PROGRESS ON BWINDI ASSURANCES

C O N F I D E N T I A L KIGALI 000343 SIPDIS C O R R E C T E D C O P Y - DECLASSIFICATION DATE E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/14/2018 TAGS: PREL PHUM KCRM RW SUBJECT: PROGRESS ON BWINDI ASSURANCES REF: KIGALI 0302 Classified By: Ambassador Michael Arietti for Reason 1.4 (b) (d). ¶1. (SBU) This is an action request. Please see paragraph 5. ¶2. (C) In a May 14 meeting with pol/econ chief, Prosecutor General Martin Ngoga offered to sign an additional assurances document, as head of the independent agency within the Rwandan Government responsible for all public prosecutions, pledging to disregard any previous statements made by the three Bwindi defendants. He further offered to pledge in writing to respect the Convention on Torture in the conduct of renewed prosecution or investigation of the case. Ngoga noted that the Bwindi case file had lain dormant since the defendants were transferred to USG custody in 2003, and would need to be "reopened" and a new investigation done. As many ALIR/FDLR (Rwanda Liberation Army/Democratic Front for the Liberation of Rwanda) combatants had voluntarily returned to Rwanda in the last five years, Ngoga said he was relatively confident that his investigators could identify and obtain statements from individual who were present at or had knowledge of the 1999 Bwindi murders. (Note: these would be voluntary statements by former combatants who had been welcomed back and reintegrated into Rwandan society). Ngoga said he made this offer following additional discussions between USG officials and Justice Minister Tharcisse Karugarama, and his own conversations with the Minister. ¶3. (C) Ngoga requested the embassy present a draft document for him to examine. Embassy offers the following draft text for Department comment and clearance: Begin Text: Republic of Rwanda Parquet General of the Republic Assurances of the Office of the Prosecutor General on Bwindi Defendants Leonidas Bimenyimana, Gergroire Nyaminani and Francois Karake I, Martin Ngoga, Prosecutor General of the Republic of Rwanda, offer the following guarantees and assurances in respect to the Bwindi defendants named above: ¶A. Making reference to and endorsing the Assurances and Guarantees previously conveyed on April 29, 2008 by Minister of Justice and Attorney General Tharcisse Karugarama, the Office of the Prosecutor General will not introduce into evidence in any prosecution any statement made by Mssrs. Bimenyimana, Nyaminani and Karake obtained between 2001 and 2003 by Rwandan or United States officials. ¶B. Investigation and prosecution of the three named defendants will be conducted in accordance with the Rwandan Constitution, Rwandan law, and Rwanda's international legal obligations, including as a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and in accordance with the Convention on Torture. ¶C. Although current practice is to maintain the confidentiality of such assurances, the Office of the Prosecutor General understands that circumstances may require the sharing of such assurances with a U.S. court, with the Bwindi defendants and their representatives, and/or as part of a public record of proceedings. End Text. ¶4. (C) Comment. Ngoga and his prosecutorial colleagues have told us that there is little else in the existing case file beyond the confessions struck down by the U.S. court. As no Rwandan court has ruled that those confessions are inadmissible, GOR willingness to conduct a new investigation, and seek out new sources of testimony from other participants or observers of the murders strikes us as a significant concession on its part. The embassy heard recently that one Bwindi participant/observer had returned to Rwanda from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. If this is true, and if Democratic Republic of the Congo. If this is true, and if there are others, the Rwandans may now feel they have a stronger prosecutorial basis for accepting the defendants and pursuing their prosecution. End comment. ¶5. (SBU) Action request: Embassy requests Department respond to draft Prosecutor General assurances document if at all possible by OOB Monday, May 19 or provide an interim response as to when the Department expects to be able to respond to this request. ARIETTI