Stanford should push Kagame on human rights
By: Op Ed
April 25, 2014
Rwandan President Paul Kagame will speak at the Graduate School of
Business on Friday afternoon as part of the Center for Global Business
and the Economy's Global Speaker Series. The event's description
praises Kagame's "leadership in peace building and reconciliation,
development, good governance, promotion of human rights and women's
empowerment, and advancement of education."
It is true that in the wake of the 1994 genocide, Rwanda under
Kagame--who served as vice president immediately following the
genocide, and was elected president in 2000--has seen a remarkable rate
of economic growth, rise in literacy and life expectancy, increase in
the provision of public goods such as roads and drinking water and a
marked improvement in the representation of women in government. As we
mark the 20th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide, one of the darkest
moments in modern history, we should certainly not overlook Rwanda's
significant achievements in the aftermath of the unthinkable events of
1994.
There is, however, a darker side to President Kagame, and Stanford
should not praise his "promotion of human rights" when in fact
countless allegations of appalling human rights violations, both in
Rwanda and abroad, hang over the head of Kagame and his
administration.
In the years following the genocide, Rwanda was a driving force behind
two invasions of the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo,
which sparked a conflict in the Congo that continues to this day and
that has so far killed over five million people, displacing millions
more. A UN report released last year announced that, as had long been
suspected, Rwanda was providing significant support to the Congo-based
rebel group M23, which has posed a major threat to peace and stability
in the eastern Congo and contributed greatly to the ongoing
destabilization of the country.
On the domestic side, Kagame's administration has been accused by
numerous authorities, including Human Rights Watch and the U.S.
Department of State's annual human rights reports, of using political
imprisonments, arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial killings and more
against political opponents of the Rwandan Patriotic Front, Kagame's
party. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal entitled "How
Rwanda's Paul Kagame Exploits U.S. Guilt" details many of these
issues.
We recognize the privilege of being at a university where such
prominent figures are brought in to speak, and we strongly believe
that the advancements that have been made in rebuilding Rwanda after
the genocide should be celebrated and encouraged. We do not believe,
however, that the Stanford administration, the GSB or the student body
as a whole should ignore the serious allegations that have been
leveled against Kagame's administration. Kagame's Rwanda is complex
and multidimensional; as we celebrate one dimension, we must be sure
not to ignore those other, more sinister elements.
Kagame's presence on this campus ought to be contingent upon a genuine
confrontation with the facts of his leadership, no matter how
distasteful. We ask that, rather than painting such a simplistic,
one-sided image of Kagame and his "promotion of human rights," the
organizers of this event actively address the Rwandan president's
unambiguous record of human rights violations, his consistent
oppression of political opposition and his prominent role in the
violence and political instability in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo. A failure to do so is shameful and irresponsible on the part of
such an elite and influential institution as Stanford University.
This op-ed was written by Stanford STAND. STAND is a student-led
movement against genocide and mass atrocity. Contact STAND at
stand.stanfordca@gmail.com.
http://www.stanforddaily.com/2014/04/25/stanford-should-push-kagame-on-human-rights/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=stanford-should-push-kagame-on-human-rights
--
SIBOMANA Jean Bosco
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