Prometheus 6   

Rwanda Is Said to Seek New Prosecutor for War Crimes Court
By MARLISE SIMONS

THE HAGUE, July 25 — With the quiet support of the United States, the Rwandan government has been campaigning to have Carla Del Ponte replaced as chief prosecutor for the tribunal dealing with the mass killing in Rwanda in 1994, Western diplomats and tribunal officials have said in recent days.

They said Rwanda was furious that Ms. Del Ponte had been investigating several senior civilian and military members of the present Tutsi-led government for reported atrocities at the time of the bloodshed.

As many as half a million Rwandans, mostly Tutsi, were believed to be killed in the Hutu-led slaughter that lasted three months. But Tutsi troops who subsequently seized power are believed to have killed more than 30,000 civilians in reprisals.

Until now, all those indicted have been Hutu, and Ms. Del Ponte has often denounced Rwanda for obstructing her efforts to investigate crimes by Tutsi. But she has insisted that the tribunal's mandate is to deal with atrocities on both sides and that she must continue investigating to safeguard the court's credibility and to ward off future revenge killings.

Now Rwanda has apparently won support from the United States and Britain in trying to separate Ms. Del Ponte from the tribunal, which is based in Arusha, Tanzania. The decision is up to the United Nations Security Council, which must debate the issue before Sept. 15, when her four-year mandate ends.