IGIHE

Author: Nicole Kamanzi Muteteri

  • Ten arrested in Lake Kivu for illegal fishing

    The successful operations aimed at fighting illegal fishing were conducted by Nkora Marine station in collaboration with the fishing Union in Rutsiro District.

    The Marine Commanding Officer (CO), Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Elias Mwesigye said that the operation was conducted on the Islands of Mafundugu and Nyanamo in Sector Musasa of Rutsiro District, where 16 wooden boats and 15 rolls of illicit fishing nets known as kaningini that were being used by the poachers, were also seized.

    “On Mafundugu Island, we arrested six poachers and impounded nine boats and seven rolls of illicit fishing nets.

    On Nyanamo Island, we arrested four poachers, impounded seven boats and eight rolls of illicit and destructive fishing gears,” ACP Mwesigye said.

    He added: “The poachers committed, among others, illegal fishing, environmental degradation and violation of measures against the spread of covid-19, since they had no facemasks.”

    The seized boats and fishing nets, he said, will be disposed-of.

    “These are operations aimed at executing of Marine Police responsibilities, which include; maintaining safety and security of water bodies and increasing public awareness,” the Commanding Officer said.

    The awareness against illegal fishing and other unlawful practices in or on the shoreline, he said, targets mainly poachers and those who encroach and degrade buffer zone environment.

    He outlined illegal fishing, smuggling, drug trafficking and violation of waterways regulations as the most prevalent offenses registered in Lake Kivu.

    The CO observed that although illegal activities in Lake Kivu have decreased, illegal fishing has been persistent, thus efforts to curb it remain ongoing.

    “It’s a challenge we are addressing together with other stakeholders including Rwanda Agriculture Board (RAB), Rwanda Utility Regulatory Authority (RURA), Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA) and local authorities, among others,” ACP Mwesigye said.

    {{Issue of children safety}}

    He further highlighted the concern of children from the shoreline communities, who play along the lake without any guardian and who might become delinquents due to interaction with poachers.

    “Three of those caught during the operation are children, who were influenced by the poachers. We have also registered a number of children, who have drowned as a result of not being accompanied by responsible people.”

    ACP Mwesigye, however, said that there are joint efforts to designate safe swimming sites in an attempt to address the concern of drowning.

    He urged parents to watch over their children to prevent them from partaking in such illegal activities and to prevent them from drowning.

    The law N°58/2008 of 10/09/2008 determining the organization and management of aquaculture and fishing in Rwanda provides that the right to fishing in public waters is only granted by a competent authority, which issues the fishing license.

    Any person, who engages in fishing activities without authorization shall be liable to a fine ranging from Rwf50,000 to Rwf200,000 and an imprisonment of 3 to 6 months or one of them, and dispossession of the equipment used.

    Article 11 outlaws use of “poisonous substances aimed at stunning, weakening or killing fish; applying explosives; using electromagnetic procedures or electrocution; flashing water with an aim of capturing fish; fishing where water organisms are reproduced.”

  • Covid-19: Rwanda records 69 new cases

    “Kigali:34 & Nyamasheke:16 testing in villages under lockdown), Rusizi:16, contacts of previously confirmed positives,” reads the Ministry’s statement. There have also been identified one case in Kirehe and Rwamagana respectively.

    These new records brought the number to a total of confirmed cases 1,821 of which 898 are the active cases; 918 people have so far recovered including 11 on Sunday. Five deaths were recorded since the pandemic outbreak four months ago.

  • Rwandan Police peacekeepers develop project to address clean water shortage in Bangui

    Rwanda FPU-1 deployed in the Bangui under the command of ACP Safari Uwimana, in December last year developed the project worth US$50,000 to address the shortage of clean water in the capital.

    The project will see the construction of three boreholes in one of the most affected areas of Ngongonon Two, Ngongonon Four and Galabadja Four, all in the 8th Arrondissement.

    Early this month, MINUSCA leadership weighed in to fund the project, which is expected to be completed within three weeks.

    The official ground breaking ceremony for the construction of the boreholes was held on July 14, and presided over by government and MINUSCA officials.

    According to ACP Safari, the initiative is in line with their mandate of “protection of civilians.”

    “MINUSCA mission mandate is to ensure protection of civilians, but we are also in a period when the world is faced with the pandemic of Coronavirus; so, access to clean water is a quick impact project to saves lives,” ACP Safari said.

    Rwandan Police peacekeepers have operated in the capital Bangui since 2014, when the first contingent was deployed under MINUSCA.

    “Rwanda FPU-1 has lived with the communities in Bangui and particularly in 8th Arrondissement, since 2014 and has developed good neighborhood relations.
    The clean water initiative was also developed in that line for the health of the local population,” said ACP Safari.

    Over the years, Rwandan Police peacekeepers in CAR have conducted human security activities including supplying clean water and Umuganda to clean streets and neighborhoods.

    Rwanda maintains three Police contingents in CAR; two FPUs and a Protection Support Unit (PSU), each composed of 140 peacekeepers.

    FPUs are charged with crowd control, conduct patrols, protection of people in Internally Displaced Camps and escort duties, among others.

    The PSU is particularly in charge of security for CAR Prime Minister, MINUSCA Special Representative of the UN Secretary General and other high profile government and UN officials as well as other special duties assigned under Joint Task-Force Commander.

    Rwandan Police peacekeepers have operated in the capital Bangui since 2014, when the first contingent was deployed under MINUSCA
    Rwanda Police peacekeepers and Bangui officials during the official groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the boreholes.
    The official ground breaking ceremony for the construction of the boreholes was held on July 14,

  • Flag to be flown at half-mast as Rwandan mourn President Mkapa

    “In solidarity with government and the people of United Republic of Tanzania during this time of grief following the demise of His Excellency Benjamin William Mkapa, the third President of the United Republic of Tanzania.”

    Former President Benjamin Mkapa died on July 23rd in Dar Es Salam – Tanzania.

    The statement reads the mourning period will start from Monday 27th July to Wednesday 29th July.

    “We remain in solidarity with the people and the government of the United Republic of Tanzania as well as with the family of the late President Mkapa,”

  • Police outlines tough measures against errant violators

    The new measures, according to RNP spokesperson, CP John Bosco Kabera, include digital recording of identities of every violator to inform “serious actions” in case of recidivism.

    “As part of the efforts to implement the directives, compliance and easy identification of errant violators, RNP has started a new digital system to keep detailed data on everyone, including motorists and pedestrians, who breach the directives to inform severe actions when you are caught again,” CP Kabera said.

    The stringent measures also include reporting the violators as well as those who lie, to their respective employers for further penalties.

    This comes after an assessment on the level of compliance with the directives in the last four months, which indicates serious violations related to compulsory wearing of facemask when in public, curfew, and operating services that are still closed or unauthorized like bars, prayers as well prohibited movements and gatherings.

    “These violations increase risks of COVID-19 infections after the lockdown was lifted and movements beyond regions permitted,” CP Kabera said.

    He added: “Residents of Rwanda should understand that as the government continues to open different sectors of the economy including businesses and tourism as well as religious services; it is not time to lean back, relax and loosen the recommended safety and prevention measures but rather a step to further improve livelihoods of the people in line with the country’s development but in maximum compliance with the directives.”

    He observed that these violations, which also include home visits, unnecessary and prohibited home events, continue to fuel further COVID-19 infections in the country.

    “Rwanda National Police strongly warns against such unlawful, inappropriate, and risky behaviours and actions, which lead to putting some sectors, cells and villages under lockdown and can lead the country back into total lockdown; no one wishes this to happen again,” CP Kabera emphasized.

    RNP recently published a report of close to 500 errant motorists, who violated the curfew and went on to disregard instructions given to them by police officers enforcing the curfew. Instead of parking in the allocated lots and going to centres where they were directed, they drove or rode away.

    Of these published motorists, only 155 had voluntarily reported to Police by Thursday, July 23.

    “Many other motorists have not reported as per the recent Police notice. We wish to remind every motorist who will not come forward by the end of this Friday July 24, that Police will take the next step to locate and arrest them,” CP Kabera warned.

    The spokesperson further cautioned against moving without identifications adding that “no one will be released until their full identities including where they reside and what they do, are known and recorded.”

    On churches and mosques that were authorised to resume their religious services, CP Kabera reminded them that the “responsibility to prevent the spread of Coronavirus has equally been placed in their hands by maximum compliance with the set guidelines, without being forced, for the safety of their followers and the country in general.”

    He took time to thank the majority of people in Rwanda, who have embraced the culture of #NtabeAriNjye by operating within the limits of the directives and facilitating the Police in enforcement through information sharing on violators.

    “Respecting all the directives and specific guidelines for particular institutions and areas is not optional; it’s the only thing to do.

    If you think that you can make the Police to give up, then you are stressing yourself; Police operates 24-hours-all-days to ensure the safety of all people in Rwanda and their property, and to ensure that all the directives are respected to the maximum.”

    “Wearing a facemask is not a one-time thing; it’s a must every time you leave your home; washing hands should be a regular hygiene and safety practice using soap and clean water; social distancing should be a culture; whatever you do, make sure the curfew finds you home.”

    To win the fight against the pandemic, which has no antidote at the moment, he said, respecting the government directives and other recommended hygiene and safety practices is the only remedy.

    RNP spokesperson, CP John Bosco Kabera

  • Rwanda receives a stateless person detained in US

    A statement from the Rwandan government said, “Hassoun willingly accepted being relocated and settled in Rwanda.”

    According to the 1954 Convention on the Status of Stateless Persons, a stateless person is someone who is not considered as a national by any state.

    Rwanda reiterated her full commitment towards fulfilling the UN Convention on the Status of Stateless Persons.

    “The Government of Rwanda has previously received stateless persons from various parts of the world and reiterates its full commitment to the 1954 Convention on the Status of Stateless Persons, to which it is a signatory,”

    It says that even before Hassoun, Rwanda received such people from different parts of the world.

    In 2006, Rwanda acceded to the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons and to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness.

    {{Who is Hassoun?}}

    Adham Hassoun, 58, is a Palestinian born in Lebanon and later moved to the United States in 1989 where he worked as a computer expert in the Broward area of Florida.

    In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, Al-Qaeda attack in the United States, he was convicted under the October 2001 Law on the Protection of National Sovereignty, in support of a Muslim charity called Benevolence International Foundation, which has been involved in terrorist activities in Chechnya, Kosovo and Bosnia.

    In August 2007, he was convicted, along with Padilla, of conspiracy and material support charges and sentenced to a prison term of 15 years, 8 months but completed his sentence early in 2017 for good behaviour.

    The United States is said to have not deported him, as it would normally do to other non-citizens, because he had no citizenship.

    So they (U.S) notified him that he was to be detained indefinitely and held him as an immigration prisoner, not until judges ruled a release order in June this year after finding that the US government had provided no basis for holding him.

    It was a result of efforts by American Civil Liberties Union, which took part in the court challenge to Hassoun’s continued imprisonment, despite the culmination of his sentence.

    When does one become stateless?

    In international law, a stateless person is defined as a person who is not considered a national by any country under its laws. Some stateless people are often refugees, only not all refugees are stateless.

    People usually get citizenship in a variety of ways, either based on their origin or because their parents were born in a certain country; one can even apply for citizenship.

    There are many reasons a person is considered stateless; they may be based on ethnicity, religion, or gender. It can be the birth of a new country, making one who was born there before a native country , since his country no longer exists.

    The 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons requires that stateless persons have the same rights as citizens with respect to freedom of religion and education of their children.

    For a number of other rights, such as the right of association, the right to employment and to housing, it provides that stateless persons are to enjoy, at a minimum, the same treatment as other non-nationals.

    The Convention also upholds the right to freedom of movement for stateless persons lawfully on the territory, and requires States to provide them with identity papers and travel documents.

    Hassoun willingly accepted being relocated and settled in Rwanda.

  • President Kagame pays tribute to former Tanzanian President Mkapa

    In a Twit, Kagame stated that Mkapa’s death will be felt throughout the continent.

    “We are saddened by the passing of former President Mkapa. My deepest condolences to his family, the people of Tanzania and my friend President John Pombe Magufuli.”

    “The loss of our brother Mkapa is one that will be felt throughout the continent. He was a great Pan-Africanist whose contribution went well beyond Tanzania,” Kagame added.

    Benjamin Mkapa served as President of Tanzania from 1995 to 2005, where he led several regional peace mediation efforts across the region while in office and afterwards.

    Kagame stated that Mkapa’s death will be felt throughout the continent.

  • COVID-19: 21 new cases, 22 recoveries

    Of these cases, 7 were detected in areas under lockdown in Kicukiro, and Nyarugenge, while other seven cases were identified in Rusizi and Nyamasheke districts of the Western Province.

    Coronavirus symptoms include coughing, flu, and difficulty breathing. It is transmitted through the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract.

    The Government requests, in a program to prevent the spread of Coronavirus, that Rwandans continue to pay attention and comply with government regulations, especially with frequent washing of hands with water and soap and wearing masks when a person leaves home or in public.

  • Marine operations against poaching in Lake Burera paying off

    According to Chief Inspector of Police (CIP) Antoine Nkurunziza, OC Police Marine in Burera, continuous operations have seen many poachers arrested; their boats and illicit or substandard fishing gears impounded.

    The latest operation conducted on Monday seized two illicit fishing gears made out of sleeping mosquito nets, with each over 40 metres long as well as the boat that was being used by the poachers.

    “In the last two years, we have impounded over 150 boats in Lake Burera, which were being used in poaching and fraud activities as well as substandard boats that were being used in water transport.

    Owners or people who were using these boats were also arrested,” said CIP Nkurunziz

    Most illicit fishing gears impounded over the same period, he said, are made out of sleeping mosquito nets and kaningini, which catch and kill even the young fish.

    “Due to increased operations, poaching has tremendously reduced in Lake Burera; fishing cooperatives are also playing a big part in operations to identity and report individuals involved and areas from where they are operating, in most cases at night,” he added.

    It is said that poachers buy mosquito nets from families that benefited from the government programme in the fight against malaria caused by mosquitos.

    Police marine operations conducted in late May in Lake Kivu seized 27 substandard and illicit rolls of fishing nets from poachers. This came less than a month after other 17 poachers were arrested in the same lake.

    CIP Nkurunziza warned communities residing near Lake Burera against illegal activities in the water body, and called for partnership in information sharing on anyone conducting illegal acts in the Lake.

    “The operations are part of the intensified fight against illegal fighting in water bodies across the country,” he said.

    The law N°58/2008 of 10/09/2008 determining the organization and management of aquaculture and fishing in Rwanda provides that the right to fishing in public waters is only granted by a competent authority, which issues fishing licence.

    Any person, who engages in fishing activities without authorisation shall be liable to a fine ranging from Rwf50, 000 to Rwf200, 000 and an imprisonment of 3 to 6 months or one of them and dispossession of the equipment used.

    Article 11 outlaws use of “poisonous substances aimed at stunning, weakening or killing fish; applying explosives; using electromagnetic procedures or electrocution; flashing water with an aim of capturing fish; fishing where water organisms are reproduced.”

  • Police, local authorities strengthen partnership to enforce directives

    While speaking at the press conference on Monday, the Minister of Local Government, Prof. Anastase Shyaka said that the country’s good governance system has been the driving force in effective implementation and response to the pandemic.

    “Our country’s governance system emphasizes partnership at all levels and the policing duties equally falls under the responsibilities of local leaders,” Minister Shyaka said.

    “As we face the pandemic of COVID-19, implementation and enforcement of the safety and other precautionary measures has not been left to the Police alone; all local entities are up in their respective areas to supplement the police day-to-day duties in ensuring that directives on COVID-19 are well respected,” he added.

    The minister highlighted that there are still people, who don’t wear facemask, don’t wash or sanitize hands while others operate bars, one of the businesses that are still closed in this period; some churches also opened illegally without authorization.

    He observed that the directives are clear and offers flexibility for people to run their errands

    “Police cannot be everywhere, and in this case where they are not, local leaders and other community policing groups like Irondo and youth volunteers are there to ensure compliance and to help Police identify and arrest errant violators,” Minister Shyaka said.

    RNP spokesperson, CP John Bosco Kabera observed that although the directives are generally respected, there are some people that still violate them, including the curfew.

    “We are happy that the majority of people were responsive by supporting the enforcement in one way or another, including those who continue to give us information on violators. Nonetheless, we still see some individuals, who violate the directives especially motorists,” said CP Kabera.

    “Police doesn’t get tired neither does it get annoyed. If you think that we will give up then you are lying to yourself; It is one thing to violate the directives and worse still undermine instructions by Police officers enforcing the directives; you will be arrested,” he warned.