Rwanda opposition figure calls for poll boycott

KIGALI (Reuters) – A leading opponent of Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame on Friday called for a boycott of next month’s presidential elections because she and a number of would-be candidates have been barred from standing.
Victoire Ingabire, the outspoken head of the unregistered United Democratic Forces party who faces charges of crimes linked to genocide denial, told Reuters Kagame faces little competition and is set to easily secure a second seven-year term.

« I will not vote and I will ask the population ‘don’t vote’ because we know before the election who will win, » she said in an interview.
She said her absence on the ballot paper would render Kagame’s victory illegitimate.
Kagame is widely lauded outside Rwanda with restoring stability and rebuilding the central African nation in the aftermath of the 1994 genocide, and for his bold ambition to transform Rwanda into a middle income country by 2020.
But his critics have frequently accused him of trampling on political and press freedoms. In the run-up to the poll, rights groups have said he is turning the screws on his opponents and showing signs of increasing repression.
« Elections do not mean democracy. If we want to start a democracy we have to allow an opposition to be active, » Ingabire said.
Kagame will compete against Damascene Ntawukuliryayo from the Social Democratic Party (PSD), Prosper Higiro from the Liberal Party (PL) and Alvera Mukabaramba from the smaller Party of Progress and Concord (PPC).
All three registered candidates, Ingabire maintains, are « stooges » of Kagame and head « satellite » parties of Kagame’s Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF).
Ingabire questioned the independence of the National Electoral Commission and said voters would be coerced into which way to vote.
UNLEVEL PLAYING FIELD
« We will have the same scenario like in 2003 because nothing has changed. He has no candidate to compete with him, » Ingabire said. « People vote because authorities push them to go to vote and show who they have to vote for. »
In 2003, Kagame won over 90 percent of the vote.
Kagame has in previous media interviews suggested a Western-style democracy is not automatically appropriate for a nation like Rwanda recovering from a traumatic social upheaval. Instead he points to the considerable progress in health, education and infrastructure.
But the gruesome murder this week of a senior member of another emerging opposition party, an attack on his former army chief and the slaying of a critical journalist have alarmed diplomats.
Rwanda firmly denies being linked to the attacks and says Ingabire broke laws aimed at avoiding a repeat of the genocide, including stoking ethnic hatred.
Official campaigning begins on July 20.

France strongly condemns the death of an opponent Rwanda

France “condemns with the utmost firmness” the killing of Andrew Kagwa Rwisereka, Senior Vice-President of the Democratic Party Green Rwanda, said Thursday, July 15 the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
France “calls on the Rwandan authorities to shed full light on the circumstances of this heinous murder and bring those responsible to justice,” he said during a press briefing the spokesperson of the Quai d’Orsay, Bernard Valero.

“Beyond this necessary duty of justice, it is up to the Rwandan authorities to ensure a pre-election context that respects fundamental freedoms and democratic rules,” he added. The body of Andre Kagwa Rwisereka was found Wednesday in a marsh south of the country.
The Democratic Party Green Rwanda was launched in August 2009 by defectors from the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), currently in power. The party is not officially registered and accused the regime of President Paul Kagame for having refused to accept the sole purpose of preventing him from participating in the presidential election on 9 August.

Request international investigation

Three opposition parties in Rwanda on Thursday demanded “an independent international investigation into the murder of Andre Kagwa Rwisereka. The three formations, grouped within the Collaborative Council permanent opposition parties in Rwanda (CPC), “ask an independent international investigation into the murder of Andre Rwisereka Kagwa, a key figure in the opposition” in a statement received by AFP in Nairobi.

The text was signed by Victoire Ingabire, President of United Democratic Forces (UDF), Frank Habineza, chairman of the Democratic Party Green Rwisereka which was the first Vice-President, and Theobald Mutarambirwa, Secretary General of the Socialist Party (PS) IMBERAKURI.
The UDF and the Democratic Party Green are not yet recognized by the Rwandan authorities. The Socialist Party, meanwhile, is officially registered, but its original chairman, Bernard Ntaganda, was recently expelled from the party, and imprisoned.

The Rwandan lawyer who, like Victory Ingabire, announced his decision to run for president of 9 August was accused of “terrorism”. Under judicial review, it is Victory Ingabire prosecuted for aiding and abetting terrorism and negation of the Tutsi genocide of 1994.
The three also are demanding that the June 24 murder of independent journalist Jean Leonard Rugambage be likewise subject to “an independent international investigation. They also demand the release of Mr. Ntaganda and the abandonment of the proceedings against him.” We urge the government of Rwanda to use all means possible to ensure that peace and tranquility prevailed before and after the presidential election of August, “the statement added.

General Nyamwasa Is Wanted in Three Countries

General Wanted in Three Countries
Jul, 09, 2010 03:33 AM - AllAfrica.com

Johannesburg, Jul 09, 2010 (Business Day/All Africa Global Media via COMTEX) -- FRANCE, Rwanda and Spain had lodged extradition applications with SA for Rwandan Lt-Gen Kayumba Nyamwasa, justice and constitutional development spokesman Tlali Tlali yesterday confirmed.

SA had previously refused to confirm the identities of the countries that applied for an extradition order for the Rwandan general. SA does not have an extradition treaty with the Rwandan government.

"The matter is currently under consideration and there is no decision as yet," Mr Tlali Tlali said.

It is unclear on what grounds the Rwandan government wants the general to be extradited.

Lt-Gen Nyamwasa formed part of the inner circle of Rwandan president Paul Kagame before the fallout that led him to flee that country earlier this year.

SA has since granted the general asylum - to the fury of human rights groups.

Calls to the Rwandan embassy went unanswered yesterday.

It is generally understood that Spain and France want to try the general for his alleged role as one of the key perpetrators of the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

The French and Spanish embassies yesterday refused to confirm or deny the motivation for the extradition requests.

The South African Police Service (SAPS) said Lt-Gen Nyamwasa had been discharged from hospital after being shot by alleged foreign intelligence operatives.

SAPS spokesman Brig Govindsamy Mariemuthoo refused to divulge details of his whereabouts. He said the police were still investigating the circumstances that led to the assassination attempt.

"The suspects will be appearing in court in two weeks' time (on July 27)," he said.

Earlier this week, SA's envoy to Rwanda, Dumisani Gwadiso, was summoned by the Rwandan foreign ministry to convey a message to the South African government, but i nternational relations and c o-operation director-general Ayanda Ntsaluba yesterday refused to give details.

Dr Ntsaluba said the government was preparing a response to the concerns raised by Rwanda.

He reiterated SA's position that strong action would be taken against foreign intelligence operatives who were conducting surveillance without the government's permission.

(c) 2010 Business Day. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com).


Copyright © 2010 Acquire Media. All rights reserved.

These news stories are produced by third-parties and are not reviewed or edited by Poten & Partners. They are collected and distributed as a convenience, subject to the Terms and Conditions described on our website, and provided without warranty of any kind. Any opinions expressed in these articles represent the views of third-party authors and should not be construed to reflect the opinions of Poten & Partners

Green Party Condemns Rwanda's Arrest of Minnesota Attorney Peter Erlinder

Green Party Condemns Rwanda's Arrest of Minnesota Attorney Peter Erlinder

The Green Party of Minnesota joins human rights advocates and people of good will across the world to call on the U.S. government, the United Nations, and non-governmental organizations to prevail upon Rwanda to release Peter Erlinder immediately. We applaud his defense of the human and civil rights of Rwanda presidential candidate Victoire Ingabire, who was charged in April, 2010, with the same crime of which Erlinder is accused -- genocide denial.

Ingabire's party, the United Democratic Front (FDU), works closely with the Democratic Green Party of Rwanda, within the Consultative Council of Opposition Parties. Both parties have suffered governmental persecution and severe limitations on their ability to organize.

Rwandan president Paul Kagame seeks to silence Erlinder's efforts to expose the facts surrounding the 1994 Rwandan genocide (http://www.rwandadocumentsproject.net). His arrest was politically motivated and effectively punishes him for fulfilling his responsibilities as a vigorous and conscientious legal advocate for his client. "For decades Professor Erlinder has sought justice for his clients in the face of political repression," says Gena Berglund, Associate Director, International Humanitarian Law Institute of Minnesota and a member of the Green Party. "I am very skeptical of a government that locks up lawyers for speech crimes."

Peter Erlinder is a professor of law at William Mitchell College in St. Paul. In addition to his position as executive director of the Humanitarian Law Institute of Minnesota, he is Lead Counsel for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) Defense Lawyers Association, past president of the National Lawyers Guild, and a practicing attorney. In an email sent to Berglund shortly before his arrest he wrote: "Victoire Ingabire, Rwandan Presidential Candidate, is like Mandela and I am very honored to be defending her."

"Rwanda remains one of the largest recipients of U.S. foreign assistance in Africa," says Berglund. "Given the U.S. government's expressed commitment to democracy and the rule of law, it is critical that the Obama Administration and the U.S. Congress uphold these values in Rwanda and demand the immediate release of Peter Erlinder."

51 pays africains présents au sommet de Nice

51 pays africains présents au sommet de Nice

[ 28/05/10 - 18H31 - Reuters ]

PARIS, 28 mai (Reuters) - Trente-neuf chefs d'Etat et de gouvernement sont attendus lundi et mardi à Nice pour le 25e sommet France-Afrique, coprésidé par Nicolas Sarkozy et l'Egyptien Hosni Moubarak.
Le secrétaire général de l'Onu Ban Ki-Moon participera aussi à ce forum organisé désormais tous les trois ans et qui ne se résume plus à un tête-à-tête entre la France et ses anciennes colonies du continent.
Signe des temps, le "dîner des amis" qui réunissait encore sous Jacques Chirac la France et des grandes figures de la "Françafrique" à la veille de ces sommets a disparu du programme.
La partie française fait valoir que cette pratique appartient au passé et qu'elle sera avantageusement remplacée cette année par les cérémonies du 14 juillet, où la France entend rendre hommage à ses anciennes colonies d'Afrique noire pour le 50e anniversaire de leur indépendance.
Elle indique aussi qu'un tel aparté ne se justifie plus à partir du moment où la décision a été prise d'ouvrir ces sommets à l'ensemble du continent.
Cinquante et un pays africains seront représentés à Nice, à commencer par les deux géants de l'Afrique noire que sont l'Afrique du Sud et le Nigeria, avec les président Jacob Zuma et Goodluck Jonathan.
PAS D'INVITATION POUR MADAGASCAR
Côté Maghreb, le Tunisien Zine Ben Ali et le roi du Maroc Mohammed VI ne seront pas là, tout comme le colonel Mouammar Kadhafi. Mais la surprise vient de la présence, confirmée vendredi, de l'Algérien Abdelaziz Bouteflika, alors que les relations entre Paris et Alger viennent de traverser une nouvelle période de tensions (voir .
En Afrique noire, les principaux absents seront l'Ougandais Yoweri Museweni, l'Ivoirien Laurent Gbagbo, critiqué par la communauté internationale pour les retards répétés à l'organisation d'une élection présidentielle dans son pays, et le Congolais Joseph Kabila.
L'Angolais Jose Eduardo Dos Santos, en froid avec la France en raison de l'affaire Falcone (voir , ne fera pas non plus le déplacement de Nice.
Mais le Rwandais Paul Kagame sera bien présent après la visite de réconciliation de Nicolas Sarkozy dans son pays en février dernier.
Le président somalien Cheikh Charif Ahmed sera également présent malgré les troubles dans son pays.
L'existence de sanctions internationales à leur encontre à conduit la France à ne pas inviter nommément les présidents soudanais Omar Hassan al Bachir et zimbabwéen Robert Mugabe. Khartoum a néanmoins délégué son vice-président.
Après avoir longtemps hésité, la France n'a finalement pas adressé d'invitation à Madagascar, jugeant "trop conflictuelle" la situation dans la "Grande Ile", en pleine crise depuis qu'Andry Rajoelina y a pris le pouvoir à la faveur d'un soulèvement populaire qui a renversé le président Marc Ravalomana en mars 2009 (voir ).
Les responsables des juntes qui ont pris cette année le pouvoir au Niger et en Guinée ont été en revanche invités et seront présents, Paris jugeant positives la mise en oeuvre dans ces deux pays de "transitions dans un cadre consensuel".
(Yann Le Guernigou, édité par Yves Clarisse)