Spain Continues Push For An Extradite Quest For Ex-Rwanda General

Source: Norman S. Miwambo

Spain authorities have continued to press for an extradition by asking the Government of South Africa (SA) to hand over an ex-Rwanda General living in exile in South Africa who is accused of Genocide.

A spokesman for the South African Justice Department, Tlali Tlali confirms that his country received an extradition demand from Spain for a Rwanda general by now at the heart of ill feeling between the two countries.

Wednesday, September 22, the SA Spokesman Tlali said that he would not comment on the issue and how his government would act in response to the request or when it was received by the government.

The Spanish government is seeking the extradition of General Faustin Kayumba Nyamwasa who sought sanctuary in South African since he fled Rwanda in February 2010, after falling out with President Paul Kagame.

Gen. Kayumba Nyamwasa, who was Rwanda's ambassador to India and a former Chief of Staff for the Rwanda Patriotic Forces (RPF) now re-named Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF), survived an assassination attempt on June 19, in Johannesburg South Africa. Political observers viewed the attempt assassination as a ploy to cover-up or silence the general from revealing the real story of what happened. Gen. Nyamwasa's wife at the time pointed a finger at President Kagame, but Rwandan government denied any involvement.

According to State Prosecutor, Malose Samuel there was a second conspiracy to kill Gen. Nyamwasa whilst in the hospital. Since then a total of 10 suspects previously been arrested in relation to the shooting and the second alleged connive. One of the suspects that had planned to have Gen. Nyamwasa strangled with a string on the hospital bed but the attacker failed to get access to the general.

It has also been established that, on September 22, a Magistrate suspended a bail hearing of the solitary suspect in the attempted murder one Pascal Kanyandekwe, until October 7. Kanyandweke is charged with attempting shoot to kill Nyamwasa and conspiracy to kill him in hospital.

Now Gen. Nyamwasa is among the names of current or former Rwanda military officers who were indicted in February by the Spanish Judge Fernando Andreu. The indictments against the 40 officers were for “Crimes of Genocide, human rights abuses and terrorism” during the 1990s in Rwanda, “when more than four million Rwandans were killed or disappeared under an extermination plan for ethnic and/or political reasons.” The 182 page indictment and two accompanying summary documents said:”The majority of the victims Genocide the document said were Hutu Rwandan refugees and Congolese.”

Specifically, it is alleged that members of the RPF, according to the Spanish Judge in 2008, the mass killings of civilians after they captured power in Rwanda in the 90s. It is alleged that when chasing the Hutus in 1994, there were mass killing in which some Spanish nationals were among the victims.

Gen. Nyamwana and other RPF senior Tutsi are accused of waging a subsequent extermination campaign against the Hutus who had then been allegedly killed more than 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus during the 100 days massacres.

The Spanish Courts have jurisdictions to prosecute human rights crimes even if they are alleged to have arisen in other countries so long as there is an apparent connection to Spain.

Gen. Nyamwasa is alleged to have had a hand in systematic and planned attacks. “He took part in systematic and planned attacks on the civilian population, in forced disappearances and crimes against international law, also organising and executing terrorist attacks,” reads a Spanish Justice Ministry statement.

The Spanish High Court has charged Gen. Nyamwasa with genocide and with the murder of Spanish Missionary and three Spanish Aid Workers. Four Spaniards missionaries who were murdered in unclear circumstance and their death were blamed of the Hutu remnants, include: the then 44-year-old Servando Mayor Garcia, Miguel Angel Isla Lucio (53), Fernando De la Fuente, 52 and Julio Rodriguez Jorge then 40 years. Their bodies were found in December of 1996 after they were tortured, shot or hacked to death with machetes whilst the fifth his body has never been found. Other Spanish nationals then working as Aid Workers were: Dr Manuel Madrazo Osuna, then 42, of Seville, a then 33 year-old-nurse, Maria Flores Sirera Fortuny and the then 30-year-old photographer Luis Maria Valtuena from Madrid who was then working as an administrator were killed in 1997. But their colleague an American Nitin Madhav then 28 years of Pittsburgh survived and remained with permanently amputated limbs as result of the injuries. The evidence of criminal activity was also found against Rwandan leader, Maj. Paul Kagame, although he was not included among those indicted because his immunity as head of state. Indication against President Kagame came from an informant who previously worked on Kagame's security detail.

Spanish extradition quest coincided with a UN report titled “Mapping Exercise”, which indict Rwandan troops and allies associated to President Paul Kagame for slaying tens of thousands of Hutu in neighbouring DR Congo. Kagame's government hotly rebuffed the accusations and threatened to pull-out their peace keeping forces from UN assignments.

lately, a report by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights documents crimes against humanity throughout the DR Congo between 1993 and 2003, which was leaked to the media, implicates President Kagame and his RPF army. The report's most contentious parts accusations against the current Rwandan government of “Systematic attacks, in particular, killings and massacres perpetrated against member of the Hutu ethnic group.