Discourses

The director of the classic movie "Gandhi", Richard Attenborough has died in London at the age of 90.  Better known for directing  Gandhi, for which he won 2 Oscars,  he has also appeared in several feature films, as a leading or supporting actor. His better know movies include Brighton Rock, The Great Escape and Jurassic Park.

12 Years A Slave: A Movie I invite Everyone to Watch; A Journey of Overcoming, Hope, and Optimism, and To Freedom

Today, I watched the movie “12 Years a Slave: The Extraordinary True Story of Solomon Northup”. I can’t find words to describe the experience of watching the movie, directed by Steve McQueen, which is based on the true story from the 1853 autobiography Twelve Years a Slave by Salomon Northup, a free black man who was kidnapped in Washington, D.C. in 1841 and sold into slavery. It is the first time that I watch a movie and hear so many moviegoers cry and sob. When the movie ended, I realized how many people in the

Professor of Communication at Western New England University
1215 Wilbraham Road, Massachusetts 01119-2684
United States of America

Massachusetts, USA, March 6, 2024.

1-Introduction

     Beatrice Munyenyezi’s trial that started on January 18, 2022, ended on February 28, 2024, in Nyanza after two years of controversial hearings during which “ubwenge,” a cultural feature of traditional Rwandan society was prominently on display. Rwandan prosecutors lined up witnesses who delivered fictionalized charges against Munyenyezi. All of them claimed to have met her as a Hutu militia leader in one capacity or another. For instance, some claimed she had been their classmate at the National University of Rwanda (UNR). Others alleged they had seen her overseeing a roadblock at Hotel Ihuriro manned by Hutu militiamen.

On July 1, 2023, Rwandans commemorated 61 years of independence.  In fact,  sixty one years ago, on July 1, 1962, the nation of Rwanda gained independence from colonial powers. I was then almost 1 year old  growing up in Congo - Kinshasa.  As Rwandans have been annually commemorating the independence, they have been under one of the most brutal dictatorships in Africa for the last 29 years, according to reports from various independent organizations, reputable media, and governments.  From these reports, it appears clear that while trying to project progress, development, peace, and security, through a well crafted propaganda machine and greedy allies, the Rwandan dictatorship, under an oligarchy led by the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) and an absolute ruler, Paul Kagame, has become one of the most despised brutal regimes in Africa, especially in the Great Lakes Region of Africa. Hence the prevalent question today, to both Rwandans and friends of Rwanda, is: are Rwandans Building their Nation on a Rock or Sinking Sand?

Professor of Communication at Western New England University
1215 Wilbraham Road, Massachusetts 01119-2684
United States of America

Massachusetts, USA, January 29, 2023.

1-Introduction

     Judge Patricia Mukayiza has been presiding over Beatrice Munyenyezi’s trial over a year now. The trial has been marred by contradictory rulings regarding witnesses particularly after two advocacy groups of Tutsi genocide survivors namely Ibuka and Humura Rwanda Foundation wrote her a letter in October 2022 asking her to hold court hearings in closed sessions on security and privacy ground. Judge Mukayiza bowed to their demands by ruling that some prosecution witnesses’ testimonies will be heard in closed sessions and others in public sessions.

Qui a Assassiné le Président Rwandais Juvenal Habyarimana 
par Félicien Kanyamibwa, PhD., MqBA.

Mémorandum sur l'Assassinat du Président Habyarimana Juvénal, Président  de la Republique Rwandaise -  1 Juillet 1999
En collaboration avec l'Organization for Peace, Justice and Development in Rwanda (OPJDR)
©Copyright 1999, Felicien Kanyamibwa, Ph.D., MqBA

INTRODUCTION

Le Rwanda a été en proie à une guerre injuste lui imposée de l'extérieur depuis le 01 octobre 1990. Cette guerre déclenchée à partir de l'Ouganda par le FPR (Front Patriotique Rwandais) fortement appuyé par le Président Museveni et son armée a plongé le pays dans une spirale de violence qui perdure jusqu'aujourd'hui.

 Who Assassinated  Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana 
by Felicien Kanyamibwa, PhD., MqBA.

Memorandum on the 1994 Assassination of Juvenal Habyarimana, President of the Republic of Rwanda  - English Translation and Version - December 1999 - Original published in French in July 1999
In collaboration with Organization for Peace, Justice and Development in Rwanda (OPJDR)
©Copyright 1999, Felicien Kanyamibwa, Ph.D., MqBA

1-INTRODUCTION

In April of 1994, the small, central African country of Rwanda broke out into an uncontrollable civil war when hostile missiles shot down its president’s airplane. The chaos that followed created headlines around the world throughout that summer. The world was stunned by the violence perpetuated by what the media consistently referred to as normally peaceful people. Because the shooting of the plane was the trigger that spiraled Rwanda into chaos and civil war, in order to understand what happened, it is important to know who triggered these events, and why. However, there has been no investigation conducted by the UN to uncover the identity of the perpetuators of the sabotage of the presidential plane. In order to pursue peace and reconciliation in Rwanda, those who shot down the plane must be revealed and held accountable.

What is wrong with General Paul Kagame and RPF Regime in Rwanda?  Reflecting on the disappearance of my older brothers Major Ir. Emmanuel Munyaruguru and Thaddee Munyamvuke, the killings of my sisters Priscilla "Nyirarusagi" Nyirahabineza  and Appoline "Elizabeth"  Mujawimana, of my old brother Oban Ndarama,and of my nephew Twizere.
by Felicien Kanyamibwa, PhD., MqBA.

New York, USA, March 2, 2022.

1-Introduction

     It has been almost 8 years that my older brother Emmanuel Munyaruguru, also addressed to as Major Ingenieur (Maj. Ir.) Emmanuel Munyaruguru, referring to his education at the Belgian Royal Military Academy (Ecole Polytechnique Royale Militaire - ERM) and his past military career in Rwanda, was kidnapped by Rwandan military intelligence operatives working with top Ugandan Police agents and brought to Kigali, Rwanda. General Paul Kagame, his intelligence services and his army have, later on, made him disappear.

    Since his kidnapping from Uganda and his disappearance in Rwanda, people, including friends, acquaintances and reporters, have been asking why I and/or our family have never publicly commented on the case of my older brother. Given that the day of March 2 and the month of April are special for my family and relatives, I take this opportunity to comment. In fact, as the World knows, or at the least the RPF leaders and my family know, and you may find out below, March 2 is a special day in the remembrance of the painful events that happened on March 2, 1997 (See here Beyond Ethnic Politics and Fear: Hutu, Tutsi, and Ethnicity in Rwanda). But my close family has experienced tragic events from the invasion of Rwanda on October 1, 1990, to date.

Recently, Rwanda has been awakened by a non-ordinary young lady. Given her overall message, I will call her a God-sent Rwandan Queen of Hearts and Hope. Her name is Yvonne Iryamugwiza Idamange. She is a mother of four and in her early forties.(See here Rwanda: Activist Yvonne Idamange Iryamukwiza Arrested For Denouncing Crimes, Assassinations and Widespread Human Rights Abuses by the Government). What is extraordinary about this lady is how she just came to be the bearer of the Rwandan hope aspiring for a better country:  a country in which citizens are treated as human beings and  created equal; a country in which all citizens would enjoy basic human rights; a country free of discrimination, inhuman treatments, unlawful arrests, and disappearance even death.

The icon of the struggle against oppression , Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, passed away today December 5, 2013. As the South African President Jacob Zuma said, “Although we knew that this day would come, nothing can diminish our sense of a profound and enduring loss. His tireless struggle for freedom earned him the respect of the world.”

The death of Nelson Mandela should be an occasion, not only to mourn the loss of the person who epitomizes the success of overcoming oppression, but also to reflect on our own struggles against oppression, wherever it is and wherever and whoever we are.

While thinking about Mondela’s struggle against oppression, one question came to my mind: “Is there oppression that is not deliberate or by design?”