Doubts over democracy as Rwanda's election looms

Deo Mushyayidi an Opposition Leader in Rwanda being kidnapped

The red white and blue colours of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), like the French flag, are being waved enthusiastically on the pick-up trucks making their way through the Rwandan capital’s ordered streets.
Posters with the stern face of President Paul Kagame look down from billboards, shop windows and electronic advertising panels. Under each is the slogan “Umusingi W’ubumwe, Demokarasi N’amajyambere” – Unity, Development and Democracy. Rwanda has made unmistakeable strides on the first two promises. The third is less certain.
With the country’s second presidential election since the country’s 1994 genocide in full swing, Mr Kagame has been accused of crushing dissent ahead of the August 9th poll, with opposition politicians and independent journalists murdered in recent weeks.
The latest was that of Andre Kagwa Rwisereka, a former chief-of-staff of the Rwandan army, who set up the opposition Green Party last year. Police said he was killed in a financial dispute, but Human Rights Watch said its own findings indicate his murder “may have been politically motivated”. Meanwhile, opposition leader Victore Ingabire and her FDU-Inkindi party have been prevented from running, with Ms Ingabire accused of denying the genocide and abetting terrorism. Bernard Ntaganda, leader of the Social Party, has been behind bars since June 24th.
On Tuesday, a Rwandan court opened the trial of Deo Mushayidi, a former member of Mr Kagame’s ruling party and now an opposition leader. He is charged with collaborating with a terrorist group, spreading rumours to cause civil disobedience and promoting genocide ideology.
Mr Kagame will now take on Damascene Ntawukuliryayo from the Social Democratic Party (PSD), Prosper Higiro from the Liberal Party and Alvera Mukabaramba from the smaller Party of Progress and Concord (PPC) in the vote. However, all three parties supported Mr Kagame during the 2003 presidential election, raising suspicions that they are just a token opposition being used to maintain a facade of pluralism in the tiny east African nation.
Mr Kagame can point to real progress since his 2003 election. The economy grew by 8.6 per cent last year. There is negligible corruption, a report from anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International said last week. Reports of bribery are almost nonexistent.
Primary school enrolment stands at 92 per cent, the highest in the region, says the UN, and parliament has the highest proportion of female representation in the world, with 55 per cent of seats.
“Before the RPF there was no peace,” says one man, sitting underneath a poster for Mr Kagame’s party in his bakery, south of Kigali. “They have brought stability and prosperity.” Others were less certain. “This election is just for you in the West,” said another man. “They want you to think that there is democracy here. But look around you. You can see that there is no choice.”

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ANALYSIS-Should Rwanda rights concerns worry investors?

The decapitated body of the Green Party Leader

Rights groups warn of growing authoritarianism
* Many donors, investors focus on short-term stability
* Any erosion of rule of law brings longer term dangers

By Peter Apps, Political Risk Correspondent
LONDON, July 28 (Reuters) - Rwandan President Paul Kagame might be able to clamp down on dissent ahead of elections without much immediate donor or economic impact, but it could bring longer term investment risks.
Kagame has been feted and courted by Western and multilateral donors, and credited with rebuilding the country after the 1994 genocide. He has also set out a roadmap to move the country of 10 million beyond its dependence on agriculture -- primarily tea and coffee -- and transform it into an IT hub.
"Investor interest in Rwanda is still rising, particularly in infrastructure and agriculture," said Thomas Vis, a risk management officer at the World Bank. "Obviously if the political situation will seem to be deteriorating, that could have an impact on investment but there are no signs of it."
But critics and rights groups say he has become increasingly authoritarian, and they are asking questions about the killing of an opposition politician, the shooting in South Africa of a dissident general, the killing of a journalist and the arrest of opposition figures. The government denies involvement.
Some analysts say Kagame has been reacting to rising challenges from within the ruling elite, although few doubt he will win presidential elections on Aug. 9 easily. Several opposition parties have been unable to stand.
Nevertheless, investors who had assumed Kagame would remain comfortably in control are wondering more about the future. Many -- along with Western governments -- would rather keep him. Most expect foreign observers to ultimately rate the elections fair although they may raise some concerns.
"There is no clarity at all on who might follow him if he were to go," said Control Risks analyst Laura Morrison. "Kagame has played the public relations game very well -- the donors have a lot invested in him. It's almost impossible to imagine they would switch from him now."
Rwanda is not the only African country praised by the West that looks to have drifted towards authoritarianism in recent years. Uganda and Ethiopia are often cited as similar examples by some analysts.
Certainly, investors have a tendency to prefer authority to chaos. Many say they prefer Russia as an investment destination under President and then Prime Minister Vladimir Putin than they did under the more anarchic rule of Boris Yeltsin.
Sri Lanka lost out on Western aid and preferential access to European textile markets on concerns over alleged human rights abuses in the closing stages of its civil war but investment flows particularly from Asia remain strong.
The rise of China means that losing Western support is much less damaging, providing a crutch to governments such as Sudan and Zimbabwe. A decline in the perceived moral and financial clout of the West -- weakened by the financial crisis and Iraq conflict -- is also undermining its influence.

GREATER SELF-CONFIDENCE
"You can't lose sight of the fact that there have been remarkable strides forward in governance in Africa in the last 10 years and you have seen greater investor confidence with that," said Thomas Cargill, head of the Africa programme at think tank Chatham House.
"What is happening is not so much that there is more authoritarianism but that it is less disguised. And there is much greater self-confidence in facing the West and saying "we're doing things our way"."
Still, experts warn that erosion of the rule of law makes life more risky for foreign investors. It feeds into credit assessments by specialist brokerages and premiums charged by political risk insurers to protect against expropriation.
"Authoritarian regimes may provide some comfort in the short term, but most long-term investors will be concerned about falling out of favour with a regime and suffering catastrophic losses as a result," said Dan Riordan, president for specialty products for insurer Zurich. "Authoritarian regimes also suffer from high levels of corruption, also a significant negative for long-term investors."
Rwanda itself has been praised for making strides against corruption and improving the investment environment. It was voted the most improved business performance globally by the World Bank.
"In Rwanda, there's not a lot of democracy as we know it but there is a lot of accountability," said one Western diplomat.
Foreign firms were generally untroubled unless they went head-to-head with investment and construction firms controlled by the military or ruling party, he said.
But some analysts and investors looking at Africa are no longer willing to talk on the record about Rwanda for fear of antagonising the government and jeopardising business there -- usually a sign of a deteriorating environment.

DATA FAVOURS DEMOCRACY
That could sap enthusiasm for a fledgeling domestic bond market and the sale of stakes in telecoms and brewery firms. Several Kenyans firms are also looking to cross-list in Rwanda.
There was certainly little sign of caution in 2009. The Rwanda Development Board said registered investment -- almost half of it classed as foreign -- leapt 41 percent to $1.11 billion, fuelled by interest in telecoms and a methane project.
Brookings Institute senior fellow Daniel Kaufmann -- co-author of the closely watched worldwide governance indicators produced with the World Bank -- says countries measured as having greater political openness attract up to 3 to 4 times more external investment than those with weaker institutions.
The exceptions to that rule were particularly resource-rich countries, which constituted a "special case", he said, adding that evidence also suggested return on investment tended to be better in countries with better "voice" and openness.
"If Rwanda were to improve its voice and democratic accountability in the coming months and years then the country can expect to obtain much higher foreign direct investments than if it takes an increasingly autocratic route," Kaufmann said.
(Additional reporting by Hereward Holland in Kigali; Editing by Giles Elgood)

Should Rwanda rights concerns worry investors?

The Body of the Rwanda Opposition Vice President

By World Finance
Rwandan President Paul Kagame might be able to clamp down on dissent ahead of elections without much immediate donor or economic impact, but it could bring longer term investment risks

Kagame has been feted and courted by Western and multilateral donors, and credited with rebuilding the country after the 1994 genocide. He has also set out a roadmap to move the country of 10 million beyond its dependence on agriculture - primarily tea and coffee - and transform it into an IT hub.

"Investor interest in Rwanda is still rising, particularly in infrastructure and agriculture," said Thomas Vis, a risk management officer at the World Bank. "Obviously if the political situation will seem to be deteriorating, that could have an impact on investment but there are no signs of it."

But critics and rights groups say he has become increasingly authoritarian, and they are asking questions about the killing of an opposition politician, the shooting in South Africa of a dissident general, the killing of a journalist and the arrest of opposition figures. The government denies involvement.

Nevertheless, investors who had assumed Kagame would remain comfortably in control are wondering more about the future. Many - along with Western governments - would rather keep him. Most expect foreign observers to ultimately rate the elections fair although they may raise some concerns.

"There is no clarity at all on who might follow him if he were to go," said Control Risks analyst Laura Morrison. "Kagame has played the public relations game very well - the donors have a lot invested in him. It's almost impossible to imagine they would switch from him now."

Rwanda is not the only African country praised by the West that looks to have drifted towards authoritarianism in recent years. Uganda and Ethiopia are often cited as similar examples by some analysts.

Certainly, investors have a tendency to prefer authority to chaos. Many say they prefer Russia as an investment destination under President and then Prime Minister Vladimir Putin than they did under the more anarchic rule of Boris Yeltsin.

Sri Lanka lost out on Western aid and preferential access to European textile markets on concerns over alleged human rights abuses in the closing stages of its civil war but investment flows particularly from Asia remain strong.

The rise of China means that losing Western support is much less damaging, providing a crutch to governments such as Sudan and Zimbabwe. A decline in the perceived moral and financial clout of the West - weakened by the financial crisis and Iraq conflict - is also undermining its influence.

Greater self-confidence
"You can't lose sight of the fact that there have been remarkable strides forward in governance in Africa in the last 10 years and you have seen greater investor confidence with that," said Thomas Cargill, head of the Africa programme at think tank Chatham House.

"What is happening is not so much that there is more authoritarianism but that it is less disguised. And there is much greater self-confidence in facing the West and saying 'we're doing things our way'."

Still, experts warn that erosion of the rule of law makes life more risky for foreign investors. It feeds into credit assessments by specialist brokerages and premiums charged by political risk insurers to protect against expropriation.

"Authoritarian regimes may provide some comfort in the short term, but most long-term investors will be concerned about falling out of favour with a regime and suffering catastrophic losses as a result," said Dan Riordan, president for specialty products for insurer Zurich. "Authoritarian regimes also suffer from high levels of corruption, also a significant negative for long-term investors."

Rwanda itself has been praised for making strides against corruption and improving the investment environment. It was voted the most improved business performance globally by the World Bank.

"In Rwanda, there's not a lot of democracy as we know it but there is a lot of accountability," said one Western diplomat.

Foreign firms were generally untroubled unless they went head-to-head with investment and construction firms controlled by the military or ruling party, he said.

But some analysts and investors looking at Africa are no longer willing to talk on the record about Rwanda for fear of antagonising the government and jeopardising business there - usually a sign of a deteriorating environment.

Data favours democracy
That could sap enthusiasm for a fledgeling domestic bond market and the sale of stakes in telecoms and brewery firms. Several Kenyans firms are also looking to cross-list in Rwanda.

There was certainly little sign of caution in 2009. The Rwanda Development Board said registered investment - almost half of it classed as foreign -- leapt 41 percent to $1.11bn, fuelled by interest in telecoms and a methane project.

Brookings Institute senior fellow Daniel Kaufmann - co-author of the closely watched worldwide governance indicators produced with the World Bank - says countries measured as having greater political openness attract up to three to four times more external investment than those with weaker institutions.

The exceptions to that rule were particularly resource-rich countries, which constituted a "special case", he said, adding that evidence also suggested return on investment tended to be better in countries with better "voice" and openness.

"If Rwanda were to improve its voice and democratic accountability in the coming months and years then the country can expect to obtain much higher foreign direct investments than if it takes an increasingly autocratic route," Kaufmann said

An Opposition Focus in Rwanda

Image via Wikipedia

By Sakabaka

Rwanda has experienced some turmoil since the beginning of the year when presidential hopeful Ingabire Victoire Umuhoza returned to the country after 16 years in exile. In the wake of her return, events quickly unfolded that, so far at least, seem to have pulled back the curtain to expose the true intent of the regime in Kigali. Supporters of the regime switched from singing its praises and how it was a "beacon" in the region, to claiming that Rwanda needs action at the moment more than it needs democracy. As a result, Kagame is now seen as hogging power and more of a dictator than a democratically-elected leader.
Kagame is a man of many admirers and about as many critics. Yet, to all, it is clear that he is not interested in a conventional democracy. The opposition, and many foreign critics, have jumped on this fact and called for him to step down, either voluntarily or through elections, to allow for a more democracy-conducive atmosphere. However, if there is no Kagame, who can take the reins in Rwanda and prevent what could possibly rival the 1994 genocide and its bloodshed?
The key- and what the opposition should be focused on- is targeting the average citizen to change their mindset. Many in the middle and upper social classes have a lot of interest vested in the current regime that they don't want to, or are afraid to, see things change. The average citizen, poor and largely uneducated beyond a few years of primary school, is the pawn without which the game cannot be won.
In 1994, the majority of the killings were not carried out by the army, but by regular people. The people were conditioned by a system of hate and paranoia that they were able to be exploited to achieve ends beneficial to a few strongmen. This same system that conditions them in this way, also, allows for the creation of strongmen such as Kagame.
The only way to retain power in such a system is to divide the citizens and play them against each other through fear-mongering. As soon as someone rises up to question the role of the RPF, the current ruling party in Kigali, they are accused of "genocide ideology," a law so vague and convoluted that if it had a genuine purpose, it has since been lost. The Tutsi population, which is still hurting from 1994, is afraid that the numerically-superior Hutu are biding their time to finish what they weren't able to finish. The Hutu look at the militarily-superior Tutsi and wonder when they will be fell upon in revenge. Both look to Kagame as a savior, and he relishes this role while allowing this climate of fear to fester.
This is why the focus should be on the system that creates such people as Kagame. The only way to change the system is to change the hearts and minds of the average citizens so that these exploitative tactics don't work with them. Only the people will be able to prevent the rise of divisive strongmen from their midst. They have to be able to speak up for their rights, and be willing to lose their lives in the process, rather than cower in fear.
Yes, to many Kagame is a savior, but even Jesus, after saving the world from sin, did not stick around physically forever. Kagame, too, can step aside assured that, after 16 years, he can still guide the country through his actions while he was at the top...if those actions merit that. To be a great president, you don't need to single-handedly bring development to your nation. You don't need to stay forever, and you definitely don't need to suppress the free expression of ideas. What you need is to inspire people to take their future in their hands. George Washington did not stay president forever even though he was offered the option. Thomas Sankara, in his brief 4 years as president, turned an impoverished country around by empowering the people to control their own fate by building their country. There are many like them, and they are what we need in Rwanda in order to attain true development.
Kagame might feel that the country is not ready to move on without him, but, like a parent of a teenager off to college for the first time, reality has to be faced. He has to trust that his guidance the past 16 years has settled into the minds of the people and that they will make good decisions based on that. Whether Rwanda succeeds or fails if he steps aside is unpredictable, what is predictable, however, is that Rwanda will suffer if he doesn't.
Not yet, however, not until the opposition has been able to change the system and the people are ready to be led by someone who doesn't require to be regarded as an overprotective parent. Then, and only then, will the successive rule of strongmen be over in Rwanda.

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How Popular is Paul Kagame?

By Nkunda Rwanda

There is no doubt that Paul Kagame’s campaigns have been well attended. In Rwanda, the Presidential campaign(s) are big events. They are bracing parties, complete with glamorous music, dance troupes and a lot of fun-fare. This is, more so, the case for a political party like RPF with immense wealth.
For ordinary Rwandans, the campaigns offer a rare chance for them to get a glimpse of the pomp and color that surrounds the political elite. This behavior of passive on looking is known locally as “gushungera”. If you are a Kigali urbanite, or a white person visiting the Rwandan villages, you must have noticed the kind of attention you attract. If you are driving in a car, kids in their tattered clothes and bare feet will chase after your vehicle for very long distances.
The spectacle of Kagame with his convoy of vehicles definitely adds a new component to village life.
Equally important, the villagers want to see the man, with a tight control over their country. The urge to see is so strong that very few people can resist. Thus, when the New Times Reports that the RPF’s campaigns are, “characterized by extreme excitement [among the peasantry]…” I do not dispute.
However, claims by the Rwanda News Agency, an arm of the Rwandan intelligence claims that the mammoth turnouts are an indication that the RPF will be voted for “100%” are very misleading.
On the surface, Kagame appears to be immensely popular among rural Rwandans. The image given, particularly during this campaign period is that of “A man of the people”, who has taken Rwanda by storm.
Beyond this romantic picturesque, there is another reality that is rarely told.
Thus, you may ask, how can a leader who attracts crowds of thousands at rallies get defeated in elections?
Here is the tragic reason:
On the village level, local officials market RPF’s campaigns as part of a government project necessary to fulfill vision 2020. Just like Gacaca or Umuganda, attendance to these rallies is mandatory. Failure to turn up, which is monitored by the local officials in charge of security, is interpreted as a mild form of treason. You are likely to be reprimanded and possibly punished for being an enemy of the state “kurwanya leta” or/and for subverting the government’s agenda “kutubahiriza gahunda za leta”, or/and disrespect for government authorities “gusuzugura abayobozi”.
Failure to embrace the “government’s agenda” puts one into a constant battle with state authorities, and is a cause for perpetual harassment. Should you be remotely classified as such, it will be hard for you to get access to any services.
This is exactly what has happened to some of Victoire Ingabire’s supporters. In 2003, Faustin Twagiramungu’s supporters faced the same problem. After he the end of the elections, many chose to flee into exile.
Elections are tense everywhere—but in Rwanda, it means life or death. Any minor breach of the expected order brings unwanted attention. Moving with the “flock” is a common survival strategy. Thus, as a general precaution, when the RPF invites you to the stadium, it is wise to abandon your daily quest for survival, walk the many miles, and show up to their rally.
Under this tightly controlled environment, it is impossible to have a free and fair election. When people are coerced to attend political rallies, their presence, however mammoth, does not represent their satisfaction with the political system. In fact, as is often the case with dictatorships worldwide, this huge gatherings reflect barbaric control and manipulations.
The RPF has tight control over rural Rwanda and they decide what happens and how. On top of their agenda, many believe, is the desire to subvert the spread of democracy in order to guarantee their political survival.

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Rwandan Police Lies On Divisionism By Opposition Party

Image via Wikipedia

By Ambrose Nzeyimana

The Rwandan government and its institutions, particularly security forces are appearing more and more repressive as Election Day – August 9th approaches.

On Sunday July 25th the Rwandan government radio station reported that 2 people were arrested for planning an illegal protest for the following Monday.‘The victims of this unexpected arrest, Mr. Martin Ntavuka - FDU-Inkingi, leader in Nyarugenge district and Mr. Anastase Hagabimana – FDU-Inkingi, leader in Kicukiro District, were handcuffed, beaten and taken to the Remera police detention facility,’ said Salem-News.

Salem-News was told the accused, while guests, were apprehended at the temporary residence of Victoire Ingabire, leader of FDU-Inkingi, one of the opposition parties whose registration has been refused by the authorities. The watchman at the property was left with face injuries including one eye swollen shut. Eye witnesses confirm death threats and ethnic hate abuses hurled on-spot by the officer Karekezi, a CID staff.

Superintendent and Police spokesperson Eric Kayiranga, announced on the state radio that once informed that these people were planning a protest, they followed them and caught them. They searched their car and found material for protest including signs and T-shirts. Kariranga explained that on that material were inscriptions of divisionism character and threatening national security. But he was reluctant to elaborate on what was written.

‘Our print t-shirts display normally our colours (green and red) and the text on either the front or the back says “WE NEED DEMOCRACY AND FAIR JUSTICE” or “TURASHAKA DEMOKARASI N’UBUTABERA BUSESUYE”. What is inflammatory in this?’ said Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza in her press release on the incident,

Though it is illegal to protest in public without a written permission from Rwandan authorities, it looks even illegal from the police perspective to put sign on t-shirts without authorization because it can be judged as divisionism or a security issue in Rwanda.

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The Discovery of the African Old Manuscripts Is a Breakthrough of the African Scholarship

By Administrator

The Timbuktu University Library

AFRICAN MANUSCRIPTS WITH The Science, Mathematics, Astronomy, Physics, Medicines, and other disciplines of the modern world can be found at Timbuktu University. To this date many Europeans and western scholarship still doubt that the World's Old Manuscripts was found in Africa. This is especially because the African scholars were killed and the African History was burned and looted , but still whoever planned it did not succeed because there is still lot that is still being discovered as time goes by and a lot still to be discovered. As more and more Africans go to school and more scientists and anthropologists continue to be interested in African heritage, the time will tell all.

Today, the Mathematics, Astronomy,Sciene,Medicines and other academic disciplines that is studied now across the world all originated in Africa. The Timbuktu or Tumbuktu as it is known by the locals is the world's oldest University that stood in Mali from time immemorial and served more than 2,5000 students from all over Africa, Europe, the Middle East, India, and as far as China. 

As the first Congolese President Mr.Patrick Lumumba once said it. "History will have its say one day, it will not be history written by western scholars in Washington, Paris, or Brussels, but the History of ours, the history of a New Africa."

Let me tell the world that whoever is proud to be African, or whoever is proud for Africa, I must also add that whoever is a friend of Africa and Africans should know that Africa is the origin of modern sciences, technology, and political science. The system of leadership which was practiced over million of years, the philosophy which was taught throughout the universe, the technology of melting the tin, and the medical surgery that is practiced today is only new to western world but not new to African ancestors. One might ask what to do now. I should simply tell you as an African to walk straight, think straight, talk straight because  you are not an accident, yuo have a reason to believe in yourself. African has been the backbone of new innovation, world's economy, and politics. Africans must rethink their destination to preserve their heritage and the continent.Africans must know and believe in themlves to help them understand where they come from,where they are as they read this article, to where they want to be in the future. They are not the developing world they developed before the universe could realize its direction. This is because of the following reasons.

Some of the old manuscrpts

Discovery of Timbuktu Manuscripts

Discovery of Timbuktu Manuscripts puts an end to Western "Songs and Dance Theory" of African People. It is the Greatest Findings Since Dead-Sea Scrolls On the Verge of being lost.

‘The Timbuktu manuscripts’ are a symbolic representation of the impact and influence of the early schools and universities ( XII-XVIth century) that existed in West Africa ( Timbuktu-Gao-Djenné-Kano). However, the manuscripts that remain in Timbuktu are only part of the intellectual heritage of Africa. Many other manuscripts can be found in other locations in many parts of Africa.

As an academician you can help preserve this endangered manuscripts of Timbuktu where there is around 700,000 manuscripts in Timbuktu and surroundings that are on the verge of being lost if the appropriate action is not taken. These manuscripts represent a turning point in the history of Africa and its people. The translation and publication of the manuscripts of Timbuktu will restore self-respect, pride, honor and dignity to the people of Africa and those descended from Africa as the history of the humanity tells it. it will also obliterate the stereo-typical images of Tarzan and primitive savages as true representation of Africa and its civilization.

The manuscripts of Timbuktu are a living testimony of the highly advanced and refined civilization in Sub-Sahara Africa. Before the European Renaissance, Timbuktu flourished as the greatest academic and commercial center in Africa. Great empires such as Ghana, Mali, and Songhai were proofs of the talents, creativity and ingenuity of the African people. The University of Timbuktu produced both Black African scholars and leaders of the highest rank, character and nobility.

The manuscripts of Timbuktu cover diverse subjects such as mathematics, chemistry, physics, optics, astronomy, medicine, Islamic sciences, history, geography, the traditions African religion, and the government legislation and treaties, jurisprudence and much more. All those who are proud in themselves as an academic heritage of the universe can support the Timbuktu through the Timbuktu Educational Foundation.

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Kagame desperate to hold on to power, resorts to more severe domestic terrorism tactics

Image via Wikipedia

Kagame desperate to hold on to power, resorts to more severe domestic terrorism tactics For anyone who has not heard, Amnesty International condemned the recent intimidation attacks hurled at presidential hopefuls in opposition to Kagame in Rwanda. Some of the intimidating attacks include actual physical violence perpetrated by mobs against a female candidate , Ms Ingabire. She was attacked together with her coleague Mr Ntawangundi. the latter was beaten badly and latter arrested. The police was present at the time of the beating but no one dared to rescure the helpless fellow. Ingabire miraculously escaped the attack. When mob attacks did not work to deter the presidential hopefuls, Kagame up the ante. First, he created extremely rigid election laws, preventing anyone from properly registering and freely campaigning across the country. Specifically, candidates can only publicly proclaim their candidacy 26 days before the elections and have only 18 to campaign across the country. And that’s 26 days in total for the whole campaign process.

The Chairman of the National Electoral Commission, Professor Crysologue Karangwa told APA Friday 19th February 2010, that the eighteen (18) days were enough for a serious presidential aspirant to go around the country of thirty districts campaigning. “Eighteen days are enough for a serious presidential candidate to cover the country, we do not expect them to visit every village or district in the country by themselves, they have supporters who should help in campaigns,” Karangwa said. I love (and by love I mean, is this guy serious? Really?) how he presumes to know how members of opposition parties will run their campaigns or how much support they have. Obviously he doesn’t mean what he says. I mean obviously can’t mean it.. He is only saying it because it rationalizes the absurdity of restricting political candidates to 26 days of announcing their presidential candidacy and actually campaigning around the country. I mean it’s not sabotage for goodness sakes, it’s just the RULES! It doesn’t get any more absurd than this. Or does it? Well it does. Not only are candidates restricted to 26 days, but any violation is punishable by law and subject to candidate disqualification for the elections. Any one knows the difficulties an individual or a group has to go through in order for them to get the police permit to hold any gathering. For this you may find that a candidate may not even campaign at all even if they manage to register and anounce their candidacy.

Unless General Kagame is telling me that there will be asking for police permits in Rwanda. It is unclear if these laws will be backdated or not. However for specifics, if you think I’m making this stuff up, here you go: In the remaining less than five months those wishing to stand for presidency were advised to keep it to themselves as in accordance to the law. General Kagame has already anounced his by the way. We know who is standing on the RPF sit. “Before the said dates, those planning to declare their candidature should abide by the law and wait. According to the electoral law no political activities are expected before the approval of candidates,” Karangwa said. (emphasis mine) I’m struck by that word “approval” stuck right in there. It reads to me, like the arbitrarily enforced violation of the “genocide ideology” law. Who will be approving candidates (the government of cource) and on what terms? How likely is it, that they will be disapproved based on speculation regarding their candidacy? That is, if the population presumes one to be running for president, even if one has not “officially” made such an announcement, will that person be disqualified for running in the presidential election? Will the approval be based on how receptive the country is towards a certain candidate? It’s no secret that the Rwandan dictatorship is plagued with vague and arbitrarily enforced laws, and this is one of them. Some of the vague laws and language are used to intimidate and silence opposition.

These in particular are supposed to create the ultimate barrier to the presidency for the opposition (at least before resorting to the use of physical violence to halt opponents) as far as the law can go without being regarded as a fascist attempt to remain in power by all means necessary. Although as far as I’m concerned, this is a fascist attempt to hold on to power by any means necessary. And if all else fails, call upon oft reliable, never fail friend of the RPF, physical violence. Think they won’t? Well think again, because they already have. After the bizarre announcement of the new electoral process laws, three grenades were coincidentally detonated around the capital city of Kigali. The BBC writes: At 12.38 Greenwich Mean Time, on 02.20.2010, the BBC reported "Rwandan capital Kigali hit by deadly grenade attacks” At least one person has been killed and 18 injured in three simultaneous grenade attacks in Rwanda’s capital, Kigali, state media report. A bus station, a restaurant and another building housing several businesses were targeted, state radio said. While there is no “clear connection” between these attacks and the election, the timing is oddly suspicious and peculiarly familiar to the pre-April 1994 period. One thing many do not realize is that the RPF is notorious for terror and intimidation.

From the time they attacked a sovereign nation in 1990 and creating a four year war that culminated in the genocide of about 800,000 Rwandans, and to the five million deaths in the Congo, there is no terror tool beyond the RPF’s use. And remember the RPF is led by current Rwandan President Paul Kagame. If you don’t see the connection here, I can’t help you. During the 1990-1994 period, prior to the genocide, the RPF used bombs and grenades to intimidate people and to terrorize them. These were thrown any where around the country. In schools, market places, bus stations, drinking places, etc. It appears the RPF is back at its games. Most Rwandans and few other people around the world know the RPF instigated the conflict that began in 1990 – 1994, 1995 and 1996 to date, and they know it was the RPF who committed mass terror for that longest period of time. While Kagame has brainwashed the world to believe he rose out of nowhere to halt a deadly genocide from destroying a nation, it is also true that Kagame terrorized that nation into submission although people remain largely unaware of this fact. Kagame is not, and has never been a popular figure in Rwanda, despite his resume of instigating (fact largely unknown by the world), and then subsequently halting the genocide. If you think am lying ask his old friend Ruzibiza, he knows what they did together before he realised that time had come when he (Ruzibiza) needs to begin the journey of re building Rwanda. His friend and former army commander General Kayumba Nyamwansa delayed to realise it. On the 3rd March 2010 Radio France International (RFI) reports: “Former Rwandan Army Commander and the now Rwandan Ambassador to India has fled to South Africa” this man was the key to the army when they attacked Rwanda in 1990. He fled after being tipped on arrival to Kampala that Kagame intends to arrest him. Kagame had called all the ambassaders for a meeting in Kigali. The government spokes person said that Kayumba will be arrested in SA. You think he was lying? Then think again. In the same news RFI reported that just 5 days after the visit of the French president to Kigali, the widow of Former President Habyarimana Agathe Habyarimana was arrested in Paris and is now on bond. If SA does not arrest him then the tactics that were used on Cornel Rizinde and Minister Seth Sendashonga will work. The dual were found dead in their hotel rooms in Nairobi. after they fled the intimidations of the Rwandan Government three years ago I would advise any one who knows Kayumba to tell him to be careful. It is through terror that Kagame became the leader of Rwanda, and it is through terror that Kagame remains the leader of Rwanda. These grenade attacks are no coincidence, (remember they were made when the entire Rwandan cabinet was away on a retreat) and they are no random acts of violence. They are calculated attempts to remind the populous of Kagame’s predilection for terror. It is a reminder that 1990-1994 could possibly be relived should they attempt to challenge him, even if by only support other challengers. The grenade attacks are terror tools used to intimidate and confuse the population, to conquer and divide amongst inconsequential affiliations. This is what the RPF does. It is what they have done, and what they will continue to do. The world at large still enjoys a fairly moderate love affair with President Kagame. Many are ignorant to the RPF actions both in Rwanda and in the Congo. Because of most people’s familiarity with the 1994 genocide and the concurrent ignorance of the events before and after 1994, people easily give President Kagame a pass. They forgive him for his transgressions. Because as far as they are concerned, Kagame saved Rwanda and Rwandans in 1994 and that is good enough for them. But as far as I’m concerned, the lives saved in 1994 are not worth more than the lives that perished between 1990 and 1994, and 1996- today. Any lost life is preseous. Kagame does not deserve to remain on any pedestal nor should he be absolved from all the other crimes committed by himself and the RPF. There is no reason Rwanda should spiral back into a deadly convulsion. People should become aware of Kagame’s tactics, and should call upon every capable party to demand civility from Kagame for once in his life.

Opposition leaders are only that. Leaders of opposition. They have not won any significant influential power, nor are they any threat to the RPF machine. These deadly tactics by the status quo in Rwanda are uncalled for, unnecessary, and extremely reminscent of pre 1994 genocide. If you think I’m being too harsh on the RPF in this post, think of all the lives that perished in 1990-1994. Think of the 1994 genocide (even if he prevailed against others, Kagame was an active participant in the death of human beings during the genocide). Think of 5-6 million lives lost in the Congo. All these deaths were preventable. Deaths that could potentially take place in Rwanda due to these election`s violences, are also preventable. Are those people any less deserving of life simply because Kagame hangs out with Tony Blair, Google, and Bill Gates? Seriously? I find it fascinating how when Kagame’s back is against the wall, that is when human rights groups, and Judges demand accountability from him, he uses weak claims of pan-African Unity and sovereignty, and respect to deflect from his criminal behavior. Yet he never bats an eye when it comes to employing and hobnobbing with known British imperialist Tony Blair. The hypocrisy never ceases to amaze me. Despite all that, Kagame’s intimidation tactics must end. Lives must be spared. And communities must be rebuilt. And not in terror. Stop Kagame’s terrorism now! I realize that the Rwanda government is blaming the grenade attacks on “interahamwe.” But is anyone seriously surprised by that? Is that not what Kagame et al did all throughout the early 90s? Colored Opinions writes: The state run Rwanda News Agency published this report that Rwandan Police have arrested two men and that they have claimed, within less than 24 hours that “all the evidence” points to the guilt of the Interahamwe. The state run Rwanda News Agency reported, also on February 20th, that Rwandan Police are holding two men they believe to be responsible and that they already know, without further investigation, who is responsible---the Hutu paramilitary force known as the "interahamwe." When a presidential candidate from the opposition was attacked by a mob, members of the police present did NOT even interfere with this attack. YET I’m supposed to believe they are so efficient that they caught the two parties responsible, and by God, they belong to the 1994 genocide terrorist group, the “interahamwe.” I tip my hat to the Kagame propaganda machine, but pray that the world wakes up and prevents the 1994 genocide from happening all over again. This time we know. No one can claim ignorance anymore. No one. Not even you Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Especially not you. On the morning of February 20th, 2010, the coalition of opposition parties condemned the previous night's deadly grenade attacks in Kigali and called them "an attempt to instill fear in the population" prior to Rwanda's August presidential election. On the 3rd of March 2010 at 5:30 GMT as I woke up, I got amazed to hear that General Nyamwansa had fled to SA. He is being accused of having some connections with the attacks on Kigali last month. What an amazement!!!!!!! I thought the police had said that they are sure beyond dought the attack was by the Interahamwe? Colored Opinions writes: The state run Rwanda News Agency published this report that Rwandan Police have arrested two men and that they have claimed, within less than 24 hours that “all the evidence” points to the guilt of the Interahamwe.

So how is the story changing now? I am sure also beyond doubt that these are state sponsored terrors to silence any opposition in le pay des mille colinne. Who is next on the RPF menu? Just wait and see!!!!!!!! Let me end here for now, but I assure you if all of you Rwandans don’t wake up no one will remain in the country. People are dying and others runing away. Africans unite and save Rwanda. Thank you for reading. I chose to remain ananimous in fear of being followed up and beaten like Mr Ntawangundi, or Seth Sendashonga who was followed up and killed in Kenya. The concerned African

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More Paul Kagame Sycophancy From the Press

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Rwandan President Paul Kagame toured America late last month and a number of articles in the American press have sung praises to his leadership. Undoubtedly, the economic recovery under Kagame since the 1994 genocide is remarkable, but his repressive record on press freedom tarnishes this record.
A Wall Street Journal op-ed by Anne Jolis praised Kagame for his free market thinking while the Associated Press reported on Kagame's presence at the premier of a Tribeca film, "Earth Made of Glass." The film portrayed Kagame in a heroic light, AP reported, and was inspired by a chance dinner conversation the director, Deborah Scranton, had with Kagame two years ago.
The greatest praise and defense of Kagame's leadership stemmed from this week's piece written by Michael Fairbanks on HuffPost. Fairbanks applauds Kagame for his efforts to develop the economy, education, and foreign relations in Rwanda and claims critics of his press freedom record within the international community are myopic, even racist. The premise has merit -- the international community must end its arrogance and listen to Rwandans more instead of pushing their own rash solutions. But all these authors seem to listen to only one Rwandan -- Paul Kagame.
Fairbanks questions why a CNN interview with Kagame, for instance, focused too much on "a minor opposition candidate" Victoire Ingabire. Ingabrire, a Hutu opposition party candidate for the upcoming August elections, was detained April 21 and questioned in court over alleged "evidence of wire transfers showing that Ingabire sent thousands of dollars" to a ruthless Hutu paramilitary group. But Fairbanks failed to mention that she was released on bail the following day since the state prosecutor could not provide sufficient evidence to prove the allegations.
Press freedom organizations such as the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) are admonished by Fairbanks for defending two local-language "so-called opposition newspapers," Umuseso and Umuvugizi, which were recently suspended. Umuseso and Umuvugizi constitute the only critical local media voices left in the country, and both are now conveniently banned prior to the presidential elections. He goes on to contrast these suspensions with a myriad of international media organizations allowed to operate in the country. While many international media houses do visit Kigali, the one with local-language programming and regular local coverage, BBC, is often intimidated and has been suspended in the past.
Where Fairbanks strategically omits information, at other times it appears his facts are plain wrong. A famous Rwandan general once aligned with Kagame reportedly fled this year fearing arrest after he was accused by the government of terrorism. A few independent journalists went into hiding after Kagame announced at a press conference that he was aware of some journalists interviewing the allegedly dissident general. But Fairbanks spoke to a "senior military official" and claims the general actually fled the country because he was caught cheating on his wife, not for any political reason. The international press was fooled, Fairbanks says, into portraying a womanizer as a valiant opponent to oppression. But perhaps Fairbanks should listen to more Rwandans than one military elite -- the general accused of infidelity is currently in a Rwandan jail and never fled as claimed.
No doubt blanket criticism of the Kagame is unjustified, but so is blanket sycophancy. As it currently stands, Kagame will run in the August presidential elections with only one opposition party "allowed" to register and no independent local media to cover them. Thanks to the likes of Fairbanks, western donors will praise Kagame for holding the elections and the foreign aid will continue to flow, whether the people of Rwanda approve or not.

Africa advocates to Obama: Don’t recognize Kagame’s election

Support real freedom and democracy in Africa

by the Africa Faith and Justice Network, Friends of the Congo, Hotel Rwanda/Rusesabagina Foundation, International Humanitarian Law Institute of Minnesota, Institute for Policy Studies, Mobilization for Justice and Peace in Congo

Protesters against Kagame as a war criminal

President Obama said, in his 2009 speech in Accra, Ghana, that America should support strong institutions and not strong men. However, in the case of Rwanda, this has been no more than rhetoric. Rwandans, like most Africans, cheered Obama’s election, hoping that it might signal a new, more peaceful and cooperative relationship between the U.S. and Africa, but Obama has expanded AFRICOM, the U.S. Africa Command, and now he remains silent as Rwanda’s strongman, President Paul Kagame, prepares a sham presidential election to retain his brutal grip on power. On Aug. 3, in Washington D.C., we, Africa advocates, will gather at the National Press Club to call on President Obama and the U.S. State Department not to recognize the legitimacy of Rwanda’s upcoming Aug. 9 election results and to stop militarizing Africa and supporting repressive regimes.
“The U.S. policy has been to support strongmen,” says Maurice Carney, executive director of Friends of the Congo. “And at the head of the class is Paul Kagame, who has received military support, weapons, training and intelligence and as a result has been able to invade its neighbor, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and sustain proxy militia fighting there to rob the Congolese people of their natural resources. He has contributed to the death of over 6 million people in Congo and to the destabilization of Africa’s whole Great Lakes region.”

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama greeted representatives of U.N. member countries at the Metropolitan Museum in New York on Sept. 23, 2009. Here, Rwandan President Paul Kagame stands between them. – Photo: irwanda1.com

Assassinations, arrests, disappearances, imprisonment and torture of both politicians and press critical of Kagame have led up to Rwanda’s Aug. 9 presidential polls, and now the question is not “Will Rwanda’s August 2010 election be free and fair?” but “How much more violence will the population suffer from Rwandan police, military and security operatives?” And how much longer will President Obama continue to support the brutal Kagame regime in the heart of Africa, even though 40 of Kagame’s top officers and officials have been indicted in both Spanish and French courts for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide? Kagame himself has not been indicted by these courts but only because he is a sitting head of state and indictment would therefore be a declaration of war.

“Kagame is doing everything he can think of, including killinSpanish protesters in mid-July want Kagame held accountable for genocide. Still applauded by the mainstream press only a few months ago, Kagame's record is now being questioned and condemned by some of the most influential media in the world.g journalists, jailing and torturing political opponents and denying political opponents their constitutional right to register their parties to exclude them from the election. Because as soon as he loses the presidency, he is likely to be tried for all the mass killings he ordered,” says Rwandan exile, writer and activist Aimable Mugara, who now lives in Toronto. All the viable opposition has been kept out of the election, but four Kagame allies have agreed to stand so as to make it appear that Rwanda is having a real election.

Victoire Ingabiré Umuhoza, Rwanda's leading challenger to Kagame,

Leading presidential candidate Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza, who was arrested and indicted on trumped up charges to prevent her from registering to run against Kagame, has said that she will not vote and has urged other Rwandans not to vote either. “We know that the military and police will use violence against the population,” Ingabire said, “but we have to fight for our rights. There is no reason to vote if you don’t have a choice.” In May, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson announced that the U.S. government plans to send a dozen teams of election observers to Rwanda before the Aug. 9 polls, but many Rwandans now say they will only be wasting U.S. taxpayers’ money.

“There is no reason to vote if you don’t have a choice.” – Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza

“Why do people seriously think of going there to observe elections?” asked Charles Kambanda, an American of Rwandan origin, former member of Kagame’s RPF Party and former professor at Makarere University in Kampala, Uganda. “Which elections are they going to observe? There is nothing to be observed, because what we have is a one-man show. What we have is a situation where the government has created the so-called opposition.

In this pre-1997 map, Congo is shown as Zaire.

“The RPF has kicked out all the real opposition leaders. They are either under house arrest, like Victoire Ingabire, or in prison or they are already dead or they are in exile.” “Foreign election observers planning to go to Rwanda to observe the ‘election’ this August are wasting time and money,” said Aimable Mugara. “I would recommend that they stay in their countries and write their reports based on all the insane actions Gen. Kagame’s ruling party has taken since the beginning of this year, actions that make this so-called election null and void.”
The United States government has provided not only election observers but also over $1,034,000,000 in United States taxpayer-funded foreign assistance to Rwanda since 2000. An additional $240,200,000 is proposed in the president’s fiscal year 2011 budget.

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