Rwanda far from respecting human rights - 'grounded' Ingabire jabs

Victoire Ingabire, a leading opposition leader in Rwanda has slammed the country’s lack of respect for human rights after she failed to get permission to leave the country to attend an award event in the Spanish capital, Madrid.

She told the BBC that, being a pardoned convict, she put in a request to the Ministry of Justice to travel but got no response. She was released over a year ago along with over 2,400 others as part of a presidential pardon.

“Rwanda is far from respecting the human rights, like freedom of expression and of political affiliation. For this, the opposition pays the price.

“We have people who were killed, those who are abducted and those imprisoned for their rights. Being not there to collect the prize is a proof of what I am saying,” she said.

The icon of struggle for peace democracy VictoireUmuhoza wasn't allowed by the #RPF #Rwanda-n regime led by PaulKagame to attend the award ceremony of the 2019. International Human Rights Prize that she won in #Madrid.InstCervantes apdhe un jumuiya _AfricanUnion #Rwanda pic.twitter.com/okhlBGr7a1

— Denise Zaneza (dzaneza) December 5, 2019

Her now disbanded party, FDU-Inkingi was awarded the International Human Rights Award 2019 by Apdhe, a Spanish human rights association.

She eventually addressed the event via video live stream. Her children represented her during the Thursday night event.

She has to seek permission to travel out of Rwanda after she was pardoned among 2,400 other convicts by President Paul Kagame in September 2018.