanda: Survivors Welcome Arrest of Genocide Fugitive Fulgence Kayishema

The names of some of the victims of the Rwandan genocide on a wall at the Kigali Genocide Memorial in Kigali, Rwanda, March 4, 2019. Though only about 800 names are displayed, the memorial, which is only one of nearly 200 memorials around the country, has approximately 250,000 victims buried there. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Timothy Moore)

Ibuka, the umbrella organisation for Genocide survivors' associations, has welcomed the arrest of Fulgence Kayishema, one of the fugitives most wanted for crimes committed in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, who was arrested on Wednesday, May 25, in Paarl, South Africa.

The 63-year-old former head of the genocidal government's judicial police in the former Kibuye prefecture is alleged to have played a key role in planning and implementing the killing of approximately 2,000 Tutsi - women, men, children and elderly - at the Nyange Catholic Church during the 1994 Genocide.

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Speaking to The New Times about his arrest, Naphtal Ahishakiye, the Executive Secretary of Ibuka, said it is a good development for the survivors, especially those in Ngororero and Karongi districts, which form part of the former Kivumu commune where Kayishema allegedly committed genocide.

"It is good news that after more than 29 years on the run, he has finally been arrested and is going to be brought before the courts," he said.

It is expected that Kayishema will be transferred to Rwanda for trial.

Kayishema, a man who committed genocide at his birthplace in the former Kibuye Prefecture, had been on the run for nearly three decades, first disguising himself as a Burundian national and then as a Malawian, and using multiple names and aliases, to evade capture.

To evade arrest, relied on a network of supporters, including family members, members of the former Rwandan army and FDLR, and those aligned with the Hutu Power ideology.

Available information indicates that Kayishema was born in Nyange Sector, Kivumu Commune, Kibuye Prefecture in Rwanda in 1959 or 1961.

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