The OTP witnesses have shown that their
testimonies were only manipulation...

PART II OF HOW NGEZE WANTS THE
COURT TO UNDERSTAND HIS INNOCENCE
( ACCUSED HASSAN CLOSING BRIEF
18TH -22ND august 2003.)

THE PORTRAIT OF HASSAN NGEZE

AN AFRICAN JOURNALIST.

I, HASSAN NGEZE, A JOURNALIST
ACCUSED FOR HAVING EXERCISED MY
FREEDOM OF SPEECH...

Once a free and independent
journalist, I now stand accused
in this international tribunal
for Rwanda. The prosecutor
alleges that I conspired with
Government Officials and
published propaganda writings
inciting Hutu against Tutsi.

The center of the accusation is
the issue of my predictions in
many issues of my KANGURA
Magazine. The allegation from the
prosecutor is that I, Hassan
NGEZE, used to get inciting
messages and materials from
Government Officials and that I
published them later on with the
sole objective of manipulating
Hutu by telling them that they
were threatened by Tutsi.
According to the same theory, my
"prophetic" writings were meant
to create panic among Hutu and
present Tutsi as their enemies;
thus inciting the former against
the latter.

To this allegation, my
explanation is clear: "I did not
make any predictions". I only
published what I thought would be
the immediate and logical
consequence of the actions being
planned by the RPF (Rwandese
Patriotic Front then based in and
supported by UGANDA). What I used
to write was not magic. I am a
man from very humble origin, son
of a farmer, investigative
journalist.

I learnt that the hutus and the
tutsis could live together in
harmony as long as both of them
forget about their ambitions of
putting each other under his
domination. My father had tutsis
friends including those who
maried his daughters ... I had
tutsis friends also and until
today I do have them in Rwanda
and outside the country.

Many hutus in the administration
and political sphere had very
good friends among the tutsis.
This friendship did not suffer
any obstacle so long as the RPF
did not manifest the contempt
against the hutus. I had learnt
to understand how this subject
was sensitive. When the RPF
decided to invade the country to
take back the power they had lost
with the 1959 revolution, I
understood that the situation
could be tragic. This was what my
knowledge of the history of the
Rwandan nation had allowed me to
understand.

As an investigative journalist, I
had my network in Uganda,
Tanzania, Kenya, Zaire and
Burundi even beyond |(oversea ).
I was among the first well
informed journalist to monitor
the RPF plans to invade the
country in 1990. I was well
informed on the real motives of
the invasion: to take back the
power the hutus had taken in
1961. Whenever I had such
information, I used to analyze it
and I would publish the data as I
received it and I would write an
editorial based on my research.
I enjoyed to be the first in
country with the information.
This is the principle in
journalism all over the world.

It was in this line of action
that informed through my Kangura
magazine the imminent attack by
the tutsis of the diaspora, I
even indicated that that the
invasion was backed by Uganda's
president with the collaboration
of some wealthy people of the
interior. These people happened
to be the best of Habyarimana's
friends and his business
partners.

It was a crime of "lèse-majesté",
Hassan Ngeze had to go to prison.
I was arrested for spreading
rumors and it was considered as a
contempt against the security of
State.

As an investigative journalist, I
contributed to the preventive
strategy instead of waiting for
the curative medicine.

I did not predict because what I
wrote was the result of analysis
of information at my disposal
from various and reliable sources
from both antagonistic parties".
I was indeed a well informed
journalist and I always strived
to be the first with the right
information.

Since my involvement in the media
and journalism, I had always had
one characteristic: an
independent, committed and free
journalist. In all my writings, I
have never had fear of anybody,
be it a high ranking authority or
military official, an influential
businessman, be it a government
or an RPF partisan, etc,
especially when it was a matter
of informing for the interest of
the common man and criticizing
the leaders' vices: corruption,
embezzlement of public funds,
conspiracy, to name only a few.
My role as an investigative-
journalist in a war torn country
has always been that of giving
warning signals hoping that they
would help to prevent the country
from falling into a total chaos.

Warning the RPF not to continue
threatening the integrity of
RWANDA, reminding them that their
provocative actions could
jeopardize the security of the
whole nation by way of reviving
the old wounds among the ethnic
groups..., to invite the Rwandan
Government officials to really
strife for the welfare of the
Rwandan sons and daughters
whether Hutu or Tutsi, otherwise
the country run the risk of
falling into the hands of forces
who have no love for democracy.
Indeed a minority can not lead a
country to democratic government.
The minority hangs always on
power by the means of force,
never by democracy. Is it not
what Rwanda has had at the end?
Hassan Ngeze was right in his
prediction on this issue. Have I
been a bad journalist?

I have always been a stubborn and
independent journalist, clear in
my principles, ready to pay the
price of the anger and discontent
activated by my writings on the
side of those who were being
criticized and told to change...

I have indeed paid for my love
for freedom of speech with 7
years imprisonments spent in this
international tribunal for Rwanda
in addition to those I underwent
from Rwanda government
officials, and many assassination
attempts by both warring parties
.
FROM THREAT TO THREAT...

Between 1990 and 1994, I went
through a series of misfortunes
ranging from imprisonments and
tortures to death threats:

*- In 1990, I wrote that the
country was going to be attacked
by RPF led among others by Fred
RWIGEMA and Paul KAGAME who were
respectively the former Chief of
Staff and Chief of Military
Intelligence of MUSEVENI's Army.
I was directly arrested by the
very government I was trying to
warn, I was tried by the State
Security Court and presided by
the well known Colonel Bagosora
Theonest . And still I, Hassan
NGEZE, am accused of being an
accomplice of Government
Officials.

*- The wind of democratic change
which swept on BURUNDI in 1993
brought the first democratically
elected HUTU on the Presidency.
My Magazine has played its role
in sensitizing the opinion that
dictatorship by a minority which
excludes other fractions of the
population could not continue to
have its place in the new
BURUNDI. Straight after the
democratic victory of Mr.
Melchior NDADAYE, I knew of a
plot by TUTSI Extremists to kill
him and regain the power by
force. Still motivated by my love
for the liberation of oppressed
people,

I personally went to meet him and
warned him (Ndadaye) of the plot.
He didn't believe me since I was
naming some of his aides as the
conspirators. He was later on
killed savagely by the same
people I was talking about. On my
security side, I was later on
threatened by RPF who had seen
in his coming to power an
obstacle to their coming to
power. Indeed, they had always
had the support of the BURUNDIAN
Army, which was dominated by the
TUTSI minority .

*- In December 1993, I warned
about the imminent assassination
of President HABYALIMANA. I was
afterward accused of inciting
and spreading insecurity all over
the country. I got an
imprisonment some weeks as a
reward by the Government
Officials. And still Hassan NGEZE
is accused of having worked under
government umbrella .

*- In January 1994, I was led in
a trap by RPF Officials stationed
in the Rwanda Parliament House,
CND, sequestrated, threatened to
be killed because I had written
about the killing of HABYALIMANA
by RPF.


*- In February 1994, I warned the
President of the plot to kill him
on his way home from the Ivory
Coast Summit. As a reward, some
government officials accused me
of being an RPF sympathizer.
Luckily, that catastrophe was
averted. President Habyarimana
did not go to that summit and the
country was saved from imminent
catastrophe by NGeze's
Information

*- Right after the assassination
of the President on the 6`h April
1994, I was arrested by the Army,
tortured and kept in custody for
some days. Is that the reward of
the Government to the one whom
the Prosecutor treats as a some
one working under Government
umbrella ?

*- Between 1990 and 1994, me, the
man whom the Prosecutor accuses
of being under the former
government umbrella, was always
arrested and put in prison at
least three times a year. Is that
the reward to a so-called
obedient servant? If those
abusive acts were to be given a
name, would it surely be called
rewards? Surely, there should be
some other way to qualify them...

*- Between April and July 1994, I
was imprisoned 8 times, once with
my mother for four days, because
I had written about the
assassination and death of
President HABYALIMANA Juvénal.

I was a journalist, in a country
at war. As a journalist, was it
my job to sit and watch my
country scramble whereas I could
use my information network to
know the threats facing upon my
country and warn?

Now, I am the man who is being
accused of allegedly having
incited Hutu against Tutsi. Me,
Hassan NGEZE who was hated by
both warring parties, somebody
torn from both sides, as was the
country he was striving to save
from scrambling. I was accused of
being an RPF sympathizer by the
Government Officials whereas RPF
accused me of being a "saboteur"
of its plans.

From threat to threat, I
survived, psychologically
tortured and rejected by the two
conflicting parties and accused
of different crimes according to
their respective goals.

AWAY FROM THE member of the press
: HASSAN NGEZE WITHIN THE
SOCIETY...

Within my society, I have always
been characterized by a generous
hand, be it materially and
psychologically.

Materially, I have always
followed the teachings of my
religion, ISLAM, in relation to
sharing with the needy. It is a
gift I humbly thank God for: to
share with people in need,
regardless of their origin and
belief.

Psychologically, I have always
felt for the misery and
misfortunes of others. That is
why, I gave shelter to so many
people of different colors, Tutsi
and Hutu, being threatened to be
killed because, they were
allegedly accused of being RPF
sympathizers. Didn't I protected
them regardless of the fact that
I was being hunted by the
Government Militaries? Isn't it
the reason why my house has been
attacked and destroyed by
militaries in the night of the
20' April 1994? Yet, I am being
accused of inciting HUTU against
TUTSI whereas, I warned, I
informed, I did my job of a
journalist with dignity.

As any good journalist all over
the world, I assume that I did my
job of warning about the
impending explosive situation. If
all journalists were to be
arrested for warning, then the
world would not have any
journalist!

Indicting Hassan NGEZE is not
different from indicting the
freedom of speech. The OTP
witnesses have shown that their
testimonies were only
manipulation...

WHO ARE THE Prosecution's
WITNESSES before this tribunal ?

People who come to charge me are
simply the automaton products of
IBUKA, an illegal yet influential
organization of extremists, born
on a note of hatred and revenge

With the creation of ICTR, one of
the main objective of IBUKA is to
prepare, brain wash and
manipulate witnesses for the
prosecution before the tribunal.
I am sorry for the Attorneys who
represent the Prosecution in this
trial: they did not know that
they have been manipulated by
Ibuka:

We have heard in this court how
the Prosecutions Witnesses are
contacted, taught stories to be
said against me by Ibuka and
Rwanda Government.

IBUKA is very influential and has
networks within the government
officials. That is why it can
even reverse some important
government decisions.

WHY AND HOW HAVE I BEEN ARRESTED?

Prior to my arrest in NAIROBI in
1997, I have been subject to a
campaign of "demonization"
launched and entertained , RPF
Government, AFRICA RIGHTS. Along
side the prosecution witness Jean
Pierre Chrestien who wrote a
book full of lies And propaganda
This organization was born almost
at the time when RPF launched its
war against RWANDA in 1990. Its
mission and mandate, incarnated
by its President RAKIYA OMAR, was
to start a campaign of
"demonization Hassan Ngeze"
including my newspaper . Beyond
reasonable doubts, the sponsors
of RPF and Africa Watch must be
the same..

Honorable Judges , Hassan Ngeze
deserves to be released .


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Monday, July 28, 2003

To: Mr. love More G Munlo; The
deputy Registrar

Cc :

Honorable Dieng The Registrar

M. Jean Fomete, Chief, Court
Management Section
Mr Matar Diop .-, K. Thompson.-
Mr Koffi..- K..A. Affande-
Mrs. Odette Bilepo.- Mr. P Enow
Supervisor , English CR- S.V.
Driessche Supervisor French CR-
N.M. DIALLO CMS-
MRS M.BEN SALIMO- Mr Edouard
Matemanga -E.sronvie Adonoo.- Mr
Tom Adami- A Connelly Hnsen-
Khamis Khamis.- M.Hunt.- O
Nchimbi.- M.Pangani.- I Nyoyo
S.Mussa M.Kombe .-Mrs .Gifty
C.Harding. - Harun Faradge .-
Donna M lewis.-Karlene Ruddock..-
Regina Limula..-Dianne Herman.-
Lydienne Prisson.-Nadège Ngo
Biboun.-Sandra Lebroun , Laure
Ketchemen.- Virgine Jolibois. -
Anne Laure Melingui.- Chantal
Gosselin , Pius Onana, -Françoise
quintin-Joëlle Dahan.-Nicole
Disjardins Sithembiso Moyo.-
Karen Louise-Holm .- Grace
Hortense Mboua .- Veronique
Vigouroux .-
Mrs Lidy Mpambara.- Mr Shumbusho
with All Interpreters from
French , English and Kinyarwanda
sections

Subject: Expression of appreciation.

Dear Sir,

As I look at the few remaining days before the end of my long trial, my memory ponders over the numerous men and women who played a role in facilitating the arduous and enormous task of equitably assisting the accusation and the defense at the ICTR.


It is in this context that I take this opportunity to thank you and all your staff for the logistic and material support that I was given in the pre-trial as well as in the trial phases. Never mind that, at times, I did complain about some few things , that is Normal for a humble and innocent person who is passing a such condition..


Furthermore; I feel gratify to take this opportunity to thank the interpreters and court reporters (all Of Them )for their devotion and professionalism shown during the whole process of my trial.

Sincerely yours,
Ngeze Hassan





E-mail : hassanngeze@hotmail -
ngezejustice55@yahoo.ca


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