The Prosecutor v. Laurent Semanza
Case Sheet · ICTR
The Prosecutor v. Laurent Semanza
| Case number | ICTR-97-20 |
| Case Name | "Semanza" |
| Status | Closed · Sentenced |
Context
Laurent Semanza was bourgmestre of Bicumbi commune for more than twenty years, until being replaced by Juvenal Rugambarara in 1993. After he ceased to serve as bourgmestre, the Accused remained a member of the Mouvement RépubIicain National et Démocratique ("MRND"), which, up to 1994, was the political party of the President of Rwanda, Juvénal Habyarimana. The Accused was nominated as an MRND representative to the National Assembly which was to be established pursuant to the Arusha Accords.
Pre-Trial
| Initial Indictment | 16 October 1997 |
| Amended Indictments | 23 June 1999 2 July 1999 12 October 1999 |
| Crimes Charged | Genocide Genocide · art. 2(3)(a) ICTRS Direct and public incitement to commit genocide · art. 2(3)(c) ICTRS Complicity in genocide · art. 2(3)(e) ICTRS Crimes against humanity Crime against humanity of murder · art. 3(a) ICTRS Crime against humanity of extermination · art. 3(b) ICTRS Crime against humanity of torture · art. 3(f) ICTRS Crime against humanity of rape · art. 3(g) ICTRS Crime against humanity of persecution · art. 3(h) ICTRS Violations of Article 3 Common to the Geneva Conventions and of Additional Protocol II Violence to life, health and physical or mental well-being of persons, in particular murder as well as cruel treatment such as torture, mutilation or any form of corporal punishment · art. 4(a) ICTRS Outrages upon persona1 dignity, in particular rape, degrading humiliating treatment and indecent assault · art. 4(e) ICTRS |
| Arrest and Transfer | 26 March 1996 · Arrested in Cameroon · Transferred to ICTR 19 November 1997 |
| Initial Appearance | 16 February 1998 · Plea: Not Guilty |
Trial
| Trial Chamber | Trial Chamber III · Judges: Judge Yakov Ostrovsky (Presiding), Judge Lloyd G. Williams, QC, Judge Pavel Dolenc |
| Trial Opening | 16 October 2000 |
| Trial Judgment | 15 May 2003 |
| Crimes at Trial Judgment | Genocide Complicity in genocide · art. 2(3)(e) ICTRS Crimes against humanity Crime against humanity of murder · art. 3(a) ICTRS Crime against humanity of extermination · art. 3(b) ICTRS Crime against humanity of torture · art. 3(f) ICTRS Crime against humanity of rape · art. 3(g) ICTRS |
| Sentencing Judgment | 25 years of imprisonment |
Appeal
| Appeals Chamber | Appeals Chamber · Judges: Judge Theodor Meron (Presiding), Judge Mohamed Shahabuddeen, Judge Mehmet Güney, Judge Fausto Pocar, Judge Inés Mónica Weinberg de Roca |
| Appeals Filed By | Both |
| Appeal Judgment | 20 May 2005 |
| Crimes at Appeal Judgment | Genocide Genocide · art. 2(3)(a) ICTRS Complicity in genocide · art. 2(3)(e) ICTRS Crimes against humanity Crime against humanity of murder · art. 3(a) ICTRS Crime against humanity of extermination · art. 3(b) ICTRS Crime against humanity of torture · art. 3(f) ICTRS Crime against humanity of rape · art. 3(g) ICTRS Violations of Article 3 Common to the Geneva Conventions and of Additional Protocol II Violence to life, health and physical or mental well-being of persons, in particular murder as well as cruel treatment such as torture, mutilation or any form of corporal punishment · art. 4(a) ICTRS Outrages upon persona1 dignity, in particular rape, degrading humiliating treatment and indecent assault · art. 4(e) ICTRS |
| Final Sentence | 35 years of imprisonment |
| Transfer to Serve Sentence | 8 December 2008 · Mali 19 December 2018 · Benin |
Key Documents
| Amended Indictment | Amended Indictment [Annex 1] (1999) |
| Trial Judgment | Trial Judgment (2003) |
| Appeal Judgment | Appeal Judgment (2005) |
| ICTR Case Page | Official ICTR page |