One woman was forced to flee her home in fear of her life. I was chased from the house I had been renting in Kigali. The landlord asked me to leave because he knew I had testified in Arusha. At night, people would come and throw stones at my house. I was very scared.
Women are often the only ones who can provide information and testimony.
Witness protection and gender-sensitive practices must be put into place. There is an urgent need to build trust and repair the relationship between the ICTR and the Rwandan women's community. The report was launched in anticipation of the trial of Jean-Paul Akayesu, former bourgmestre of Taba, who appeared before the ICTR on October 22, 1997. Akayesu is the first to be brought to trial for crimes of sexual violence. An amicus curiae brief, signed by the Coalition, contributed to the amendment of the charges against Akayesu to include sexual violence.