Joseph Nzirorera (1950 - 1 July 2010) was a Rwandan politician and accused

génocidaires Génocidaires () are those who commit acts of genocide. The term was used initially in reference to Rwandans who are guilty of genocide for their involvement in the mass killings which were perpetrated in Rwanda during the 1994 Rwandan genocide ...

who was arrested by the

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR; ; ) was an international court, international ''ad-hoc'' court established in November 1994 by the United Nations Security Council in United Nations Security Council Resolution 955, Resolutio ...

(ICTR) for his role in the

Rwandan genocide The Rwandan genocide, also known as the genocide against the Tutsi, occurred from 7 April to 19 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. Over a span of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Gre ...

Background

Nzirorera was born in 1950 in Busogo, Ruhengeri Prefecture. He received a degree in civil engineering from the University of Butare in 1975.

Career

Nzirorema served as national secretary of the

National Revolutionary Movement for Development The National Revolutionary Movement for Development (, MRND) was the ruling political party of Rwanda from 1975 to 1994 under President Juvénal Habyarimana, running with first Vice President Édouard Karemera. From 1978 to 1991, the MRND was the ...

(MRND) and as speaker of the Rwandan Parliament. He also served as Minister of Industry, Mines and Handicraft. Nzirorera was a member of the

Akazu The Akazu (, ''little house'') was an informal organization of elite Hutu extremists whose members contributed strongly to the 1994 Rwandan genocide, genocide in Rwanda. A circle of relatives and close friends of Rwanda's then-president Juvénal ...

, an elite circle of Hutu extremists close to President

Juvénal Habyarimana Juvénal Habyarimana (; ; 8 March 19376 April 1994) was a Rwandan politician and military officer who was the second president of Rwanda, from 1973 until Assassination of Juvénal Habyarimana and Cyprien Ntaryamira, his assassination in 1994. H ...

and First Lady

Agathe Habyarimana Agathe Kanziga Habyarimana, ''née'' Kanziga (born 21 January 1942 in Karago, Gisenyi prefecture, Western Province, Rwanda) is the widow of former President of Rwanda Juvénal Habyarimana and former First Lady of Rwanda from 1973 until 1994. ...

Arrest and legal proceedings

Nzirorera was arrested by the

in July 1998. In a joint trial with

Édouard Karemera Édouard Karemera (1 September 1951 – 31 August 2020) was a Rwandan politician who was convicted of genocide in 2011 after being apprehended in 1998. Born in Mwendo commune, Kibuye préfecture, Rwanda, Karemera held the position of Minister o ...

and Mathieu Ngirumpatse, Nzirorera was accused of conspiracy to commit genocide, direct and public incitement to commit genocide, genocide, complicity in genocide, as well as

crimes against humanity Crimes against humanity are certain serious crimes committed as part of a large-scale attack against civilians. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity can be committed during both peace and war and against a state's own nationals as well as ...

. In 2003, he was described by expert witness Nkiko Nsengimana as the "leader of the

Interahamwe The Interahamwe ( or ) is a Hutu paramilitary organization active in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda. The Interahamwe was formed around 1990, as the youth wing of the National Republican Movement for Democracy and Development (M ...

". In 2004, he was accused of having asked the Interahamwe to kill a

Tutsi The Tutsi ( ), also called Watusi, Watutsi or Abatutsi (), are an ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region. They are a Bantu languages, Bantu-speaking ethnic group and the second largest of three main ethnic groups in Rwanda and Burundi ( ...

child in Busogo, Ruhengeri Prefecture in April 1994.

Death

On 1 July 2010, Nzirorera died at the age of 59 while awaiting trial.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nzirorera, Joseph 1950 births 2010 deaths National Republican Movement for Democracy and Development politicians Hutu people Rwandan genocide perpetrators Rwandan people who died in prison custody Government ministers of Rwanda Members of the Parliament of Rwanda 20th-century Rwandan politicians People indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda