Accused of genocide, a Rwandan professor tells his side of the story.
Last Dec. 10, an NBC news camera crew barged into Dr. Leopold Munyakazi’s French classroom at Goucher College accompanied by a Rwandan prosecutor. The reporters asked the professor how he responded to being charged with genocide in Rwanda.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” the startled Munyakazi, 49, replied, refusing to say anything more.
A reporter and the prosecutor visited school authorities with two international arrest warrants and a 21-page indictment. That’s when Goucher suspended the visiting professor with pay.
On Feb. 3, Munyakazi was arrested for overstaying his visa. He was released with a monitoring device and is now awaiting a hearing before an immigration court judge to see if he will be allowed to stay in this country or be forced to leave.
While he waits, he was asked not to step foot on campus.
“The college placing Dr. Munyakazi on suspension is in no way condemning him, or justifying these allegations,” says Kristen Keener, director of media relations for Goucher College. The school was swamped with reporters and camera crews the week after the news broke, she says. But, they are serious allegations, and if someone is accused of killing people, they can’t be on campus with students, adds Keener.
