Source:
INGABIRE WRITES TO THE PRESIDENT
BY THE INDEPENDENT TEAM
TRANSCRIPT OF INGABIRE’S HANDWRITTEN LETTER
On April 26, 2012 —the day the prosecution sought the maximum sentence
of life imprisonment for Victoire Ingabire on charges of terrorism, threatening
state security, divisionism, genocide ideology and denial—the prosecution
presented a letter written by Ingabire, which they told the court was a request
for a pardon from President Kagame.
The title of the letter written in Kinyarwanda reads:
“Explanation, asking for pardon.” After hundreds of pages of evidence produced
by prosecutors against Ingabire, this letter was the last document submitted.
“This letter deserves no consideration,” Prosecutor
Bonaventure Ruberwa was quoted as saying. “Ingabire was asking for forgiveness
in the letter, but pleading not guilty in court. If she was not guilty, then
why was she asking for pardon?” The prosecution added that the president could
not forgive someone before a court ruling.
Several publications have reported on the letter,
however, the actual contents have not been seen up until now. The Independent
has obtained a copy of this letter and has translated its contents from
Kinyarwanda to English and has printed it below.
When The Independent contacted the President’s Office
for comment on the letter, we were told their office hadn’t seen it.
Ingabire’s sentencing date has been set for June 29, 2012 .
==
Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza
C/O. Director of Kigali
(Signed and stamped 07 November 2011 by the Kigali Prison Authority)
His Excellency,
The highest authority of our country,
SUBJECT:
CLARIFICATIONS, APOLOGIES AND PLEA FOR A RELEASE FROM PRISON.
H.E. The highest authority of our country,
During the court proceedings, I was informed that my
statements and press releases prior to my detention contained divisive language
aimed at fuelling tensions among Rwandans and to make people hate their
government. My statements were mostly based on the feedback from the
population. That is the reason why I decided to return home and build my
country together with all Rwandese.
H.E. The highest authority of our country,
Please accept my apologies to you personally or to
any other Rwandan, who could have felt bad in his heart, because of my
statements. It has never been my intent to dishonor anybody or to offend
anybody’s rights.
H.E. The highest authority of our country,
I am accused as well of having bad intentions and to
have created insecurity against my mother country. Your highest authority,
after 16 years in exile, I dedicated myself to a peaceful return home,
committed to join others inside the country, so we could work hand in hand
build a better future for all Rwandans and give assurances of dignity and
mutual respect to the current and future leadership of the country.
H.E. The highest authority of our country,
You are the guarantor of the rule of law in this
country, and I believe without doubt that you are committed to the right of
every citizen to contribute to the development of our country and I have decided
to send you this letter to assure your authority that I have no ill intentions
against your authority or against any of our citizens. I request from your
authority because of the powers bestowed upon you and your wisdom, to order my
release from prison so I could recover my total freedom and contribute together
with all Rwandans to move our country forward.
H.E. The highest authority of our country,
During all the time I spent abroad I had the
opportunity to contemplate the world and the Rwandan people. I came to the
conclusion that there are many things we can achieve together regardless of our
political affiliations. Should we have unity, we shall have access to
everything in this world.
May God’s light guide you!
Madame Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza
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