One Tyrant To Another, No End To Media Rights Abuses

Michael Hedges February 8, 2023 - Follow on Twitter

The characteristics of a healthy society typically include safety, security, respect for common values and freedom of expression. In these circumstances, citizens recognize responsibilities and choose reliable representatives. On the other side, autocrats push everything to the breaking point.

A speeding vehicle rammed the motorcycle ridden by investigative journalist John Williams Ntwali, ending his life. This was January 18, three weeks ago. His family - nor anybody else - was only informed after two days. Two days after that, he was buried. There was no medical examiner’s report. Local police said only that death was due to a road accident.

In Rwanda, where Mr. Ntwali reported for several media outlets, including newspaper The Chronicles, there was sadness and more than a little resignation. Mr. Ntwali was known as “the voice of the voiceless,” wrote The Rwandan (February 1). He was regularly and often critical of state security services; “not silent in the face of high risk situations.” He had become the go-to reporter for international news outlets including Al Jazeera and, thus, had become quite well-known. “I’m focused on justice, human rights, and advocacy. I know those three areas are risky here in Rwanda, but I’m committed,” he said last year to Al Jazeera.

The driver of the automobile was taken to trial and convicted this week of “involuntary manslaughter,” reported AFP (February 8). Local reporters were not allowed access to the court until the final verdict was read. He was fined one million Rwandan francs, roughly US$920. Murky suspicions about the driver have seeped into the few independent media outlets.

Human Rights Watch, which “urged” an independent investigation, said that Mr. Ntwali had been arrested several times for critical reporting and had been repeatedly threatened. A joint statement (January 31) from press freedom and human rights groups, including Committee to Protect Journalists, noted “suspicious deaths of political opponents or high-profile critics” in Rwanda. UNESCO director-general Audrey Azoulay added weight to those concerns, in a statement (February 1).

All noted the horrific history of human right abuses in Rwanda. Those with longer memories and breadth of geography will recall the 100 day genocide in 1994 of 800,000 Tutsi tribe members at the hands of Hutu militias. Ahead of that rampage, the Hutu Power faction established the infamous Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines (RTLM) that filled the airwaves with non-stop hate speech. Over the course of a decade, the International Criminal Tribune for Rwanda convicted and sentenced several persons associated with RTLM.

The Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) “won” the war with the government at the time, giving Tutsi interests considerable favor. Its leader, Paul Kagame, has been Rwanda’s president since. His rule has been characterized as authoritarian. In 2011, Reporters sans Frontieres (RSF) named him a “predator of press freedom.” In its 2022 World Press Freedom Index, RSF ranked Rwanda 136 out of 180 countries.

“The government cannot deny the obvious,” wrote RSF. “It is tough being an independent journalist in Kigali. The authorities target any journalist, local or foreign, who puts out news they do not like or who violates the taboos of the society rebuilt by the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), which came to power after overthrowing the genocidal Hutu regime and ending its massacres.”

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