France/Rwanda - genocide charges

Doctor suspended over genocide warrant

Article published on the 2009-10-17 Latest update 2009-10-19 07:09 TU

Eugène Rwamyuco's portrait on the Interpol site
(Credit: Interpol)

A Rwandan doctor has been suspended from work at a hospital in northern France after a nurse discovered that he is wanted by Interpol for alleged involvement in his country's ethnic violence in 1994.

Eugène Rwamucyo was employed as a doctor for staff at the hospital in Maubeuge, apparently his third such job in the region according to the Sud-Santé trade union.

But a nurse, who was a member of Sud-Santé, was offended by remarks he made about her weight during an examination. Doubting his qualifications, she asked her husband to Google his name.

The result revealed that Rwamucyo is wanted by the international police, Interpol, whose website says he is the subject of an arrest warrant in Rwanda for genocide and war crimes.

The union then wrote to public prosecutors and health officials to ask if Rwamucyo is still a wanted man and whether he has the necessary qualifications to work in French public hospitals.

The 1994 Rwanda genocide left an estimated 800,000 people dead in just 100 days. The victims were mostly members of the Tutsi minority or Hutus who opposed the massacres.