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afrol News, 8 June - According to human rights groups, 20 men and women have been detained in Rwanda in recent months seemingly for their entirely non-violent and legitimate connection with imprisoned former President and opposition politician, Pasteur Bizimungu. Amnesty International yesterday called on the government of Rwanda to immediately and unconditionally release these "prisoners of conscience". The group also called for the unconditional release of Pasteur Bizimungu and his political ally Charles Ntakirutinka, saying "these people are prisoners of conscience, detained solely for their perceived or actual peaceful political affiliations." The 20 detainees, who include peasant farmers, teachers, accountants, civil servants and shopkeepers, are suspected of belonging to Pasteur Bizimungu's banned political party, the Parti Démocratique pour le Renouveau - Ubuyanja (PDR-Ubuyanja); the Democratic Party for Renewal. Amnesty in a statement said it "fears that the 20 detainees risk intimidation or ill-treatment by the authorities in order to coerce them into making statements incriminating Pasteur Bizimungu or his political allies." Pasteur Bizimungu, former president of Rwanda under the current Rwandese Patriotic Front (RPF)-led government, and Charles Ntakirutinka, a former Minister of Public Works, were arrested on 19 and 20 April 2002 respectively, after attempting to launch PDR-Ubuyanja in May 2001. The two men have been held on remand in Kigali central prison since their arrests, on charges of threatening state security, a charge that carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years, and criminal association. Pasteur Bizimungu is also charged with illegal possession of a firearm. PDR-Ubuyanja was banned by the government in June 2000. Its founders have faced repeated harassment from the authorities. On 26 December 2001, one of the party's founders, Gratien Munyarubuga, was shot dead in Kigali by unidentified assailants, suspected to be government agents. According to Amnesty, "no credible evidence has been adduced to support these charges," and the group believes that the two men "should be immediately released, all charges against them dropped and be allowed to exercise fully their right to freedom of expression and association." Rwandese President Paul Kagame has repeatedly stated that his government is prepared to respect freedom of expression and political pluralism, but will not tolerate those who, in his government's view, promote sectarianism or division among the Rwandese people. According to Amnesty, however, the list of those his government refuses to tolerate now "embraces large sections of Rwandese society," including independent journalists, advocates for peace and reconciliation, and people who seek to offer an alternative peaceful political voice. Among those who have been detained, intimidated or forced into exile by the government in recent months are peace workers for the non-governmental organization Association Modeste et Innocent (AMI), members of a legal opposition party, the Mouvement Démocratique Républicain (MDR) and several newspaper journalists. With one exception, independent media reporting in Rwanda has effectively ceased to exist. Amnesty states its concern about "the government's clamp down on peaceful political dissent," which the group holds "may create a dangerous context for future political violence. In attempting to silence legitimate criticism and dissent, the RPF government risks creating the very divisions it says it wishes to avoid. The result is a growing, pervasive climate of fear in Rwanda," the group added.
Sources:
Based on Amnesty and afrol archives
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