The 'Muse Report' recently released by Washington DC-based law firm Cunningham Levy Muse and adopted by the government of Rwanda as part of its investigation into the role of French officials in the 1994 genocide, says French officials were complicit in the genocide and also obstructed justice in subsequent investigations. The 52-page report which estimated that over 800, 000 people were killed during the genocide draws on wide-ranging sources including diplomatic cables and witness testimonies to make a series of allegations.
The report according to CNN claims that the French Government supplied weapons to government forces and militias implicated in the massacres of Tutsis and also provided shelter for Rwanda's interim government whose leaders were subsequently convicted of genocide charges. The report also said France obstructed justice by refusing to release vital document and failing to extradite or prosecute suspected war criminals that ran to the country.
"Senior French officials were aware of and aided the actions and goals of both the Habyarimana government (before the genocide) and the génocidaires who seized power.
"A complete investigation into the full extent of the knowledge, conduct and complicity of French officials is warranted...There is no doubt that French archives are filled with documents and materials without which the full history of this era will never be known."
Meanwhile, the Foreign Minister of Rwanda has called on France to be Transparent and accountable in the matter as the government has approved the recommendation of the report to conduct full investigation into the involvement of French officials in the genocide.
"The Muse Report exposes a damning summary of conduct by French officials in Rwanda during the 1990s and thereafter, and we agree with the report recommended that a full investigation into the role of French officials in the genocide is warranted.
"This is also an opportunity for French authorities to collaborate better with Rwanda in the pursuit of truth, justice and accountability regarding the genocide against the Tutsi."
