Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2016-05-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received on the imprisonment of Ingabire Umuhoza Victoire in Rwanda; and if he will make a statement.

James Duddridge

We have been clear in our public and private dialogue with the government of Rwanda that the social and economic progress it has delivered must be mirrored by gains in civil and political rights for its people. This means cultivating a society where a strong opposition and vibrant civil society can flourish. Opposition parties, and their leaders, must be able to operate freely holding the government to account and pushing for change.

We have been monitoring the case of Opposition Coalition Leader Victoire Ingabire closely through our High Commission in Kigali since her arrest in 2010. We will continue to stress our grave concern regarding all cases of arbitrary detention and arrest, including that of Mrs Ingabire, to the government of Rwanda.