French Prosecution Requests 30-Year Sentence for Rwandan Dr. Eugène Rwamucyo on Genocide Charges

On October 28, 2024, the French Prosecution urged the Paris Court of Assizes to convict Dr. Eugène Rwamucyo, a Rwandan former head of the medical department at the National University of Rwanda, for crimes related to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. The prosecution is seeking a 30-year prison sentence.

Dr. Rwamucyo, age 65, has been on trial since October 1, 2024. He faces charges that include committing genocide, complicity in genocide, and planning to eliminate the Tutsi population. The charges are backed by testimonies from witnesses in the former Butare Prefecture, where Dr. Rwamucyo worked before and during the genocide.

Witnesses testified in court that Dr. Rwamucyo allegedly ordered bodies of deceased Tutsi, as well as injured and still-living victims, to be buried in mass graves using heavy equipment. One witness recounted hearing Dr. Rwamucyo urging militia to kill Tutsi gathered at a checkpoint.

While Dr. Rwamucyo acknowledged directing the burial of deceased Tutsi, he claimed it was to prevent environmental harm, denying ordering that living people be buried. Supported by his lawyers, Philippe Meilhac and Françoise Marthe, he maintains his innocence.

Prosecutor Nicolas Peron argued that there is ample evidence implicating Dr. Rwamucyo directly in violence and persecution against the Tutsi in Butare, requesting that the court “not allow Eugène Rwamucyo to escape accountability.” A ruling is expected on October 30, 2024.