Busingye, UN official discuss right to assemble

Justice Minister Johnston Busingye yesterday met the visiting United Nations special rapporteur on the rights of freedom of assembly and of association, Maina Kiai, with whom they discussed various human rights-related issues in the country.The UN official is on a one-week visit to assess the extent to which the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association are enjoyed in the country, according to Busingye.The minister told journalists after the meeting that the official wanted to find out himself the accuracy of certain media reports that Rwandans are not allowed to exercise their right to peaceful demonstration.“We have done everything possible to ensure that people have freedom of assembly and association, including amending our laws,” Busingye said.He said people intending to demonstrate are free as long as they inform the authorities.Though it’s everybody’s right to assemble, they must practice it in a way that does not infringe on other people’s rights, he added.The UN rapporteur also met foreign affairs officials and meet other government officials including the prosecutor general, and Supreme Court president.According to a UN statement, Kiai’s visit is the first information-gathering mission to Rwanda by an independent expert mandated by the UN Human Rights Council to monitor and promote the realisation of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association worldwide.“The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association are essential components of democracy, and states are obliged to respect and protect the rights of all individuals to assemble peacefully and associate freely,” Kiai said.“Government cooperation is absolutely essential to the effectiveness of my mandate and every other Human Rights Council’s mandate.”

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Busingye, UN official discuss right to assemble