Rwandan President Paul Kagame has stated for the primary time that he plans to run for a fourth time period in elections on account of be held subsequent 12 months.
“Sure, I’m certainly a candidate,” Kagame, who has dominated over the nation with an iron fist for many years, informed Jeune Afrique, a French-language information journal, in an interview printed on-line on Tuesday 19 September 2023.
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Rwandans’ confidence
“I’m happy with the arrogance that Rwandans have positioned in me. I’ll all the time serve them, so long as I can,” the 65-year-old was quoted as saying.
The Rwandan authorities in March determined to synchronise the dates for its parliamentary and presidential elections, that are due in August subsequent 12 months.
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Kagame had beforehand not made his intentions clear however presided over controversial constitutional amendments in 2015 that allowed him to run for extra phrases and keep in energy till 2034.
A former insurgent chief, Kagame grew to become president in April 2000 however has been the nation’s de facto chief for the reason that finish of the 1994 genocide. He was returned to workplace — with greater than 90 per cent of the vote — in elections in 2003, 2010 and 2017.
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Who’s Kagame’s challenger?
Kagame’s solely identified challenger within the upcoming elections is opposition Inexperienced Occasion chief Frank Habineza, who introduced in Might his intention to run in 2024. He stated the president’s plan to face once more subsequent 12 months “shouldn’t be a shock”.
“We aren’t terrified of him; we’re getting organised higher as a political occasion to place up a greater marketing campaign than we did in 2017. We’re assured,” he informed AFP in Kigali.
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“Democracy is a wrestle, so we will proceed to combat democratically for political house and democracy, the rule of regulation and human rights in Rwanda.”
Whereas Rwanda lays declare to being probably the most secure nations in Africa, rights teams accuse Kagame of ruling in a local weather of concern, stifling dissent and free speech.
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In 2021, “Resort Rwanda” hero and outspoken Kagame critic Paul Rusesabagina was sentenced to 25 years in jail on terrorism costs following his arrest the earlier 12 months when a aircraft he believed was sure for Burundi landed as a substitute in Kigali in what his household known as a kidnapping.
Free of jail in March this 12 months and flown to america following a presidential pardon, Rusesabagina launched a video message in July, saying that Rwandans had been “prisoners in their very own nation”.
Rwanda is ranked 131 out of 180 nations
The nation was ranked 131 out of 180 nations within the 2023 World Press Freedom Index compiled by Reporters With out Borders. Requested in July 2022 if he would search re-election, Kagame stated he would “think about operating for an additional 20 years.
“Elections are about individuals selecting,” he informed the France 24 information channel in an interview. Kagame was re-elected head of the ruling Rwandan Patriotic Entrance occasion at its nationwide congress in April this 12 months.
A lot of those that opposed Kagame, even inside the RPF, have, through the years, been imprisoned, killed or have fled into exile.
Kagame was simply 36 when the RPF pressured out Hutu extremists blamed for the genocide during which some 800,000 individuals, primarily Tutsi but additionally average Hutus, had been murdered between April and July 1994.
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© Agence France-Presse
