By Dr BIZIMANA Jean Damascène*
One of the highlights of the June 1994 genocide on the side of the criminal government was to look for ways to get more people involved in the killings through the so-called “auto-defense civile” program. The program provided arms and money to expedite the killing of Tutsi so that wherever the RPF liberated would find that all Tutsi were dead. This was discussed during the Government meeting on June 09, 1994.
1. Fifty million Rwandan francs (50,000,000 Frw) was spent in the acceleration of Tutsi killing through “Auto-defense civile”
The diary of the Minister of Local Government, Edouard KAREMERA of June 09, 1994 shows that on this date the Government meeting convened to assess the use of fifty million Rwandan francs (50,000,000 frw) which had been disbursed by the Government in the context of the implementing the instructions of Prime Minister Jean Kambanda of May 25, 1994 on the expedition of the Genocide.
In order to continue supporting the “auto-defense civile” program, the Cabinet meeting held on June 09, 1994 called on the National Bank (BNR) to reconsider how Account No. 120.12.33 allocated to receive the support from the Ministry of Planning (MINIPLAN) would do well. BNR was also provided with specimens indicating the signatories for the Account.
2. The Cabinet meeting decided to expedite the killing of Tutsi where they had not been killed
The cabinet meeting of June 9, 1994 also reviewed the progress of the Auto-defense civile program and found that there was a need for improvement in order for the Genocide to be carried out everywhere and expeditiously.
The first thing was to prepare a long report to be submitted to the Prime Minister outlining the implementation of the program across the country. It was mentioned that in some places, people have not responded well to the “auto-defense civile” program and necessitated that the soldiers take the lead in showing people how to find the enemy and fight him. This meant that soldiers were required to show the public how the killing of Tutsi should proceed and prepare a report explaining the course of the massacre.
The second item on the agenda of the Government was to conduct a census of young men who received both the training and weapons in the “auto-defense civile” program in each Commune, and to report it to the Prefect and discuss it with the military commanders in the prefecture so that errors could be rectified, so that the Genocide can spread across the country.
The third resolution adopted by the KAMBANDA Government was to mobilize all levels to intensify the campaign through especially the media and community outreach meetings to mobilize them for joining hands to fight the enemy everywhere. That meant, people should be encouraged to continue searching for Tutsi who were still alive rather than rushing to flee only.
The meeting decided to appoint a permanent staff member in the Ministry of local government in charge of preparing daily publications available to the media and local authorities to assist them in the campaign. The assignment was given to NKIKO Faustin who was formerly the sous prefect of Byumba Prefecture.
The Cabinet also agreed that the Prime Minister should write to the Commander-in-Chief of the Rwandan Armed Forces and ask him to instruct the army leaders so that the military would show people how to locate the enemy and provide them with the necessary equipment and advice to make the operation a success.
CONCLUSION
The evidence found in the resolutions of the June 09, 1994 meeting of the Government shows how the KAMBANDA Government had implemented the massacre of Tutsi throughout the country. The government gave instructions on how the Tutsi massacre should be carried out, provided equipment and weapons and assessed that the Genocide was committed throughout the country. It is clear that the Genocide against the Tutsi is a massacre planned and perpetrated by the government as confirmed by various international bodies.(End).
* Dr BIZIMANA Jean Damascène, Executive Secretary National Commission for the Fight Against Genocide (CNLG)