Genocide: Swedish justice handed Rwandan Rukeratabaro a life sentence

The National Commission for the Fight against Genocide (CNLG) commends the Swedish justice for the life sentence handed over to Théodore Rukeratabaro, a Rwandan with Swedish nationality.
Théodore Rukeratabaro arrived in Sweden in1998 and acquired Swedish nationality in 2006 where he nicknamed himself “Théodore Tabaro”

On Wednesday 27th June 2018, the Stockholm District Court, handed over a life sentenced to Rukeratabaro, 50, living in Örebro, the seat of Örebro Municipality in Sweden after finding him guilty of the crime of genocide and gross human rights violations, murder and attempted murder and other crimes against humanity committed during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in 1994.

His trial begun on 27th September 2017.

Theodore Rukeratabaro was born in Rusizi District, Mururu Sector, Kabahinda Cell (formerly Cyimbogo Commune, Winteko Sector, and Cyangugu Prefecture).

During the Genocide against the Tutsi in 1994, Rukeratabaro was a gendarme. He was involved in perpetration of the Genocide in his native Sector, Winteko, Nyakanyinya and Mibirizi where hundreds of Tutsi had sought refuge by Dr Bizimana Jean-Damascène, Executive Secretary of CNLG.

On 9th April 1994, in partnership with Modeste Karemera who was a judge, Jean Katabarwa who was a Sector councilor, Jean Nsengiyumva and several other members of Interahamwe militia in Winteko, together with other gendarmes led an attack that killed several Tutsi in Winteko after chasing them out of their hideouts in in bushes.They also raped and defiled women and girls.

On 13th April 1994, he led an attack from Winteko which killed the Tutsi who had fled to Nyakanyinya primary school. This attacked comprised members of Interahamwe militia from the sectors of Mururu, Nyakanyinya and Winteko. They killed over 3000 Tutsi by using bullets, grenades, machetes and clubs. Both men, women and children who had fled to this school were almost killed.

Theodore Rukeratabaro also led an attack from Winteko which helped with other killers to massacre the Tutsi who had sought refuge to the catholic parish of Mibirizi where several Tutsi were killed in the end of the month of April 1994.
Rukeratabaro was also involved in killings of the Tutsi of Winteko who had fled to Rusizi Stadium (formerly referred to as Kamarampaka Stadium) where he came with lists and, in collaboration with soldiers of the genocidal government, took some of those Tutsi out of the stadium and killed them in a place called Gatandara.

Several Tutsi selected among others from Kamarampaka stadium were savagely killed in Gatandara.

Apart from Théodore Rukeratabaro who was handed a life sentence by the Stockholm District Court, on 15th February 2017, the Svea Court of Appeal in Stockholm, upheld the life sentence imposed on Claver Berinkindi, a Rwandan who acquired Swedish citizenship in 2012 after finding him guilty of crimes of genocide that he committed in the former Prefecture of Butare and Stanisilas Mbanenande who was handed a life sentence on 20th June 2013 due to his role in the Genocide committed against the Tutsi in the former Prefecture of Kibuye.

CNLG urges other countries to emulate the good example of Sweden and to respect their international obligations to prosecute genocide suspects on their territories or to extradite them to Rwanda as provided for by Resolution 2150 of the UN Security Council.

Rwanda has issued 914 arrest warrants against suspects of the Genocide against the Tutsi, distributed in African, European and North American countries of which 22 were tried while 18 were extradited to Rwanda.

Ntakirutimana Deus