New Report: Rwanda is Forcing Youth to Serve as National Propaganda Tools

Young people are targeted when they complete secondary school and throughout their university education period.

(WASHINGTON DC) - The Rwandan government and security services are forcibly using young people to participating in activities that aim to promote its image and control its people.

Due to the nature of those activities and training provided in order to develop necessary skills and knowledge to implement them, young people suffer various levels of physical and psychological health issues which have led to some committing suicide, or leaving Rwanda to seek asylum abroad.

Activities that young people are obliged to attend include military training, basic spying skills development, and developing effective narratives to silence or to ridicule any criticism of the Rwandan government and Rwandan leadership.

This has been discovered during a 10-month investigation conducted by Global Campaign for Rwandan Human Rights.

Young people are targeted when they complete secondary school and throughout their university education period.

Those who are studying in their higher education abroad are also targeted with a special programs that aims primordially to contribute in promoting a positive image of the Rwandan leadership. The investigation discovered that the education of some people has been hindered as a result of living in fear and participating in government activities that consumes their energy and time.

Global Campaign for Rwandan Human Rights established that an increasing number of young people are seeking asylum abroad in order to flee from being used as a tool of oppression.

The full report of the investigation can be found here(http://rwandansrights.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/RWANDA-Harassed-to-harass-in-the-name-of-dignity-APRIL-2013.pdf)

Submitted by: Jennifer Fierberg

Source: Rwandarights.org