U.S. Institute of Peace Peace Watch

Rwanda after the Genocide

The Rwandan government is re-creating its justice system from scratch and re-establishing law and order, says Gerald Gahima, secretary general of Rwanda's Ministry of Justice.

Left to right: Neil Kritz and Gerald Gahima.
ecent outbreaks of violence in northeast and northwest Rwanda were inevitable and demanded a military response, says Gerald Gahima, secretary general of Rwanda's Ministry of Justice. "You can't have so many people armed and indoctrinated in hatred [at refugee camps in the former Zaire] come back to Rwanda and expect them to just fold their arms. What you see [in the recent Hutu attacks on Tutsi civilians] is a continuation of the genocide of 1994."

Gahima discussed "The Challenges of Justice after Genocide" at a U.S. Institute of Peace current issues briefing December 16. On December 11, he attended a day-long conference on the use of the Internet and information technology to expand the capacity of the legal system in Rwanda, organized by Neil J. Kritz, the Institute's senior scholar on the rule of law.

Political Power Sharing

In response to allegations by UN observers that Rwandan forces violated human rights, Gahima said at the briefing that ultimately only domestic institutions can monitor and promote human rights in Rwanda. "The UN mission is not a permanent feature of our lives. Our experience has taught us not to rely on the international community to resolve our problems." While the recent outbreaks of violence are "regrettable," Gahima said, "they are not beyond the ability of the government to contain." The perpetrators "are not people you can implore to behave in a reasonable manner. We have not moved from perfect chaos to perfect law and order, but we have restored peace in much of the country." For example, most refugees who returned to rural areas have resettled peacefully, regained their property, and are well on their way to standing on their own feet.

In the aftermath of the genocidal killings of an estimated half million Tutsi in 1994, Rwanda is re-creating

A Rwandan soldier watches over spectators outside a Kigali courtroom.
its legal system essentially from scratch, Gahima said. Healing the wounds from the genocide will be a difficult and long-term process. It can be facilitated by holding the perpetrators of the genocide accountable at the International Tribunal in Arusha and through the criminal proceedings of the country's courts, including the confession and plea bargain program, which offers significantly reduced sentences for those who confess their participation in the genocide and apologize.

The country has no future without some kind of reconciliation between the Hutu and the Tutsi, Gahima said, but reconciliation cannot take place until an acceptable political power-sharing solution has been agreed upon. He said that strengthening the institutions of justice and creating a culture of respect for the rule of law are essential to this process.

Use of the Internet in Rwanda

The use of the Internet to expand Rwanda's legal capacity would facilitate the reconciliation process in that country, participants at the Institute's seminar agreed. They included specialists on different aspects of the Internet and information technology from various law schools, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the American Bar Association, the Library of Congress, and the American Society of International Law. Among the issues discussed were the creation of a trilingual web site on Rwandan law, long-distance enhancements to the Rwandan system of legal education, dissemination of court decisions inside and outside the country, information sharing and networking between relevant institutions and organizations country-wide, and expert legal consultation internationally via the Internet. Such capabilities would give the country's legal system critical support but would require an infusion of appropriate technology and training, participants concluded.

Neil J. Kritz

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