FBIS4-297
"drafr067_a_94010"
FBIS-AFR-94-067
Daily Report
7 Apr 1994
CENTRAL AFRICA
Rwanda
Habyarimana, Ntaryamira Killed in Plane Crash
Habyarimana, Ntaryamira Killed in Plane Crash
Prime Minister Updates Situation
LD0704085394 Paris Radio France International in French 0630
GMT 7 Apr 94
LD0704085394
Paris Radio France International
French
BFN
[Excerpts] First of all, the deaths of the Rwandan and
Burundi presidents last night: Events seem to be accelerating
in Rwanda in any case, with the burned-out wreckage that is the
remains of the Rwandan president's plane, which crashed
yesterday evening not far from Kigali airport. Eyewitness
accounts report an explosion or even rocket fire hitting the
aircraft, bemusement among those who heard the news, and--a few
hours later--firing in the streets of Kigali. Let us listen to
the account given by Rwandan Prime Minister Madame Agathe
Uwilingiyimana, who was contacted by Monique Mas just a short
while ago:
[Begin Uwilingiyimana recording] There is shooting, people
are being terrorized, people are inside their homes lying on the
floor. We are suffering the consequences of the death of the
head of state, I believe. We, the civilians, are in no way
responsible for the death of our head of state. [end recording]
So, there was shooting in the streets of Kigali this morning
following a night that one might describe as rather surreal.
Dominique de Courcelles reports:
[Courcelles] Yes, in Kigali, after a fairly calm night, as
you have just heard, shooting is now being heard in the town and
is in particular directed at the residence of the prime
minister, who is shut up in her home. From the moment the
announcement of the accident was made by the radio station of
the government party, the UN peacekeepers stepped up their
patrols to attempt to prevent any trouble, and the Rwandan
Government called on the people to remain calm and to stay at
home.
In neighboring Burundi, the national radio station and the
authorities, including the speaker of the National Assembly, who
has become the interim president, have called for calm. An
emergency committee to follow the situation was immediately set
up. So far this call for calm has been heeded. The
circumstances surrounding the accident or the attack have not
yet become clear, but one thing that is certain is that all the
occupants of the plane are dead -- apart from the two presidents
of the republics, this includes two Burundi ministers and the
whole of the French crew. [passage omitted]
The UN mission on the spot, the UNAMIR [UN Assistance
Mission
in Rwanda], has not so far formed any theories, but it reports a
large explosion at about 2100 hours local time and firing on the
ground at the airport. As for the Rwandan Army and Gendarmerie
Staff Command, they have not issued any information during the
night, but doubtless it is their weapons that are being heard at
the moment. [passage omitted]
The prime minister herself obviously sees a link between the
shooting and the death of President Habyarimana -- very quickly
she attempted to get in touch with the Army Staff Command, but
in vain. The failure to respond appears to indicate that it is
members of the military who are firing in the streets of Kigali,
with the Army thus targeting this prime minister who is the
symbol of a difficult period of transition between war with the
FPR [Rwandan Patriotic Front] and peace accompanied by
power-sharing, which was clearly repugnant to President
Habyarimana. [passage omitted]