Félicien Kabuga

Félicien Kabuga Full Name: Félicien Kabuga Origin: Muniga, Ruanda-Urundi Occupation: Businessman Director of Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines (allegedly) Goals: Kill all Tutsis in Rwanda and never get caught (all failed) Crimes: Genocide Xenophobia Misogyny War crimes Crimes against humanity Mass murder Kidnapping Torture Propaganda Ethnic cleansing Conspiracy Type of Villain: Genocidal Businessman

Félicien Kabuga (born 1 March 1933) is a Rwandan businessman, accused of bankrolling and participating in the Genocide of the Rwandan Tutsis.

In 2020, Kabuga was arrested by the French police in Greater Paris at the age of 87 after 26 years as a fugitive. As of September 2022, he is currently tried in custody of the IRMCT branch in The Hague.

Early life

Kabuga was born in Muniga, in the commune of Mukarange, prefecture of Byumba, Ruanda-Urundi, roughly 30 kilometers off the Rwanda-Uganda Border. Kabuga amassed his wealth by owning tea farms in northern Rwanda, among other business ventures. A multimillionaire, he was closely connected to Juvénal Habyarimana's MRND party and the Akazu, an informal group of Hutu extremists from northern Rwanda that strongly contributed to the Rwandan Genocide.

Kabuga was also allegedly heavily involved in the founding and bankrolling of Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines, as well as Kangura magazine. In 1993, at an RTLM fundraising meeting organized by the MRND, Felicien Kabuga allegedly publicly defined the purpose of RTLM as the defence of Hutu Power. During the ICTR's so-called "media trial", former RTLM presenter George Ruggiu named Kabuga as the "Chairman Director-general" of the station, with duties such as "presiding over RTLM" and "representing RTLM."

From January 1993 to March 1994, a total of 500,000 machetes were imported into Rwanda, statistically one for every three adult Hutus in the country. Kabuga has been named as one of the main importers of these machetes.

Kabuga is married to Josephine Mukazitoni. Two of their daughters are married to two of Habyarimana's sons.

As a fugitive

In June 1994, after Rwanda was conquered by the RPF, Kabuga fled the country. He first attempted to enter Switzerland, but was ordered to leave. He went to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and was later believed to be residing in Nairobi, Kenya.

In September 1995, before any indictment and before he was named as a suspected planner of the genocide, Kabuga registered and apparently ran a business named 'Nshikabem Agency' in Nairobi, operating out of the Kilimani area located along Nairobi’s Lenana Road.

In 2003, a young Kenyan journalist helping American agents from the FBI track down Kabuga was murdered.

In a speech given on August 28, 2006 during his visit to Kenya, then U.S. Senator Barack Obama accused Kenya of "allowing [Kabuga] to purchase safe haven." The Kenyan government denied these allegations and described Obama's allegation regarding Kabuga as "an insult to the people of this country." According to June 2008 reports by a Norwegian-based blogger calling himself African Press International (API), Kabuga was in hiding in Oslo, and might be seeking to turn himself in. Authorities dismissed this claim as a hoax.

KTN news network in Kenya reported on June 14, 2008 that Kabuga had been arrested by Kenya Police the day before and is being held at Gigiri Police Station in Nairobi. Later, the suspect was found to be a local university lecturer, not Kabuga as previously thought, and released.

Arrest and trial

On 16 May 2020 after spending 26 years as a fugitive, Kabuga, aged 87, was caught by police in Asnières-sur-Seine then apprehended in Paris, France, in a collaboration between the French police and the IRMCT. French authorities expressed a desire to prosecute him for crimes against humanity committed against the people of Rwanda.

The French initially intended to extradite Kabuga to Tanzania, however Kabuga's lawyers argued that this would endanger his life because Tanzanian leader John Magufuli's approach to the COVID-19 pandemic meant he would likely not get treatment if he caught the disease. On October 26, authorities transferred Kabuga to the United Nations court at The Hague to face charges of, incitement to and complicity in genocide, persecution and extermination. In November, Kabuga pleaded not guilty to all charges. His trial began on September 26, 2022.