Rwanda’s Kagame looks to extend his 17-year rule
He guided nation’s recovery but is accused of stifling opponents
Waving the national flag ahead of Friday’s election, Arnold Kayira praises President Paul Kagame for transforming Rwanda from a horrific genocidal battleground to a thriving nation that lures tourists to see its famed mountain gorillas.
“He saved us,” the 35-year-old street hawker in this capital city said of the 1994 mass killings of mostly Tutsi tribal members by Hutus, a murderous rampage made famous by the 2004 movie
Hotel Rwanda. “I will vote for him because he has brought immense development in this country,” said Kayira, who lost family members in the war.
Not everyone is as enthused about Kagame extending his 17year rule for another seven-year term — and possibly two more terms under a change in the constitution approved in 2015 amid charges of voting fraud.
The United States and European Union have complained that Kagame is following the lead of other African leaders who are undermining democratic systems by pushing through changes to their constitutions to stay in power for decades.
Kagame, 59, assumed power in 2000 after leading the Tutsi troops of the Rwandan Patriotic Front to overthrow the Hutudominated government and stop rampages by Hutus who often hacked victims to death with machetes.
Since then, this landlocked East African nation has seen rising employment and trade, a drop in poverty, technological advances and a boom in tourism — more than 1 million visitors a year.
The country’s economy is projected to grow 7% this year, according to government and international estimates. Maternal and child mortality has fallen more than 50%, per capita annual income has risen $100 a year to $1,900 in 2016 and 95% of the population enjoy high-speed Internet.
By international standards, Rwanda is still among the world’s poorest nations, with a 13% unemployment rate and a third of the population living in poverty.
But many Kagame supporters say his re-election will further boost the economy and improve people’s lives.
“A vote for Kagame is a vote for development,” Kayira said.
Political opponents and human rights groups counter that Kagame has ordered attacks on rival politicians and stifled dissent.
“Kagame has consistently used the genocide prevention narrative as a strategy to limit competitive politics in Rwanda and cling to power,” said Peter Wafula Wekesa, a political scientist at Kenyatta University in Nairobi, Kenya.
“Kagame and his ruling party have remained ruthless toward political opponents over the years, curtailing their freedom, with consistent reports of killings, disappearance and imprisonment of Kagame’s opponents rampant in the press,” Wekesa said.
The president’s behavior has emboldened security forces, who routinely kill thieves accused of petty crimes such as fishing illegally or stealing bananas, according to a Human Rights Watch report published in July.
In the lead-up to the election, the government has shuttered two independent newspapers, and journalists have been fleeing.
“It’s a taboo to criticize or oppose Kagame,” said Faith Nyiramiza, a political science student at the University of Kigali. “We need a free country where people can express themselves without any intimidation. People have been arrested and killed because of speaking their minds. I’m not going to vote for Kagame. I am voting for change.”
In Friday’s contest, Kagame faces Frank Habineza of the Democratic Green Party of Rwanda and Philippe Mpayimana, an independent candidate and former journalist. Neither is considered serious opposition.