In Their Memory
Memorial
We remember the journalists, opposition figures and human rights defenders whose lives were cut short, in Rwanda, in custody and in exile. They are not forgotten, and their cases will not be closed until there is truth and accountability.
Aimable Karasira
Lecturer and citizen journalist
A popular university lecturer turned citizen journalist who was imprisoned for nothing more than his YouTube commentary on Rwandan politics. He died in the hands of the prison system on the very day he was due to walk free after five years in prison.
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John Williams Ntwali
Investigative journalist
Widely described as Rwanda's last independent journalist, he spent years being harassed for his reporting on poverty, injustice and the wealth of the ruling elite, and died in Kigali in circumstances the authorities refuse to have independently investigated.
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Kizito Mihigo
Gospel singer and peace activist
A beloved gospel singer and genocide survivor who turned to reconciliation work, he was imprisoned for his songs, forced into exile, and died in a Kigali police cell days after his arrest. We do not accept the official account and demand an independent investigation.
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Anselme Mutuyimana
Assistant to opposition leader Victoire Ingabire
A committed FDU-Inkingi activist who spent six years in prison for his political activism. Days after his release, he was found dead at the edge of the Gishwati forest, showing signs of strangulation. No one has been held to account.
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Jean Damascene Habarugira
FDU-Inkingi local representative, Ngoma district
A local opposition representative who disappeared after being called to a meeting with a local security officer. Days later, his family was called to collect his body from Nyamata Hospital.
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Illuminée Iragena
FDU-Inkingi opposition activist
She went missing in Kigali on 26 March 2016 and has never been seen since. Her family later reported that she had been tortured and killed in custody. The police have never confirmed what happened to her.
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Théogène Turatsinze
Former head of the Development Bank of Rwanda
He went missing in Maputo, Mozambique, and his body was found days later, tied up, in a river near the city, shortly after he was believed to be carrying a list of clandestine payments by top Rwandan officials.
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Patrick Karegeya
Former intelligence chief turned opposition leader
Rwanda's former intelligence chief, who became a fearless opposition figure in exile, was strangled to death in a Johannesburg hotel on New Year's Day 2014. More than a decade on, no one has been held to account.
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Charles Ingabire
Editor of Inyenyeri News
A Rwandan journalist in exile who founded and edited Inyenyeri News from Kampala, Uganda. He was shot dead in the Ugandan capital, the first Rwandan journalist to be assassinated in exile.
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André Kagwa Rwisereka
Deputy chairman, Democratic Green Party
The deputy chairman of Rwanda's Democratic Green Party was found murdered and partially beheaded near Butare, weeks before the 2010 presidential elections. The official inquiry into his killing never saw the light of day.
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Jean-Léonard Rugambage
Deputy editor, Umuvugizi newspaper
The deputy editor of the banned Umuvugizi newspaper was shot dead outside his home in Kigali, hours after publishing an article linking Rwandan officials to the attempted murder of General Kayumba Nyamwasa in Johannesburg.
Read our statement