Rwandans vote on Monday in elections that President Paul Kagame is widely expected to win, handing him a fourth term in office.
He came to power as the leader of rebels who took control of Rwanda’s government and ended the genocide in 1994.
Kagame was the country’s vice president and de facto leader from 1994 to 2000, when he first became president.
He is credited with rebuilding the economy and achieving stability following the genocide, but is also criticised for stifling political opposition and muzzling the media.
In addition, a United Nations report has accused Rwanda of backing the M23 rebel militia fighting in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo.
Hassan Kannenje, director of Horn Institute of Strategic Studies, said the case of Rwanda is one of a post-conflict environment in which certain choices must be made.
“One, between peace and justice. And two, between development and democracy. And it seems that Rwanda chose peace instead of justice and is choosing development over democracy,” he said.
He added that this is “not exactly a contradiction” but are choices that are shaped by the realities of not just the African continent but most post-conflict societies.
Kagame is running virtually unopposed, facing the same two opponents he beat in 2017, when he won nearly 99 per cent of the vote.
Eight candidates in total had applied to run, but only two were retained in the final list validated by the electoral commission.
The others, including Kagame’s most vocal critics, were invalidated for various reasons that included prior criminal convictions.
Kennenje, however, said one cannot say that Rwanda has declined in terms of democratic credentials as it was “no democracy to start with”.
“It was a personal rule, characterised by successive autocratic regimes, including the last regime of Juvenal Habyarimana. It was far from being a democracy,” he said.
“So, I think to accuse Kagame today of not exactly meeting the democratic standards that is expected by Rwandans I think would be a stretch too far.”
However, Kennenje said it was reasonable to say that perhaps Rwandans may not comparatively enjoy the same civil and political freedoms that others enjoy, like Kenyans for example.
“But that is also attributable to the different histories. When it comes to the history of civic activism, in Kenya it is much higher compared to civic activism not just in Rwanda but actually much of central Africa.”
Some 9 million Rwandans are registered to vote on Monday, with the presidential poll being held at the same time as legislative elections for the first time.
Provisional results are expected by 20 July.