THE TENSION BETWEEN JUSTICE AND RECONCILIATION IN RWANDA: POLITICS, HUMAN RIGHTS, DUE PROCESS AND THE ROLE OF THE GACACA COURTS IN DEALING WITH THE GENOCIDE

TLDR

Rwanda has struggled to confront its 1994 genocide, pursuing prosecutions yet failing to bring many alleged perpetrators to court. The article investigates whether Rwanda’s political context and human rights record give sufficient weight to truth, reconciliation, peace, and stability. It examines the proposed new gacaca community courts to assess whether their intended use for genocide cases outweighs potential harms. The authors argue that, given the passage of time, authorities should not attempt to prosecute all accused perpetrators, as doing so could cause more harm than good.

Abstract

Rwanda, since the genocide of 1994, has had immense difficulty in dealing with the past. It has pursued the model of prosecutions without being able to bring many of the alleged perpetrators before the courts. The article examines why this is so, as well as the political situation in Rwanda in the context of the country's human rights record, to determine whether sufficient weight is being given to truth, reconciliation, peace and stability. The proposed new gacaca community courts are examined to determine whether the stated government intention of using these structures to deal with genocide cases outweighs the potential problems they may cause. The article suggests that as so many years have elapsed since the genocide of 1994 that the authorities cannot, and should not, seek to prosecute all those accused of participating in the slaughter because attempting to prosecute all those in detention may cause more harm than good.