Radio Muhabura
Encyclopedia
Radio Muhabura was a pro-Tutsi propaganda radio station of Paul Kagame
's RPF (Rwandan Patriotic Front
) during the period of his invasion of Rwanda
from Uganda
between 1990 and 1994. It was created in 1991 and broadcast from Uganda. It was the first alternative to Radio Rwanda, reaching all but the south of Rwanda by mid-1992. It was recorded by the BBC starting in 1992. It promoted armed resistance to the "extremist" Rwandan government. In an October 1992 broadcast it claimed that militia forces of the government's party had "devised traps aimed at exterminating the youth." As early as January 1993, months before the RTLM went on-air, Radio Muhabura accused the Rwandan government of genocide. It routinely denied RPF involvement in civilian killings., and promoted resistance to "Hutu power", to the Habriyamana government, and desertion by the military.
It regularly discussed return of the Rwandan diaspora and the creation of a new government.
Although the pro-Hutu RTLM (which became an inciting instrument of the Rwanda genocide of 1994) was extensively listened to, Radio Muhabura had a much smaller audience, proabably because it broadcast in English instead of Rwandan
, and its contribution to the Rwandan civil war is not as widely discussed.
The existence of Radio Muhabura was cited as a part of the defense in the trial of Ferdinand Nahimana
in the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
.
Paul Kagame
Paul Kagame is the sixth and current President of the Republic of Rwanda. He rose to prominence as the leader of the Rwandan Patriotic Front , whose victory over the incumbent government in July 1994 effectively ended the Rwandan genocide...
's RPF (Rwandan Patriotic Front
Rwandan Patriotic Front
The Rwandan Patriotic Front abbreviated as RPF is the current ruling political party of Rwanda, led by President Paul Kagame. It governs in a coalition with other parties...
) during the period of his invasion of Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
from Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
between 1990 and 1994. It was created in 1991 and broadcast from Uganda. It was the first alternative to Radio Rwanda, reaching all but the south of Rwanda by mid-1992. It was recorded by the BBC starting in 1992. It promoted armed resistance to the "extremist" Rwandan government. In an October 1992 broadcast it claimed that militia forces of the government's party had "devised traps aimed at exterminating the youth." As early as January 1993, months before the RTLM went on-air, Radio Muhabura accused the Rwandan government of genocide. It routinely denied RPF involvement in civilian killings., and promoted resistance to "Hutu power", to the Habriyamana government, and desertion by the military.
It regularly discussed return of the Rwandan diaspora and the creation of a new government.
Although the pro-Hutu RTLM (which became an inciting instrument of the Rwanda genocide of 1994) was extensively listened to, Radio Muhabura had a much smaller audience, proabably because it broadcast in English instead of Rwandan
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
, and its contribution to the Rwandan civil war is not as widely discussed.
The existence of Radio Muhabura was cited as a part of the defense in the trial of Ferdinand Nahimana
Ferdinand Nahimana
Ferdinand Nahimana is a Rwandan historian who was convicted of participating in the Rwandan Genocide.Nahimana was co-founder of the radio station Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines but not the director, which during the genocide broadcast information and propaganda that helped coordinate...
in the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda is an international court established in November 1994 by the United Nations Security Council in Resolution 955 in order to judge people responsible for the Rwandan Genocide and other serious violations of international law in Rwanda, or by Rwandan...
.