Human rights activists, journalists, and others imprisoned by the Rwanda government on politically motivated charges suffer torture and abysmal prison conditions. The prisoners’ have not received fair trials or cases are arbitrarily decided. This was admitted by the Rwanda Minister of Justice and Attorney General in his press briefing on why decided cases are difficult to implement.

critics

Rwanda government has one of the world’s worst human rights records and has unlawfully imprisoned thousands of people for the peaceful exercise of their freedom of expression. These include politicians and now religious leaders are being arrested on charges of a new Kagame law of making noise in their respective churches.

The recent reports in both local and international media present disturbing new findings about the treatment of Rwandan prisoners or those detained in police stations or in military safe houses. The former driver of Gen Frank Rusagara, Mr. Francis was arrested by the military, he was tortured and has been denied medical care, and he is now suffering from abdominal complications.

Gen Frank Rusagara and his brother in Law are imprisoned not because they have a case to answer but on politically motivated charges. Others include two of the world’s longest imprisoned politicians, namely Deo Mushayidi who was imprisoned for life and Victoire Ingabire for 15 years respectively.

They are others who have languished behind bars for more than 5 years. Based on our reliable information from our Kigali sources, including the revelations from Mr. Bernard Ntaganda who was recently released from Rwanda prison, and analysis of newly obtained court documents, we can conclusively confirm that there are many wrongfully imprisoned people than we thought.

As usual the Rwanda government tries to hide the abuses its critics suffer in prison, even their very existence, from the world,” said Mr. Bernard Ntaganda  a former prisoner of conscience by Kagame regime

Therefore the new revelations and new evidence means Kagame can no longer pretend that politically motivated imprisonment in Rwanda does not exist. Rwanda should immediately and unconditionally release everyone imprisoned on politically motivated charges, stop arbitrarily imprisonments and sham sentences, and put a stop to torture in prison.

Extra judicial killings have become common in Rwanda despite the abolition of the death penalty. The targeted group for assassination by Kagame regime includes uncovering corruption, seeking democratic reform, or leading innovations in the arts, culture, or religion and philosophy. Some were imprisoned for no other identified reason than that the government considered them “enemies of the state.” The government has used overly broad and ill-defined charges of “anti-constitutional activity” and “now religious arrests in the name of noise” to imprison many of them. Others were sentenced on fabricated charges of bribery, fraud, or extortion.

Great Lakes Human Rights Link has investigated and has credible allegations of torture or ill-treatment. They have been beaten with rubber truncheons or plastic bottles filled with water and tortured with electric shock, hanging by wrists and ankles, threats of rape and sexual humiliation, asphyxiation with plastic bags and gas masks, threats of physical harm to relatives, and denial of food or water.

Mr. Bernard Ntanganda a political dissent of RPF, who was behind bars for 4 years, alleges that police or prison wardens put smashed bottles and glasses in their food. Or make a lot of noise so that they don’t sleep using undercover prisoners of RPF.  Again Mr. Francis the former driver of Gen. Rusagara was beaten on the head with plastic bottles filled with water and that Rwanda security services officers threatened to drive nails into his toes, as well as to harm his loved ones. Following the torture he suffered, according to his testimonies in the court at his trial, he has suffered multiple injuries that might leave him with permanent incapacitation.

The Great Lakes Human Rights Link found that Rwanda authorities punish those imprisoned on politically motivated charges by routinely denying bail extending their prison sentences for months, often just days before they are to be brought to the court on insignificant and often farcical grounds. Officials extended the detention for Gen. Frank Rusagara for more 30 days and his brother in Law Col. Tom Byabagamba.

We can remind our readers of this report that the former Kagame Presidential Security officer Lt. Joel Mutabazi was kidnapped from Uganda, forcibly returning him to Rwanda in the absence of legal proceedings and despite being under the protection of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.
The revelations on the conditions of some of those imprisoned on politically motivated charges, victims suffer from serious illnesses and have been kept in solitary confinement for long periods or denied adequate health care or medical treatment. Their treatment could constitute cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, a serious violation of Rwanda’s international human rights obligations.

Great Lakes Human Rights Link has reliable sources that those perceived to be potential dissent die mysteriously in the prison like Gen. Laurent Munyakazi. Kagame regime after employing him in the military, they fell apart when Gen Laurent Munyakazi accused the RPF Forces of war crimes and crimes against humanity during the genocide.

The Rwanda Authorities have refused to cooperate with the Burundi government on the investigations of the recent discovery of dead bodies in Lake Rweru. These bodies are confirmed to have come from Rwanda along the Akagera River. Yet many Rwandans have disappeared and their families don’t know the whereabouts of their loved ones. Under international law, authorities commit an enforced disappearance when they refuse to acknowledge holding someone in custody or conceal the person’s fate or whereabouts, thereby placing them outside the protection of the law. “Disappearances” increase the likelihood of torture or other ill-treatment.

Torture, kidnapping, incommunicado detention, solitary confinement, and extension of sentences are all unspeakable abuses that no one should suffer. Any period of illegal detention whether long or short time, is wrongfully imprisonment and a person shouldn’t spend even one more day behind bars.

Rwanda’s refusal to release and end its abuses of people imprisoned on politically motivated charges has not substantially affected its relationships with Washington, UK, Brussels, or other European capitals. Most have apparently been guilty of inaction in Rwanda genocide or misled by the so called economic miracle of Rwanda.

Nor has the government faced concrete consequences for its systematic supporting of the armed groups in Congo in which almost six million Congolese and Rwandans have been killed according to the UN Mapping report.

Rwanda’s international partners should press the government to urgently improve its human rights record, including freeing people held on politically motivated charges. These countries should be prepared to impose targeted restrictive measures such as visa bans, asset freezes, and restrictions on military assistance to Rwanda government bodies and officials found to be responsible for egregious human rights abuses.

We appreciate the UN Human rights Rapporteur Mr. Maina Kiai who recently assessed the Rwandan Human Rights record particularly on freedom of assembly, the Members of the UN Human Rights Council should seek a regular special rapporteur devoted to Rwanda atrocious human rights situation.

The US, UK, EU, and other key governments know all about President Kagame use of prison and abuse to stamp out independent journalism, human rights monitoring, and political and religious freedom. His brutal attack on freedom of press has been now recently directed to BBC which has been shut down because of making a documentary that implicates Kagame in war crimes and shooting the presidential jet of his predecessor that triggered genocide.

For  Rwanda’s international partners need to tell President Kagame that there will be a serious price to pay unless his government stops imprisoning and torturing peaceful activists, politicians, journalists, and religious believers. Indeed, Kagame should be stopped from changing the Constitution to prolong his presidency after his term ends in 2017.

 

Joseph Ruhumuriza   

Senior Researcher Great Lakes Human Rights Link.

http://www.greatlakeshumanrightslink.com/rwanda-prison-and-torture-for-critics/

Placide KayitareAFRICADEMOCRACY & FREEDOMSHUMAN RIGHTSJUSTICE AND RECONCILIATIONLATEST NEWSHuman rights activists, journalists, and others imprisoned by the Rwanda government on politically motivated charges suffer torture and abysmal prison conditions. The prisoners’ have not received fair trials or cases are arbitrarily decided. This was admitted by the Rwanda Minister of Justice and Attorney General in his press briefing on why...PUBLISHING YOUR NEWS WITH CUTTING EDGE STYLE