Africa-Press – Rwanda. The High Court based in Kigali on Tuesday, June 17, summoned Victoire Ingabire in a trial involving YouTuber Theoneste Nsengimana and eight other co-accused who face charges related to conspiracy to overthrow the government.
Ingabire, a former convict of incitement, forming an armed group and minimisation of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, was summoned for the hearing scheduled for June 19.
The court cited Article 106 of the Penal Code which allows judges to summon co-offenders or accomplices not initially brought before the court. According to the presiding judge, the court found reasonable grounds to hear from Ingabire regarding the charges faced by the defendants in the case.
Ingabire, who had been sentenced to 13 years in prison in 2013 was released in 2018 along with 2,100 other convicts after President Paul Kagame commuted her sentence.
In the ongoing trial, Nsengimana is tried with Sylvain Sibomana, Claudine Uwimana, Alexis Rucubangana, among others, whom prosecutors allege conspired to destabilize the government. Prosecutors consider Sibomana a key coordinator of a training programme allegedly aimed at preparing participants to engage in non-violent strategies to overthrow the government.
It is alleged that in 2021, Sibomana recruited people for the training sessions that took place under the guise of English courses. He is alleged to have used materials such as a booklet referred to as “Blueprint for Revolution” by Serbian activist Srdja Popovic. The book outlines strategies for non-violent resistance against authoritarian regimes. According to the prosecution, the group also received financial facilitation and used aliases during the sessions.
During his defense, responding to the presiding judge on how he got to know about the training, the money he received, and how all were linked with the so-called “Ingabire Day,” Sibomana claimed that he was approached by a woman named Assoumpta, residing abroad, who informed him about the training sessions. He explained that having previously participated in similar non-violence trainings while at University of Rwanda, he agreed to help identify people who might be interested. He denied recruiting participants on behalf of DALFA-Umurinzi, an organisation founded by Ingabire. He said the organisation was not involved.
“The money I received from Assoumpta was to support internet access for participants. I could not fund such activities on my own, having spent eight years in prison,” Sibomana said. He also distanced himself from any formal role in DALFA-Umurinzi, arguing that his relationship with Ingabire was personal and not linked to the organization.
The court also questioned him about the alleged link between the trainings and “Ingabire Day,” an annual event held since 2010 after the arrest of Victoire Ingabire. Sibomana said the 2021 edition of the day carried the theme “Umunyarwanda niyubahwe” (loosely translated as “Let Rwandans be respected”), which was intended to be marked through social media campaigns.
“I asked my friends to participate in the event virtually. It was not a party activity, it has always been an initiative led by people, especially from the diaspora,” Sibomana told court. He said the event and the training were unrelated.
His lawyer, Gatera Gashabana, who also represents eight of the nine co-accused, argued that there was no evidence linking DALFA-Umurinzi to the planning or execution of the trainings. “There’s nothing criminal about receiving financial support, especially from someone abroad, for internet access. There is also no connection between the Ingabire Day event and the alleged conspiracy,” Gashabana told court.
Prosecutors, however, insisted that Sibomana presented himself as a member of DALFA-Umurinzi in messages to participants. They also stated that Assoumpta, who allegedly coordinated some aspects of the training with Ingabire, was still under investigation, though her whereabouts remained unknown.
The presiding judge pressed the prosecution on why Ingabire and Assoumpta had not been summoned earlier if they were suspected of involvement in the conspiracy. Prosecutors responded that investigations were ongoing and not all people had been questioned yet.
“This is surprising, four years have passed, and yet the person allegedly at the center of the preparation (Assoumpta) has not been questioned,” Gashabana said.
Nsengimana is accused of using his YouTube channel as a platform to spread misinformation and promote the group’s agenda. He claimed during the hearing that he merely covered the 2019 Ingabire Day event on his channel, maintaining that there he saw nothing criminal about it.
He told court that they were still in talks to host the day in 2021, adding that he should not have gone far from his editorial line.
The trial is set to continue on June 19, when Ingabire is expected to appear in court.
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