Rwandans protest at genocide tribunal

Around 800,000 people were killed in 100 days

Hundreds of survivors of Rwanda's 1994 genocide have demonstrated in Kigali against the international tribunal set up to try those responsible.

The BBC's Helen Vesperini in Kigali says that Thursday's demonstration was the one of the biggest she has ever seen in Kigali.

What they protect is their jobs and fat pay cheques, not the interests of victims

Genocide survivor

The trial of a former minister was again postponed on Wednesday because prosecution witnesses have been unable to travel to the tribunal in Arusha, Tanzania.

Carla Del Ponte, chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, has gone to Kigali in order to smooth out these problems.

Our correspondent says that ordinary Rwandans are unhappy at the slow rate of prosecution at the Arusha tribunal, with just eight convictions in seven years.

'Secret testimony'

The demonstrators completely blocked access to the tribunal building in Kigali, while some laid flowers outside.

"What they protect is their jobs and fat pay cheques, not the interests of victims," one demonstrator shouted.

Protestors say that genocide suspects are being employed at the Arusha tribunal.

Del Ponte did not get a warm welcome

"When witnesses return from recording secret testimony at the court in Arusha, they find that relatives of suspects and everyone else in the village knows exactly what was in the testimony," said Philibert Gakwenzire, an official with Ibuka, an association of genocide survivors.

In January, Ibuka, along with another survivors' association, Avega, stopped co-operating with the tribunal.

On Wednesday, the trial of former information minister Eliezer Niyitegeka was again postponed due to a lack of prosecution witnesses, reports the Hirondelle news agency.

He has been charged on several counts, including genocide and crimes against humanity.

Bureaucracy

The Arusha tribunal accuses the Rwanda Government of obstructing its work by insisting that witnesses obtain passports before travelling.

This can be a lengthy, bureaucratic and expensive business in a country where many people do not have travel documents.

The Rwandan authorities have denied making any changes to travel regulations.

In response to the slow pace of the Arusha tribunal and to reduce pressure on its own prisons, Rwanda has introduced a new form of courts, called "Gacaca".

Here, suspects are directly confronted by their accusers in front of the local communities.