RWANDA:Karuranga Attacks Kagame At RPP 2nd Anniversary

By Edison Akugizibwe
Karuranga Attacks Kagame At RPP 2nd Anniversary
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UK-based Rwanda opposition figure John Karuranga has criticized President Paul Kagame for harassing his rivals and orchestrating a mandatory sterilization policy in the tiny country.

“On this momentous occasion, the party would like to remember and salute those party members who lost their lives through RPF’s assassination policy and I would like to reiterate that, in spite of harassments and intimidation, our party will not be deterred from carrying out our historic mission on behalf of the Rwandan people,” says Karuranga.

The Rwanda People’s Party (RPP) was formed two years ago. Majority of its members live overseas.

“18 years ago, the RPF/A of President Kagame captured power in Rwanda. This regime has now been in power since then and was re-elected for another 7 years in 2010, an election that most independent observers consider flawed and illegitimate,” says Karuranga.

He further says RPF’s rule has not brought any iota of peace and political stability in Rwanda.

“Instead it has inflicted one catastrophe after another on Rwanda and its people. While, foreigners are happy with a so-called economic boom, and some of the foreign cult evangelical religious leaders have been guaranteed Rwandan citizenship, 99% of Rwandan people still live in abject poverty, below the UN designated poverty level for human subsistence.”

He says most Rwandans survive on less than $0.15 per day, which ranks it as one of the poorest countries in the world.

“Children and elderly people die of hunger, starvation and neglect. There is credible evidence that female orphans of genocide placed in foster homes have been systematically emotionally, physically and sexually abused by the people who fostered them and were therefore supposed to protect them,” says Karuranga.

“They are made to do menial domestic tasks like cooking and looking after children and their living condition is surely akin to slavery.”

Rwanda not democratic

He further disputes the “assertion by some elements of the international community that Rwanda is a democracy and is somehow a role model for Africa.”

Karuranga affirms democracy in Rwanda and freedom of association is virtually non-existent.

Late last year, Kagame said freedom of speech and association is flourishing in Rwanda.

He gave an example of the annual National Dialogue Conferences held in Kigali where all Rwandese participate in deliberating on issues that affect their country.

Kagame further denied having a hand in the murder of critical journalists. He described such allegations as baseless.

Karuranga says Rwandan people live a hand to mouth existence and we challenge anyone to say they are free.

“President Kagame’s regime can only be best described as Animal Farm re-incarnated. In fact President Kagame could have written Animal Farm himself,” charged Karuranga.

“His MPs have neither backbone, nor authority to challenge him and the fact that he has many female MPs in his government is simply meant to dupe his international backers because they have neither power nor authority.”

He describes the politicians as mere cheerleaders who are more interested in their buttered bread and bacon rather than the interests of the Rwandan people.

“They see their constituents (more victims) in four wheel air-conditioned driven cars while their victims hardly have any porridge or milk with which to feed their malnourished children, while orphans of genocide have continued to be systemically raped and destroyed on daily a basis.”

FORCED STERLISATION

Karuranga condemns RPF’s policy of what he describes as forced sterilization of Rwandan poor.

“This is a crime under international law and violates the human rights of the person and of their unborn child if they are forced to carry out an abortion or sterilisation against their will. There exists more egalitarian programmes of population control today and most of these are achieved on the basis of public education and consensus, not force.”

He says sterilization of 700,000 Rwandan poor is totally unnecessary and is both cruel and barbaric