Where did these Rwandan liberators go?
Tracking Rwanda liberation icons who fell off the limelight
Photo: When RPF took power they were rewarded government and party
jobs. But, with time, some of the big names fizzled from the
limelight. Some managed to bounce back but others did not. Photos/FILE
http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/image/view/-/2372778/medRes/780222/-/maxw/600/-/vfnc2t/-/libs.jpg
By Special Correspondent Rwanda Today
Posted Saturday, July 5 2014 at 10:37
In Summary
When RPF took power they were rewarded government and party jobs. But,
with time, some of the big names fizzled from the limelight. Some
managed to bounce back but others did not. When Rwanda Patriotic Front
(RPF) started the Liberation struggle, several men and women took on
prominent roles in the political bureau and military wing -- including
negotiating, fundraising and even public relations for the movement.
Related Stories
Former prominent personalities in Rwandan government: Where are they now?
When RPF took power they were rewarded government and party jobs. But,
with time, some of the big names fizzled from the limelight. Some
managed to bounce back but others did not.
Rwanda Today looks at some of the RPF stalwarts who are presumably
missing in action and what they are up to.
Patrick Mazimhaka
One of the RPF founders and among those who led from the front, he was
Commissioner for External Relations when the RPF launched the armed
struggle from Uganda on October 1, 1990.
In 1993, Mr Mazimhaka was elected the vice-chairman of RPF, a position
he held until 1998.
After RPF captured power, he held several ministerial positions,
including in the Office of the President, until 2000 when he became
Special Envoy of the President.
Between 1994 and 1996 Rwanda was going through a major refugee crisis.
For his pivotal role at a time when Rwanda's foreign policy and
diplomacy was under test, Mr Mazimhaka was nominated for, and
subsequent elected in July 2003, the deputy chairperson of the African
Union Commission.
By the time he left his Addis Ababa posting in February 2008, however,
the outspoken man was reportedly no longer in good books with the
party hierarchy.
The politician and academic withdrew from public life. In a recent
interview, he indicated that he had retired from politics to focus on
consultancy and other business interests. He also took up speaking at
conferences and corporate functions.
Jacques Bihozagara
Another of the RPF founding members, Mr Bihozagara was the ambassador
to France in the early 2000s.
Mr Bihozagara's last prominent role was in 2006 when he testified in
public hearings on France's role in the Genocide against the Tutsi,
having been at the helm of the RPF leadership in 1994.
Now in his mid-sixties, Mr Bihozagara is said to have retired from
politics and diplomacy for, among other reasons, failing health and
investing his pension in small-scale real estate projects and other
businesses. He leads a modest life at his Kimihurura home.
Pasteur Bizimungu
Mr Bizimungu was a key RPF leader in 1994. He was the first president
of the new government until March 2000 when he quit over disagreements
within the party.
A year later, Mr Bizimungu was in trouble after he formed the Party
for Democratic Renewal (PDR), also known as Ubuyanja, which was
outlawed. He was arrested and charged with creating ethnic divisions,
threatening state security and embezzlement, among other crimes. On
June 7, 2004 he was sentenced to 15 years in prison. On April 6, 2007,
however, Mr Bizimungu was released from jail on presidential parole.
In 2010, Tharcisse Karugarama, the then justice minister, said Mr
Bizimungu was free to do whatever he wanted, including giving media
interviews, but efforts by local and international media to access him
for interviews have been in vain.
The former head of state is occasionally seen in public, often
disguised in 'gangster' jeans and a Mexican hat. Most of his family
members live in the US.
Lt-Col (Rtd) Rose Kabuye
Lt-Col (Rtd) Kabuye's was a case of grace to grass -- a celebrated
heroine to a quiet, laid-back personality -- in two years.
Her credentials in the RPF/A struggle has never been in question. A
symbol of the liberation struggle and post-genocide Rwanda, her
aggressive and go-getter attitude won her many admirers while her
contribution to the reconstruction and transformation of the country
was immense.
She was a champion of women emancipation and an icon of vulnerable
groups, including genocide survivors, who she relentlessly advocated
for.
Lt-Col (Rtd) Kabuye was arrested in Germany in November 2008 on French
arrest warrants while on duty as Director of State Protocol but later
released.
There was no explanation for her sacking. Having dropped off the
limelight, she resurfaced last year as a business personality.
Maj-Gen Sam 'Kaka' Kanyemera
Fondly known by his military nickname Kaka, he was among the Uganda's
National Resistance Army (NRA) officers who planned and executed the
RPA attack on October 1, 1990 along with Maj-Gen Fred Rwigyema.
Then a major and head of Military Police, Kaka commanded the first
groups of fighters to attack Rwanda from the east. After the overthrow
of the interim government of Rwanda, he later become the army chief of
staff.
He retired from the military as a brigadier-general to successfully
vie in the 2003 parliamentary elections. In 2007 he was accused, along
with Brig-Gen Frank Rusagara, of obstructing justice by protecting a
prominent businessman. He would be acquitted later that year.
Kaka took on a low profile, especially after losing in the 2008 polls,
but in 2012 he was recalled from retirement and promoted to a
major-general. He serves in the reserve domain of the Rwanda Defence
Forces (RDF).
Tharcisse Karugarama
One of the founding members of Rwanda Alliance of National Unity
(Ranu), which evolved to RPF, Mr Karugarama served in senior positions
such as High Court judge, Minister of Justice and Attorney-General.
Mr Karugarama oversaw judicial reforms and genocide trials and was the
justice minister when Rwanda's judiciary was under international
scrutiny. He relentlessly pushed for extradition of genocide
fugitives.
On May 24, 2013 he was dropped from the Cabinet for reportedly saying
in a media interview that President Kagame would step down when his
constitutional term ends in 2017.
The head of state, who rarely speaks about Cabinet changes, later said
in an interview that the remarks could have been among the reasons he
was dropped, for discussing internal party matters in the media.
READ: 'I am clean' says former Rwandan minister Karugarama
Mr Karugarama, who is often spotted at social functions, retired to
consultancy and farming.
Silas Mohamed Majyambere
The regional businessman mogul, who had fallen out with then president
Juvenal Habyarimana, gave financial and logistical support to the
RPF/A but shortly after the liberation he developed misunderstandings
with the young leaders for allegedly disregarding his advice.
Mr Majyambere, who has businesses in Rwanda, Burundi and Uganda,
reappeared in 2011 after many years when he attended the ninth
National Dialogue as part of the diaspora.
He lives in Burundi but occasionally visits Rwanda.
Tribert Rujugiro
The 'tobacco tycoon,' who also financed the struggle and was President
Kagame's economic adviser, fell out with the system in 2009 and fled
to South Africa, from where he runs his continent-wide business
empire.
In 2010, he was accused of funding the opposition Rwanda National
Congress, which he denied. Last year, the government froze some of his
investments -- including the $20 million UTC mall and $2 million
residence.
READ: Rujugiro's story tells us why businesspeople should not do politics
Joseph Bideri
The 'Chief Spinner' was RPF's voice for years, as government and party
spokesperson. His prowess in rebuttals to defend the government
position was unmatched, even during difficult periods of the wars in
DR Congo and diplomatic rows with France.
The one-time head of then national broadcaster Orinfor and
pro-government The New Times retired in 2012 after a scandal involving
the daily newspaper's coverage of mismanagement of the Rukarara
hydro-power project. He keeps a low profile.
Rosemary Museminali, Mary Baine
The role of the 'sisters in the struggle' in the liberation struggle
as key mobilisers and co-ordinators is legendary.
Replaced in 2009 by Louise Mushikiwabo as Minister of Foreign affairs,
Ms Museminali is the UNAIDS representative at the African Union in
Addis Ababa
Ms Baine was Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) Commissioner-General until
2011 when she was named Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary. She was
replaced by Jeanine Kambanda in March.
http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/Rwanda/News/Tracking-Rwanda-liberation-icons-who-fell-off-the-limelight/-/1433218/2372762/-/j2k4k4/-/index.html
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