US embassy cable - 04KIGALI1162

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KIGALI 001162 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR AF/C AND DRL: MICHAEL ORONA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/13/2014 
TAGS: PGOV, PHUM, PINR, PINS, RW 
SUBJECT: SPECIAL INTELLIGENCE UNIT INFILTRATES RWANDA'S 
INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER 
 
REF: A. KIGALI 00105 
     B. 03 KIGALI 01990 
 
Classified By: Maya Dietz, Political Officer.  Reason 1.4 (d). 
 
1. (C) SUMMARY: The new Chief Editor of Rwanda's most 
independent newspaper, "Umuseso", Charles Kabonero, was 
detained for six weeks in December 2003, not recently as 
reported by international media.  He reports that a special 
intelligence unit within the National Police's Criminal 
Investigation Department (CID), tasked with "shutting down" 
the paper, recruited and armed an "Umuseso" employee who 
spied on the paper for the GOR.  The police continue to 
threaten to confiscate the paper when it prints articles 
critical of the government or government officials.  Most 
recently, only intervention by the RDF's Chief of General 
Staff prevented authorities from confiscating an issue that 
published an article suggesting a Burundi clique was 
challenging President Kagame's power.  END SUMMARY. 
 
2. (C) Contrary to recent reports in the international press, 
Charles Kabonero, Chief Editor of Rwanda's primary 
independent newspaper, "Umuseso", has not been in detention 
for the last six weeks.  He explained to Poloff in an August 
6 meeting that he had been detained beginning in December 
2003, and was held day and night for six weeks, without being 
charged.  He, along with other "Umuseso" journalists and 
editors, were held at a Department of Military Intelligence 
(DMI) center in Dikaranga. (Note: Post has not been able to 
confirm such a location.  End Note.) 
 
3. (C) Kabonero, and the newspaper, however, have been 
experiencing difficulties over the past two months.  In early 
June, according to Kabonero, an Assistant Commissioner in the 
Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and Director of the 
Special Intelligence Unit, John Gacinya Rugumya, approached a 
new "Umuseso" journalist and offered him Rwf 5 million 
(approximately USD 8,700) to help the CID shut down the 
newspaper.  The journalist accepted the offer and began 
providing the CID with names of "Umuseso" sources, 
information about its employees, and an analysis of the 
paper's strengths and weaknesses.  Kabonero alleges that 
Gacinya even gave the spy a handgun, suggesting that he could 
either "cause trouble" at the newspaper's office, forcing the 
police to come and arrest everyone; or, more sinisterly, the 
spy could kill those present in the office, and the CID would 
burn the building. 
 
4. (C) Kabonero learned of the plot when "Umuseso" employees 
who had been emailed by the informant asked Kabonero why this 
new employee was seeking sensitive information from them. 
Kabonero then gathered evidence and wrote letters--first to 
the Commissioner General of the CID, then to the Minister of 
Information and the President of the High Council of the 
Press.  While there was an encounter between the spy and 
Kabonero at the newspaper's office on July 31, Kabonero and 
other employees were only temporarily detained by the 
judicial police.  Instead, the CID froze "Umuseso" bank 
accounts, Kabonero said.  The judicial police have begun 
questioning the "Umuseso" marketing representative and 
accountants, hoping to find some irregularity on which to 
detain the staff and/or shut down the paper, according to 
Kabonero. 
 
5. (C) Kabonero believes there is little recourse for him or 
his journalists in the Rwandan system.  The High Council has 
refused to take up their case, and "Umuseso" has already lost 
one lawyer due to pressure from GOR officials to desist from 
his work on their behalf.  "Umuseso" most frequently faces 
harassment for publishing articles concerning army officials. 
 Kabonero claims the police never question the truth of the 
articles, but rather seek to learn where the paper gets its 
information.  Kabonero stated that he has been told while in 
detention that he will be punished "with rules not in the 
official books". 
 
6. (C) According to Kabonero, the judicial police threatened 
to confiscate the most recent issue of "Umuseso", which 
featured an article written by Kabonero suggesting that an 
alliance of returnees from Burundi was beginning to challenge 
President Kagame's authority.  The article suggests that 
Denis Polisi (Deputy Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies), 
Charles Murigande (Minister of Foreign Affairs and 
Cooperation), and Francois Ngarambe (RPF Secretary General) 
form the power-center of this group.  One example Kabonero 
gave was Polisi's blocking of legislation that came directly 
from the President's office.  Kabonero believes this issue 
was not confiscated because he appealed to the RDF Chief of 
General Staff, Major General James Kabarebe, for help. 
Kabarebe, he said, called the head of judicial police, 
Emmanuel Bayingana, and told him not to confiscate the paper. 
 The three accused (Polisi, Murigande, and Ngarambe) have 
publicly denounced the accusations; Polisi called a press 
conference earlier this week to announce he would take legal 
action against "Umuseso". 
 
7. (C) COMMENT: Over the past two years, the quality of 
"Umuseso" reporting has steadily decreased, as GOR harassment 
and repeated detentions have led editor after editor to flee 
the country and seek asylum.  On the other hand, it remains 
the only newspaper in Rwanda willing to print stories 
critical of the GOR, and many Rwandans believe its news to be 
credible.  The alleged intelligence operation against the 
paper suggests that the GOR wants to eliminate the paper 
entirely, not just weaken it.  As Kabonero points out, the 
paper has never been accused of violating the media law, 
which would allow the GOR to close the paper permanently. 
Instead, it seems the GOR is using the flailing paper to 
identify any possible leaks in the government. 
 
8. (C) On several occasions, the GOR has gone to great 
lengths to confiscate issues of "Umuseso" that report 
derogatory information on senior GOR officials.  In November 
2003, authorities entered BBC's Kigali offices to seize 
information on the Secretary General of the National Security 
Service that had been passed to BBC by "Umuseso" (ref B). 
When the GOR has allowed "Umuseso" to criticize GOR 
officials, their resignations have followed.  Earlier this 
year, the GOR allowed "Umuseso" to publish allegations of 
financial improprieties that implicated former Prosecutor 
General and Supreme Court Vice President Gerald Gahima (ref 
A).  Within weeks, Gahima resigned and his brother, former 
Ambassador to the U.S. Theogene Rudasingwa, immediately 
announced a sudden leave of absence from his post as 
President Kagame's Chief of Staff.  That the GOR has allowed 
"Umuseso" to publish a report claiming that the Foreign 
Minister and other senior officials are challenging Kagame's 
power may therefore reflect tensions within the 
administration.  END COMMENT. 
O'LEARY