Rwanda
BNP Paribas (Rwanda)
Type of liability
Personne morale
Alleged perpetrator(s)
BNP Paribas
Nationality of alleged perpetrator(s)
French
Legal classification of crime(s)
Complicity in genocide
Complicity in crimes against humanity
Complicity in war crimes
Source of the complaint
NGO
Ongoing proceedings
oui
Regime
1 - TPIY/TPIR
Summary of facts
The banking group allegedly participated in financing the purchase of 80 tonnes of weapons used in the commission of the genocide, even though the bank could not have been unaware of the genocidal intentions of the authorities of the country for which it authorized the transfer of funds.
From June 14 to 16, 1993, BNP allegedly authorized, at the request of the National Bank of Rwanda, two payments to the Swiss bank account of a South African arms broker (Willem T. E.), for a total of 1.3 million dollars.
On June 17, 1994, Willem T. E. and Colonel Théoneste Bagosora, a Rwandan Hutu soldier, since convicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), allegedly concluded an arms sale in the Seychelles, alongside Zairian intermediaries.
Amnesty International France recalls that everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty according to law.
Legal proceedings
August 22, 2017: A judicial investigation is opened and an investigating judge is appointed.<br />
In 2021: The association Survie joins as a civil party.</p>
Complaint
Names of NGOs / Victim(s)
CPCR
Ibuka France
Survie
Legal basis for jurisdiction (article)
Law No. 96-432 of May 22, 1996
Court of Assizes judgment
Court of Appeal ruling
Court of Cassation ruling
Sources
Sherpa, « Affaire BNP Paribas au Rwanda »
La Tribune, « BNP Paribas visée par une plainte pour "complicité de génocide" au Rwanda », 2017
Survie, « Nos actions judiciaires concernant le génocide des Tutsis au Rwanda », 2019