SOI: DAVID HIMBARA

DOI: 06.08.2015

TOI: 13:30HOURS

SUJ: RWANDA OPPOSTION

RWANDA POLITICAL OPPOSTION FDU-INKINGI AND RNC HELD JOINT MEETING IN JOHANNESBURG

JOHANNESBURG, 24 FEBRUARY 2013 - MEMBERS OF THE COORDINATING COMMITTEES OF FDU-INKINGI AND RWANDA NATIONAL CONGRES (RNC) HELD A JOINT MEETING IN JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA (19-24.2.2013). THE MEETING WAS ATTENDED BY THE FOLLOWING DELEGATES FROM BOTH POLITICAL ORGANISATIONS: NKIKO NSENGIMANA, CHARLES NDEREYEHE, SIXBERT MUSANGAMFURA FROM FDU-INKINGI AND CONDO GERVAIS, KAYUMBA NYAMWASA, PATRICK KAREGEYA AND PAULIN MURAYI OF RNC.

THE PARTICIPANTS EXPRESSED THEIR GRATITUDE TO THE COORDINATORS OF THE JOINT PLATFORM FOR THE TREMENDOUS WORK ACCOMPLISHED WITHIN TWO YEARS SINCE ITS INCEPTION AND THE SIGNATURE OF THE JOINT MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING IN MONTREUX, SWITZERLAND ON 25 JANUARY 2010.

THE PARTICIPANTS COMMITTED THEMSELVES TO PURSUE THEIR EFFORTS IN ORDER TO EMPOWER THE STRUCTURES AND REACH THE GOAL TO TRANSFORM THE COUNTRY.

THE PARTICIPANTS MADE THE FOLLOWING RECOMMENDATIONS:

1. TO STRENGTHEN THE PARTNERSHIP ;2. TO SET UP A JOINT WORKING COMMITTEE AFTER INTERNAL CONSULTATION

WITHIN THE COMPONENTS ;3. TO APPOINT MEMBERS OF THE JOINT TASK FORCES AS SOON AS POSSIBLE ;4. TO REDOUBLE EFFORTS TO EFFECT INTERNAL CHANGE ;5. TO REINFORCE INFORMATION DISSEMINATION AND TO ENLIGHTEN OUR PEOPLE

ABOUT THE PRECARIOUS SITUATION IN THE COUNTRY ;6. TO CONTINUE AND DEEPEN OUR DIPLOMATIC OUTREACH ;7. TO COORDINATE RESOURCE MOBILISATION INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE COUNTRY ;8. TO ENHANCE OUR COOPERATION WITH OTHER POLITICAL PARTIES. TO THIS END,

TO PUT IN PLACE A MECHANISM TO HASTEN THE PROCESS OF THEIR SUBSEQUENT PARTICIPATION IN THE ACTIVITIES OF THE PLATFORM ;

9. TO REAFFIRM OUR COMMITMENT TO STRUGGLE FOR DEMOCRATISATION AND CIVIL LIBERTIES IN OUR HOMELAND THAT HAVE ALLUDED US FOR DECADES BUT MORE SO UNDER THE RPF GOVERNMENT AND ARE DETERMINED TO MOBILISE RWANDANS TO FIGHT FOR THE INDEPENDENCE OF THOSE CRUCIAL INSTITUTIONS ;THE MEETING CONDEMNS IN THE STRONGEST TERMS POSSIBLE THE CURRENT MANOEUVRES BY PRESIDENT PAUL KAGAME TO AMEND THE CONSTITUTION ALLOWING HIM TO STAND FOR A THIRD TERM AND CONTINUE EXACTING HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN RWANDA AND IN THE GREAT LAKES REGION. THE MEETING CALLS UPON ALL RWANDANS, ALL NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES AND THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TO ROUNDLY CONDEM THE EFFORTS BY PRESIDENT KAGAME TO ENDLESSLY PERPETUATE HIMSELF IN POWER IN RWANDA

THE MEETING TOOK COGNISANT OF THE IMPENDING 30TH JUNE 2013 CESSATION CLAUSE AND RESOLVED TO CONTINUE WORKING TOGETHER WITH MEMBERS OF THE CIVIL SOCIETY AND OTHER OPPOSITION PARTIES, TO MOBILISE THE HOST GOVERNMENTS TO REJECT THIS HORRENDOUS HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATION TARGETING RWANDAN REFUGEES.

THE MEETING SUPPORTED THE EFFORTS BY SADC COUNTRIES FOR THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO THE INTERNATIONAL FORCE IN THE DRC TO SAFEGUARD THE LIVES OF OUR CONGOLESE SISTERS AND BROTHERS, AND TO HALT THE BLOODY CONFLICT PERPETUATED BY RWANDA UNDER THE PRETEXT OF M23.

THE MEETING CONDEMN THE DETENTION OF POLITICAL PRISONERS INCLUDING MADAME VICTOIRE INGABIRE, FDU-INKINGI CHAIR; BERNARD NTAGANDA, PRESIDENT OF PS IMBERAKURI; DEOGRATIAS MUSHAYIDI, PRESIDENT OF PDP IMANZI AND DOCTOR THEONESTE NIYITEGEKA AND MANY OTHERS WHOSE WHEREBOUTS ARE KNOWN OR UNKNOWN. WE DEMAND THE UNCONDITIONAL RELEASE OF ALL THOSE PRISONERS OF CONSCIENCE AND THE OPENING OF POLITICAL SPACE.

COORDINATING COMMITTEE FDU-INKINGI

HEAD OF FDU DELEGATION DR. NKIKO NSENGIMANA

RWANDA NATIONAL CONGRESS (RNC) HEADS OF RNC DELEGATIONGERVAIS CONDO

GENERAL PAUL KAGAME BEHIND ASSASSINATIONS OF EXILED OPPONENTS

MUCH OF THE WORLD REGARDS PRESIDENT PAUL KAGAME AS A HERO. BUT 20 YEARS AFTER HE HELPED TO STOP HIS COUNTRY’S BRUTAL GENOCIDE, THERE ARE MOUNTING ALLEGATIONS THAT HE IS SILENCING DISSENTERS WITH VIOLENCE.

A MONTHS-LONG, INTERNATIONAL INQUIRY BY THE GLOBE’S GEOFFREY YORK AND CONTRIBUTOR JUDI REVER HAS UNCOVERED EXPLOSIVE TESTIMONIES FROM THOSE WHO SAY THEY WERE RECRUITED FOR ASSASSINATIONS – INCLUDING AN ALLEGED RECORDING OF ONE JOB OFFER

‘THE PRICE IS NOT A PROBLEM,” SAYS THE MAN ON THE PHONE. "WE WILL SHOW OUR APPRECIATION IF THINGS ARE BEAUTIFULLY DONE. THEY WILL BE REWARDED."

THE TONE OF THIS OFFER, CALM AND CONFIDENT, IS SO CASUAL IT COULD BE ABOUT BRINGING ON WORKERS FOR A PLUMBING JOB. WHAT IS ACTUALLY UNDER DISCUSSION: $1-MILLION FOR THE HIRING OF CONTRACT KILLERS TO ASSASSINATE TWO OF RWANDAN PRESIDENT PAUL KAGAME'S MOST HATED ENEMIES.

IT IS 2011, AND THE SPEAKER IS COLONEL DAN MUNYUZA, RWANDA'S DIRECTOR OF MILITARY INTELLIGENCE AND A TRUSTED ALLY OF THE RWANDAN PRESIDENT. THE MAN ON THE OTHER END OF THE LINE IS ROBERT HIGIRO, A FORMER RWANDAN ARMY MAJOR LIVING IN EXILE.

BUT MR. HIGIRO SAID HE HAD NO INTENTION OF HIRING KILLERS. HE HAD BEEN TAPPED FOR THE ASSASSINATIONS MONTHS BEFORE, AND INFORMED THE TARGETS. THEY TOLD HIM TO PLAY ALONG WITH COL. MUNYUZA - AND TO TAPE THE EXPLOSIVE CONVERSATIONS.

WHEN ONE OF THE TWO TARGETS WAS BRUTALLY KILLED ON DEC. 31, AND GUNMEN TRIED TO KILL THE SECOND, MR. HIGIRO AGREED TO SHARE THOSE RECORDINGS WITH THE GLOBE AND MAIL. THREE INDEPENDENT SOURCES - FORMER ARMY COLLEAGUES WHO ALSO KNOW COL. MUNYUZA PERSONALLY - CONFIRMED THAT THE VOICE ON TAPE IS HIS. TWO INDEPENDENT TRANSLATORS WORKED ON TRANSCRIBING THE PHONE RECORDINGS FROM THE ORIGINAL KINYARWANDA LANGUAGE.

THE PHONE RECORDINGS ARE PART OF A MONTHS-LONG INVESTIGATION BY THE GLOBE INTO MURDER PLOTS ORGANIZED BY THE RWANDAN GOVERNMENT. RWANDAN

EXILES IN BOTH SOUTH AFRICA AND BELGIUM - SPEAKING IN CLANDESTINE MEETINGS IN SECURE LOCATIONS BECAUSE OF THEIR FEARS OF ATTACK - GAVE DETAILED ACCOUNTS OF BEING RECRUITED TO ASSASSINATE CRITICS OF PRESIDENT KAGAME.

THEIR EVIDENCE IS THE STRONGEST YET TO SUPPORT WHAT HUMAN RIGHTS GROUPS AND RWANDAN EXILES HAVE SUSPECTED FOR YEARS ABOUT THE RWANDAN GOVERNMENT'S INVOLVEMENT IN ATTACKS OR PLANNED ATTACKS ON DISSIDENTS, NOT ONLY IN SOUTH AFRICA BUT IN BRITAIN, SWEDEN, BELGIUM, UGANDA, KENYA AND MOZAMBIQUE.

IT ALSO RAISES NEW QUESTIONS ABOUT THE WORLD'S MORAL STAND ON RWANDA. THIS YEAR, THE COUNTRY MARKS THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF A SHOCKING GENOCIDE. BECAUSE HE HELPED STOP THE GENOCIDE, MR. KAGAME IS HAILED AS A HERO AND HIS REBORN COUNTRY IS TOUTED AS A MODEL FOR AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT - STABLE, BUSINESS-ORIENTED, FAST-GROWING, ENVIRONMENTALLY CLEAN AND VIRTUALLY FREE OF PETTTY CORRUPTION. BUT AS REVELATIONS OF MURDER PLOTS AND ASSASSINATIONS MOUNT, EASY NARRATIVES OF GOOD OVERCOMING EVIL BECOME MORE AND MORE DIFFICULT TO SUSTAIN. THE REALITY IN RWANDA IS FAR MORE COMPLEX. THE MASS KILLINGS OF THE 1990S AND THE RECENT ASSASSINATION PLOTS LEFT ALMOST NO ONE UNTAINTED.

MEANWHILE, MR. KAGAME'S ENEMIES LIVE IN FEAR - OR IN HIDING - AFTER A WAVE OF ATTACKS AGAINST THEM.

AND THEY ARE THE LUCKY ONES: ON NEW YEAR'S EVE, ONE OF THE MR. KAGAME'S MOST-WANTED, RWANDAN DISSIDENT PATRICK KAREGEYA, WAS BRUTALLY STRANGLED TO DEATH IN A JOHANNESBURG HOTEL ROOM. HIS KILLER OR KILLERS REMAIN AT LARGE.

TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT

RWANDA HAS REPEATEDLY DENIED ANY LINK TO THE ATTACKS ON DISSIDENTS ABROAD. PRESENTED WITH THE KEY ALLEGATIONS IN THIS STORY, VINCENT KAREGEYA, THE RWANDAN HIGH COMMISSIONER TO SOUTH AFRICA, SAID THIS WEEK THAT THE ACCOUNTS BY EXILES ARE FALSE AND ARE MOTIVATED BY A "POLITICAL AGENDA."

IF THEIR STORIES ARE TRUE, HE SAID, THEY SHOULD GO TO THE POLICE AND PROVIDE EVIDENCE FOR CRIMINAL CHARGES. "THESE ARE STORIES THAT WE CAN'T RELY ON. THEY EVEN SOUND A BIT BIZARRE. IT'S A BASIC PRINCIPLE THAT EVERYONE IS INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY."

WHEN THE GLOBE REQUESTED AN INTERVIEW WITH COL. MUNYUZA, THE HIGH COMMISSION SAID IT WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE BECAUSE THE COLONEL IS NOT AN OFFICIAL GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN.

THE ASSASSINATION PLOTS MATTER BECAUSE OF THEIR IMPLICATIONS FOR A COUNTRY THAT IS CRUCIAL TO WESTERN POLICY IN CENTRAL AFRICA. ALTHOUGH A NATION OF ONLY ABOUT 12 MILLION PEOPLE, RWANDA HAS BEEN A KEY PLAYER IN THE WARS AND REBELLIONS THAT HAVE KILLED MILLIONS OF PEOPLE IN THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO. ITS ROLE IN PERPETRATING VIOLENCE BEYOND ITS BORDERS HAS OFTEN BEEN IGNORED BECAUSE OF THE WORLDWIDE SYMPATHY FOR THE 1994 GENOCIDE. EVEN REPORTS FROM UN INVESTIGATORS ACCUSING MR. KAGAME'S ARMY OF MASS SLAUGHTERS IN CONGO IN THE 1990S HAVE GENERALLY BEEN BRUSHED ASIDE BY THE WEST, WHICH CONTINUES TO OFFER HUGE AMOUNTS OF AID AND POLITICAL SUPPORT TO THE COUNTRY.

BUT MANY OF MR. KAGAME'S CLOSEST AIDES, WHO HAVE INSIDE KNOWLEDGE OF THE VIOLENCE IN CENTRAL AFRICA, HAVE DEFECTED AND FLED THE COUNTRY IN RECENT YEARS. THESE MEN, NOW DISSIDENTS, WERE MEMBERS OF MR. KAGAME'S INNER CIRCLE DURING SOME OF THE MOST SIGNIFICANT EVENTS IN AFRICAN HISTORY: THE PRESIDENTIAL JET THAT WAS SHOT DOWN IN 1994, KILLING THE PRESIDENTS OF RWANDA AND BURUNDI AND IGNITING THE RWANDAN GENOCIDE, FOR EXAMPLE, AND THE 2001 ASSASSINATION OF LAURENT KABILA, THE RWANDAN-BACKED REBEL WHO BECAME CONGO'S PRESIDENT. THERE HAVE BEEN FREQUENT ALLEGATIONS THAT MR. KAGAME'S LOYALISTS WERE INVOLVED IN BOTH EVENTS, AND THE EXILED DISSIDENTS SAY THEY HAVE EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT THOSE SUSPICIONS.

FOUR HIGH-PROFILE DISSIDENTS FORMED THE RWANDA NATIONAL CONGRESS IN 2010. THE ORGANIZATION'S GOAL IS "TO BRING POLITICAL CHANGE TO RWANDA." MR. KAGAME HAS DENOUNCED ITS LEADERS AS "TERRORISTS" AND CANCELLED THEIR RWANDAN PASSPORTS. IN EARLY 2011, THEY WERE TRIED IN A MILITARY COURT IN ABSENTIA AND SENTENCED TO 20 TO 24 YEARS OF PRISON ON CHARGES OF DESTABILIZING PUBLIC ORDER, ENDANGERING STATE SECURITY AND FUELLING ETHNIC DIVISION.

THE CONVICTIONS ARE DUBIOUS. RWANDA'S COURTS ARE NOT INDEPENDENT. MR. KAGAME DOMINATES THE COUNTRY IN AN AUTHORITARIAN SYSTEM THAT PERMITS NO SERIOUS OPPOSITION. BUT HE REMAINS ENRAGED AT THE RNC'S CHALLENGE. THE TWO RNC FOUNDERS AT THE TOP OF MR. KAGAME'S MOST-WANTED LIST - AND WHO MR. HIGIRO ALLEGES HE WAS PAID TO HAVE MURDERED - WERE MR. KAGAME'S FORMER ARMY CHIEF, GENERAL FAUSTIN KAYUMBA NYAMWASA, AND HIS FORMER INTELLIGENCE CHIEF, COLONEL KAREGEYA.

BECAUSE BOTH MEN WERE PART OF MR. KAGAME'S REGIME, THEY HAVE NOT ESCAPED BLAME FOR ATROCITIES IN THE 1990S. A SPANISH COURT HAS ACCUSED GEN. NYAMWASA OF WAR CRIMES BECAUSE OF THE RWANDAN PATRIOTIC FRONT'S INVOLVEMENT IN THE KILLING OF CIVILIANS AND REFUGEES DURING THAT TIME. (THE SAME COURT ALSO FOUND EVIDENCE AGAINST MR. KAGAME AND HIS DEFENCE MINISTER, BUT SAID MR. KAGAME HAD IMMUNITY AS A HEAD OF STATE.) THE GENERAL HAS ALSO BEEN ASKED TO TESTIFY ON THE RPF'S ROLE IN THE PRESIDENTIAL JET

CRASH OF 1994, WHICH IS STILL BEING INVESTIGATED BY AN ANTI-TERRORISM INQUIRY IN FRANCE.

BUT THE COMPLICATIONS OF THEIR OWN PASTS ALSO MAKE MEN LIKE GEN. NYAMWASA AND OTHER RNC LEADERS DANGEROUS TO MR. KAGAME. GEN. NYAMWASA'S TESTIMONY, FOR EXAMPLE, COULD CONTAIN FRESH REVELATIONS ABOUT WHO WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE 1994 PLANE CRASH. HE AND OTHER LEADERS ALSO HAVE EXTENSIVE MILITARY CONNECTIONS THAT COULD ALLOW THEM TO INCITE A REVOLT AGAINST THE RWANDAN PRESIDENT. "THESE ARE PEOPLE WHO WERE CLOSE TO HIM, PEOPLE WHO UNDERSTAND HIS WAY OF OPERATING," SAYS MR. HIGIRO. "KAYUMBA [NYAMWASA] FORMED THE MILITARY. HE KNOWS EVERYBODY."

MOST-WANTED MEN

MAJOR-GENERAL PAUL KAGAME'S FORCES APPEARED ON THE VERGE OF SEIZING THE CAPITAL OF KIGALI ON MAY 22, 1994. THE RPF CAPTURED THE AIRPORT, THE MAIN GOVERNMENT ARMY KANOMBE BARRACKS AND HEADED TOWARD THE HEART OF THE CITY. (JEREMIAH KAMAU/REUTERS)

OVER THE PAST FOUR YEARS, GEN. NYAMWASA HAS BEEN THE TARGET OF A SERIES OF ATTACKS AND MURDER PLOTS, WHICH - ACCORDING TO THE SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT AND OTHER SOURCES - WERE ORCHESTRATED BY RWANDAN GOVERNMENT AGENTS. DEEPLY WORRIED ABOUT HIS SAFETY, HE AGREED TO TALK TO THE GLOBE ONLY IN A HEAVILY GUARDED COURTROOM IN THE TOWN OF KAGISO, NEAR JOHANNESBURG, WHERE SIX MEN (INCLUDING THREE RWANDANS) ARE ON TRIAL FOR ONE OF THOSE ATTEMPTS TO KILL HIM.

AT ONE TIME, THOUGH, THE GENERAL WAS ONE OF THE RWANDAN PRESIDENT'S CLOSEST COMRADES. HE SERVED WITH MR. KAGAME IN THE UGANDAN ARMY IN THE LATE-1980S; TOGETHER THEY HELPED FOUND THE RWANDAN PATRIOTIC FRONT, A LARGELY TUTSI REBEL MOVEMENT, AND LED ITS INVASION OF RWANDA IN 1990, FIGHTING THE LARGELY HUTU ARMY DURING THE GENOCIDE. WHEN THE RPF BECAME THE RULING PARTY IN 1994, GEN. NYAMWASA HELD SENIOR POSTS, INCLUDING AS THE ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF.

HE SAYS HE BEGAN TO FALL OUT WITH MR. KAGAME AROUND 2002, WHEN THE GOVERNMENT ARRESTED A HUTU OPPOSITION LEADER AND FORMER PRESIDENT, PASTEUR BIZIMUNGU. GEN. NYAMWASA SAYS HE DISAGREED WITH THE ARREST. HE REMEMBERS HOW MR. KAGAME BECAME "JITTERY AND EXCITED" IN THEIR ARGUMENTS, DENOUNCING MR. BIZIMUNGU AS AN "ENEMY."

A FEW YEARS LATER, GEN. NYAMWASA WAS PUSHED ASIDE AND APPOINTED TO A LOWER-RANKING POST AS AMBASSADOR TO INDIA. THEN, IN EARLY 2010, ON A RETURN TRIP TO RWANDA, HE WAS INTERROGATED BY SENIOR RPF OFFICIALS ABOUT HIS

SUSPECTED DISSENT, AND REALIZED HE COULD BE ARRESTED. SO, AT DAWN THE NEXT MORNING, HE DROVE TO THE BORDER AND SWAM ACROSS A CROCODILE-INFESTED RIVER TO UGANDA. "IT WAS DANGEROUS, BUT I HAD TO TAKE THE RISK," HE SAYS. "I KNEW THEY WOULD KILL ME."

HE MADE HIS WAY TO SOUTH AFRICA, BUT HIS DEFECTION INFURIATED MR. KAGAME. THREE MONTHS AFTER ARRIVING IN SOUTH AFRICA, HE WAS SHOT IN THE STOMACH BY ASSAILANTS AT HIS HOME IN A JOHANNESBURG SUBURB. (HE STILL HAS THE BULLET IN HIS SPINE.) AS HE RECUPERATED IN HOSPITAL, ANOTHER GROUP OF ATTACKERS TRIED TO KILL HIM IN HIS ROOM. ACCORDING TO SOUTH AFRICAN OFFICIALS, ONE OF THE SUSPECTS PLANNED TO STRANGLE THE GENERAL WITH STRING.

RWANDAN GOVERNMENT AGENTS WERE AMONG THE SIX PEOPLE ARRESTED FOR THE FIRST ATTACK, ACCORDING TO THE SOUTH AFRICAN AUTHORITIES, WHO ALSO REPORTED THAT THE SUSPECTS HAD OFFERED A $1-MILLION BRIBE TO GET THE CHARGES DROPPED.

IN TOTAL, GEN. NYAMWASA SAYS HE HAS BEEN THE TARGET OF AT LEAST FOUR MURDER ATTEMPTS - MOST RECENTLY ON MARCH 4, WHEN A GROUP OF HEAVILY ARMED MEN BROKE INTO HIS GOVERNMENT-SUPPLIED "SAFE HOUSE" IN JOHANNESBURG AND HUNTED FOR HIM ROOM-BY-ROOM AFTER OVERPOWERING HIS POLICE GUARDS.

HE HAD BEEN FOREWARNED, AND THE HOUSE WAS EMPTY. THINGS WENT DIFFERENTLY FOR THE OTHER MAN ON MR. KAGAME'S HIT-LIST, PATRICK KAREGEYA.

BORN IN EXILE IN UGANDA, COL. KAREGEYA JOINED MR. KAGAME AND THE RPF REBEL MOVEMENT IN ITS EARLY DAYS, LEADING UP TO ITS INVASION OF RWANDA IN 1990. HE WAS THE INTELLIGENCE CHIEF FROM 1994 TO 2004, BUT BEGAN TO DISAGREE WITH MR. KAGAME'S REPRESSIVE POLICIES.

HE WAS JAILED FOR SIX MONTHS IN 2005 FOR UNSPECIFIED "DISCIPLINARY" INFRACTIONS. THE FOLLOWING YEAR, HE WAS JAILED AGAIN FOR 18 MONTHS FOR "DESERTION AND INSUBORDINATION." WHEN HE WAS RELEASED FROM PRISON IN NOVEMBER, 2007, HE FLED THE COUNTRY AND JOURNEYED TO SOUTH AFRICA AS A REFUGEE.

THE SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT PUT HIM UP IN A SAFE HOUSE TO PREVENT HIM FROM BEING ATTACKED. BUT COL. KAREGEYA FOUND IT DIFFICULT TO EARN AN INCOME IN THE WITNESS-PROTECTION SYSTEM, AND HE FELT ISOLATED. HIS DAUGHTER, A UNIVERSITY STUDENT AND INTERN AT A HUMAN-RIGHTS CENTRE, WAS LIVING IN CANADA.

COL. KAREGEYA MOVED OUT OF THE SAFE HOUSE AND LET DOWN HIS GUARD - A DECISION THAT COST HIM HIS LIFE.

DAVID BATENGA, HIS NEPHEW, REMEMBERS THE HORROR OF IDENTIFYING HIS UNCLE'S BODY AFTER HE WAS STRANGLED WITH A TOWEL AND A CURTAIN ROPE IN AN UPSCALE HOTEL IN JOHANNESBURG'S BUSINESS DISTRICT, SANDTON. AFTER HIS UNCLE HAD DISAPPEARED ON DEC. 31, IT TOOK HIM MANY HOURS TO PERSUADE THE HOTEL STAFF TO CHECK THE ROOM. BY THE TIME THE HOTEL CONTACTED POLICE TO INVESTIGATE, COL. KAREGEYA HAD BEEN DEAD FOR 24 HOURS. HIS FACE WAS BLACKENED AND SHRUNK, AND THE KILLER OR KILLERS WERE LONG GONE.

IN AN INTERVIEW LAST MONTH AT A HOTEL WHERE HE FEELS SAFE, MR. BATENGA SAID HIS UNCLE WAS NORMALLY VERY CAUTIOUS ABOUT MEETING ANY VISITOR FROM RWANDA. BUT IN LATE DECEMBER, HE WAS VISITED BY AN OLD AND TRUSTED FRIEND: A RWANDAN BUSINESSMAN WHOM HE HAD KNOWN FOR MANY YEARS.

THE BUSINESSMAN HAD BEEN HARASSED BY RWANDAN AUTHORITIES BECAUSE OF HIS FRIENDSHIP WITH COL. KAREGEYA, AND THIS MADE THE COLONEL SYMPATHETIC TO HIM, MR. BATENGA SAID. BUT HE WAS ALSO DEVELOPING A MAJOR RETAIL PROJECT IN THE RWANDAN CAPITAL, KIGALI, WHICH MAY HAVE LEFT HIM VULNERABLE TO PRESSURE FROM RWANDAN AGENTS SEEKING HIS CO-OPERATION IN A MURDER PLOT.

BEFORE HIS ARRIVAL IN JOHANNESBURG ON DEC. 29, THE BUSINESSMAN HAD ASKED COL. KAREGEYA TO RENT HIM A ROOM AT THE MICHELANGELO TOWERS HOTEL. ON NEW YEAR'S EVE, THE COLONEL VISITED THE HOTEL ROOM, NUMBER 905, TO SHARE A DRINK WITH HIS FRIEND. HE WAS NEVER SEEN ALIVE AGAIN.

DIRECTLY ACROSS THE HOTEL CORRIDOR FROM ROOM 905, MR. BATENGA ALLEGES, TWO RWANDAN AGENTS HAD RENTED A ROOM - AND HE BELIEVES THEY WERE INVOLVED IN THE MURDER. THE NEXT MORNING, BEFORE THE BODY WAS DISCOVERED, ALL OF THEM RETURNED TO KIGALI ON A COMMERCIAL FLIGHT, HE SAID.

WITHIN DAYS, RWANDA'S TOP LEADERS WERE GLOATING ABOUT COL. KAREGEYA'S MURDER. THE FOREIGN MINISTER AND PRIME MINISTER DENOUNCED THE FORMER INTELLIGENCE CHIEF AS AN "ENEMY" WHO HAD SUFFERED THE CONSEQUENCES OF HIS "BETRAYAL" OF HIS COUNTRY. "WHEN YOU CHOOSE TO BE A DOG, YOU DIE LIKE A DOG, AND THE CLEANERS WILL WIPE AWAY THE TRASH," SAID THE DEFENCE MINISTER, GEN. JAMES KABAREBE.

MR. KAGAME DENIED RWANDAN INVOLVEMENT IN COL. KAREGEYA'S MURDER BUT SAID HE WOULD HAVE BEEN HAPPY IF RWANDA HAD KILLED HIM. "I REALLY WISH IT," HE TOLD AN INTERVIEWER.

EVEN BEFORE THIS MURDER, MR. KAGAME MADE LITTLE SECRET OF HIS DESIRE TO SEE THE RNC LEADERS DEAD. "MAYBE HE DESERVES IT," MR. KAGAME TOLD AN INTERVIEWER IN 2012 WHEN ASKED ABOUT THE ATTEMPTED MURDER OF GEN. NYAMWASA. HIS PROPAGANDA NEWSPAPER, THE NEW TIMES, SAID THE RNC LEADERS SHOULD SUFFER THE SAME FATE AS OSAMA BIN LADEN.

ROBERT HIGIRO WAS PART OF PAUL KAGAME’S REBEL ARMY IN 1990 WHEN IT INVADED RWANDA. HERE, THE TWO MEN (MR. HIGIRO AT RIGHT) ATTEND A MILITARY ACADEMY CEREMONY.

ROBERT HIGIRO WAS ONE OF THEM.

BORN IN EXILE IN UGANDA IN 1972, HE JOINED MR. KAGAME'S REBEL ARMY IN 1990 WHEN IT INVADED RWANDA. AFTER 20 YEARS IN THE ARMY, HE WAS SERVING AS A UNITED NATIONS PEACEKEEPER IN DARFUR IN 2010 WHEN HE FELL AFOUL OF THE RWANDAN AUTHORITIES AFTER MAKING OFFHAND COMMENTS CRITICAL OF TWO SENIOR RWANDAN ARMY OFFICERS.

MR. HIGIRO WAS DISCHARGED FROM THE ARMY. HE NEEDED TO MAKE A NEW LIVING, SO HE WENT TO UGANDA TO PURSUE BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES, BUT WAS SOON SUMMONED TO THE RWANDAN ARMY HEADQUARTERS TO BE QUESTIONED.

MR. HIGIRO SAYS IT WAS THEN THAT COL. MUNYUZA FIRST REACHED OUT TO HIM. HE WAS GIVEN ABOUT $500 FOR HIS TRANSPORTATION HOME (MUCH MORE THAN HE NEEDED). BUT HE SAYS HE WAS ALSO PUT UNDER COVERT SURVEILLANCE. HE WONDERED WHY HE WAS BECOMING THE SUBJECT OF SUCH ATTENTION.

HE EVENTUALLY FLED TO SENEGAL, WHERE HE HAD CONTACTS, AND WITHIN A FEW DAYS WAS WORKING FOR FRENCH SECURITY COMPANY IN DAKAR.

SOMEONE TIED TO COL. MUNYUZA CAME TO TALK TO HIM.

"HE HAS A JOB FOR YOU," MR. HIGIRO SAYS THE INTERMEDIARY TOLD HIM.

A FEW DAYS LATER, COL. MUNYUZA PHONED HIM AND ASKED HIM TO GO TO SOUTH AFRICA TO KILL COL. KAREGEYA AND GEN. NYAMWASA, SAYS MR. HIGIRO. IF HE DID THE JOB, THE INTELLIGENCE CHIEF PROMISED THAT HE WOULD BE AMPLY REWARDED AND WOULD BECOME "A HERO" IN HIS COUNTRY.

MR. HIGIRO STALLED, FEARING THAT HE WOULD BE KILLED NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENED. HE DECIDED TO PHONE COL. KAREGEYA - AN OLD FAMILY FRIEND - TO WARN HIM OF THE PLOT. MR. HIGIRO SAYS THEY AGREED THAT HE SHOULD PLAY ALONG WITH MR. MUNYUZA'S OFFER AND SECRETLY RECORD THE PHONE CONVERSATIONS. (JUMP TO AN EXCERPT OF ONE OF THOSE CONVERSATIONS.)

MR. HIGIRO WENT TO SOUTH AFRICA AND INVENTED A COVER STORY. HE TOLD COL. MUNYUZA THAT HE KNEW A SOUTH AFRICAN MILITARY OFFICER WITH A FRIEND WHO COULD GAIN ACCESS TO THE DISSISDENT'S BODYGUARDS. THE BODYGUARDS COULD EITHER KILL THE TARGETS OR ALLOW A RWANDAN HIT SQUAD TO DO THE JOB. MR. HIGIRO SAYS HE ASKED FOR A $1.5-MILLION (U.S.) PAYMENT TO ARRANGE THE HIT, AND COL. MUNYUZA COUNTERED WITH AN OFFER OF $1-MILLION IN INSTALLMENTS.

IN THEIR RECORDED CONVERSATIONS, THE MAN IDENTIFIED AS COL. MUNYUZA SUGGESTS THAT THE HIT MEN COULD BE REWARDED WITH "A PIECE OF THE MARKET" - POSSIBLY A CONTRACT AT A RWANDAN CELLPHONE COMPANY. "TELL HIM THAT THE ESSENTIAL THING IS THAT THE JOB IS DONE AND I'LL TAKE CARE OF THE REST," HE SAYS TO MR. HIGIRO. "I KNOW PEOPLE WHO'VE CARRIED OUT SIMILAR JOBS IN THE PAST, AND THEY ARE WELL-TREATED TODAY."

IN ANOTHER CONVERSATION, THE COLONEL TELLS MR. HIGIRO: "IF WE MANAGED TO HIT BOTH OF THEM ... THE OTHERS WOULD SHUT UP."

HE ADDS: "IF HE COULD KILL TWO BIRDS WITH ONE STONE AND ELIMINATE THEM BOTH AT ONCE, HE COULD EARN MORE. EVEN ONE ALONE, THE ENEMY WOULD BE WEAKENED."

BUT THESE CONVERSATIONS EVENTUALLY ENDED WHEN THE RWANDAN OFFICIALS REFUSED TO PROVIDE ANY UPFRONT MONEY. TALKS PETERED OFF. AND MR. HIGIRO DECIDED TO TAKE THE CHANCE TO ESCAPE, FIRST TO KENYA, THEN BELGIUM, WHERE HE HAS APPLIED FOR REFUGEE STATUS.

AFTER THE LATEST ATTACKS ON RWANDAN DISSIDENTS THIS YEAR, THOUGH, HE DECIDED TO DISCLOSE THE SECRET PHONE RECORDINGS.

"I THINK IT'S TIME TO EXPOSE - USING EVIDENCE THAT WE HAVE - THAT THIS CONSPIRACY OF ASSASSINATIONS IS GOING ON," HE SAID IN AN INTERVIEW IN A HOTEL ROOM IN BRUSSELS.

‘I CAN’T KILL REFUGEES’

A SIMILAR MURDER PLOT IS DESCRIBED BY A RWANDAN EXILE NAMED GUSTAVE TUYISHIME.

BORN IN RWANDA IN 1979, HE MIGRATED TO SOUTH AFRICA AS A YOUNG MAN AND GOT UN REFUGEE STATUS IN 2001. HE WORKED IN ODD JOBS IN PRETORIA, AS A TAXI DRIVER, A BARMAN AND A BOUNCER, BUT WAS OFTEN DESPERATE FOR MONEY. IN 2011, HE SAYS, A RWANDAN INTELLIGENCE AGENT APPROACHED HIM AND OFFERED HIM ABOUT 100,000 RAND (ABOUT $16,000 AT THE TIME) TO BUY A GUN AND SHOOT GEN. NYAMWASA OR OTHER RNC LEADERS, WHOM HE KNEW THROUGH THE SMALL RWANDAN EXILE COMMUNITY.

A TOTAL OF ABOUT $15,000 WAS WIRED TO HIM, HE SAYS, AND HE WAS GIVEN THE ADDRESS OF A SAFE HOUSE IN A SMALL RURAL TOWN WHERE GEN. NYAMWASA WAS BEING GUARDED. HE SAYS HE WAS PROMISED MILLIONS OF DOLLARS, PLUS A GOVERNMENT MEDAL, IF HE COMPLETED THE JOB. BUT HE GOT COLD FEET. "I CAN'T KILL REFUGEES," HE SAYS. "I'M A REFUGEE MYSELF."

HE SPENT THE MONEY ON A NEW CAR, WARNED THE DISSIDENTS OF THE MURDER PLOT, GAVE A STATEMENT TO THE SOUTH AFRICAN POLICE, AND THEN WENT INTO HIDING, TO THE FURY OF THE RWANDAN AGENTS.

MR. TUYISHIME, THOUGH HIGHLY NERVOUS, AGREED TO MEET FOR AN INTERVIEW AT A PRETORIA HOTEL AFTER BEING CONTACTED BY KENNEDY GIHANA, AN IMMIGRATION LAWYER AND KAGAME OPPONENT WHO HAD BECOME THE RNC'S SECRETARY-GENERAL. THE TWO KNOW EACH OTHER THROUGH RWANDAN REFUGEE CIRCLES AND REMAIN ON AMICABLE TERMS - EVEN THOUGH MR. TUYISHIME SAYS HE WAS TWICE CONTRACTED TO KILL MR. GIHANA HIMSELF.

IT WAS LAST YEAR, MR. TUYISHIME SAYS, THAT A SENIOR RWANDAN DIPLOMAT TRACKED HIM DOWN AND TOLD HIM TO REPAY THE DEBT FROM THE GEN. NYAMWASA JOB BY DOING A NEW HIT FOR THEM.

FIRST, HE SAYS, THE DIPLOMAT OFFERED HIM 200 RAND TO FIND THE HOSPITAL ROOM OF MR. GIHANA, WHO HAD BEEN INJURED IN A CAR ACCIDENT IN EARLY DECEMBER, 2013. THEN, MR. TUYISHIME SAYS, HE WAS OFFERED MONEY TO KILL MR. GIHANA. BUT INSTEAD HE WARNED HIM, AND MR. GIHANA QUICKLY MOVED TO ANOTHER HOSPITAL.

MR. TUYISHIME SAYS HE ALSO FILED A STATEMENT WITH A POLICE STATION IN PRETORIA, GIVING DETAILS OF THE MURDER PLOT. A TEXT MESSAGE ON HIS CELLPHONE FROM THE POLICE STATION GIVES THE FILE NUMBER OF THE CASE.

A FEW WEEKS LATER, THOUGH, JUST BEFORE PATRICK KAREGEYA WAS STRANGLED TO DEATH, THE DIPLOMAT GAVE HIM A NEW ASSIGNMENT: FOR A $5,000 PAYMENT, HE SAYS, HE WAS SUPPOSED TO SET FIRE TO AN RNC HOUSE IN A PRETORIA SUBURB.

"THEY THINK YOU WILL SEE THE MONEY AND YOU'LL DO WHATEVER THEY WANT," MR. TUYISHIME SAYS. BUT AGAIN, HE WAS UNWILLING TO DO THE JOB.

THREE DAYS AFTER THE MURDER OF COL. KAREGEYA, HE SAYS, THE RWANDAN DIPLOMAT WHO HAD BEEN CONTACTING HIM FOUND HIM IN A PRETORIA HOTEL. "YOU DIDN'T DO WHAT WE TOLD YOU TO DO," THE DIPLOMAT TOLD HIM ANGRILY. "SO WE DID IT OURSELVES." TWO DAYS LATER, HE SAYS, THE DIPLOMAT ISSUED A DEATH THREAT TO HIM: "YOU WILL BE THE SECOND TO DIE."

MR. GIHANA, TOO, SAYS HE OFTEN GETS PHONE CALLS FROM SOUTH AFRICAN POLICE OFFICERS WARNING HIM OF NEW THREATS ON HIS LIFE. WHEN THE RWANDAN EMBASSY HOSTED A SOCIAL EVENT AT A JOHANNESBURG HOTEL, THE DISSIDENTS BOLDLY TRIED TO BARGE IN, AND MR. GIHANA SAYS THE DIPLOMAT TOLD HIM: "I DIDN'T COME HERE AS A DIPLOMAT. I CAME HERE TO HUNT YOU."

OTHER RNC LEADERS IN SOUTH AFRICA HAVE ALSO BEEN THE TARGETS OF MYSTERIOUS ATTACKS - INCLUDING FRANK NTWALI, A LAYWER WHO IS GEN. NYAMWASA'S BROTHER-IN-LAW AND THE HEAD OF THE RNC'S AFRICA BRANCH. IN AUGUST, 2012, IN JOHANNESBURG, A CAR WITH POLICE-STYLE BLUE LIGHTS PULLED OVER HIS VEHICLE AND THREE MEN APPROACHED HIM. "ARE YOU FRANK?" ONE ASKED. A SECOND MAN JUMPED INTO THE BACK SEAT AND STABBED HIM REPEATEDLY IN THE SHOULDER AND HIP.

HE FOUGHT BACK AND THE MEN RAN AWAY. HE WAS STABBED 10 TIMES BUT SURVIVED, PERHAPS BECAUSE OF THE THICK WINTER COAT HE WAS WEARING. THE ASSAILANTS WERE CLEARLY UNINTERESTED IN ROBBERY - THEY IGNORED HIS CELLPHONE, COMPUTER AND WALLET.

MR. NTWALI HAS BECOME SO WORRIED ABOUT THE THREAT OF ATTACK THAT HE OFTEN REMOVES THE BATTERIES FROM HIS CELLPHONE SO THAT HIS MOVEMENTS CANNOT BE TRACED. "THEY WILL KEEP COMING AFTER ME," HE SAID IN AN INTERVIEW IN A JOHANNESBURG RESTAURANT. "BUT THEY'LL NEVER SUCCEED. ONLY GOD HAS THE RIGHT TO TAKE OUR LIVES. THE CAUSE THAT I'M FIGHTING FOR IS BIGGER THAN I AM. IT'S ABOUT LIBERTY. PEOPLE WON'T BE INTIMIDATED FOREVER."

FORWARD, CAREFULLY

GLOBAL AUTHORITIES ARE TAKING WHAT THEY HEAR FROM RWANDAN DISSIDENTS SERIOUSLY. THEIR OWN INVESTIGATIONS HAVE CONFIRMED THEIR STORIES, AND THEY ARE TRYING TO PROTECT THE DISSIDENTS BY URGING MR. KAGAME TO RESTRAIN HIMSELF.

THE U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT HAS ALREADY WARNED THE KAGAME GOVERNMENT THAT IT MUST NOT "SILENCE DISSIDENTS." IT HAS EXPRESSED "DEEP CONCERN" OVER

MR. KAGAME'S PUBLIC THREATS AGAINST CRITICS AND THE APPARENT "POLITICALLY MOTIVATED ATTACKS" ON THEM.

IN BRITAIN, POLICE WARNED TWO DISSIDENTS IN 2011 THAT THE RWANDAN GOVERNMENT "POSES AN IMMINENT THREAT TO YOUR LIFE."

IN SWEDEN, A RWANDAN DIPLOMAT WAS EXPELLED IN 2012 FOR "ESPIONAGE" AGAINST RWANDAN REFUGEES, AND AUTHORITIES PROTECTED AN EXILED RWANDAN NEWSPAPER EDITOR WHO FEARED FOR HIS LIFE.

DESPITE RWANDAN OFFICIALS' DENIALS, THE SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT HAS CONCLUDED THAT THE COUNTRY'S DIPLOMATS HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN MURDER AND ATTEMPTED MURDER. IN 2010, IT RECALLED ITS AMBASSADOR FROM RWANDA TO PROTEST AN ATTACK ON A DISSIDENT IN JOHANNESBURG. AND IN MARCH, AFTER THE LATEST ATTACK, IT EXPELLED FOUR RWANDAN DIPLOMATS AND ACCUSED THEM OF "DIRECT LINKS" TO THE KAREGEYA ASSASSINATION AND OTHER ATTEMPTED MURDERS AND "ORGANIZED CRIMINAL NETWORKS."

THERE IS ALSO THE ONGOING TRIAL AGAINST THE SIX PEOPLE ACCUSED OF TRYING TO KILL GEN. NYAMWASA IN 2010. THE TRIAL IS NOW IN ITS FINAL STAGES, WITH A VERDICT EXPECTED IN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS.

WHILE HE AWAITS THAT RULING, THE GENERAL SITS ON A BENCH AT THE BACK OF THE COURTROOM, PROTECTED BY SEVEN SOUTH AFRICAN POLICE OFFICERS WITH GUNS AND BULLETPROOF VESTS. IT'S ONE OF THE FEW PLACES WHERE HE FEELS SECURE.

ON CHRISTMAS EVE, A WEEK BEFORE COL. KAREGEYA'S DEATH, THE GENERAL MET SOCIALLY WITH THE FELLOW DISSIDENT. ON THAT SAME NIGHT, HE REMEMBERS, COL. KAREGEYA GOT A MYSTERIOUS PHONE CALL FROM A RWANDAN INTELLIGENCE AGENT WHO HAD BEEN BRIEFLY ARRESTED IN 2010 IN CONNECTION WITH THE GENERAL'S SHOOTING. THE AGENT MAY HAVE BEEN TRYING TO DISCOVER WHERE THE TWO MEN WERE LOCATED, GEN. NYAMWASA SAID.

FACED WITH VIOLENT ATTACKS IN SOUTH AFRICA AND REPRESSION IN RWANDA, THE DISSIDENTS SEE LITTLE HOPE FOR PEACEFUL SOLUTIONS. IN EVERY ELECTION, MR. KAGAME WINS MORE THAN 90 PER CENT OF THE VOTE, A RESULT THAT HAS BEEN WIDELY QUESTIONED BY DEMOCRACY ADVOCATES. SOME OF THE RNC LEADERS HAVE HINTED THAT AN ARMED REVOLT OR COUP, LED BY THE RWANDAN ARMY, MIGHT BE THE ONLY WAY TO DEPOSE HIM. IT WOULD BE "SELF-DEFENCE," THEY ARGUE.

"IF YOU IMPRISON PEOPLE AND FORCE THEM INTO EXILE, THE ANGER COULD END UP IN WAR AGAIN," GEN. NYAMWASA SAYS.

HE'S NOT AFRAID TO TALK ABOUT THE GENOCIDE IN RWANDA EITHER. THE GENERAL SAYS HIS LAWYERS ARE STILL TALKING TO FRENCH AUTHORITIES ABOUT THEIR

INVESTIGATION INTO THE RPF'S ROLE IN THE PRESIDENTIAL CRASH OF 1994, THE EVENT THAT TRIGGERED THE GENOCIDE.

"IF I'M ALIVE AND IF THE OPPORTUNITY ARISES. I WILL TELL MY STORY."

STAYING ALIVE REQUIRES CARE, OF COURSE - FOR TARGETS AS WELL AS THOSE RECRUITED TO ATTACK THEM.

IN PRETORIA, GUSTAVE TUYISHIME SAYS HE DOESN'T FEEL SAFE THESE DAYS, AND HE TAKES PRECAUTIONS TO STAY OUT OF SIGHT. "I SLEEP IN A CAR," HE SAYS.

ROBERT HIGIRO, THE EX-ARMY MAJOR WHO SECRETLY RECORDED COL. MUNYUZA, ALSO KEEPS A LOW PROFILE IN HIS NEW HOMETOWN IN BELGIUM.

HE DOES SPEAK OUT WHEN HE CAN BY ATTENDING IMPROMPTU MEETINGS AND DOING INTERVIEWS. BUT HE MOVES AROUND. HE SHIFTS HIS DAILY PATTERNS AND IS UNABLE TO ATTEND REGULAR FLEMISH LANGUAGE CLASS FOR FEAR OF BEING SPOTTED.

FOR ALL THAT, HE STILL HAS ONGOING SECURITY CONCERNS, WHICH BELGIAN AUTHORITIES ARE AWARE OF. HE SOMETIMES GETS PHONE CALLS FROM RWANDAN VISITORS WHO SEEM TO BE LOOKING FOR HIM.

"I'M DEFINITELY BEING HUNTED," HE SAYS. "I'M IN A FRAGILE SITUATION. I'M AFRAID, BUT IT DOESN'T STOP ME FROM DOING WHAT I HAVE TO DO."

GEOFFREY YORK IS THE GLOBE’S AFRICA CORRESPONDENT, BASED IN JOHANNESBURG.

JUDI REVER IS A MONTREAL-BASED FREELANCE REPORTER WHO CONTRIBUTES TO MEDIA OUTLETS INCLUDING AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE AND REUTERS.

TRANSCRIPT

MAJOR ROBERT HIGIRO SAYS HE WAS RECRUITED BY RWANDA’S INTELLIGENCE IN LATE 2010 TO KILL COLONEL PATRICK KAREGEYA AND GENERAL FAUSTIN KAYUMBA NYAMWASA, THE MOST WANTED MEN ON RWANDA’S HIT LIST.

JUST A FEW MONTHS EARLIER, GEN. NYAMWASA NARROWLY ESCAPED DEATH AFTER BEING SHOT IN THE STOMACH BY SUSPECTED RWANDAN AGENTS. AN ALLEGED SECOND ATTEMPT TO KILL THE GENERAL WHILE HE WAS IN THE HOSPITAL WAS FOILED BY SOUTH AFRICAN INTELLIGENCE.

DESPERATE AND DEFIANT, MR. HIGIRO DECIDED TO INFORM COL. KAREGEYA AND GEN. NYAMWASA OF THE PLOT. THEY TOLD HIM TO PLAY ALONG WITH THE PLAN AND TAPE THE CONVERSATIONS IN ORDER TO PROVIDE EVIDENCE OF THE CRIME.

THE CONVERSATIONS BETWEEN MR. HIGIRO AND COLONEL DAN MUNYUZA, RWANDA’S HEAD OF THE DIRECTORATE OF MILITARY INTELLIGENCE, FOCUSED ON STRATEGY AND LOGISTICS: GETTING ACCESS TO THE MEN’S SOUTH AFRICAN BODYGUARDS AND NEGOTIATING A PAYMENT FOR CARRYING OUT THE TASK.

HERE IS AN EXCERPT OF ONE OF THOSE CONVERSATIONS, FROM FEBRUARY 2011, TRANSLATED FROM KINYARWANDA INTO ENGLISH. THEY ARE DISCUSSING A SUPPOSED SOUTH AFRICAN INTELLIGENCE OFFICER WHO HAD CONTACTS AMONG THE DISSIDENTS’ BODYGUARDS – BUT COL. MUNYUZA DOESN’T REALIZE THAT THE SOUTH AFRICAN OFFICER IS A FICTION. THEIR LATER REFERENCE TO ‘THE SUPERIOR’ IS GENERAL NYAMWASA.

DAN MUNYUZA: “….IF HE AGREES TO DO IT, THEN THAT MEANS HE’S ABLE TO CARRY IT OUT. HE COULD FIGURE OUT THOSE CLOSEST TO THE BODYGUARDS AND DO IT WITH THEM.”

ROBERT HIGIRO: “…AT THAT POINT HE COULD TELL ME HOW WE COULD ORGANIZE IT ALL. BUT IT DEPENDS ON WHAT WE WANT, LIKE I WAS TELLING YOU.”

DAN MUNYUZA: “…NO, IT’S UP TO HIM TO TELL US HOW HE WANTS TO DO IT. HE NEEDS TO PROPOSE TWO WAYS AND WE’LL CHOOSE ONE THAT HAS FEWER CONSEQUENCES.”

ROBERT HIGIRO: “…..HE IS WAITING TO SEE WHETHER WE ARE SERIOUS AND WHETHER WE HAVE AN IDEA OF HOW THE JOB COULD BE EXECUTED.”

DAN MUNYUZA: “….WHAT ARE YOU THINKING OF…ISN’T IT USING A WEAPON TO DO IT? AND TO MAKE SURE IT’S DONE BY OUR MAN? IF HE COULD KILL TWO BIRDS WITH ONE STONE AND ELIMINATE THEM BOTH AT ONCE, HE COULD EARN MORE.”

ROBERT HIGIRO: “WHAT’S THAT?”

DAN MUNYUZA: “…IF IT ISN’T POSSIBLE TO DO BOTH, THEN IT WOULD BE GOOD TO GET RID OF THE SUPERIOR.”

ROBERT HIGIRO: “YOU’RE SAYING…”

DAN MUNYUZA: “…IT WOULD BE GREAT TO GET RID OF THEM BOTH AT THE SAME TIME, BUT IF THAT’S NOT POSSIBLE EVEN (GETTING) ONE ALONE, THE ENEMY WOULD BE WEAKENED.”

ROBERT HIGIRO: “…OK, I’LL TELL THEM THAT OUR PRIORITY IS TO ELIMINATE BOTH, BUT THAT IF THERE’S ONLY A CHANCE OF GETTING ONE, THE FOCUS SHOULD BE ON THE SUPERIOR.”

PATRICK KAREGEYA’S LAST LETTER

MR. DOUGLAS E. COEWASHINGTON AVENUE SAN LEANDRO,CA 94577USA

28TH DECEMBER, 2013

DEAR MR. COE,

RE: ENDING THE CRISIS IN RWANDA AND THE GREAT LAKES REGION THROUGH DIALOGUE ON BEHALF OF THE RWANDA NATIONAL CONGRESS (RNC)

I AM WRITING TO INFORM YOU THAT THE CURRENT SITUATION IN RWANDA IS ONE OF THOSE THAT OUGHT TO BE OF THE GREATEST AND URGENT CONCERN TO THOSE IN THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY WHO HAVE GENUINE CONCERN ABOUT INTERNATIONAL PEACE AND SECURITY IN GENERAL AND IN THE GREAT LAKES REGION OF CENTRAL AFRICA IN PARTICULAR. THE MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE OF RWANDA, WE BELIEVE, SHARE A COMMON PERCEPTION THAT POLICIES OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY HAVE NOT REFLECTED PRINCIPLED SUPPORT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF DEMOCRATIC AND INCLUSIVE INSTITUTIONS, RESPECT FOR THE FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF CITIZENS AND ACCOUNTABILITY OF PUBLIC OFFICIALS FOR GROSS VIOLATIONS OF HUMAN RIGHTS.

I WRITE THIS LETTER TO SHARE OUR VIEWS ON THE POLITICAL SITUATION IN RWANDA AND ON THE ROLE THAT YOU CAN PLAY IN ADVANCING FREEDOM AND PROMOTING LONG TERM STABILITY AND PEACE IN RWANDA AND THE GREAT LAKES REGION.

THE STATUS OF GOVERNANCE IN RWANDA

THE PEOPLE OF RWANDA HAVE FOR A VERY LONG TIME BEEN EXPOSED TO REPRESSIVE GOVERNMENT, LEADING TO RECURRENT VIOLENT CONFLICT. THIS VIOLENCE REACHED ITS PEAK WITH THE GENOCIDE OF 1994. I HAVE NO DOUBT THAT YOU ARE WELL AWARE OF THE DEPRIVATION AND IMMENSE SUFFERING THAT RECURRENT CONFLICT HAS OCCASIONED TO

MILLIONS OF RWANDANS. I ALSO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE GOVERNMENT OF RWANDA HAS, WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY, MADE SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS IN RESTORING PUBLIC ORDER, RE-ESTABLISHING EFFECTIVE STATE INSTITUTIONS, AND REBUILDING THE COUNTRY’S ECONOMY DURING THE PERIOD SINCE 1994. UNFORTUNATELY, THE RECONSTRUCTION EFFORTS THAT RWANDA HAS UNDERTAKEN SINCE THE GENOCIDE ARE NOT ROOTED IN DEMOCRATIC VALUES, RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND BROAD INCLUSION. AS STATED IN THE RWANDA BRIEFING DOCUMENT THAT FOUR FORMER COLLEAGUES OF RWANDAN PRESIDENT KAGAME ( INCLUDING MYSELF) PUBLISHED IN AUGUST 2010, “THERE IS MORE TO RWANDA AND PAUL KAGAME THAN NEW BUILDINGS, CLEAN STREETS, AND EFFICIENT GOVERNMENT THAN PRESIDENT KAGAME’S FAMOUS FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES IN EUROPE AND AMERICA CARE TO ADMIT.

RWANDA IS ESSENTIALLY A HARD-LINE, ONE-PARTY, SECRETIVE POLICE STATE WITH A FAÇADE OF DEMOCRACY …” THE RULING PARTY, THE RWANDESE PATRIOTIC FRONT (RPF), HAS CLOSED SPACE FOR POLITICAL PARTICIPATION. THE RPF DOES NOT TOLERATE POLITICAL OPPOSITION OR OPEN COMPETITION FOR POWER. PRESIDENT KAGAME DOES NOT ALLOW OPPOSITION PARTIES TO BE REGISTERED, LET ALONE OPERATE FREELY. MEDIA OUTLETS THAT ARE CRITICAL OF THE GOVERNMENT ARE EITHER SHUT DOWN BY THE GOVERNMENT OR FORCED TO CLOSE OPERATIONS AS A RESULT OF ATTACKS AGAINST THEIR JOURNALISTS.

THE GOVERNMENT OF RWANDA HAS NOW CLOSED DOWN ALL THE INDEPENDENT MEDIA OUTLETS THE COUNTRY ONCE HAD. CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATIONS INDEPENDENT OF THE GOVERNMENT OPERATE UNDER DRACONIAN RESTRICTIONS THAT MAKE THE EXERCISE OF THEIR ROLE AS WATCHDOGS OVER GOVERNMENT IMPOSSIBLE. THE PEOPLE OF RWANDA HAVE NO LIBERTY TO DISCUSS, NOR DECIDE, HOW THEY SHOULD BE GOVERNED. THE RWANDA GOVERNMENT IS CONTROLLED BY A SMALL GROUP OF TUTSI MILITARY OFFICERS AND CIVILIANS FROM BEHIND THE SCENES.

THE POLITICAL SYSTEM MARGINALIZES THE MAJORITY OF THE POPULATION FROM POLITICAL PARTICIPATION.THE GOVERNMENT OF RWANDA RELIES ON SEVERE REPRESSION TO STAY IN POWER. THE RPF GOVERNMENT RELIES ON A WIDE RANGE OF LAWS, ADMINISTRATIVE

PRACTICES AND TERROR TO RESTRICT CITIZENS’ ENJOYMENT OF POLITICAL FREEDOMS. INSTITUTIONS OF THE STATE CONTINUE TO SUBJECT REAL AND IMAGINED CRITICS OF THE GOVERNMENT TO A WIDE RANGE OF HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS INCLUDING ARBITRARY ARRESTS AND DETENTIONS AND INVOLUNTARY DISAPPEARANCES AND EXTRAJUDICIAL KILLINGS.

THE SECURITY SERVICES, ALL EXCLUSIVELY CONTROLLED BY TUTSI MILITARY OFFICERS, THAT ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR KEEPING PRESIDENT KAGAME IN POWER ENJOY ABSOLUTE IMPUNITY FOR GRAVE HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES. MANY MEMBERS OF OPPOSITION PARTIES, CIVIL SOCIETY GROUPS, INDEPENDENT MEDIA OUTLETS AND INDIVIDUALS SUSPECTED OF BEING OPPONENTS OF THE REGIME HAVE BEEN HUNTED DOWN, ARRESTED, TORTURED, IMPRISONED OR KILLED BY AGENTS OF THE STATE. VICTIMS OF STATE SPONSORED TERROR WHO HAVE LOST THEIR LIVES OVER THE RECENT PAST INCLUDE ANDRE KAGWA RWISEREKA (VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE DEMOCRATIC GREEN PARTY OF RWANDA), JEAN LEONARD RUGAMBAGYE (DEPUTY EDITOR OF UMUVUGIZI NEWSPAPER) AND JOHN RUTAYISIRE.

THE RWANDA GOVERNMENT HAS DEPLOYED A VERY LARGE NUMBER OF INTELLIGENCE OPERATIVES IN COUNTRIES ACROSS AFRICA, EUROPE AND NORTH AMERICA TO HUNT DOWN AND KILL OPPONENTS OF THE REGIME. MANY MEMBERS AND LEADERS OF OPPOSITION PARTIES INCLUDING ; BERNARD NTAGANDA, PRESIDENT OF THE SOCIAL IMBERAKULI PARTY; VICTOIRE INGABIRE PRESIDENT OF THE FDU-INKINGI PARTY ( RECENTLY SENTENCED TO 15 YEARS IN JAIL; AND, DEO MUSHAYINDI OF PPD IMANZI PARTY, REMAIN IN DETENTION AND SO DO SOME INNOCENT RELATIVES OF OPPOSITION LEADERS. THE RWANDA GOVERNMENT CONTINUES ITS RELENTLESS PERSECUTION OF GOVERNMENT CRITICS. THE MOST RECENT VICTIMS OF THIS PERSECUTION INCLUDE INDEPENDENTS JOURNALISTS AND OPPOSITION LEADERS, ALL OF WHOM HAVE BEEN SENTENCED TO LONG PRISON TERMS, SOME AFTER TRIALS IN ABSENTIA THAT DID NOT MEET INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS OF FAIR TRIAL.

THE CLIMATE OF REPRESSION THAT PREVAILS IN RWANDA HAS FORCED MANY GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS INCLUDING TWO FORMER PRIME MINISTERS, TWO FORMER SPEAKERS OF PARLIAMENT, AND A HOST OF FORMER MINISTERS, FORMER JUDGES, SENIOR GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS,

MILITARY OFFICERS, JOURNALISTS AND HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS TO JOIN HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF THEIR COMPATRIOTS IN EXILE. AS A RESULT OF THE REPRESSION THAT SECURITY SERVICES HELPING PRESIDENT KAGAME ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR, RWANDA IS A COUNTRY ENGULFED BY FEAR.

NOT SINCE THE DAYS OF IDI AMIN HAVE THE SECURITY SERVICES OF A STATE TERRORIZED A NATION TO THE EXTENT TO WHICH RWANDA’S SECURITY SERVICES HAVE VISITED FEAR AND TERROR UPON THE COUNTRY’S CITIZENS. THE CLIMATE OF FEAR AND TERROR THAT PREVAILS IN RWANDA DOES NOT PERMIT RWANDAN SOCIETY TO FREELY DISCUSS THE VERY GRAVE PROBLEMS FACING THE COUNTRY AND TO FIND SOLUTIONS TO THOSE PROBLEMS.

PRESIDENT PAUL KAGAME’S LEADERSHIP

THE GRAVE POLITICAL CRISIS THAT RWANDA IS FACING IS LARGELY A RESULT OF PRESIDENT KAGAME’S RELENTLESS PURSUIT OF ABSOLUTE POWER. RWANDA’S FIRST POST-GENOCIDE GOVERNMENT INCLUDED A RANGE OF OTHER POLITICAL GROUPS THAT HAD CAMPAIGNED FOR DEMOCRATIC REFORM DURING THE EARLY 1990S. RWANDA’S EXPERIENCE WITH BROAD-BASED MULTI-PARTY GOVERNMENT CAME TO AN END AFTER ONLY A YEAR. THEN VICE PRESIDENT KAGAME DROVE THE OPPOSITION LEADERS WHO WERE PART OF THAT GOVERNMENT FROM OFFICE ON ACCOUNT OF THEIR CRITICISM OF HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES BY MEMBERS OF THE RWANDESE PATRIOTIC ARMY. FROM THEN ON, PRESIDENT KAGAME EMBARKED ON A MISSION TO EMASCULATE ALL PARTY AND STATE INSTITUTIONS AND TO CRAFT A STATE CONTROLLED IN EVERY ASPECT BY A SINGLE PERSON WHO WIELDS ABSOLUTE AND UNACCOUNTABLE POWER. RWANDA IS NOT ONLY A ONE PARTY STATE; IT IS ALSO A STATE GOVERNED BY ONE MAN. PRESIDENT PAUL KAGAME EXERTS ABSOLUTE CONTROL OVER BOTH THE RULING PARTY (RPF) AND THE GOVERNMENT.

ALL INSTITUTIONS OF THE STATE ARE CONTROLLED BY THE PRESIDENT. THE COUNTRY’S POLITICAL SYSTEM LACKS CHECKS AND BALANCES. THE JUDICIARY AND THE LEGISLATURE DO NOT HAVE ANY INDEPENDENCE. STATE INSTITUTIONS, ESPECIALLY LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES, THE JUDICIARY AND SECURITY SERVICES, SERVE TO PROTECT PRESIDENT PAUL KAGAME’S POLITICAL MONOPOLY INSTEAD OF PROTECTING THE

FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS OF CITIZENS AND EXECUTING THEIR CONSTITUTIONAL MANDATES. PRESIDENT KAGAME’S ABSOLUTE CONTROL OF THE ENTIRE MACHINERY OF THE STATE AFFORDS HIM PROTECTION FROM BEING HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR HIS MANY SERIOUS CRIMES, SOME OF WHICH HAVE LED TO HORRENDOUS CONSEQUENCES FOR INNOCENT CIVILIANS BOTH INSIDE AND OUTSIDE RWANDA.

PRESIDENT KAGAME IS ONE OF AFRICA’S MOST RUTHLESS DICTATORS. HE IS A CORRUPT LEADER WHO LIVES A LAVISH LIFESTYLE THAT IS OUT OF STEP WITH THE ABJECT POVERTY OF THE MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE OF RWANDA. PRESIDENT KAGAME HAS USED HIS TIME IN OFFICE TO AMASS PERSONAL WEALTH OF UNPRECEDENTED PROPORTIONS IN THE EASTERN AND SOUTHERN AFRICAN REGION. THE BUSINESS CONGLOMERATE (CRYSTAL VENTURES FORMERLY TRI-STAR INVESTMENTS, AND THE MILITARY-LED HORIZON GROUP) OWNED BY HIS POLITICAL PARTY, WHICH FOR ALL PRACTICAL PURPOSES IS HIS PERSONAL PROPERTY, HAS EXTENSIVE CORRUPT BUSINESS RELATIONS WITH THE STATE. RPF BUSINESS ENTITIES HAVE PRIORITY WHEN GOVERNMENT IS ISSUING LICENSES FOR THE MOST LUCRATIVE SECTORS OF THE COUNTRY’S RESOURCES. BUSINESS ENTITIES OWNED BY THE RPF AND CLOSE FAMILY AND FRIENDS OF THE PRESIDENT RECEIVE THE BULK OF THE GOVERNMENT’S PROCUREMENT CONTRACTS. DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN INVESTORS SEEKING BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES IN RWANDA ARE OFTEN COMPELLED TO GO INTO PARTNERSHIP WITH THE RPF AS A CONDITION FOR BEING ALLOWED TO DO BUSINESS IN RWANDA. THE RPF FINANCES ITS VARIOUS BUSINESSES WITH PREFERENTIAL FINANCIAL BACKING FROM STATE-OWNED BANKS, INSURANCES COMPANIES, AND THE NATIONAL SOCIAL SECURITY FUND. BECAUSE THEY BENEFIT ONLY A SMALL GROUP OF PEOPLE, THE BUSINESS ACTIVITIES OF THE RPF PROMOTE SOCIAL INEQUALITY AND UNDERMINE NATIONAL STABILITY. THE INVOLVEMENT OF THE RPF COMPROMISES THE INTEGRITY OF VERY MANY OF ITS MEMBERS, INCLUDING PRESIDENT KAGAME, BECAUSE OF THE CONFLICT OF INTEREST THAT THEY ARE INVOLVED IN DAY TO DAY IN MAKING OFFICIAL DECISIONS AFFECTING THE PARTY’S BUSINESS INTERESTS.

THE RPF’S BUSINESS ARM ALREADY CONTROLS A BIG PART OF THE COUNTRY’S ECONOMY, ABOUT 80% BY SOME CREDIBLE ESTIMATES. ONE EXAMPLE THAT DEMONSTRATES THE DEPRAVITY OF KAGAME’S CORRUPTION IS THE CASE OF LUXURY JETS THAT PRESIDENT KAGAME

USES FOR HIS PERSONAL AND OFFICIAL TRIPS. THE PLANES, GLOBAL EXPRESSES MADE BY CANADIAN AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURER BOMBADIER, COST MORE THAN US 60 MILLION DOLLARS EACH.

PRESIDENT KAGAME ALSO BEARS PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR SOME EXTREMELY SERIOUS VIOLATIONS OF INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW AND INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS LAW, INCLUDING WAR CRIMES AND CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY, THAT HAVE BEEN COMMITTED AGAINST INNOCENT CIVILIANS IN BOTH RWANDA AND THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO. PRESIDENT KAGAME WILL NOT SHRINK FROM COMMITTING ANY CRIME IN ORDER TO STAY IN POWER. HE DOES NOT HAVE RESPECT FOR THE SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE AND THAT IS WHY HE IS ALWAYS PREPARED TO RESORT TO MURDER OF POLITICAL OPPONENTS (AND HEADS OF STATE) TO DEAL WITH PEACEFUL CHALLENGES TO HIS RULE.

PRESIDENT KAGAME BEARS RESPONSIBILITY FOR RWANDA’S FAILED TRANSITION TO DEMOCRACY AND THE POLITICAL IMPASSE THAT HIS ATTEMPTS TO CLING TO UNACCOUNTABLE POWER HAS GIVEN RISE TO. PRESIDENT KAGAME’S MANIPULATION AND ABUSE OF INSTITUTIONS OF STATE TO HARASS POLITICAL OPPONENTS AND STIFLE DISSENTING OPINIONS CONTINUES TO BE CONDEMNED BY VIRTUALLY EVERY REPUTABLE INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANISATION, AND MANY MAJOR MEDIA OUTLETS AND PROMINENT SCHOLARS AND JOURNALISTS, INCLUDING SOME WHO HAVE PREVIOUSLY BEEN SUPPORTIVE OF PRESIDENT KAGAME.

POTENTIAL CONSEQUENCES OF THE POLICIES OF THE RWANDA GOVERNMENT RWANDA, AS DEMONSTRATED, STILL FACE MANY DIFFICULT CHALLENGES IN ITS EXPERIENCE OF NATION BUILDING IN THE AFTERMATH OF VIOLENT CONFLICT. IT IS GENERALLY ACKNOWLEDGED THAT RWANDAN SOCIETY REMAINS DEEPLY DIVIDED ALONG ETHNIC LINES. THE COUNTRY’S TRANSITION TO DEMOCRACY HAS BEEN UNSUCCESSFUL.

THE HUMAN RIGHTS SITUATION IN THE COUNTRY REMAINS A MATTER OF GRAVE CONCERN. CITIZENS LACK ACCESS TO FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS. STATE SECURITY AGENCIES COMMIT GRAVE HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES WITH IMPUNITY. THE COUNTRY IS PEACEFUL, BUT MANY OBSERVERS ARE OF THE VIEW THAT RECURRENCE OF VERY VIOLENT CONFLICT MAY BE INEVITABLE, AT LEAST IN THE MEDIUM TO LONG TERM.

PRESIDENT KAGAME CLAIMS TO HAVE MADE PROGRESS IN DEVELOPING RWANDA, AND ARGUES THAT HUMAN RIGHTS, INCLUDING RIGHTS RELATING TO POLITICAL PARTICIPATION, ARE NOT A PRIORITY FOR THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS. NEVERTHELESS, CONCERNS OVER THE COUNTRY’S PROGRESS IN ENGENDERING RECONCILIATION AND CREATING A DEMOCRATIC SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT RAISE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SUSTAINABILITY OF RWANDA’S SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC ADVANCES AND THE POTENTIAL FOR RENEWED CONFLICT.

THE SITUATION THAT PREVAILS RAISES SERIOUS QUESTIONS ABOUT THE COUNTRY’S FUTURE. ARE THE COUNTRY’S DEVELOPMENT ACHIEVEMENTS SUSTAINABLE? CAN RWANDA CONTINUE TO BE PEACEFUL WHILE THE GOVERNMENT CONTINUES TO BE REPRESSIVE AND THE MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE CONSIDER THE GOVERNMENT ILLEGITIMATE? HOW DO WE BALANCE INDIVIDUAL FREEDOMS AND THE REQUIREMENT FOR A STABLE COMMUNITY? HOW SHOULD CITIZENS RESPOND WHEN RULERS MISTAKE THE STATE TO BE THEIR PERSONAL ESTATE AND DEPRIVE THEIR SUBJECTS OF THEIR INALIENABLE RIGHTS?

WE FIRMLY BELIEVE THAT THE VIOLENT CONFLICTS THAT RWANDA HAS EXPERIENCED OVER THE PAST HALF CENTURY ARE ROOTED IN ISSUES REVOLVING AROUND GOVERNANCE.

THE RPF GOVERNMENT, WE ASSERT, HAS FAILED TO EFFECTIVELY ADDRESS THE ROOT CAUSES OF CONFLICT IN RWANDAN SOCIETY. AS A RESULT, RWANDA IS IN A SITUATION OF SERIOUS CRISIS. THE ONLY PATH TO SUSTAINABLE PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT IN RWANDA IS A SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT THAT HAS POPULAR LEGITIMACY, INCLUDES ALL COMMUNITIES OF RWANDA AND IS COMMITTED TO THE RESPECT OF FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS, ESPECIALLY THE INTEGRITY OF THE PERSON AND THE RIGHT TO POLITICAL PARTICIPATION. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN POST CONFLICT SOCIETIES THAT IS NOT ROOTED IN DEMOCRATIC VALUES, RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS, AND BROAD INCLUSION IS NOT SUSTAINABLE.

WE ARE CONVINCED THAT VIOLENT CONFLICT IS VIRTUALLY CERTAIN TO RETURN TO RWANDA IF THE PRESENT GOVERNMENT DOES NOT HEED CALLS FOR DIALOGUE AND AGREE TO A PROCESS OF PEACEFUL POLITICAL REFORM LEADING TO DEMOCRACY. THE RESULTS OF THE SUBSTANTIAL DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE THAT THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY HAS

EXTENDED TO RWANDA SINCE THE END OF THE GENOCIDE COULD BE VERY SWIFTLY UNDONE IN THE EVENT OF SUCH CONFLICT, WITH GRAVE IMPLICATIONS FOR THE WHOLE GREAT LAKES REGION AND INTERNATIONAL PEACE AND SECURITY.

THE ROLE OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY IN SUPPORTING DEMOCRATIC CHANGE AND BUILDING SUSTAINABLE PEACE IN RWANDA

PRESIDENT KAGAME HAS EXPLOITED THE FAILURE OF THE WEST TO STOP OR PREVENT THE 1994 GENOCIDE TO SILENCE CRITICS OF HIS OPPOSITION TO DEMOCRATIC CHANGE AND THE HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES OF HIS SECURITY SERVICES. THE TOLERANCE THAT THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY HAS EXHIBITED TOWARDS PAUL KAGAME’S EXCESSES CONTINUES TO FUEL IMPUNITY AND IS AN OBSTACLE TO LASTING PEACE AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN RWANDA AND THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO. WESTERN INDIFFERENCE TO PRESIDENT KAGAME’S HUMAN RIGHTS RECORD AND STAND ON POPULAR POLITICAL PARTICIPATION IS INCOMPREHENSIBLE TO THE MAJORITY OF RWANDANS, AND IT ALIENATES THEM. STABILITY AND DEVELOPMENT DO NOT SUBSTITUTE FOR LIBERTY AND FREEDOM.

IN VIEW OF THE GRAVE CONSEQUENCES THAT A RETURN TO VIOLENT CONFLICT IN RWANDA WOULD ENTAIL, THE RNC AND ITS PARTNERS HOLD THE VIEW THAT PEACE AND SECURITY IN RWANDA SHOULD BE A MATTER OF INTERNATIONAL CONCERN.

THE PEOPLE OF RWANDA COUNT ON RWANDA’S NEIGHBORS, AND DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS, TO SUPPORT THE PROMOTION OF RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND ADVANCEMENT OF DEMOCRACY. WE BELIEVE, THAT RWANDA’S DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS, ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO HAVE CLOSE RELATIONS WITH THE CURRENT GOVERNMENT (THE UNITED STATES AND THE UNITED KINGDOM) HAVE A UNIQUE ROLE, IF NOT RESPONSIBILITY, TO ADVANCE THE CAUSE OF PEACEFUL CHANGE IN RWANDA BY ENGAGING PRESIDENT KAGAME ON THE NEED FOR PROGRESS IN GUARANTEEING FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS AND FOR NATIONAL DIALOGUE TO RESOLVE THE COUNTRY’S CRISIS.

THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY OUGHT TO SUPPORT THE SEEKING OF DEMOCRATIC CHANGE, INCLUSIVE GOVERNMENT AND RESPECT FOR

HUMAN RIGHT IN RWANDA ON ACCOUNT OF SEVERAL REASONS, INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING:

A) EMPOWERING THE PEOPLE OF RWANDA TO REALIZE THE FULL RANGE OF THEIR HUMAN RIGHTS: THE PEOPLE OF RWANDA CONTINUE TO BE DEPRIVED OF THE OPPORTUNITY TO ENJOY SOME OF THE MOST FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS, INCLUDING RIGHTS RELATING TO INTEGRITY OF THE PERSON, FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND POLITICAL PARTICIPATION. THE KAGAME REGIME RELIES ON REPRESSION TO MAINTAIN THIS STATUS QUO. THE PEOPLE OF RWANDA ARE MUCH ENTITLED TO BE RELIEVED OF THIS TYRANNY AS CITIZENS OF TUNISIA, EGYPT, IRAQ, AFGHANISTAN AND LIBYA WHOM THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY IS SUPPORTING TO MAKE THE REALIZATION OF THEIR HUMAN RIGHTS A REALITY.

B) PROMOTING INTERNATIONAL PEACE AND SECURITY: IN THE ABSENCE OF DEMOCRATIC REFORMS, THE POLICIES OF THE PRESENT GOVERNMENT OF RWANDA ARE LIKELY TO LEAD TO A RETURN TO VIOLENCE IN THE COUNTRY. A SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT THAT DEPRIVES CITIZENS OF FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHTS, ESPECIALLY THE RIGHT TO POLITICAL PARTICIPATION AND THE INTEGRITY OF THE PERSON, CANNOT LAST INDEFINITELY. CHANGE IN RWANDA IS INEVITABLE; THE ISSUE IS WHETHER CHANGE WILL BE NEGOTIATED AND PEACEFUL, OR VIOLENT AND IMPOSED, AGAIN, BY THE VICTORS OF A BLOODY ARMED CONFLICT. POLITICAL CHANGE IS NECESSARY TO AVERT VIOLENT CONFLICT THAT REPRESSIVE GOVERNMENT IN RWANDA HAS MADE ALMOST INEVITABLE. A RETURN TO VIOLENT CONFLICT IN RWANDA WOULD FURTHER DESTABILIZE THE GREAT LAKES REGION OF CENTRAL AFRICA.

C) HUMANITARIAN CONSIDERATIONS: RWANDA IS ON THE PRECIPICE OF A VERY SERIOUS POLITICAL AND HUMANITARIAN CRISIS. A RETURN TO VIOLENT CONFLICT IN RWANDA IS LIKELY TO TAKE AN ETHNIC DIMENSION. AS WAS DEMONSTRATED AFTER 1994, VIOLENT CONFLICT IN RWANDA HAS CAPACITY TO LEAD TO MASSIVE LOSS OF HUMAN LIFE, AS WELL AS IMMENSE SUFFERING FOR MILLIONS, BOTH INSIDE RWANDA AND IN OTHER COUNTRIES IN THE REGION. THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY NEEDS TO ACT TODAY IN ORDER TO PREVENT THE SUFFERING AND HORRENDOUS LOSS OF LIFE THAT IS LIKELY TO RESULT FROM THE OUTBREAK OF NEW VIOLENCE IN RWANDA.

WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP ALL RWANDANS

THERE ARE EVEN MORE IMPORTANT REASONS WHY WE, AS CHRISTIANS, ARE INVITED TO RADICAL INCLUSION, IN TRUTH, THAT LEADS TO FREEDOM, PEACE AND RECONCILIATION. I HAVE READ WITH A LOT OF INTEREST THE VISION AND MISSION OF THE FELLOWSHIP THAT IS INSPIRED FROM THE SCRIPTURES: “ONCE YOU WERE NOT A PEOPLE, BUT NOW ARE GOD’S PEOPLE; ONCE YOU HAD NOT RECEIVED MERCY, BUT NOW YOU HAVE RECEIVED MERCY. “- I PETER 2:10 FOR A SOCIETY LIKE OURS THAT HAS WITNESSED PAST AND ONGOING TRAUMA, WITH ALL COMMUNITIES BECOMING VICTIMS AND PERPETRATORS, THE QUESTION OF FORGIVENESS AND MERCY CANNOT BE OVEREMPHASIZED. AS BROTHERS AND SISTERS WHO ARE OTHERWISE UNITED BY ONE NATION AND ONE LANGUAGE, WE HAVE SINNED AGAINST EACH OTHER.

THE ALIENATION FROM GOD AND FROM EACH OTHER HAS CONSEQUENTLY INFLICTED UNTOLD SUFFERING ON OUR SOCIETY AS A WHOLE, AND TO OUR NEIGHBORS IN THE REGION. WE CAN FACE THE FUTURE WITH HOPE IF WE TALK TO EACH OTHER TRUTHFULLY AND LEARN TO FORGIVE EACH OTHER. IN THE WORDS OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST: “IF YOUR BROTHER SINS AGAINST YOU, GO AND TELL HIM HIS FAULT, BETWEEN YOU AND HIM ALONE. IF HE LISTENS TO YOU, YOU HAVE GAINED YOUR BROTHER. BUT IF HE DOES NOT LISTEN, TAKE ONE OR TWO OTHERS ALONG WITH YOU, THAT EVERY CHARGE MAY BE ESTABLISHED BY THE EVIDENCE OF TWO OR THREE WITNESSES. IF HE REFUSES TO LISTEN TO THEM, TELL IT TO THE CHURCH.” – MATTHEW 18:15-17.

EQUALLY INSPIRED BY THESE WORDS OF WISDOM FROM THE ONE WE SERVE, OUR ORGANIZATION IS PLANNING TO ORGANIZE AN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON RWANDA THIS COMING YEAR, AROUND MARCH, 2014. THE IDEA IS TO INVITE STAKEHOLDERS IN RWANDAN SOCIETY (GOVERNMENT, CHURCH, CIVIL SOCIETY AND OPPOSITION ORGANIZATIONS, INCLUDING THOSE THAT ARE ARMED, ETC..) TO TALK CANDIDLY ABOUT THE STATE OF AFFAIRS IN OUR BELOVED COUNTRY AND HOW WE CAN BUILD THE FUTURE TOGETHER. UNDERSTANDABLY, THIS IS A VERY DIFFICULT PROPOSITION, GIVEN THE FACT THAT SUCH A CULTURE OF DIALOGUE, GIVE AND TAKE IS EVIDENTLY LACKING IN OUR SOCIETY. YET, WE CAN ONLY IMAGINE THE DANGEROUS ALTERNATIVES TO THE DIALOGUE AND PEACE. WE HAVE INFORMED THE UNITED STATES

GOVERNMENT, AND THE GOVERNMENTS OF FRANCE, BELGIUM, TANZANIA AND SOUTH AFRICA ABOUT THIS IDEA. WHILE THEY ALL NOTE HOW DIFFICULT THIS WILL BE, THEY APPRECIATE HOW TIMELY, IMPORTANT AND URGENT IT IS.

COULD YOU HELP US IN THIS IMPORTANT ENDEAVOR TO GET RWANDANS TALK TO EACH OTHER? AS WE LOOK FORWARD TO THE COMING YEAR, WE ARE REMINDED OF THE PROPHETIC WORDS OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH, ECHOED MANY CENTURIES LATER BY OUR LORD AND KING, JESUS CHRIST: “THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD GOD IS UPON ME BECAUSE THE LORD HAS ANOINTED ME TO BRING GOOD NEWS TO THE AFFLICTED; HE HAS SENT ME TO BIND UP THE BROKENHEARTED, TO PROCLAIM LIBERTY TO CAPTIVES, AND FREEDOM TO PRISONERS; TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD.” -LUKE: 18-19.

THE HANDS OF THE MILLIONS OF RWANDANS WHO ENTER 2014 AFFLICTED, BROKENHEARTED, CAPTIVE IN FEAR, AND PRISONERS BECKON ALL OF US TO ACTION. IT IS AN INVITATION WE CANNOT IGNORE.

I WISH YOU AND YOUR FAMILY A HAPPY NEW YEAR.

IN CHRIST, COLONEL PATRICK KAREGEYA

CO-FOUNDER AND MEMBER OF THE EXECUTIVE RWANDA NATIONAL CONGRESS (RNC)

RWANDAN INTELLIGENCE ASSASSINS WERE GIVEN A MISSION TO KILL KAYUMBA NYAMWASA AND HIS ENTIRE FAMILY

“WHY DIDN’T YOU ACCOMPLISH THE MISSION ON MARCH 2, 2014, AS DIRECTED? WHY DID YOU WAIT FOR TWO DAYS?  YOU FAILED THE MISSION. YOU FAILED THE COUNTRY. YOU FAILED ME. IF THE MISSION HAD BEEN ACCOMPLISHED AS DIRECTED, THE ENEMY WITH HIS ENTIRE FAMILY COULD HAVE BEEN HISTORY BY NOW. NOW, NOT ONLY IS HE, ALONG WITH HIS WIFE AND DAUGHTER, STILL ALIVE, BUT WE HAVE TO DEAL WITH THE STUPID MEDIA, “GENERAL PAUL KAGAME TOLD HIS INNER CIRCLE DURING A BRIEFING ON THE FAILURE BY RWANDAN OPERATIVES IN SOUTH AFRICA TO KILL THE EXILED GENERAL KAYUMBA NYAMWASA, HIS WIFE AND HIS

DAUGHTER AND SOUTH AFRICAN POLICE OFFICERS PROVIDING PERSONAL SECURITY.  

ACCORDING TO THE SOURCES THAT ATTENDED THE BRIEFING BUT WERE NOT INITIALLY PRIVY TO THE TOP SECRET ASSASSINATION MISSION, GENERAL PAUL KAGAME WAS VERY ANGRY, POUNDING THE TABLE AS HE SPOKE,  AND THREATENING HIS CLOSEST AIDES. 

A SERIES OF MURDERS AND ASSASSINATION ATTEMPTS

GENERAL PAUL KAGAME WAS REFERRING TO THE ATTACK ON MARCH 4, 2014 IN JOHANNESBURG, ON A SAFE HOUSE PROVIDED TO THE FORMER

RWANDAN ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF AND AMBASSADOR GENERAL KAYUMBA NYAMWASA. SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT HAS, AFTER A BRIEFING TO SOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT JACOB ZUMA, STATED THAT IT HAS IRREFUTABLE EVIDENCE THAT THE ATTACK WAS AN ASSASSINATION PLOT, PLANNED IN KIGALI, RWANDA, BY GENERAL PAUL KAGAME HIMSELF.

ACCORDING TO THE SOURCES WITHIN GENERAL KAGAME’S INNER CIRCLE, THE PLAN WAS TO ATTACK THE SAFE HOUSE, KILL GENERAL KAYUMBA NYAMWASA AND ANY RELATIVE FOUND INSIDE THE HOUSE. THE INTELLIGENCE POSSESSED BY RWANDAN INTELLIGENCE OPERATIVES WAS THAT GENERAL KAYUMBA NYAMWASA, HIS WIFE AND HIS DAUGHTER WOULD BE HOME ON SUNDAY, AND HENCE ALL THREE KILLED.  HOWEVER, FOR UNKNOWN REASONS, THE ATTACK ON SUNDAY DID NOT BECOME POSSIBLE, AND THE OPERATIVES TRIED AGAIN ON TUESDAY MARCH 4, 2013, IN BROAD DAYLIGHT. ACCORDING TO SOUTH AFRICAN POLICE, BETWEEN SIX AND EIGHT GUNMEN, ARMED WITH AK-47 RIFLES AND PISTOLS, ACCESSED THE SAFE HOUSE IN BRUMA, EASTERN JOHANNESBURG, WHERE  KAYUMBANYAMWASA, HIS WIFE, AND HIS DAUGHTER LIVE,  UNDER THE PROTECTION OF SOUTH AFRICAN SECURITY SERVICES.

GENERAL KAYUMBA NYAMWASA: A MAN WITH MANY LIVES

FOR SOME REASON, GENERAL KAUMBA NYAMWASA, WHO RARELY LEAVES HOME,  HIS WIFE AND TWO OF HIS BODYGUARDS  HAD GONE OUT A FEW MINUTES EARLIER,  WHEREAS THEIR TEENAGE DAUGHTER WAS AT SCHOOL.

ACCORDING TO WITNESSES IN SOUTH AFRICA, THE SQUAD OF KILLERS MANAGED TO PERSUADE GATEKEEPERS, WHO ARE DISGUISED SOUTH AFRICAN POLICEMEN, TO OPEN THE GATE TO THE SAFE HOUSE. ONCE INSIDE, SOME OF THE ASSAILANTS HELD THE OFFICERS CAPTIVE AT GUNPOINT, WHILE OTHERS SEARCHED THE HOUSE FOR GENERAL KAYUMBA, HIS WIFE AND DAUGHTER.  WHEN THEY DID NOT FIND THEM, THE GRABBED ELECTRONICS INCLUDING A PLAYSTATION CONSOLE, WHICH THEY LATER DISCARDED INTO THE GARDEN, WHEN THEY PROBABLY REALIZED IT WAS NOT A COMPUTER.

THE WELL COORDINATED ATTACK IS PART OF A CAMPAIGN BY GENERAL PAUL KAGAME’S GOVERNMENT TO ASSASSINATE LEADERS OF HIS POLITICAL OPPOSITION. GENERAL PAUL KAGAME CONFIRMED THE INTENTION TO HUNT DOWN AND KILL HIS POLITICAL OPPONENTS EARLIER THIS YEAR, WHILE COMMENTING ON THE ASSASSINATION OF HIS FORMER SPY CHIEF, COLONEL PATRICK KAREGAYA.

SOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT JACOB ZUMA FURIOUS

ACCORDING TO SOURCES IN SOUTH AFRICA, WHEN PRESIDENT JACOB ZUMA WAS BRIEFED ON THE IRREFUTABLE EVIDENCES AGAINST RWANDAN GENERAL PAUL KAGAME, HE WAS IRATE. HE ORDERED THE EXPULSION AND IMMEDIATE DEPARTURE OF THREE RWANDAN DIPLOMATS. ONE OF THE DIPLOMATS EXPELLED, DIDIER RUTEMBESE, IS BELIEVED TO BE THE COORDINATOR OF ATTACKS AND ASSASSINATIONS AGAINST RWANDAN DISSIDENTS LIVING IN SOUTH AFRICA.

THE QUESTION NOW IS WHAT GENERAL KAYUMBA NYAMWASA IS GOING TO DO, NOW THAT GENERAL PAUL KAGAME HAS INDICATED HIS INTENTIONS TO, NOT ONLY ASSASSINATE HIM, BUT ALSO HUNT DOWN AND MURDER HIS RELATIVES INCLUDING HIS WIFE AND CHILDREN.

“WE WERE ALL SHOCKED  WHEN GENERAL PAUL KAGAME SAID THAT THE MISSION WAS TO KILL NOT ONLY GENERAL KAYUMBA NYAMWASA, BUT ALSO HIS WIFE AND DAUGHTER,” THE SOURCE WITHIN GENERAL PAUL KAGAME’S INNER CIRCLE TOLD AFROAMERICA NETWORK.  “WE WONDERED WHETHER GENERAL PAUL KAGAME THOUGHT THAT HE, HIMSELF, HAS CHILDREN AND A WIFE,” THE SOURCE ADDED.

RELATIONS BETWEEN RWANDAN AND SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT SOUR OVER KILLINGS AND ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATIONS

RELATIONS BETWEEN RWANDAN AND SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT SOUR OVER KILLINGS OF AND ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATION ON RWANDAN GOVERNMENT CRITICS

RWANDAN FOREIGN AFFAIRS MINISTER LOUISE MUSHIKIWABO HAS, THIS FRIDAY MARCH 7, 2014, CONFIRMED ON HER TWITTER ACCOUNT, THAT THE RWANDAN GOVERNMENT HAS EXPELLED 6 SOUTH AFRICAN DIPLOMATS, FOR RECIPROCITY AND THE FACT THAT SOUTH AFRICA HAS GRANTED ASYLUM TO RWANDAN OPPOSITION LEADERS. ACCORDING TO SOURCES IN RWANDAN MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, SOUTH AFRICAN HIGH COMMISSIONER TO RWANDA IS NOT AMONG THOSE EXPELLED.  THE SOURCES ADDED

THAT THE OFFICIAL REASON  FOR EXPELLING THE SIX SOUTH AFRICAN DIPLOMATS, AS LATER CONFIRMED BY LOUISE MUSHIKIWABO’S TWEET IS “RECIPROCITY AND CONCERN AT SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT HARBORING OF DISSIDENTS RESPONSIBLE FOR TERRORIST ATTACKS IN RWANDA.”

THE MOVE APPEARS TO BE A RETALIATION AGAINST THE DECISION, BY SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT, OF EXPELLING THREE RWANDAN DIPLOMATS, INCLUDING THE AMBASSADOR, FOR BEING INVOLVED IN THE MURDERS AND ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATION OF RWANDAN POLITICAL OPPOSITION LEADERS EXILED TO SOUTH AFRICA.

RWANDAN DIPLOMATS, WHO WERE GIVEN 48 HOURS TO HAVE LEFT SOUTH AFRICA, INCLUDE TWO RWANDAN EMBASSY OFFICIALS IN PRETORIA: FIRST SECRETARY DIDIER RUTEMBESA AND CLAUDE NIKOBISANZWE. THE RWANDAN AMBASSADOR TO SOUTH AFRICA, VINCENT KAREGA IS NOT PART OF THE OFFICIAL DECISION, BUT HAS ALSO BEEN RECALLED, ACCORDING TO SOURCES CLOSE LOUISE MUSHIKIWABO.  THE SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT ACCUSES THE THREE RWANDAN DIPLOMATS OF LINKS TO AN ATTACK BY GUNMEN THIS WEEK ON THE JOHANNESBURG HOME OF  GENERAL KAYUMBA NYAMWASA, A FORMER

COMRADE OF GENERAL PAUL KAGAME AND FORMER RWANDAN ARMY CHIEF, WHO DISSENTED AND SOUGHT ASYLUM IN  SOUTH AFRICA IN 2009.

OVER THE LAST YEAR, RWANDAN INTELLIGENCE OPERATIVES HAVE BEEN ACCUSED OF TARGETING, FOR ASSASSINATIONS, RWANDAN GOVERNMENT CRITICS AROUND THE WORLD, AND ESPECIALLY IN SOUTH AFRICA, UNITED KINGDOM AND NORTHERN EUROPE.

EARLY THIS YEAR, ONE OF THE PROMINENT CRITICS, COLONEL PATRICK KAREGEYA, A FORMER RWANDAN SPY CHIEF,  WAS MURDERED IN AN UPSCALE HOTEL IN SOUTH AFRICA .  ON MONDAY, ARMED MEN, BELIEVED TO BE RWANDAN GOVERNMENT INTELLIGENCE OPERATIVES ATTACHED TO THE RWANDAN EMBASSY IN SOUTH AFRICA, BROKE INTO THE JOHANNESBURG HOME OF GENERAL FAUSTIN KAYUMBA NYAMWASA. GENERAL KAYUMBA NYAMWASA, WHO HAD SURVIVED TWO ASSASSINATION ATTEMPTS IN JOHANNESBURG SINCE 2010, AND HIS FAMILY MEMBERS, WERE NOT IN THE HOUSE AT THE TIME.

RWANDAN GENERAL PAUL KAGAME ADMITS TO ASSASSINATING HIS POLITICAL OPPONENTS

"I WAS ELECTED AND SWORN IN AS THE LEADER OF THIS COUNTRY, SO THAT I MAY DEFEND IT, EVEN IF VIOLENTLY. BUT ALL RWANDAN HAVE THEIR ROLE TO PLAY.  AS PRESIDENT, MY JOB IS TO CONFRONT AND DEFEND RWANDA AGAINST PEOPLE WHO WANT TO DESTROY WHAT WE HAVE BEEN BUILDING...WE DON'T NEED PERMISSION TO DEFEND OUR COUNTRY; WE DO NOT APOLOGIZE FOR IT, " RWANDAN DICTATOR PAUL KAGAME TOLD THE AUDIENCE IN KIGALI ON SUNDAY, JANUARY 12, 2014, DURING  THE RWANDA LEADERS FELLOWSHIP PRAYER BREAKFAST.

“SOME HAVE FORGOTTEN SO SOON; THESE PEOPLE WERE MADE WHO THEY ARE BY THIS COUNTRY, BUT HAVE TURNED AGAINST IT.  WE HAVE FAITH AND WE NEED TO LIVE BY IT. THE ONLY WAY TO SEE YOUR FAITH IS THROUGH  YOUR ACTIONS. GOD GAVE US POWER TO BUILD OUR NATION; GOD ALSO GAVE US POWER TO PROTECT IT -”

IT IS THE FIRST TIME THAT GENERAL PAUL KAGAME HAS ALLUDED TO HIS GOVERNMENT INVOLVEMENT IN THE ASSASSINATION OF THE RWANDAN EX-SPY CHIEF, COLONEL PATRICK KAREGEYA.  

"WHOEVER IS UNDERMINING RWANDA USUALLY FACE SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES WHEREVER THEY ARE, " HE WARNED.

HIS STATEMENTS CONFIRM AND CLARIFY WHAT HIS LIEUTENANTS HAVE BEEN SAYING SINCE THE ASSASSINATION. THE LATEST OF THE STATEMENTS CAME FROM THE MINISTER OF DEFENSE, GENERAL JAMES KABAREBE ON SATURDAY, JANUARY 11, 2013:

"WHEN YOU CHOOSE TO LIVE LIKE A DOG, YOU DIE LIKE A DOG... DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME ON REPORTS THAT SO AND SO WAS STRANGLED WITH A ROPE ON THE SEVENTH FLOOR OF A HOTEL IN WHATEVER COUNTRY. WHEN YOU CHOOSE TO BE A DOG, YOU DIE LIKE A DOG, AND THE CLEANERS WILL WIPE AWAY THE TRASH SO THAT IT DOES NOT STINK FOR THEM... THOSE WHO CHOSE SUCH A PATH MUST BE READY TO FACE SUCH CONSEQUENCES. THERE IS NOTHING WE CAN DO ABOUT IT, AND WE SHOULD NOT BE INTERROGATED OVER IT. WE CANNOT APOLOGIZE FOR IT."

THE REACTIONS BY OTHER RWANDAN TOP LEADERS MAY BE FOUND IN OUR ARTICLE: “RWANDAN FOREIGN AFFAIRS MINISTER, LOUISE MUSHIKIWABO, SCOLDS PATRIC KAREGEYA’S ORPHANS” OF JANUARY 7, 2013.