Froduald Karamira

Froduald Karamira (14 August 1947 – 24 April 1998) was a Rwandan politician who was found guilty of crimes in organising the implementation of the 1994 Rwandan genocide. He was sentenced to death by a Rwandan court and was one of the last 24 individuals executed by Rwanda.

Froduald Karamira
Born14 August, 1947
Mushubati, Gitarama province, Rwanda-Urundi
Died24 April, 1998 (aged 50)
Nyamirambo Stadium
Kigali, Rwanda
Cause of deathExecution by firing squad
OccupationVice president of the National Republican Movement for Democracy and Development
Political partyMRND
MDR
Criminal statusExecuted
Criminal chargeMurder, genocide, conspiracy, non-assistance to people in danger
PenaltyDeath

Political career

Karamira was born in Mushubati, Gitamara, Rwanda into a Tutsi family. As an adult, Karamira was accepted as a Hutu by following certain Rwandan traditions that allow "conversions" from one group to the other.

Karamira became vice president of the MDR party and was a leader in the extremist wing of the party, nicknamed "Hutu Power".

After the murder of Burundian president Melchior Ndadaye on 21 October 1993, Karamira gave a public speech during which he coined the concept of "Hutu Power".[1] He called on Hutus “to rise [and] take the necessary measures”, and to “look within ourselves for the enemy which is amongst us”.[1]

Rwandan genocide

On 8 April 1994, after the death of Hutu President Juvénal Habyarimana when his plane was shot down, Karamira participated in the creation of the interim government. During the genocide, Karamira gave daily speeches that were broadcast on the Mille Collines radio station. After the Tutsi Rwandan Patriotic Front defeated the government in July 1994 and the genocide ended, Karamira disappeared from Rwanda. He was indicted by the government of Rwanda for genocide, murder, conspiracy, and non-assistance to people in danger.[1]

Extradition standoff

In June 1996, Karamira was arrested by Indian officials in Mumbai and was extradited to Rwanda. However, Karamira managed to escape from his guards in the airport of Addis Ababa. This was brought to the attention of Richard Goldstone, the chief prosecutor for the ICTR, who requested the Ethiopian authorities to send Karamira to the ICTR in Arusha instead. Although Ethiopia was obligated to comply with Goldstone under international law, Goldstone gave in after Rwanda threatened to suspend all cooperation with the ICTR.[2]

Trial, and execution

His trial began on 13 January 1997 in Kigali. In addition to his daily speeches that incited genocide, it was claimed that he was instrumental in creating and arming the Interahamwe militias; he was also accused of being personally responsible for the killing of hundreds of Tutsis, including 13 members of his own family.[1]

On 14 February 1997, Karamira was convicted on all counts and sentenced to death by firing squad. He appealed to the Kigali Appeals Court, but the appeal was rejected and his sentence confirmed on 12 September 1997. On 24 April 1998, in a public event at the Nyamirambo Stadium in Kigali, Karamira was executed by firing squad along with 21 other people convicted of involvement in the Rwandan genocide.[3][4] The same day, at least two other individuals were also executed at other locations in Rwanda.

Rwanda abolished the death penalty in 2007. The 24 people executed in 1998, including Karamira, were the last to have been executed in Rwanda.[5]

Notes
  1. "Froduald Karamira", TRIAL International, accessed 5 December 2017.
  2. Reydams, Luc (January 2013). "Let's Be Friends: The United States, Post-Genocide Rwanda, and Victor's Justice in Arusha" (PDF). Institute of Development Policy and Management. p. 43f.
  3. Jane Standley, "From butchery to executions in Rwanda", BBC News, 1998-04-28.
  4. James C. McKinley Jr., "As Crowds Vent Their Rage, Rwanda Publicly Executes 22", New York Times, 1998-04-25.
  5. "Rwanda is the first African country in the Great Lakes region to abolish the death penalty" Archived 2011-05-24 at the Wayback Machine, 2008-01-01, handsoffcain.info, accessed 2008-08-22.

References
  • Linda Melvern (2004). Conspiracy to Murder: The Rwandan Genocide (New York: Verso, ISBN 1-85984-588-6)
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