Prof. George Ayittey is one of the most thoughtful and influential intellectuals on contemporary Africa. He has been consistent in his condemnation of Rwanda's President Paul Kagame specifically and the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) led government generally often referring to it as a dictatorship. In a recent tweet, which has motivated this column, Ayittey argued that Rwanda under Kagame is repeating the monopolisation of power by one ethnic group as the regime it overthrew.
Some of Ayittey's criticism is valid for there are many democratic deficits in Rwanda. While many of these deficits are structural and can therefore only be resolved through gradual change, some restrictions (on mass media, on civil society and political parties) can actually be overcome through legislation and sheer political restraint. Yet most of Ayittey's criticism is misinformed or lacks context. Indeed, part of his criticism suggests a near exclusive focus on particular aspects of the country that ignore the wider process of change taking place in Rwanda.
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