Rwanda Government suspends BBC programmes

Sunday, 26th April 2009
KIGALI - The government has removed British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) local language (Kinyarwanda) programmes from the airwaves.
This was confirmed by Information Minister Louise Mushikiwabo by phone late Saturday because, as she put it, the BBC programmes despite repeated written and verbal protests from Government, consistently showed total disregard for Rwanda’s unity and reconciliation efforts.
“This action by Government was prompted by one of their programme called Imvo n’Imvano this morning which was previewed last night,” Mushikiwabo said.
Alarmed by what she had heard in the preview, the Minister stressed that she immediately contacted BBC on the issue expecting them to reconsider “after hearing from us” but, the latter took no heed.
“In the programme, you have some of the most outrageous statements,” Mushikiwabo noted, pointing to what she said were suggestions that there was a double Genocide and, that the bodies of Rwandans found floating in the waters of Lake Victoria, in Uganda, “were victims of the Rwanda Patriotic Front.”
“We are lodging a very strong and serious protest to the BBC leadership. What we heard (on the programme) was Genocide denial and insensitive. This is extremely serious and, we cannot tolerate it as government.”
A subsequent Government press release, which The New Times has seen, notes that the “divisive and disparaging nature” of these programmes — as they stand today — is no longer acceptable, in light of the hard-earned peaceful coexistence of the people of Rwanda over the last 15 years.
“Parts of today’s “Imvo n’Imvano” show as broadcast in a trailer on BBC’s airwaves on the evening of April 24, and the subsequent show on April 25 amount to blatant denial of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi of Rwanda, and constitute unacceptable speech,” reads part of the statement.
“Rwanda believes in difference of opinion and enforces press freedom in its laws and practices, which is why the Government of Rwanda has patiently continued to seek common ground and cooperation on the part of the BBC Great Lakes leadership,” it concludes.
The government has for some time been requesting the broadcaster not to give Genocide deniers airtime to no avail.