The ICTR’s “Media” Judgment and the Reinvention of Direct and Public Incitement to Commit Genocide

Abstract

In December 2003, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda handed down life sentences to three persons associated with a Rwandan radio station (RTLM) and a weekly magazine (Kangura). The Trial Chamber claimed that through these two media outlets, the three accused had incited genocide. This article seeks to demonstrate the flimsy basis of the claim. (In November 2007, the ICTR Appeals Chamber threw out many of the Trial Chamber's findings, quashing several convictions, but still leaving all three accused with long prison sentences.)