Hon. Rose Mukantabana
President of the Chamber of Deputies
Kigali, Rwanda
Dr. Vincent Biruta
President of the Senate
Kigali, Rwanda
Your Excellencies:
Human Rights Watch urges the Rwandan government to honor its obligations under the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR), by definitively abolishing the penalty of life imprisonment in solitary confinement. This punishment, which condemns a convicted person to total isolation for a minimum of twenty years, amounts to cruel and inhuman treatment and should not be imposed by Rwandan courts or gacaca jurisdictions under any circumstances.
When Rwanda abolished the death penalty in July 2007, many around the world - including Human Rights Watch - applauded the decision and viewed it as a tremendous step forward for the country. However, the law had flaws in that it substituted the death penalty with life imprisonment in solitary confinement for certain cases.
In early 2008, the law came under scrutiny when the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), based in Tanzania, considered transferring five cases to Rwanda for prosecution. The ICTR denied transfer in all five cases, in part because it found that the punishment of life in solitary confinement as prescribed under Rwandan law did not meet international human rights standards and might be imposed upon an individual if convicted.
In response to these decisions, Parliament adopted legislation on December 1, 2008, barring application of the penalty of life imprisonment in solitary confinement to criminal cases transferred from the ICTR or from abroad. The Rwandan government seems to recognize that the penalty of lifetime solitary confinement does not adhere to international standards and that it must be eliminated in order to have cases sent back to Rwanda for trial.
Yet the penalty may still be imposed on other individuals tried and convicted of crimes in Rwanda.
Solitary confinement for prolonged periods of time constitutes inhuman treatment and violates the Convention against Torture, Article 7 of the ICCPR, and Article 5 of the ACHPR. Human Rights Watch is therefore dismayed that the Rwandan government has chosen to allow the penalty to remain in effect for domestic criminal cases. The recent legislative move suggests that the country is more concerned with securing the transfer of cases from the ICTR than with respecting human rights across its justice system.
All suspects tried and convicted in Rwanda should be treated equally and should not be subjected to this punishment. Human Rights Watch calls upon Parliament to enact legislation definitively abolishing the penalty of life imprisonment in solitary confinement.
We thank you in advance for your attention to this pressing matter.
Georgette Gagnon
Africa Director
Human Rights Watch
