Original version

BBC World Service West and Central Africa Schedule

BBC World Service West and Central Africa

From Our Own Correspondent

News

BBC World Service News Internet

BBC World Service schedule for American satellite radio and the Caribbean

BBC World Service Americas and the Caribbean

BBC World Service Australasia

BBC World Service

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa Schedule

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa

BBC World Service South Asia

BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East

BBC World Service Online

BBC World Service East Asia

From Our Own Correspondent: Rwanda and the opposition

Magazines & Reviews

10/04/2021 GMT

Rwanda and the opposition

BBC World Service - From Our Own Correspondent, Rwanda and the opposition

The trial of Paul Rusesabagina has shown Paul Kagame’s government in a different light

The trial of Paul Rusesabagina offers an insight into the workings of the Rwandan government’s global intelligence system.

Stories from Rwanda, Myanmar and Romania.

This month marks the 27th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide. It was during a matter of weeks in April 1994 that more than 800 000 men, women and children from the Tutsi ethnic group were slaughtered, along with Hutus who refused to join in. 

President Paul Kagame, whose rebel forces invaded Rwanda and drove out the killers, has long been heralded by the West for his leadership since then. He focussed on reviving the economy and setting up a system for truth and reconciliation. But Mr Kagame’s own reputation as liberator and moderniser has become tarnished by allegations of a brutal silencing of his critics both at home and abroad. Michela Wrong follows the story of the trial of one opposition figure, former hero, Paul Rusesabagina, who once helped shelter Tutsis and Hutus fleeing the genocidaire in his Hotel Mille Collines – and how he was brought from his home in exile in the US, back to Kigali.

(This broadcast has been updated to reflect that the FLN refers to the National Liberation Front – a Rwandan militia)

In Myanmar, the coup at the beginning of February led to widespread demonstrations in cities across the country, from all levels of society. A clampdown ensued by the military rulers, killing more than 500 people, many of them women and children. But the campaign of civil disobedience, including a nationwide walk out in government workplaces and key industries, has hit the economy hard and has also starved the military junta of crucial revenue. The resolve of the protestors is unwavering, reports Ben Dunant, and the military’s initial victory early in February may yet prove to be a pyrrhic one.

And in Romania, we visit Europe’s last remaining leprosarium. Near the Danube and the Black Sea Coast, it’s a place of isolation for people with leprosy, also known as Hansen’s disease. Our correspondent Nick Thorpe has made several journeys to this community and was last there a year ago, just before it was even further isolated by coronavirus lockdowns. He recounts his last visit, and the people he met, with whom he has stayed in touch.

(Image: Paul Rusesabagina arrives at Nyarugenge Court of Justice in Kigali, Rwanda, on October 2, 2020. Credit: Simon Wohlfahrt/AFP via Getty Images)

Accessibility links

Programme Index

From Our Own Correspondent

Rwanda and the opposition

Genres

Formats

Brand

BBC World Service West and Central Africa

About BBC World Service