RWANDA: CALL FOR AND IMMEDIATE AND UNCONDITIONAL RELEASE OF ALL RWANDAN POLITICAL PRISONERS, PRISONERS OF OPINION AND CONSCIENCE

Press Release PP No. 01/Apr/10

RWANDA: CALL FOR AND IMMEDIATE AND UNCONDITIONAL RELEASE OF ALL RWANDAN POLITICAL PRISONERS, PRISONERS OF OPINION AND CONSCIENCE

The current climate that has engulfed a regime harbored by the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) has led to the on-going persecution, arrest, and/or imprisonment of anyone who dares to use his or her constitutional rights to challenge the status-quo. Hence, several leaders of political parties who have elected to participate in sham up-coming electoral.

process, have been systematically harassed, abused, arrested and/or brought before kangaroo courts in order to silence anyone who would challenge Paul Kagame’s hegemonic rule. Such denial of the basic fundamental rights and freedoms to Rwandan citizens has been the whole mark of Kagame’s regime and his cronies.

The RUD-Urunana and RPR coalition calls for an immediate and unconditional release of all the political prisoners, prisoners of opinion and conscience that are or have been languishing in Kagame’s prisons. Like in any other democratic societies, Rwandan citizens shall enjoy their basic fundamental rights and freedoms guaranteed by a rule of law without being subjected to unlawful restrictions put in place by a dictatorial regime. It is important to remind Kagame and his cronies that the persecution of political opponents will not deter the Rwandan people to free themselves of the on-going tyranny and establish a society in which the basic rights and freedoms will be entrenched and enjoyed by all.

Our organizations would like to call upon the International Community to witness the repression perpetrated by the rwandan regime and ask the latter to take appropriate actions in denouncing and isolating Kagame and his cronies. Foreign donors shall abstain in funding the up-coming presidential election since such process will neither be free nor fair given the prevalent situation inside the country. Failing to do so will be interpreted by the Rwandan people as an act of collusion with the dictatorial regime ruling our homeland. In case of inaction, Rwandans will once more feel abandoned as they were in 1994. Independent observers have indicated that the current situation in Rwandan is so dire that the International Community shall not pretend that it does not know what is going on.

As our coalition has always pointed out, the Rwandan problem is political in nature and requires political solutions. It is time to tackle the Rwandan enigma and genuinely find lasting solutions to the overall problem of our homeland. Therefore, it is important that the root causes of the political instability be resolved. It is our firm conviction that as long as the underlying causes of the Rwandan political problems would not genuinely be addressed, the populations of the region will neither enjoy lasting peace nor sustainable development and prosperity.

In order to foster a reconciliatory Justice system, the only foundation of genuine Reconciliation, the coalition RUD-Urunana and RPR will continue to call for the organization, under the auspices of the International Community, of an Inter-Rwandan Dialogue. In addition, such process would set up a "Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation" Commission that would help heal a traumatized society.

We remain convinced that only this Dialogue would lead to lasting peace, stability, and the establishment of new political, judiciary, and security institutions that would meet the legitimate aspirations of all the constitutive groups of the Rwandan society. Rud-Urunana and RPR have vied to accompany the Rwandan people in this long and enduring process.

April 25, 2010

By Dr. Augustin Dukuze
Spokesperson
RUD-Urunana
Rally for Unity and Democracy

National Democratic Congress (NDC) - Congrès National pour la Démocratie (CND)