Rwanda Wants Habyarimana Extradited

Rwanda is seeking the extradition of a former first lady who was arrested by French authorities on genocide-related charges.

France has detained Agathe Habyarimana, the widow of the former Rwandan leader whose death in 1994 set off the ethnic slaughter which killed 800,000 in just 100 days.

Her accusers paint Habyarimana as a powerful behind-the-scenes figure and a central leader within the circle of Hutu radicals responsible for planning the massacre. A recent report commissioned by the current Rwandan government suggests that she may have been involved in the plot to kill her husband, who at the time of his death had just signed a controversial power-sharing deal with a Tutsi rebel force.

She and her family have always denied involvement in the mass killings.

VOA reports Rwandan Foreign Affairs minister Louise Mushikiwabo praised the arrest by French authorities, who were acting on an international warrant issued by Rwanda.

"We welcome the move," said Louise Mushikiwabo. "We think that justice delayed is justice denied, and a number of people in Rwanda have been waiting to hear what happens with Habyarimana's widow. The people who know her in Rwanda from back then testify that she was quite involved in the preparation of the genocide."

The Rwandan official says that her country will push for the suspect to be sent back to Rwanda for trial, but also suggested that whether Habyarimana faces charges is more important than where the trial would take place.

"Ideally she should be extradited to Rwanda to face justice where the crime was committed, there is no question about it," said Mushikiwabo."That is what we are demanding. But for her, as for many other people that are implicated in this genocide, we want first and foremost justice. The important thing is that there is justice somewhere, especially because this is a crime that is not just against Rwandans but against humanity."

The French, who were close allies with Juvenal Habyarimana's regime, reportedly flew the late leader's widow out of the country as events spiraled out of control following her husband's assassination.

She has sought political asylum in France, where she has resided for a number of years, but her request has never been granted.

The sudden move to act on the arrest warrant is seen as part of a broader diplomatic gesture from France that it is serious about improving its battered ties with the tiny central African nation. Rwandan President Paul Kagame once led the Tutsi rebel force that eventually ended the genocide, and his allies have accused France of arming the Hutu militias who carried out the Tutsi extermination campaign.

France has always rebuffed claims that it was directly linked to the mass killings. But in a short trip to Kigali last week, which included a visit to a genocide memorial, French President Nicolas Sarkozy made the strongest statement of French regret yet, admitting "mistakes" were made, as well as "errors of judgment" and "errors of politics."

President Kagame cut off diplomatic relations with the European nation in 2006 after a French judge accused him and nine of his aides of shooting down President Habyarimana's plane. Official ties were restored in November.

The French in January also arrested a Hutu physician who is suspected to have led the murder of Tutsi in his village.

Agathe Habyarimana Arrested!

Rwandan officials are welcoming France's arrest of Agathe Habyarimana, the widow of Rwanda's late president and a suspected organizer of the 1994 genocide.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Rwandan Justice Minister Tharcisse Karugarama called the arrest a good sign, and said the "long arm of the law is finally taking its course."

VOA reports French authorities arrested the former Rwandan first lady at her home south of Paris Tuesday on a Rwandan warrant.

Officials and survivors' groups in Rwanda say Agathe Habyarimana was one of the main architects of the genocide, in which Hutu extremists killed some 800,000 people.

The death of Habyarimana's husband, President Juvenal Habyarimana, is widely considered the trigger for the killing spree.

The former first lady's arrest follows a brief visit to Rwanda last week by French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

The visit was aimed at cementing renewed ties between the countries after a three-year break in diplomatic relations.

Rwanda had cut ties with France in 2006 after a French judge accused Rwandan President Paul Kagame of ordering the April 1994 assassination of his predecessor, Mr. Habyarimana. Mr. Habyarimana's plane was shot down over Rwanda's capital, Kigali.

France helped Agathe Habyarimana escape the country three days later.

The late president's widow has lived in France for at least the past 12 years. She requested political asylum but was repeatedly turned down.

Rwanda reportedly has requested her extradition.