Forum Views ()
Forum Replies ()
Read more with google mobile :
Rwanda's Kagame expects landslide win in elections
|
Edition:
U.S.
Article
Comments (0)
Save
Email
Print
Reprints
Most Popular
Most Shared
UPDATE 2-Google ordered to defend against age bias lawsuit
05 Aug 2010
iPhone exec departs Apple after "Antennagate"
07 Aug 2010
Ex-HP CEO Mark Hurd settled with contractor
12:42am EDT
South Korean fishing vessel held by North: coast guard
8:09am EDT
Pakistan navy boats travel far to reach flood victims
11:06am EDT
Cancer cells slurp up fructose, US study finds
02 Aug 2010
Pakistan navy boats travel to reach flood victims
11:08am EDT
Snap analysis: July jobs show odd mix of bad news
06 Aug 2010
Dog chews off Michigan man's toe, saves his life
04 Aug 2010
Ex-HP CEO Hurd settled with contractor-sources
12:14am EDT
Cancer cells slurp up fructose, US study finds
02 Aug 2010
Pakistan navy boats travel to reach flood victims
11:08am EDT
Dog chews off Michigan man's toe, saves his life
04 Aug 2010
iPhone exec departs Apple after "Antennagate"
07 Aug 2010
UPDATE 2-Google ordered to defend against age bias lawsuit
05 Aug 2010
Mudslides devastate China town
10:30am EDT
Russian drought fires turn deadly
06 Aug 2010
Pakistan navy boats travel far to reach flood victims
11:06am EDT
Lender putting www.sex.com domain on auction block
08 Mar 2010
South Korean fishing vessel held by North: coast guard
8:09am EDT
Rwanda's Kagame expects landslide win in elections
Digg This
Tweet This
Share on LinkedIn
Share on Facebook
Factboxes
Rwanda's president Paul Kagame
8:56am EDT
Key political risks to watch in Rwanda
8:56am EDT
Related News
Q+A: Some questions and answers about Rwanda's election
8:56am EDT
Related Topics
World »
By Hereward Holland
KIGALI |
Sun Aug 8, 2010 8:56am EDT
KIGALI (Reuters) - Rwanda's President Paul Kagame is expected to win a resounding victory in Monday's election, partly due to the growth and stability he has delivered since the 1994 genocide and partly because of a crackdown on rivals.
Rights groups and foreign diplomats say signs of repression have marred the runup to the poll, although donors expect it to be peaceful and say the revised electoral code will make it more transparent than in 2003 when Kagame won 95 percent of the vote.
Kagame is applauded locally and internationally for rebuilding institutions, promoting women, boosting agricultural output and tripling household income.
His two main rivals in the presidential race offer little genuine alternative, having spent 16 years as part of the ruling coalition led by his Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF).
"RPF is strong, it is organized, it has planned over a long time, historically it has been with the people to resolve challenging issues and therefore that results in a kind of overwhelming support," Kagame told reporters on his last day of campaigning.
"I have no regrets about it, I make no apologies."
Rights group Amnesty International says the poll will take place in a climate of fear.
Registration troubles prevented three outspoken parties from fielding candidates. Two party chiefs were arrested on charges including stirring ethnic hatred and genocide ideology. Opponents say they have been threatened and intimidated.
Two newspapers were suspended in April, a critical journalist was shot in the head in June and a senior member of the Democratic Green Party was found nearly beheaded in July.
Some analysts say that although Rwandans would like more choice, they are haunted by the genocide, in which gangs of Hutu extremists slaughtered 800,000 ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus.
"A lot of Rwandans would want him (Kagame) to be a lot more open, and like to see more choices and feel more consulted but I don't see any evidence that they want radical regime change," author Philip Gourevitch told Reuters.
"I'm afraid I can't see how a candidate like Victoire Ingabire, who is clearly identified with the old Hutu Power politics, would be healthy for this country at this time," said Gourevitch, who wrote "We wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families," a book about the genocide.
Ingabire, a former accountant who lived in exile in the Netherlands for 16 years, returned to Rwanda earlier this year to run for office. Her name will not appear on the ballot paper.
The genocide was spawned, in part, by the surge of radical ethnic politics that followed the birth of multi-party democracy in Rwanda in the early 1990s.
"Kagame is afraid that widening the democratic space would allow in wolves in sheepskins," said a western diplomat.
Foreign diplomats said Kagame's real challenge comes from within his Tutsi cadres in the ruling party and army and that his war on graft, which has seen former political associates locked up, is a way of sidelining possible threats to his power.
Since the beginning of the year top army officials have fled the country, been arrested, demoted or shot in mysterious circumstances.
Kagame rejects allegations of a rift with his brothers in arms. "What I know does not suggest any kind of crisis at all. There are differences in terms of opinions like anywhere else in the world," he said.
But exiled army and intelligence top brass are sounding increasingly belligerent and say Rwandans should stand up and fight for their freedom.
"It boils down to a struggle for power among the party's inner cabal that could end up becoming very nasty. In private, RPF officials have told me: 'This is probably the biggest challenge we have faced as a party in many years,'" independent regional analyst Jason Stearns said on his Congo Siasa blog.
(Editing by Philippa Fletcher)
World
Add a Comment
*We welcome comments that advance the story directly or with relevant tangential information. We try to block comments that use offensive language or appear to be spam and review comments frequently to ensure they meet our standards. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters.
© Copyright 2010 Thomson Reuters
Editorial Editions:
Africa
Arabic
Argentina
Brazil
Canada
China
France
Germany
India
Italy
Japan
Latin America
Mexico
Russia
Spain
United Kingdom
United States
Reuters
Contact Us
Advertise With Us
Help
Journalism Handbook
Archive
Site Index
Video Index
Reader Feedback
Mobile
Newsletters
RSS
Podcasts
Widgets
Your View
Analyst Research
Thomson Reuters
Copyright
Disclaimer
Privacy
Professional Products
Professional Products Support
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
Careers
Online Products
Acquisitions Monthly
Buyouts
Venture Capital Journal
International Financing Review
Project Finance International
PEhub.com
PE Week
FindLaw
Reuters on Facebook
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.
Other News on Sunday, 8 August 2010 Commissioner seeks delay in South Sudan independence vote
Eight dead as floods sweep central Europe
Explosion in Iraqi city of Basra kills 16
|
Iraq forces take over from last U.S. combat brigade
Towns submerged as 7 killed in central Europe floods
|
Massive ice island breaks off Greenland glacier
'Radioactive boars' on loose in Germany
Iran's Ahmadinejad doubts Sept. 11 attack toll
Michelle Obama tours medieval Spanish town of Ronda
Afghan medical mission ends in death for 10
Fidel Castro speaks against war to Cuban parliament
|
U.N.'s Ban names Turk, Israeli to flotilla probe
|
Bashir warns foreigners to respect government or be expelled
|
Downpours hamper Pakistan flood relief for 15 million
Mayor in drag leads thousands in Reykjavik Gay Pride march
India state leader seeks clearance for Korea's POSCO project
Main Kyrgyz party holds major rally
Saudi telecoms test fix in tentative BlackBerry deal
|
Amsterdam celebrates Gay Pride with boat parade
Europeans, wealthy foreigners boost French tourism: experts
China's Olympic swimming centre to re-open as water park
Five NATO troops killed in volatile Afghan south
Moscow wheezes under smog as health worries grow
Afghan probe after eight foreign medics killed
US-TECH Summary
Residents flee as acrid smog blankets Moscow
NATO: 3 US service members killed in Afghanistan
Putin sows controversy with Russia grain ban
iPhone exec departs Apple after "Antennagate"
Colombia and Venezuela seek new start with Santos
|
Scores killed and wounded in Iraq explosion
Saudi telecoms test fix to avert BlackBerry ban
Extra spacewalk likely after station repairs fall short: NASA
NATO: 3 service members killed in Afghanistan
Sauna contest in Finland cut short as Russian dies
Eight foreign medical workers killed in Afghanistan
|
U.N.'s Ban names Turk, Israeli to flotilla probe
Mudslides devastate China town, kill nearly 100
|
Iran's Ahmadinejad doubts Sept. 11 attack toll
Pakistan troops evacuate thousands in flood disaster
|
Bashir warns foreigners to respect government or be expelled
New cave-in blocks bid to rescue Chile miners
|
Afghan medical mission ends in death for 10
South Korea's Lee picks reformist as PM; reshuffles cabinet
|
S.Korea names new PM in big reshuffle
Arizona prison escapees linked to N.M. killings
Aussie shop offers to settle 33m dollar sex claim
Mudslides devastate China town, kill nearly 100
Global Weather-Asia-Celsius
China mudslides leave 96 dead, 2,000 missing
HP CEO ouster leaves leadership hole
Indonesian militants planned attack on president
Beer warehouse shooter long complained of racism
Pakistan troops evacuate thousands in flood disaster
Wind turns to gold in remote Romanian region
Australia opposition launches poll bid
US-ENTERTAINMENT Summary
iPhone exec departs Apple after Antennagate
|
China's savings rate 'to drop in coming decade'
S.Korea replaces PM, seven ministers in reshuffle
Zsa Zsa Gabor's hospital release delayed
South Korea's Lee picks reformist as PM; reshuffles cabinet
Business outsourcing reshaping Philippine society
Hong Kong filmmakers shoot 'first' 3D porn film
China car demand eases but future still strong
Japan seeking to export low-carbon technologies
Zsa Zsa Gabor's hospital release delayed
|
Wyclef Jean registers as Haiti presidential contender
|
Turkish PM says agreement near on top commanders
Medvedev in first visit to Abkhazia since Georgia war
Saudi regulator delays BlackBerry ban to test 'solutions'
Sanctions nothing to fear: Iranian central banker
|
Car bomb kills seven in Iraq city of Ramadi
Swisscom meets just 10 pct of iPhone 4 demand
South Korean fishing vessel held by North: coast guard
|
Afghan commission: Civilian deaths up in 2010
Car bombs hit Iraqi cities of Ramadi and Falluja
|
Flash floods inundate central Europe
|
Afghanistan says to deal with security firms
|
Rwanda's Kagame expects landslide win in elections
|
Cardinal says Scots fed up with U.S. over Lockerbie
|
North Korea seizes South Korean fishing boat
South Korean fishing vessel held by North
N.Korea seizes S.Korean fishing boat: report
Spain's economic crisis 'hits summer festivals'
Robbie Williams 'marries US actress'
Factbox
Sushi is tourists' favourite Japanese dish: survey
NZ annual house price growth slows again in July-QV
Egypt seeks to woo Arab tourists for Ramadan revels
Kuwait in BlackBerry talks but no ban for now: minister
|
Australia's opposition targets boatpeople in poll bid
APEC targets higher-quality economic growth
Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins
Apple Japan to improve iPod Nano fire warnings
Saudi telecoms test fix to avert BlackBerry ban
|
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights