The International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) is poised to close its Kigali field office in Rwanda’s capital by August 31, marking the culmination of genocide trials, according to an official announcement.
Abubacarr Tambadou, the registrar of the tribunal, disclosed this development in a statement issued on Friday following his recent visit to Rwanda, during which he engaged in discussions with several high-ranking government officials.
Established by the UN Security Council in December 2010 to conclude the remaining tasks of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, the IRMCT has maintained a field office in Kigali for approximately three decades.
Tambadou clarified that the decision to shutter the office stems from the Hague-based court’s dismissal of the case against prominent Rwanda genocide suspect Felicien Kabuga, who was deemed unfit to stand trial last year.
With the conclusion of trials related to the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, the mechanism finds itself without any ongoing trials, as per the prosecutor’s determination that two remaining individuals on the IRMCT’s wanted list, Protais Mpiranya and Augustin Bizimana, were confirmed deceased.
“The closure of the field office does not signify disengagement from Rwanda, as the mechanism will only shift its approach to its duties,” Tambadou emphasized.
He further noted that the mechanism will persist in its “mandated functions, such as witness protection, primarily from the Arusha branch of the Mechanism,” while a small contingent of personnel from the prosecutor’s office will remain in Rwanda to provide ongoing assistance to national authorities, particularly in the pursuit of fugitives.
During his visit to Rwanda from February 11 to 16, Tambadou deliberated on the imperative of sustained collaboration with various senior Rwandan government officials and representatives from IBUKA, a collective of genocide survivor organizations in Rwanda.
