16 09 13 DW – How democratic are Rwandan elections?

Faustin Twagiramungu is furious. The results of the parliamentary
elections on Monday (16.09.2013) are already decided, says the former
Rwandan prime minister, who at the moment lives in exile. “The ruling
Rwanda Patriotic Front (FPR) will keep the majority it has in
parliament. And the smaller parties, which have turned into offshoots of
the FPR will get the rest.”

Twagiramungu's bitterness at Rwandan politics, can be explained through
his own political biography. As prime minister, Twagiramungu fell out
with Paul Kagame, who at the time served as vice president. Frustrated
with the work of the government, he left the country and went to exile
in Belgium.

During the country's first free elections in 2003, Twagiramungu
contested against Kagame but only managed to win over 3.56 percent of
the votes. This year, Twagiramugu's shot at an independent seat in
parliament, was shuttered once again, as Rwandan authorities refused to
let him enter the country.

No strong opposition?

Charles Munyaneza denies the claims of a predetermined election. He
heads Rwand's electoral commission. In an answer to Twagiramungu claims,
he told DW “They are lying. Those who work here in Rwanda know the
reality.” Most Rwandans, he explains, "are looking forward to the
election. If that was the case, we wouldn't have 95 percent of Rwandans
waiting to vote. They wouldn't be wasting their time to go and vote.”

Eleven parties are currently running for the 80 seats in parliament,
also known as the “Chamber of Deputies”. Yet not all parties were able
to register on time. The Democratic Green Party of Rwanda was
established five years ago. But they only managed to officially register
their party in August this year, too late for the upcoming election.
Party leader Frank Habineza put the blame on the Rwandan government. He
said, after a party event was disrupted by outsiders, the police halted
further party gatherings for security reasons.

Habineza also remembers the unresolved killing of his deputy, André
Rwisereka in 2010. The only suspect was released a few days after the
murder, due to lack of evidence. “We have had several threats, serious
threats,” Habineza said and added that he fears for his own safety in
Rwanda. His party will now have to tread carefully and as Habineza said
it will have to “stick to the rules.”

The darling of the West?

Back in Belgium, Faustin Twagiramungu is also not happy with the way the
international community is unconditionally supporting Paul Kagame's
government. The former prime minister believes that the West is
supporting Rwanda because it feels guilty over it's failure to halt the
1994 genocide. By then, a military intervention, headed by Paul Kagame
managed to stop the three-months long conflict, in which around 800,000
Rwandans were killed.

Alexander Stroh, a German political scientist from the Hamburg Institute
of African Affairs agrees that guilt played a huge role in Rwanda's
foreign relations. Today, however, he said that other factors play a
role. “Rwanda has made great progress in terms of development. Due to
this, western countries like working with Rwanda, as they can actually
implement their aid programs. You should not underestimate this, as it
is an important aspect.”

Western governments however, not only demand economic progress.
They also demand an improved human rights record. In the World Bank's
“Ease of doing business” index, Rwanda was ranked the third best
sub-Saharan country in 2013. On a human rights level, however, both the
United Nations and the United States have criticised Rwanda for
allegedly supporting the Congolese M23 rebel group. As a result, several
aid donors, amongst them Germany, suspended their aid to Rwanda. Today
the bulk of the aid flow has however resumed.

Whether the elections will bring us a step closer to true democracy, is
still to be seen, Stroh said. Even Rwanda's election organizer, Charles
Munyaneza notes that Rwanda's democratic system is after all a democracy
in the making. This, he said, also explained why political groups like
the Green Party are still comparably weak.

For the time being, the Green Party itself hopes to engage itself in
oppositional activities outside the parliament. The ultimate goal is to
prepare it for the country's next elections in five years.