Minister of State Lenihan announces €250,000 for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda

Award follows President McAleese's visit to the Tribunal in June

Minister of State for Development Cooperation and Human Rights, Conor Lenihan T.D., today announced a grant of €250,000 to assist the work of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).

The grant will support the Tribunal's Voluntary Contributions Trust Fund, which provides essential support for the Tribunal in delivering its key objectives. The Irish funding will be earmarked for outreach activities in rural communities in Rwanda and for medical support to witnesses living with HIV/AIDS.   

President McAleese visited the Tribunal, which is based in Tanzania, in June of this year. The President's visit highlighted the vital role of the Voluntary Contributions Trust Fund.

Announcing the funding, Minister Lenihan said:

“This funding will play an important role in supporting the critical work of the Tribunal, as highlighted by the President during her visit to Tanzania in June. It will ensure that those witnesses who are living with HIV/AIDS receive the treatment and support they need to lead full lives and to allow them to contribute to the Tribunal's important work”.

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10th August 2006

Note to editors:

The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) was established in 1994 by the United Nations Security Council for the prosecution of persons responsible for serious crimes during the Rwandan genocide of 1994.

The ICTR's Voluntary Contributions Trust Fund is used to finance work programmes of the Tribunal deemed essential for the effective discharge of its mandate but which are not provided for in the organisation's regular budget of assessed contributions from Member States. Projects funded from the Trust Fund include the Tribunal's Outreach Programme to Rwanda, the Support Programme for Witnesses, and Enhancing the Archiving and Record-keeping System of the ICTR.

The funding announced today is part of a package of almost €2.5 million in emergency and recovery funding.  It also includes support to projects in a number of countries currently experiencing the effects of civil conflict or which have recently emerged from conflict, including Somalia, Cote d'Ivoire, Sierra Leone and Uganda.  .  Funding is being provided to a number of NGO partners who are delivering essential relief and recovery services to the affected populations.