Umushyikirano: Technology gives locals voice in public sphere

The notion that only the rich and educated elite have their voices heard in society is debunked in Rwanda where even the lowest ranking Rwandan, in the remotest part of the countryside, has space in the public sphere. But that’s the legacy of Umushyikirano/national dialogue; a legacy of RPF’s inclusive politics and mass democracy. In its 12th edition, Umushyikirano could be something some inside the country take for granted, but to those on the outside looking in, Rwanda’s national dialogue is a special feature that raises the country’s democracy a bar higher. A participant at this year’s edition described the event as ‘president’s annual question time’ for the citizenry; right but not quite for this is not just about the President, it’s about all leaders at all levels; it’s about accountability, assessing and re-strategizing for the future. A foreign participant attending the event for the first time remarked that public sphere takes its true form in Rwanda through Umushyikirano; his comment sounded academic but that’s because he’s actually a governance scholar who’s planning to write a thesis on Umushyikirano concept. By definition provided by the concept’s founding father, Jergen Hebermas, public sphere is described as an area in social life where individuals come together to freely discuss and identify problems affecting society and through that discussion, influence political action. Historians contend that public sphere actually was much alive in the pre-colonial era where conversations around the fire place or communal meetings under the tree provided the venue for discussions that shaped societies. But then came colonialism and these meetings became exclusive to a few privileged individuals and the venue shifted from the village tree to private boardrooms in heavily guarded palaces. Such a discourse saw public sphere becoming private sphere and attended by the privileged few. The privileged few in a bid to protect their positions in society started to put in place mechanisms to control distribution of knowledge through guarding the flow of information. Such exclusivity paved the way for deeper societal classifications, resulting in the rise of a ‘bourgeois class’ in the 18th and early 19thcentury who dominated public affairs and resources. It’s this bourgeois class that Hebermas scrutinized in his 1962 book, The Transformation of Public Sphere, where the renaissance period liberalized information and production of divergent opinion. No country for Bourgeois In his opening remarks, President Paul Kagame honoured farmers whose role in the national development he commended; many of them were listening to him in various parts of the country through teleconferencing…another development mileage of technological advancement. The symbolism of the salute wasn’t lost; this is a country for no Bourgeois, it’s a country that Kagame noted, the majority of Rwandans live off agriculture and whose productivity feeds the nation. It’s a point the President repeated in a somewhat different context when he said that God created humans equal and those who think they are gods to be bowed to; Rwanda is not the place to look. During the Umushyikirano, one can easily notice that all Rwandans are treated as equally; ordinary people questioning high ranking officials, seeking answers, suggesting solutions and demanding action. For three years now, recent advancement in technology has enabled those who couldn’t be accommodated into the Parliamentary building to actually take part in the national conversation through teleconferencing. And through the innovation, voices of ordinary Rwandans were given prominence to be heard, contributing to policy debates regarding several issues of national importance ranging from a need to protect children, to eliminating gender-based violence and combating Genocide denial outside Rwandan territory. Where questions were asked, leaders responded and where gaps were seen, suggestions were volunteered and it’s out of this mix of ordinary and official voices that strong resolutions emerged, many of these will shape national policy in months to come. On the opening day of the event, a guest speaker spoke about the importance of Rwanda’s self-generated remedies for development that were commended for being behind Rwanda’s meteoric rise from a delicate past. And the Umushyikirano itself is an example of those home-grown concepts that promotes transparent governance and inclusive democracy hence promoting ownership among Rwandans of the country’s development agenda. Dr. Carlos Lopes, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa talked about the impact of good governed-governor relationship in development of which the Umushyikirano provides the best practical example. In the 2012 national dialogue for example, a participant proposed the establishment of the Agaciro Fund, the idea was adopted for its brilliance and it has gone on to become one of the most important programs for national development. Seen from a governed-governor point of view, the Umushyikirano is not a day for leaders to dominate with speeches but one where they interact with the led, brainstorm on ideas and derive consensus. This year, twenty resolutions were drawn after an array of ideas and brain storming from the various voices that participated across the country; these will shape the national development agenda in months or even years to come. Guarding historical facts On the closing day of the dialogue, conversationalists spend time discussing how to guard national historical facts in view of the recent piece of work by the British broadcaster’s so-called untold story of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. A number of ordinary voices joined those of officials to brainstorm on how to ensure that crimes against Genocide denial can be prosecuted outside Rwanda. Many expressed opinions that bordered frustration at the fact that Genocide deniers outside Rwanda were literally beyond prosecution. It’s a concern Foreign Affairs Minister Louis Mushikiwabo took time to address, describing the film as “a very serious attack on our country, our leaders, and on who we are as Rwandans.” The Genocide, which almost destroyed Rwanda as a nation, has been the same historical event that leaders have used to rally Rwandans for unity needed for nation building. Detractors know that by minimising the Genocide, through manufactured theories, it would compromise the peace and unity that has been achieved over the years and frustrate the leadership behind the current renaissance. Mushikiwabo says Genocide deniers will always try to undermine Rwanda’s stability by stirring up trouble, but that the country should brace itself and fight such acts no matter where they’re committed. President Kagame also made a submission on the matter; “We preserve national unity and combat the ideology of Genocide. We seek solutions through dialogue, consensus, and power-sharing. We find the positive values that we need to flourish in our history and culture. We treat every citizen equally and fairly. We consider integrity, accountability, and merit the defining criteria of public service. We must promote the social and material well-being of society as a whole.”

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Umushyikirano: Technology gives locals voice in public sphere