GADFLY NEWSPAPER AGAIN COURTS CONTROVERSY

C O N F I D E N T I A L KIGALI 000505 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/15/2019 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINS RW SUBJECT: GADFLY NEWSPAPER AGAIN COURTS CONTROVERSY Classified By: Ambassador W. Stuart Symington, for Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (U) SUMMARY: Rwanda's media authority on August 5 recommended the suspension of local-language newspaper "Umuseso" for three months, following its publication of an article that called President Kagame a dictator, compared him to the pre-genocide president who died when his aircraft was shot down, and claimed that the lot of the average Rwandan was no better now than it was before the 1994 genocide. The Ministry of Information has not yet acted on the recommendation. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) Rwanda's Media High Council (MHC),a public institution created in 2002 in order to "promote and protect the media in Rwanda," on August 5 held a press conference to announce its decision to recommend that the Ministry of Information suspend private Kinyarwanda-language newspaper "Umuseso" for three months. (Note: Umuseso is printed in Uganda and transported to Rwanda. End Note.) According to MHC chairman Venuste Karambizi, Umuseso violated the law when it published an article in its July 20-27 edition entitled "Twins? Kagame is a More Technologically-Oriented Dictator than Habyarimana." The article was the lead, front-page story; above it were photos of current president Paul Kagame and former president Juvenal Habyarimana, Kagame's pre-genocide predecessor, who died when his aircraft was shot down--the event that sparked the already-planned genocide. The author, freelance JOURNALIST Andrew Muganwa, wrote that Rwanda's current government had not "liberated" Rwandans at all, because the same problems that existed before the 1994 genocide still exist today: oppression, intimidation, poverty, nepotism and human rights abuses. Muganwa concluded that the only difference between Kagame and Habyarimana was that Kagame was technologically-savvy. One Rwandan observer speculated privately to Emboff that the article--and the pairing of the photos--may have been intended as a warning to the Government of Rwanda (GOR) that many Rwandans continue to harbor unaddressed grievances. ¶3. (U) Karambizi said Umuseso published the article as an analysis, and that because it contained allegations that were not based on facts or statistics, it thereby violated the law. He strongly condemned Umuseso's behavior and unprofessionalism, accused its management of publishing confusing information, defaming and insulting the head of state, and deliberately antagonizing the population and national institutions. Karambizi said a three-month suspension was necessary to allow for "an improvement" in Umuseso's management. ¶4. (U) Minister of Information Louise Mushikiwabo had previously warned, during a July 27 press conference, that "the days of such destructive media like Umuseso and Umuvugizi are numbered" and that "They will be dealt with by either administrative or judicial ways." The cabinet on August 7 appointed a new director-general in the Ministry of Information, who said the ministry had not yet made a QInformation, who said the ministry had not yet made a decision regarding Umuseso. On August 9, Rwandan authorities at the border with Uganda seized incoming copies of the latest issue of Umuseso but released them hours later, following discussion between Umuseso's editor and the Commissioner General of Police. As of August 13, the GOR had taken no action to suspend Umuseso and the cabinet was in the midst of two weeks' leave. ¶5. (C) COMMENT: Umuseso and another publication, Umuvugizi, have small print runs but are well-read by Rwandan elites, who seek them out for their "insider" information and claims of scandal within the GOR. It is widely believed that disaffected officials leak stories to these newspapers in order to tarnish the image of political opponents. The Ministry of Information's inaction suggests there is ongoing debate within the GOR over whether and how to respond to the gadfly's bite. END COMMENT. SYMINGTON