Diane Shima Rwigara is a Rwandan businesswoman and accountant who stood as an independent candidate in the 2017 Rwandan presidential election. Rwigara was charged on 23 September 2017, alongside her mother and four other defendants, with "inciting insurrection" among other counts, [1] but was acquitted along with her mother on 6 December 2018. [2] [3]
Diane Rwigara was born in Kigali in 1982 to a Tutsi family and has three siblings. [4] Her father, Assinapol Rwigara, an industrialist and a key financier of the Rwandan Patriotic Front, was killed in a car collision on 4 February 2015 in Gacuriro, Kigali. Her family believes the accident was politically motivated murder. [4] [5] The police said he was instantly killed when the Mercedes-Benz car he was driving was in a head-on collision with a heavy truck. [6] [7]
Rwigara was a trained accountant. [5] She has repeatedly spoken out against the country's governance under President Paul Kagame [8] [9] and about injustice and oppression. [10]
On 3 May 2017, Rwigara announced her intention to run in the presidential election. 72 hours later, nude photos of her were leaked in an apparent attempt to humiliate and intimidate her. [8] [11] She reiterated her intention to run, with campaign vows to work towards eradicating poverty, establishing universal health insurance and championing free speech. [5]
On 7 July 2017, the National Electoral Commission disqualified Rwigara from the election on technical grounds, [12] alleging she had used forged signatures in her presidential bid [13] and had submitted only 572 valid signatures rather than the required 600. Rwigara said she submitted 958 signatures, with an additional 120 after some were disqualified. [14] Two other candidates were also disqualified, prompting Amnesty International to say that the election would be held in a "climate of fear and repression." [15] The decision was also criticised by the US State Department and the European Union. [16] [17] Kagame won the 4 August election with 98% of the vote. [13] Rwigara launched an activist group called the People Salvation Movement to challenge the regime on its human rights record, saying that the country's parliament is little more than a rubber-stamp. [12] [18] [19] The People Salvation Movement according to Rwigara, will continue her work of sensitising Rwandans about their rights and criticising policies and actions of the ruling Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) party. [20]
On June 7, 2024, the National Electoral Commission (NEC) rejected the candidacy of Diane Rwigara for the 2024 presidential election. [21]
On 30 August 2017, Rwigara's home was raided, with police saying she was being investigated for forgery and tax evasion. [13] Rwigara's family reported her missing, saying that unknown armed men in civilian clothes had held her at gunpoint while the house was searched, but police denied that she had been arrested. [17] [22]
Numerous news outlets reported in September 2017 that Rwigara still could not be reached and that her family continued to claim she is missing. [23] [24] [25] Leon Orsmond, a South African freelance advertising creative, who had helped Rwigara with her social media campaign was also missing in Rwanda since February 2018. [26] Before his disappearance, Orsmond made no secret that he didn't like the government of Kagame.
In June 2018, the Rwanda Revenue Authority sold machinery from the family's tobacco business for almost $2m in a bid to recover what they claimed was $7m in tax arrears. [27] A previous auction of Rwigara's family business assets - of processed tobacco - netted more than 500m Rwandan francs. [27] Amnesty International called on the Rwandan judiciary to ensure that the trial did not become just another means to persecute government critics. [1]
In August 2018, #FreeDianeRwigara was being used by Kenyans on Twitter to call for Kagame to release Rwigara. This came just days after Twitter users in Kenya did the same for Uganda’s MP Robert Kyagulanyi, better known as Bobby Wine. [28]
On 5 October 2018, a court ordered a release of Rwigara and her mother, Adeline Rwigara, on bail; [29] this came a few weeks after the early release of 2,140 convicts, including Victoire Ingabire and Kizito Mihigo. [30] After more than one year in prison, Rwanda's High Court finally released Rwigara and her mother, Adeline, on bail. They were told not to leave the capital, Kigali, without permission, and their trial would continue. [31]
Several US Senators, including Dick Durbin, Ann Wagner, Patrick Leahy and Barbara Lee, as well as members of the congressional Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission called on the Rwandan government to drop the charges as violations freedom of expression. [32] [33] Rwandan officials accused the US politicians of meddling in their judicial procedures. [32]
A three-judge panel of Rwanda's high court acquitted Rwigara and her mother on 6 December 2018, finding all of the charges "baseless". [2] [3] The court found that Rwigara was exercising her right to speech in criticising the President and did not incite violence. Her mother was acquitted of promoting sectarianism, ethnic division and inciting violence. [34] Rwigara addressed the media inside the courtroom, saying,"I hope this means that the persecution I and my family have faced is over and that I have the liberty to speak my mind. That is what I will continue to fight for across the country." [34] The court's decision was welcomed by Amnesty International, who called on the Rwandan government to work "towards developing greater tolerance and acceptance of alternative and critical views." [34]
The National Public Prosecution Appeal filed an appeal on 27 December. [35] On 9 January 2019, Kagame's prosecution authority, having been instructed by the Ministry of Justice, withdrew its appeal against their acquittal. [36] Rwigara welcomed the decisions, saying she would "continue to fight for freedom of expression and human rights in Rwanda." [35]
Paul Kagame is a Rwandan politician and former military officer who since 2000 has been the fourth President of Rwanda. He was previously a commander of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), a rebel armed force which invaded Rwanda in 1990. The RPF was one of the parties of the conflict during the Rwandan Civil War and the armed force which ended the Rwandan genocide. He was considered Rwanda's de facto leader when he was Vice President and Minister of Defence under President Pasteur Bizimungu from 1994 to 2000 after which the vice-presidential post was abolished.
Faustin Twagiramungu was a Rwandan politician. He was Prime Minister of Rwanda from 1994 until his resignation in 1995, the first head of government appointed after the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) captured Kigali. He soon came to disagree with the RPF's policies and actions, resigned and was placed under house arrest, but managed to leave the country and settle in Belgium. He continued his opposition activity against Paul Kagame's rule, subsequently returning to Rwanda and standing for elections, but without success.
Presidential elections were held in Rwanda on 25 August 2003. They were the first direct presidential elections since the Rwandan Civil War and the first multi-party presidential elections in the country's history. Paul Kagame of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) was elected to a seven-year term with 95% of the vote.
Human rights in Rwanda have been violated on a grand scale. The greatest violation is the Rwandan genocide of Tutsi in 1994. The post-genocide government is also responsible for grave violations of human rights.
Presidential elections were held in Rwanda on 9 August 2010, the second since the Rwandan Civil War. Incumbent President Paul Kagame of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) was re-elected for a second seven-year term with 93% of the vote.
Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza is a Rwandan politician who served as chairwoman of the Unified Democratic Forces from 2006 to 2019. As an advocate for democracy and critic of President Paul Kagame, she was the UDF's candidate for the Rwandan 2010 presidential elections, but was ultimately arrested and sentenced to prison. A Sakharov Prize nominee, she served 8 years of a 15-year prison sentence in Kigali Central Prison on charges of terrorism and threatening national security. She currently leads the party Development And Liberty For All, with the focus to campaign for more political space and for development.
The Democratic Green Party of Rwanda is a green political party in Rwanda, established in 2009. The party was registered in August 2013, but too late to contest the 2013 parliamentary elections. Its platform emphasizes unity, non-violence, social justice, participatory democracy, and calls for subsidized prices for agricultural produce. It believes that the unalienable rights of the people include "the right to life, liberty, peaceful assembly, expression, worship and the pursuit of happiness", and that these rights are granted by God.
Jean-Léonard Rugambage was a Rwandan journalist, acting editor of the newspaper Umuvugizi. He was murdered after an assailant shot him four times in front of his home in Kigali on 24 June 2010.
The Cabinet of Rwanda consists of the Prime Minister, Ministers, Ministers of State and other members nominated by the President. Members of Cabinet are selected from political organisations based on the number of seats they hold in the Chamber of Deputies, but members of Cabinet cannot themselves belong to the Chamber.
The Kizito Mihigo Peace Foundation, also called KMP Foundation, is a Rwandan non-governmental organization created in 2010 by the Rwandan gospel musician Kizito Mihigo. The foundation's main objective is to promote peace and reconciliation after the 1994 genocide.
Presidential elections were held in Rwanda on 4 August 2017. The incumbent President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, was re-elected to a third seven-year term with 98.79% of the vote.
Dr. Diane Karusisi is a Rwandan statistician, economist, bank executive and academic. She is the CEO of Bank of Kigali, the largest commercial bank in Rwanda by assets. Immediately prior to her present position, she served as the chief economist and head of strategy and policy at the Office of the President of Rwanda.
Francine Tumushime, is a Rwandan politician who serves as the cabinet minister of Lands and Forestry (Minilaf), since 31 August 2017. Honorable Francine TUMUSHIME was appointed as the Minister of Land and Forestry since 30 August 2017, with a mission to ensure sustainable protection, conservation and development of lands and forestry sectors.
Alvera Mukabaramba, is a pediatrician and politician in Rwanda, who has been the Minister of State for Local Government Responsible for Social Affairs in the Cabinet of Rwanda, since 10 October 2011.
Paula Ingabire is a Rwandan technology professional and politician, who serves as the Minister of Information and communications technology and Innovation, in the Cabinet of Rwanda, since 18 October 2018.
Since the end of the Rwandan Civil War, many forms of censorship have been implemented in Rwanda.
Frank Rusagara (1955) is a retired Brigadier General of the Rwanda Defense Force. He was arrested and charged with inciting insurrection and tarnishing the government’s image. Initially sentenced to 20 years imprisonment, he is now serving 15 years after the Court of Appeal in Kigali reduced his sentence while upholding his conviction in 2019.
Tom Byabagamba (1967) is a former Colonel of the Rwanda Defense Force and a former head of the Presidential Guard unit. He was arrested and charged with inciting insurrection and tarnishing the government's image. Initially sentenced to 21 years imprisonment, he is now serving 15 years after the Court of Appeal in Kigali reduced his sentence while upholding his conviction in 2019. The court also stripped Byabagamba of his rank.
General elections are due to be held in Rwanda on 15 July 2024 to elect the president and members of the Chamber of Deputies.
John Williams Ntwali was a Rwandan investigative journalist. The founder of the YouTube news channel PAX TV – IREME News and editor of the independent newspaper The Chronicles, he often reported on human rights stories, and was critical of the Rwandan government. Having spoken previously about being threatened due to his journalism, on 19 January 2023, Ntwali was officially identified as being the victim of a road accident that had occurred the previous day; numerous human rights organisations and press associations have disputed this account and called for an investigation into whether he was murdered.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
