Cape Town - The Rwandan genocide suspect accused of ordering the brutal deaths of 2000 people during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, has abandoned his bail application and is banking on being granted political asylum in South Africa.
Kayishema’s lawyer, Juan Smuts, told the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court his client had instructed him to suspend the bail application, which the State was set to oppose and to change tack.
Smuts said Kayishema fled Rwanda in 1994 out of fear for his life and before he arrived in South Africa in 2001 “or thereabouts”, he had attempted, and failed, to secure refuge in a number of other African countries.
Smuts did not indicate whether his client intended to bring a bail application at a later stage.
However, National Prosecuting Authority advocate Nathan Adriaanse said whatever the case, the State would oppose any bail application, and the asylum application had no bearing on the court case.
He also said the State had come across new evidence, which would lead to new charges being added to the 54 Kayishema already faced.
Adriaanse said the State would apply for a centralisation certificate, as some of the offences that had emerged were committed outside the Western Cape. The certificate would allow for all the cases preferred against Kayishema to be prosecuted in the Western Cape.
Of the 54 charges against Kayishema, 35 were contraventions of the Immigration Act, 10 charges are to do with infringements of the Refugee Act, and nine were related to fraud.
The magistrate postponed the matter to August 18 for further investigation. Kayishema is to remain in custody.