Understanding Rwandan future instability according to AFRICOM
Rwanda Now: Country's bright future tainted by tragic past
Rwanda Now: Country's bright future tainted by tragic past
| http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/africa/111218/rwanda-now-countrys-bright-future-tainted-tragic-past One of Africa's most dynamic countries is also its most haunted. Rwanda is working to overcome the 1994 genocide. Its economy is fast-growing and it has very little corruption. But President Paul Kagame's government is persistently accused of repression. An on-the-ground look at the contrasting facets of this compelling country.  Musicians and dancers perform traditional numbers for Kwita Izina, the annual gorilla naming ceremony. Mountain gorillas are at the center of the Rwandan tourism industry. (Steve Terrill/GlobalPost) Rwanda Now: Country's bright future tainted by tragic past
Andrew MeldrumDecember 30, 2011 06:05President Paul Kagame's impressive achievements marred by repression. KIGALI, Rwanda — Construction cranes bristle across this city's hills, showing where high-rise towers are being built at a pace to match Rwanda's rapid economic growth. Cars, buses and motorcycle-taxis speed on smooth, divided highways while vendors sell bags of carrots, cabbages and beans. Kigali looks every inch an increasingly prosperous African capital city. Then a young man walks by with a wedge-shaped gape in his skull. A woman's warm smile cannot hide the searing scar across her face. This is Rwanda today. Bustling progress, haunted by the country's 1994 genocide in which some 800,000 Tutsis were butchered. About 10 percent of the country's people were killed during the 100 days of massacres. Most were killed by being hacked with machetes and most were of the Tutsi minority. Rwanda's sparkling advances in economic growth, health and education are impressive. Women have gained in economic and political power, with one of the world's highest rates of representation in legislature, at more than 50 percent. Yet Rwanda's impressive achivements also tainted by its legacy of horror. President Paul Kagame personifies Rwanda's duality. Intelligent, diligent and committed, Kagame has led Rwanda from chaos to order and set the country on a path toward security and affluence. Yet Kagame is also autocratic, intolerant of criticism and his government is combative toward the press. A number of government critics have been assassinated, some ot them in exile. Others have been jailed in Rwanda, such as opposition leader Victoire Ingabire who is on trial for allegedly being a genocide revisionist. Kagame's government denies any involvement in the killings of its critics. And of those jailed, the government says the law is merely following its course. Kagame's government discourages open discussion of the genocide and of Rwanda's abiding ethnic tensions between the Tutsis, who make up about 15 percent of the population, and the Hutus, who account for 85 percent. Kagame's government is dominated by Tutsis, a situation that seems to guarantee continued resentment by Hutus. Open discussion of this and any differences between Hutus and Tutsis is discouraged; those who speak about it publicly risk arrest for genocide revisionism. More from GlobalPost: Rwandan opposition leader blocked by charges "When you try to discuss relations between Tutsis and Hutus, 17 years after the genocide, you hear the same answer over and over again: 'We are all Rwandans now,'" said a longtime Kigali resident. "It's the only answer people feel safe with. It's amazing how many people stick to the Kagame line. It creates this eerie feeling that we're in a 'Stepford Rwanda' where people only say what is approved — but you know there is plenty lurking beneath." "Rwanda is a country of dueling narratives. It is a glittering hope or a repressive country run by a dictator," said a diplomat in Kigali. "These opposing views are more stark than in most African countries. … The Kagame government sees economic growth as the key way of protecting its security. But now we are starting to see some political developments. There are nine opposition parties, but will they go anywhere? The big question is whether Kagame will run for a third term in 2017. Or will he retire and let someone else take the helm?" Kagame was re-elected in August 2010 by a barely believable 93 percent. Many human-rights and democratic groups charged that the election was marred by violence and repression. Two opposition figures were killed and one attacked under suspicious circumstances. Several opposition candidates were refused permission to take part. Kagame firmly denies any election manipulation or violence. Now attention is already focusing on the next election in 2017. The crucial importance of whether Kagame runs for a third term can be understood when looking at neighboring Uganda, where President Yoweri Museveni has extended his rule to more than 25 years, and has increased repression there. Further south in Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe has kept himself in power for 31 years, ruining his country's economy in the process, and at the cost of widespread violence, killings and other human-rights abuses. A third term is a bad sign for a country's democracy. Related: 2 sides to Paul Kagame Kagame states publicly that he has no plans to change Rwanda's constitution so that he will be able to run for another term. "I will not be around as President come 2017," said Kagame in an interview with the International Reporting Project. But he added a qualification that suggested there might be a loophole. "Let's make judgment about 2017 when we come to 2017." But more telling may be the statements from officials of the ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front party calling for Kagame to stay in power. The party's faithful do not say things that Kagame does not want to hear, so many in Rwanda fear that, with Kagame's blessing, the party is starting a campaign to keep Kagame in power. Kagame has a reputation as an adroit politician and he may well choose the option of hand-picking a successor who will allow Kagame to continue calling the shots, something like the arrangement worked out between Russia's Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev. Rwanda has made considerable headway, especially in improving its health, education and economy. But despite efforts to put up a façade of ethnic unity, it is clear that Rwanda has daunting obstacles to strengthening its democracy. Rwanda's challenge is to build a future that transcends its tragic past. More from GlobalPost: Rwanda Now Andrew Meldrum's trip to Rwanda was part of the International Reporting Project's Gatekeeper Editors' tour. |
Print__._,_.___
http://fr.groups.yahoo.com/group/Democracy_Human_Rights
.
__,_._,___
Fw: *DHR* Rwanda journalists under threat
| http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/africa/111216/rwanda-journalists-under-threat One of Africa's most dynamic countries is also its most haunted. Rwanda is working to overcome the 1994 genocide. Its economy is fast-growing and it has very little corruption. But President Paul Kagame's government is persistently accused of repression. An on-the-ground look at the contrasting facets of this compelling country.  Rwandan news hawkers sell paper in downton Kigali on December 18, 2011. (Steve Terrill/GlobalPost) Rwanda journalists under threat
Andrew MeldrumDecember 30, 2011 06:05Despite repression and its troubling past, many in Rwanda's press look forward. KIGALI, Rwanda — Sporting a hat at a jaunty angle and a winning smile, Fred Mwasa is very much a journalist about town here. Driving through Kigali, he rattles off commentary about the construction sprouting up across the capital city. "That is our first shopping mall. And that is going to be a Marriott Hotel. … Americans bring democracy. Chinese bring things we need, like new roads," says Mwasa, pointing out a new divided thoroughfare, landscaped with grass, flowering shrubs and palm trees. Mwasa shows a poor neighborhood that he says will be torn down as part of the government's ambitious urban development of Kigali. "These old houses will be replaced by high-rise buildings. The families will be moved to the outskirts. Maybe they will be happy with their new homes, but maybe not," said Mwasa, 31. "We want to look into that." Mwasa has a reporter's knack for seeing stories wherever he looks. That's good, because he's the managing editor of a new weekly newspaper, The Chronicles, a sharp-looking paper that brims with political stories, features and commentary. "Rwandan readers are looking for good stories to read and we are providing that," said Mwasa, in his office, which features portraits of Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King, Jr. "I'm optimistic about Rwanda," said Mwasa. "There is so much going on. So many new businesses. The time is right for a new paper." Two months old, The Chronicles' circulation of 5,000 is quickly growing, and Mwasa expects advertisers will soon follow. Mwasa's bubbling enthusiasm about the prospects of Rwanda's press, however, is not shared by many in the African media world. Rwanda is ranked as one of the world's most repressive countries for the press, according to recent surveys. More from GlobalPost: 2 sides to Paul Kagame Reporters Without Borders rates the Rwanda press climate as one of the 10 worst in the world, with a ranking of 168 out of 179 countries. Freedom House rates Rwanda's press as "not free" and places it at 178 out of 192 countries. Several independent papers have closed down after being criticized by President Paul Kagame's government. Editors and reporters who have angered the government have fled Rwanda. Sometimes even exile does not ensure safety. A Rwandan journalist was shot dead in Uganda on Dec. 1 in what many suspect was a hit job. Charles Ingabire, 32, was an outspoken critic of the Kagame government in the website, Inyenyeri. Police recovered five casings of a sub-machine gun in the bar where Ingabire was killed. This was not the first time Ingabire was attacked. He was severely beaten in October by assailants who took his laptop and demanded that he shut down Inyenyeri. The website was hacked into and temporarily closed. Ingabire is the second Rwandan journalist killed in less than two years. In June 2010, Jean-Léonard Rugambage, deputy editor of Umuvugizi a paper critical of the government, was shot as he drove home in Kigali. "Critical journalists are not tolerated in Rwanda," states the Committee to Protect Journalists. Since April 2010, six journalists fearing intimidation and arrests have fled in exile, according to the CPJ. Two Rwandan journalists, Agnès Uwimana and Saidati Mukakibibi, currently face lengthy prison sentences for charges that include insulting President Paul Kagame. Yet, Mwasa and others say that the situation for the press is slowly improving. The Kagame government is taking steps to relax its grip on the state broadcasting and to reform laws regulating the press. The improvements for the press were highlighted at the National Media Dialogue, a government-sponsored conference on the press on Nov. 15. Dramatically contradicting the government's speeches was the arrest, the same day, of the managing director of The New Times, a pro-government newspaper that had run an expose of corruption. Rwanda's press is relatively small and centered in Kigali. Rwanda's literacy rate is 70 percent. As more than 80 percent of the country's 11 million people live in the rural areas, radio is the most widely used way people get news. As in everything in Rwanda, the press is affected by the 1994 genocide. Prominent Rwandan newspapers and radio stations aggressively incited the mass killings. That troubling history makes the government wary about allowing a completely unfettered press. "This sector continues to be plagued by lack of professionalism," said Prime Minister Pierre Damien Habumurenyi, when opening the National Media Dialogue. "Some of our journalists use their independence and open media environment in ways that stand in contrast to the democratic ideas for which they claim to fight." As Rwanda works to build a future beyond the genocide, a free press is necessary, according to Mwasa. "We have a positive contribution to make," said Mwasa, who also teaches journalism in Kigali. "The press should point out things that people think is taboo — to encourage debate." For instance, Mwasa's paper has featured articles on the issue of whether or not President Kagame should run for a third term. The paper quotes government supporters who say it would be a good thing for Kagame to extend his time in office. Others say it would be terrible. "This is a healthy debate," said Mwasa. "We are helping to make a more open atmosphere in our society. That's good for all Rwandans." More: Rwanda Now Andrew Meldrum's trip to Rwanda was sponsored by the International Reporting Project. |
__._,_.___
http://fr.groups.yahoo.com/group/Democracy_Human_Rights
.
__,_._,___
Fw: *DHR* SD has nothing to learn from Kagame’s Rwanda
| http://www.times.co.sz/Letters-to-the-Editor/36107.html |
 SD has nothing to learn from Kagame's Rwanda |
Right to Reply:
Sir,
Under the name of Alpheous M Nxumalo, the Times of Swaziland published on Thursday November 28, 2011 an article entitled 'SD can learn from Rwanda's Kagame'. President Paul Kagame is cited by the author as 'one of my favourite statesmen in the world'. Nxumalo may have been blinded by the hidden agenda of the regime in Kigali as it practices aggressive politics when it comes to media opinions.
Rwanda is a small country situated in Central Africa, with an area of about 26.338 km2 and a population of 11 million inhabitants (more than 400 people per km2). Swaziland is a small country in southern Africa, with an area of 17 000 km2, a population of around 1.2 million. There ends the comparison.
Rwanda is essentially an agricultural country, without important mineral resources. The average Rwandan lives on less than E15 a day (around US$2). The Rwandan capital of Kigali actually counts one million citizens (250 000 in 1994). The country has people from three ethnic groups: one per cent Twa (pygmies), 10 per cent Tutsi (Nilotics) and 89 per cent Hutu (Bantu).
Rwanda is known for the 'Genocide of 1994', in the course of which a population of around 600 000 people were massacred in a period of 100 days. On April 6, a plane transporting President Juvenal Habyarimana and his Burundian counterpart President Cyprien Ntaryamira, their staff and the three members of the French crew was shot out of the sky over Kigali and this set off the Genocide. Everybody agrees that the downing of this plane was a catastrophe for the people of Rwanda and the surrounding region. The RPF quickly declared the plane had been shot down by extremists from the rival FAR who did not want the Arusha Accords applied. The reality is that the plane was most likely shot down on the orders of some people. No enquiry was initiated by the Rwandan authorities after the Genocide into the 'accident' in which two presidents and their staffs perished in a civilian airplane. Last year, under pressure from the families of the French pilots, the French government conducted an inquiry which was supposed to have been published in March 2011. It was reported to have been completed in May 2011, and now we are in December and nothing has been made public, as they don't want to embarrass the French government with a publication that would, without doubt, threaten the relationship between them and Kagame and his clique.
Nine of Kagame's generals are the object of international investigations for war crimes or crimes against humanity. Kagame would also be investigated but he has immunity as Chief of State. Forty of Kagame's officers are being pursued by the Spanish justice system for the same crimes. The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (TPIR) has functioned for 16 years without being able to prove who planned the Genocide.
Today, 40 per cent of the budget is consecrated to an army of more than 200 000 soldiers (the Swazi army counts about 5 000 soldiers and the Rwandan army before 1990 counted 8 000) although most of the budget is supported by foreign aid. Rwanda has not only profited from external finance but also from pillaging the natural resources of their giant neighbour, the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In effect, under the pretext of pursuing the Interahamwe (the militias responsible for most of the killings in the genocide) into the Congo the army of Kagame has made many incursions into the Congo and profited from pillaging the natural resources of the Congo, above all gold and diamonds – to the point that Rwanda has become a premier producer of diamonds without mining a single carat. In the course of this enrichment, Kagame and his clique have created financial empires in both Rwanda and foreign countries. T The Rwandan government has even seen it fit to 'sell' the Genocide to foreigners who visit the Genocide Museum in Gisozi.
The political space in Rwanda is dominated by the RPF. Other parties exist in name only and are obliged to work within what is called the Forum of Parties. A party of opposition does not exist. The Rwandan Constitution gives the measure of Kagame because it says a candidate doesn't have to have finished secondary school – for the sole reason that Kagame allegedly finished only three years after primaryschool! It's not good to oppose Kagame because you'll allegedly end up in prison or disappear mysteriously. Journalists disappear or go into exile. It's a country where demonstrations are forbidden. In Swaziland, where the police also have a tendency to be rigorous, students and lawyers have been allowed to demonstrate lawfully. The elections in Rwanda are allegedly a farce; Kagame has regularly won (twice, for seven-year terms) with the Stalinesque score of 100 per cent. It is a country of apartheid, wherechildren of Tutsi who escaped the Genocide are entitled to study for free from primary school to universitywhile the children of the Hutu live in total poverty.
Related news
SD can learn from Rwanda's KAgame
By Alpheous Nxumalo on November 28,2011
SD can learn from Rwanda's KAgame |
Those tasked with the responsibility of resuscitating our economy should have enough courage in knowing that their task is a possibility. Other countries in the world saw and experienced worse economic conditions than we are currently seeing and experiencing in the kingdom of Swaziland.
I have in mind the case of the dramatic rebuilding of the Republic of Rwanda's economy after the 1994 genocide, in which an estimated one million people were killed.
General Paul Kagame, the President of Rwanda (whom I count as one of my favourite statesmen in the world), has proved beyond doubt that a state near total collapse can be salvaged by a credible, hardworking and tough political leadership.
President Kagame is leading Rwanda from the front. This leader is genuine, original and assertive. Kagame is not leading Rwanda as though he is acting in a movie. Politics is not a movie wherein people can assume different roles and characters. You can't act like them but you must be contextual, real and have a vision of what it should be away from what it is.
The total dysfunction of both the political processes and the states' institutions that were used as 'state machines' to perpetrate and commit acts of genocide were salvaged by President Kagame's administration and were placed at their rightful position where they are now serving national interest.
True to the saying; Kagame came, he saw and he conquered. The man is an embodiment of total intellectualism and of credible leadership.
Given an opportunity, Kagame is sweeping the streets of Kigali every weekend. He is the only street sweeping President that I know of in the world.
Transforming
While some of his critics don't like some of his methods, they however, don't deny his results in transforming both the economic and political landscape of Rwanda. Under his leadership, Rwanda has been cited in many international economic and development reports as 'one of Africa's biggest success stories'.
It has also been reported by United Nations Development Programme that unlike many other African states, Rwanda is due to achieve most of the millennium development goals (MDGs).
This is the legacy that President Kagame will leave behind when he retires from the Presidency of Rwanda—a legacy of a leader who does not postpone decisions when they are to be taken.
The francophone world was left stunned and dismayed when President Kagame took the decision to join the commonwealth—declaring that the 'values of the Commonwealth and of Rwanda are in unison. We take human rights, good governance and democracy seriously, not only because we know it is the right thing to do but because we know from our tragic past the consequences of ignoring them – something that will not be repeated'.
Unimaginable
The case of Rwanda and the immaculate leadership of President Kagame is proof and a living example that a failed or failing state can be re-created with great and unimaginable success.
It all lies in the hands of the political leadership and the entire population. Rwanda's dramatic escape from becoming a failed state sends this message to the whole world: 'It is possible!' President Kagame and the entire people of Rwanda deserve to be saluted for their achievements since 1994. The leader, from rebel to president, is one of the few in Africa who can declare that, 'you ask Rwandans themselves of the progress we have made since the end of the genocide in 1994. Ask them what they think'.
These are words of a confident leader, a leader who knows that he has fulfilled the mandate of the people.
There is man in President Paul Kagame that other men in leadership in Africa can follow as an example. Swaziland is nowhere being worse than other states that have travelled the road of economic decline and recovered. I personally have a lot of confidence that given the opportunity for our political leadership to learn and adapt quickly, the country will soon be up and working again.
Those who are busy preparing the 'night vigil' and 'obituaries' on their perceived burial of the state shall be disappointed. Those who thought that through our economic hardships they have multiplied their fortunes and found their 'Trojan Horse' to power and fame should think again.
__._,_.___
http://fr.groups.yahoo.com/group/Democracy_Human_Rights
.
__,_._,___