One of the ironies of post-genocidal Rwanda is that many more women now hold positions of power and authority. In part, necessity as the mother of invention gets the credit. With many men dead or relocated, women had little choice but to get on with things and do what was previously considered man’s work. This might be supporting the family, roofing the house, becoming a judge, or entering parliament. Both the head of the Rwandan Supreme Court and the Minister of Justice are women, and women make up 49 percent of parliament here. This is the highest percentage of female parliamentarians in any country today.
After our moment of silence, a judge reads the rules of the court: No interruptions, no verbal abuse, no one person is allowed to dominate the discussion, and witnesses must raise their hands and be called upon before speaking. To my surprise, these rules are followed to the letter. At no time does anyone on the judging panel need to bang a gavel or call order. Some witnesses are so soft-spoken, our interpreter strains to hear them.
The accused is six feet tall, bald, and wearing a shiny watch and hiking boots. He is also wearing the pale pink uniform of a Rwandan prisoner. Our interpreter says that the color pink has no meaning here, but its softness clashes with the prisoner’s demeanor. A witness from the community bench requests that the prisoner “stop glaring at us” as the questioning begins.
The prisoner is accused of being a policeman who participated in killing at the roadblocks, killed a family, and ordered those under him to pile dead bodies on to a truck for removal. He denies all charges.
A witness asks, “If this is true, why did you get involved in the transportation of the dead?”
One of the judges adds, “You don’t live in this area. If you were not helping with the genocide, why didn’t you return home to protect your loved ones?”
Raising his hand, a soft-spoken man wonders, “Just what were you doing again? Standing around having a good time, while people were being murdered all around you?”
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