Kigali, le 22 Novembre 2013
Ce vendredi, le Tribunal de Nyarugunga a rendu le verdict du jugement de Messieurs Sylvain Sibomana et Dominique Shyirambere poursuivis de :
• Organiser des manifestations non autorisées lors du procès en appel près la Cour Suprême de la Présidente des FDU-Inkingi, Madame Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza en date du 25 mars 2013 ;
• Dénigrer les autorités en charge de la sécurité publique.
Ce procès avait auparavant été jugé par le tribunal de grande instance de Gasabo qui s’était déclaré incompétent et l’avait renvoyé au Tribunal inférieur de Nyarugunga, lequel tribunal avait eu à examiner l’instruction à charge du ministère public en date du 4 novembre 2013.
Dans son prononcé, le Tribunal de grande instance de Gasabo a condamné Monsieur Sylvain Sibomana d’une lourde peine de prison de deux ans et d’une coquette amende de 1 million de francs rwandais, tandis que Monsieur Dominique Shyirambere écope de cinq mois d’emprisonnement et d’une amende équivalente.
Kigali, November 22, 2013
On Friday November 22, 2013, the Nyarugunga First Instance Court announced the verdict in the trial against Mr. Sylvain Sibomana, the FDU-Inkingi’s Interim Secretary General, and Mr. Dominique Shyirambere, on two accounts:
• Organizing illegal protests while attending the appeal court hearings in the trial against the FDU-Inkingi’s Chairperson, Ms. Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza, on March 25, 2013, within the Kigali Supreme Court’s premises.
• Uttering defamation against Security Services.
This case had been first presented to the Gasabo High Court but owing to some jurisdiction limitations the High Court declared itself incompetent to try it. The Court had therefore decided to send the case back to the Nyarugunga First Instance Court where the same case had already been heard on November 4, 2013.
In its conclusions, the Nyarugunga First Instance Court found Mr. Sylvain Sibomana guilty of the above mentioned two accounts and sentenced him to two years in prison with a fine of one million Rwandan Francs (1,000,000 FRW) in litigation fee. With regard to Mr. Dominique Shyirambere, the Court sentenced him to five months in prison with the same fine of one million Rwandan Francs (1,000,000 FRW) in litigation fee.
Kigali, kuwa 22 Ugushyingo 2013.
Kuri uyu wa Gatanu tariki ya 22 Ugushyingo 2013, Urukiko rw’ibanze rwa Nyarugunga rwasomye urubanza rwa Bwana Sylvain Sibomana, Umunyamabanga Mukuru w’agateganyo wa FDU-Inkingi, na Bwana Dominique Shyirambere baregwaga ibyaha bibiri ari byo:
• Gukoresha imyigaragambyo itemewe ubwo bari bitabiriye urubanza mu bujurire rw’Umuyobozi mukuru wa FDU-Inkingi, Madame Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza, kuya 25 Werurwe 2013, ku cyicaro cy’urukiko rw’ikirenga.
• Gukoza isoni abashinzwe umutekano.
Uru rubanza rwari rwarabanje gushyikirizwa Urukiko rwisumbuye rwa Gasabo ariko uru rukiko rwemeza ko nta bubasha rufite bwo kuburanisha uru rubanza maze rurusubiza mu rwego rw’urukiko rw’ibanze rwa Nyarugunga, aho rwari rwaratangiye gusuzumwa tariki ya 4 Ugushyingo 2013.
Mu mikirize y’uru rubanza, Urukiko rw’ibanze rwa Nyarugunga rwemeje ko Bwana Sylvain Sibomana ahamwa na biriya byaha bibiri, maze rumukatira igifungo cy’imyaka ibiri n’ihazabu ry’amafaranga miliyoni y’amanyarwanda (1.000.000 FRW) naho Bwana Dominique Shyirambere akatirwa amezi atanu n’ihazabu y’amafaranga miliyoni y’amanyarwanda (1.000.000 FRW).
Au cours du procès, il est apparu publiquement que le ministère public faisait montre d’improvisation en chargeant les prévenus des infractions pénales qui relèvent de la compétence du Tribunal supérieur, faisant ainsi fi des motifs à la base qui avaient amené le Tribunal supérieur à renvoyer justement le procès au Tribunal inférieur.
Lors des auditions, le ministère public était incapable de montrer des faits prouvés coupables reprochés aux prévenus. Le seul fait allégué a été qu’un des deux accusés aurait porté un badge dans sa veste à l’effigie de Madame Victoire Ingabire. Et lorsque le Tribunal demandait au ministère public d’en démontrer la relation pénale, ce dernier restait coi.
Dans leur défense, les accusés ont démontré que le traitement arbitraire leur insufflé par la police n’avait d’autre objectif que l’intimidation des personnes qui auraient bien voulu venir assister aux audiences publics du procès de Madame Victoire Ingabire. Le procès était aussi suivi de près par des personnes et des organisations diverses dont l’Ambassade des Pays-Bas au Rwanda.
Pour rappel, le jugement sur le fond du procès de Messieurs Sylvain Sibomana et Dominique Shyirambere avait eu lieu en date du 10 juin 2013 auprès du Tribunal de grande instance de Gasabo. Ce dernier avait par ailleurs annoncé qu’il rendrait le jugement en date du 12 juillet 2013. Il fut reporté au 19 juillet 2013 pour une première fois, ensuite reporté au 24 juillet 2013, date à laquelle, le Tribunal se déclara incompétent et renvoya l’affaire au Tribunal inférieur de Nyarugunga.
Les FDU-Inkingi ont toujours dénoncé et ne cesseront de dénoncer ces ritournelles sans cesse de ballotage des personnes innocentes de juridictions en juridictions, avec le seul but de réprimer les citoyens et empêcher ces derniers d’exercer leurs droits. Elles demandent instamment au FPR, parti au pouvoir, de donner un peu de répit aux Rwandais et d’accepter que des voix dissonantes et opposées au régime s’expriment librement.
FDU-Inkingi
Twagirimana Boniface
Vice-Président intérimaire
Sylvain Sibomana akatiwe imyaka ibiri y’akamama (FRA)
The trial was characterized by the Prosecutor’s inconsistency with regard to some articles of the Penal Code pertinent to the High Court level. The Prosecutor failed to acknowledge the fact that it was because of such jurisdiction limitations that the case was sent back to the First Instance level specifically in reference to the alleged charges against the accused and related punishments according to the Penal Code.
When the Prosecutor was prompted to provide irrefutable evidence that the alleged crimes might have been committed by the accused, he couldn’t say anything better than saying that someone was found carrying in his pocket a badge harboring Ms. Victoire Ingabire’s picture. Surprisingly, the Prosecutor swallowed his tongue when the Judge asked him to explain how such a picture could be linked to the alleged charges against Mr. Sylvain Sibomana and Dominique Shyirambere.
In their defense, the accused demonstrated how their citizen’s rights have been severely violated, a fact that clearly implies that their arrest amounted to intimidation tactics aimed at specifically preventing the Rwandan people from massively attending the court’s hearings of the trial against Ms. Victoire Ingabire even though by attending such court’s hearings, the public did not violate any law. Indeed, throughout the Ingabire’s trial, the court’s hearings have always been held in public. The trial was closely followed by numerous people and various organizations, including the Embassy of the Netherlands in Rwanda.
It is important to remind the public that the case against Mr. Sylvain Sibomana and Dominique Shyirambere had already been tried by the Gasabo High Court on June 10, 2013. At that time, the Judge announced that the verdict would be announced on July 12, 2013 but on that date the Judge postponed the verdict to July 19, 2013 then once again to July 24, 2013. Surprisingly, it is on that date that the same Judge, evoking jurisdiction limitations, declared that the Gasabo High Court was incompetent to try the case. He therefore sent the case back to the Nyarugunga First Instance Court, which is located in Kigali-City.
The political party FDU-Inkingi has always denounced such an inconsistency that is typical of the Rwandan judiciary and is aimed at continuously harassing the Rwandan people by constantly brandishing trumped-up charges in order to muzzle them. We once again call upon the ruling party, the RPF-Inkotonyi, to give a break to the Rwandan people and its political opponents so that we may all live freely.
FDU-Inkingi
Boniface Twagirimana
Interim Vice-President
Sylvain Sibomana akatiwe imyaka ibiri y’akamama (ENG)Muri uru rubanza icyagaragayemo ni uguhuzagurika kw’umushinjacyaha aho yagendaga akoresha ingingo z’amategeko yo mu gitabo cy’amategeko ahana zikoreshwa ku rwego rwisumbuye yirengagije ko aribyo byatumye uru rubanza rwoherezwa ku rwego rw’ibanze kubera imiterere y’ibyaha abaregwa bakekwaho ndetse n’ibihano biteganijwe n’ingingo zabyo mu rwego rw’amategeko.
Ubwo umucamanza yabazaga ubushinjacyaha ibimenyetso bifatika byerekana ko abo arega baba koko barakoze ibyo ibyaha bakekwaho, Umushinjacyaha nta kimenyetso na kimwe yagaragaje usibye kuvuga ko ngo hari umwe muri bo wari ufite “badge” mu mufuka w’ikote yariyambaye ngo iriho ifoto ya Madamu Victoire Ingabire. Nyamara ubushinjacyaha bwariye iminwa ubwo umucamanza yabubazaga aho iyo foto ihurizwa n’ibyaha burega Bwana Sylvain Sibomana na Dominique Shyirambere.
Mu kwiregura, abaregwaga bagaragaje ko bahohotewe bikomeye, bikaba bigaragara ko icyari kigamijwe mu ifatwa ryabo ari ugutera ubwoba abaturage kugirango batitabira urubanza rwa Madame Victoire Ingabire kandi amategeko atarabibuzaga dore ko urwo rubanza rwa Madamu Ingabire rutari rwarigeze rutangazwa ko ruburanishwa mu muhezo noneho ngo abanyarwanda babirengeho. Uru rubanza rwakurikiranwe n’abantu benshi kandi batandukanye barimo ndetse n’intumwa za ambasade y’igihugu cy’Ubuhorandi mu Rwanda.
Twakwibutsa ko uru rubanza rwa Bwana Sylvain Sibomana na Dominique Shyirambere rwari rwarabunanishijwe mu mizi tariki ya 10 Kamena 2013 mu Rukiko rwisumbuye rwa Gasabo. Nyuma y’iburanisha umucamanza yatangaje ko azarusoma tariki ya 12 Nyakanga 2013 ariko kuri iyo tariki umucamanza yarwimuriye tariki ya 19 Nyakanga 2013 ndetse nyuma y’aho yongera kurwimurira tariki ya 24 Nyakanga 2013. Iyi tariki igeze nibwo umucamanza yatangaje ko Urukiko rwisumbuye rwa Gasabo rudafite ububasha bwo kuburanisha uru rubanza; ngo kubera iyo mpamvu dosiye ayohereje mu Rukiko rw’ibanze rwa Nyarugunga mu mujyi wa Kigali.
Ishyaka FDU-Inkingi ntiryahwemye kwamagana iri siragizwa ry’Abanyarwanda mu nkiko, bahimbirwa ibyaha batakoze bigamije kuniga abaturage, no kubima ubwisanzure bemererwa n’amategeko. Twongeye nanone gusaba ishyaka rya FPR-Inkotanyi riri ku butegetsi mu Rwanda guha agahenge Abanyarwanda ndetse n’abatavugarumwe naryo bagakora mu bwisanzure.
FDU-Inkingi
Twagirimana Boniface
Visi-Perezida w’agateganyo
Sylvain Sibomana akatiwe imyaka ibiri y’akamama
24Nov