Review Hearing in the Prosecutor v. Gérard Ntakirutimana from 18 to 22 November 2024 - Accreditation Procedure Now Open

The accreditation procedure is now open for attendance at the Review Hearing in the case of Prosecutor v. Gérard Ntakirutimana before the Appeals Chamber of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (Mechanism). The Review Hearing will be held at the Arusha branch of the Mechanism from Monday, 18 November 2024 until Friday, 22 November 2024, subject to adjustments as appropriate.

All media representatives who wish to be present at the Mechanism premises for the Review Hearing must submit an accreditation request to mict-registryarusha@un.org by Tuesday, 31 October 2024, at 4:00 p.m. Accreditation requests should include the full name of the media outlet, journalist(s), cameramen and other technicians, as well as passport or ID copy.

Accredited media will be notified by email of the outcome of their accreditation and collection details by Tuesday, 05 November 2024 at 4:00 p.m.

Due to limited space, there will be two different types of accreditations provided to journalists: access to the Mechanism's Press Centre and the public gallery of the Courtroom.

Members of the diplomatic corps and members of the public who wish to attend the Review Hearing should send an email to mict-registryarusha@un.org, to obtain more information on the procedure to follow and the availability of space.

Background

On 21 February 2003, Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) convicted Mr. Gérard Ntakirutimana of genocide and murder as a crime against humanity and sentenced him to 25 years of imprisonment.

On 13 December 2004, the Appeals Chamber of the ICTR, among other things, affirmed Mr. Ntakirutimana's convictions for committing genocide and murder as a crime against humanity, entered additional convictions for aiding and abetting genocide and extermination as a crime against humanity, and affirmed his sentence of 25 years of imprisonment. On 26 March 2014, Mr. Ntakirutimana was granted early release.

On 14 December 2023, Mr. Ntakirutimana filed a request before the Mechanism for review of his convictions alleging discovery of new facts. On 29 December 2023, Judge Graciela Gatti Santana, President of the Mechanism, assigned a bench of the Appeals Chamber composed of Judge Gatti Santana (Presiding), Judge Jean-Claude Antonetti, Judge Burton Hall, Judge Florence Rita Arrey, and Judge Aminatta Lois Runeni N'gum to adjudicate this matter. On 5 April 2024, President Gatti Santana assigned Judge Seon Ki Park to replace Judge Arrey.

On 21 May 2024, the Appeals Chamber partially granted Mr. Ntakirutimana's request for review of his convictions with respect to Prosecution Witness HH's alleged recantation of his testimony at trial. Given that Witness HH was the sole witness in relation to an attack at Gitwe Hill, near Gitwe Primary School, review was granted only with respect to this event. In the same decision, the Appeals Chamber also determined that a hearing will be held pursuant to Rule 147 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the Mechanism.

The Review Hearing will be held from Monday, 18 November 2024 until Friday, 22 November 2024, at the Mechanism's branch in Arusha, Tanzania. The Appeals Chamber will hear the testimony of Witness HH in relation to the purported recantation of his evidence at trial. Following this, the parties will present final submissions.