Frank Habineza, President, Democratic Green Party of Rwanda

Mr. Habineza's role model is Mahatma Gandhi due to his bravery of leading a non-violent resistance movement against the British Colonial rule in India.

(WASHINGTON D.C.) - Mr. Habineza was born and grew up as a refugee in Mityana-Uganda in 1977. He stated, “all the time there, we were always reminded that Uganda was not our home land; kids at school would always remind me that I was a foreigner and would wonder why a foreigner would make good marks in the class.”

This behavior made Mr. Habineza always wonder what crime had his parents committed that they could not be back in their home land. When he asked them, they only told him that they had no crime.

Mr. Habineza stated that he felt a strong desire to reclaim his homeland and when the RPF was started with a mission of regaining back their citizenship. He joined the RPF Youth Movement.

He first arrived in Rwanda in September 1994, just a few months after the genocide and went back to Uganda early 1995 to continue his studies. When he finished High School in Kampala, Uganda, in 1999 he returned back to Rwanda and joined the National University of Rwanda, while there, he started working with the independent media as the official correspondent for Rwanda Newsline, Umuseso News Paper and later Rwanda Herald, he reported that he became more aware of the political life of his country and what was going on outside the country. Mr. Habineza realized even though his country was doing well economically, it was still lacking behind in the fields of democracy, respect for human rights and freedoms of expression, media and so on. That’s when he was convinced that he would have to stand up and help his country improve in these areas through his political aspirations.

At that point Mr. Habineza was already active in environmental politics and in 2003, the first presidential elections after the 1994 genocide, he planned to start the Rwandan Green Party, but was advised by well-wishers to postpone it. This decision was made due to the fragile and potentially dangerous political environment then.

Mr. Habineza continued to further his involvement with Green Party politics and was elected as an East African Representative for the African Young Greens during the First Global Young Greens Congress held in Nairobi, Kenya, January 2007. He also became the Secretary of African Young Greens. He was later elected as an African Representative for all Green Parties of Africa to the Global Greens Coordination during the second Global Greens Congress in Brazil, in May 2008.

In June 2009 Mr. Habineza was elected as the Chairman of the African Greens Movement in Benin and by the time they launched the Democratic Green Party of Rwanda in August 2009. He reports he was deeply involved in the Global and African Green movement. Mr. Habineza stated, “To many it was a surprise but in fact it was not; I had prepared myself politically for quite a long time yet had kept a low profile. I did not expect things to be easy.”

Rwanda Poltical Election 2010

The Presidential election of 2010 in Rwanda faced many challenges due to the powerful control of the current ruling party. Many of the opposing political groups found themselves unable to register for a fair and democratic process. Mr. Habineza held many meetings throughout Rwanda to promote the positive changes his party would take on when elected. The Vice President of the Democratic Green Party of Rwanda, Andrew Kagwa Rwisereka (RIP), was assassinated on 14th July 2010, in less than a month of the August 9th presidential elections.

An investigation conducted by HRW revealed that Rwisereka’s body was found only one kilometer away from his car, not “three” kilometers as stated by the police spokesman. Police told HRW that there was a great deal of blood at the scene. However, when Human Rights Watch visited the scene the day after the body was found, there was little blood to be seen. The blood was located in a single spot which roughly matched the size of Rwisereka’s head, and the body was on a steep slope, suggesting that Rwisereka may have been killed elsewhere. He had been decapitated.

The police initially stated to the media that Rwisereka had been the victim of a robbery, and that people who had seen him on the night he disappeared claimed that he was carrying a large sum of money. However, further investigations by HRW and others revealed that he had left some money with a relative on the evening of July 12, but had been carrying little money and no valuables at the time of his death.

Political Role Models

Mr. Habineza stated that his role model is Mahatma Gandhi due to his bravery of leading a non-violent resistance movement against the British Colonial rule in India. He stated, “I like Gandhi so much to the extent that i have visited twice his home in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India.” He further said he has also talked to elders to learn more about non-violence. Mr. Habineza is committed to using non-violence to solve Rwandan problems. In regards to a peaceful Rwanda he had this to say, “Our country has seen enough violence, I believe, we can overcome, without resorting to an armed conflict.”

Hopes and Dreams for Rwanda

Mr. Habineza stated that his dream for Rwanda in this way: I am striving for a democratic Rwanda that will ensure that all its citizens are able to freely live with each other without fear that one will kill another and enjoy all civil liberties as provided for in the UN declaration of Human Rights. I dream for sustainable peace and sustainable development.

Mr. Habineza is also working for a Rwanda that is at peace with itself and its neighbors, a country that is able to defend itself but does not attack those don’t attack it. Further, a dream for a poverty free Rwanda.

Jennifer Fierberg is a social worker in the US working on peace and justice issues in Africa with an emphasis on the crisis in Rwanda and throughout the central region of Africa. Her articles have been published on many humanitarian sites that are also focused on changing the world through social, political and personal action.

Jennifer has extensive background working with victims of trauma and domestic violence, justice matters as well as individual and family therapy. Passionate and focused on bringing the many humanitarian issues that plague the African Continent to the awareness of the developed world in order to incite change. She is a correspondent, Assistant Editor, and Volunteer Coordinator for NGO News Africa through the volunteer project of the UN. Jennifer is also the media co-coordinator and senior funding executive for The Africa Global Village (www.africaglobalvillage.com) Jennifer comes to www.Salem-News.com with a great deal of experience and passion for working to stop human right violation in Africa.