Reflecting on 50 years of independence

Rwanda will on Sunday, July 1, mark 50 years of independence from Belgium and 18 years of liberation from a genocidal regime.Post-independence Rwanda was characterised by divisionism, prejudice and hatred among the citizens and the climax of it all was the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, during which over a million people died in a period of 100 days.July 4, 1994 marked the beginning of a new chapter for the country after the Rwandese Patriotic Army (RPA) rebels, now Rwanda Defence Forces, led by now-President Paul Kagame, took Kigali and later formed a broad-based national unity government.Speaking to The New Times, members of academicians and civil society platform highlighted some of the achievements, failures and lessons learnt during the 50 years of independence.Antonia Mutoro, the Executive Director of Rwanda’s Institute of Policy Analysis and Research (IPAR), said the country has substantially changed its destiny, eighteen years after liberation.“Rwanda has changed from a country characterised by divisionism and violence since its independence in 1962, to an exemplary and peaceful African state, with an efficient government and determined people with a focus on globalisation while maintaining traditional values,” she stated.Mutoro emphasised that the economic growth over the last decade had been remarkable with impressive progress in rehabilitating and stabilising its economy to exceed pre-1994 levels.“Rwanda’s GDP per capita has increased from less than $200 in 1994 to $540 in 2010.Even though still at an early stage, the government has set a path which is evidence of economic transformation,” she observed.According to Prof. Anastase Shyaka, CEO, Rwanda Governance Board (RGB), for the last 18 years, Rwanda has enjoyed democracy that has helped the country achieve sustainable economic development, peace and stability.“Rwandans are now proudly enjoying the fruits of their chosen democratic path after liberation. We are no longer searching or using imported democracy, we are implementing a home- grown democracy,” he noted.Sheikh Khalfan Omar Bizuru, lecturer of Political Science at National University of Rwanda, noted that although Rwanda is going to celebrate the independence golden jubilee, the independence was partly achieved.“It was not a complete independence because of what happened in post independence era. It was a turmoil where some Rwandans were fleeing the country from the persecution of the regime at the time,” he added.Bizuru, who is also a political analyst, asserted that complete independence was achieved after liberation.“As Rwandans we have learnt a lot from our history. We should continue building our country since we a have democratic and peaceful nation,” he noted.He mentioned that, Rwandans can really celebrate the achievements of unity and reconciliation where they view themselves as one people and not as Tutsis, Hutus and Twas, as the previous regimes used to classify them.“Gacaca (semi-traditional courts) is one of the major achievements Rwanda can really celebrate. We are proud of the courts because they provided a solution for the complex nature of the cases of Genocide which could not have been solved in less than 100 years through classical courts,” he emphasised.“People can now vote for their favourite leaders. Development is in place. We are really proud of the good governance and democratic practices prevailing in the country today. “According to Prof. Peter Rwanyindo Ruzirabwoba, the Director of Institute of Research and Dialogue for Peace (IRDP), Rwandans did not gain the independence they had longed for because of the bad leadership that existed during the post independence period.“The independence where a group of people were massacred, imprisoned, fled into exile, was not independence at all. We gained the independence we wanted on July 1, 1994 which we can really celebrate,” he asserted.Rwanyindo stated that 18 years after liberation, Rwandans are now one family, and are peaceful and enjoying the good leadership characterised by the fight against poverty, ignorance and prejudice.As part of independence celebrations, the country, in collaboration with the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) and the Commonwealth Secretariat is set to host a high-level international conference, under the theme, Governance and Democracy: an African Perspective.