The acting Director General of Rwanda's Research and Documentation Centre on Genocide has been nominated as the Regional War Crimes Committe chairman.

Rwanda experience
"I am happy that I have been elected to chair this committee because this is an opportunity for Rwanda to share its vast experience in issues concerning genocide prevention and crimes against humanity with other countries in the region" said Dr. Deogene Bideri during the second International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) summit in Zanzibar last week.

Electing a Rwandan national would result in the strengthening of judicial systems in the region as well as the tracking down of Rwandan genocide fugitives, he added.

"Rwanda has a lot to teach the world about fighting against genocide and its related crimes. For instance, our country has a law that punishes genocide crimes on top of setting up the National Commission for the fight against genocide (CNLG)," Bideri noted.

He observed that the appointment was also an opportunity to share how best to address various challenges concerning fighting gender violence and promotion of good governance.

Mandate
The committee was set up under the Pact for Peace, Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region. It was signed by member states in Dar er Salam in 2004 at the first ICGLR. Participants promised to implement laws that punish genocide and its ideology.

Cooperation among member countries will include prevention of genocide crimes and prosecuting perpetrators as well as extraditing them to countries where they allegedly committed the crime.

Headquartered in Bujumbura, the committee consists of experts from the 11 member states. They include Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania, and Zambia.

The committee will also monitor atrocities in the region ranging from genocide to war crimes and crimes against humanity. Also. all forms of discrimination within the ICGLR member states.