Re-elected for a fourth term in July by 99.18 percent of the vote, Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame is criticised
for repressing dissenting voices, despite the radical changes taking place in his country.
One example is the closure of places of worship, which has sparked outrage among the faithful.
The government has closed more than 5,000 places of worship, including churches and mosques, in recent weeks for failing to comply with the regulations of a law passed in 2018.
According to the authorities, these establishments do not meet the criteria for hygiene, safety and the qualifications of preachers – who must, for example, have a university degree in theology, according to several
media reports.
The aim of these new provisions is to control the proliferation of places of worship, which President Paul Kagame considers excessive.
When the law was adopted back in 2018, more than 700 establishments were closed, while the others were given five years to comply with the new standards, according to the RFI news website.
This situation has sparked indignation among many of the faithful in the East African country where Christianity accounts for more than 90 percent of the population, with a significant presence of Muslims.
“We can’t be happy if we can’t pray. It’s sad, but we’re doing everything we can to come back to God’s house and pray,” says Jacqueline Mukabatsinda, interviewed by RFI in the garden of a Pentecostal church in the Kinamba district of Kigali.
Despite the authorities’ firmness in enforcing the law, some communities are trying to adapt by renovating their places of worship.
This is the case of some mosques, which are very busy on Fridays. “The mosque closed on Friday. It was morning, our day of prayer, and we couldn’t pray. We were forced to leave when it closed. But thanks be to God, we hope to reopen, and we will reopen after the work we have been ordered to carry out,” Mustafa Musafiri, a Muslim worshipper explains.
Re-elected last July with 99.18 percent of the vote for a fourth term, President Kagame has ruled Rwanda since overthrowing, in July 1994, the extremist Hutu government blamed for the genocide which, according to the United Nations (UN), caused more than 800,000 deaths, mainly among the Tutsi minority, of which he is a member.
Since the end of this tragedy, Kagame has continued to lay the foundations for the development of the country, which is enjoying solid growth averaging 7.2 percent between 2012 and 2022, with major strides made in infrastructure, education and health.
However, the Rwandan president is criticised abroad for his repression of dissenting voices and his interference in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo in the conflict against the M23 rebels.
These accusations are disputed by Kagame despite evidence provided by a UN expert report claiming that several thousand Rwandan soldiers are fighting alongside the M23 rebels.
ODL/ac/Sf/fss/as/APA