A Rwandan citizen named Espérance Dusabimana narrates that in July last year, she travelled to Uganda with her husband to pay her last respects to her aunt who had just passed on. The couple left their home in Rubavu District early in the morning and boarded the bus to Uganda. Dusabimana was two months pregnant.
Her narrations have sparked off anger in Rwanda and many have called for Museveni to brought to book for not respecting Rwandan citizens. They are to take Museveni to ICC if they are done compiling the case against Ugandan President Kaguta Museveni.
She narrates her story that when they reached a place called Rubanda, “We were stopped (by Ugandan military men) and asked to get out of the bus and sit down.”
“We were many onboard and men were handcuffed immediately, they confiscated our ID cards and accused us of illegally entering the country,” she adds.
At around 5pm, Ugandan authorities, brought a military vehicle and took all the Rwandan citizens with them. They were all illegally detained.
“Our husbands were still handcuffed, we were taken to Ndorwa prison in Kabale (Western Uganda) where we were detained,” Dusabimana recounts.
Dusabimana says that while in prison they were tortured and starved.
“We were repeatedly beaten, we had to report every morning for a parade and whoever delayed could be beaten, women were beaten on their own behalf and on behalf of their children,” she said.
Dusabimana was subjected to torture throughout her pregnancy period, and says that it was by God’s mercy she did not have a miscarriage.
“Because I was pregnant, I had complications and other inmates called for police to inform them that I was sick, I was rushed to hospital and got basic treatment, the medics gave me medicine and I was taken back to prison,”
“I endured severe pain, lived bad life and ate badly the entire time spent in prison. When I had signs of labour, I was taken to hospital and delivered. I spent one day at hospital and I was brought back to prison,” she says.
She says, there are many Rwandans still detained in Ndorwa prison.
“After a certain period, I asked security officers to let me talk to my husband and allow him to see the baby, they refused but as I insisted, we were allowed to meet but we were only given about a minute,” she says.
We were fed on half-cooked maize and beans, she said, adding that she developed stomachaches in the process and was taken back to hospital only to be given regular tablets to swallow. She was later taken back to prison.
“I still use the medicine, my baby was also hospitalized because he was malnourished but was discharged after four days,” she says.
Kagame government says that since 2017, many Rwandans have reportedly been arrested, held incommunicado and tortured in Uganda.
Some of those who have since been released have told of despicable treatment at the hands of people linked to the Ugandan military during their detention in ‘safe houses’ while many are still missing.
Over the last two years, about 1000 Rwandans have been irregularly deported from Uganda while 190 have been arrested and tortured, according to information from Rwanda’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Basing on these narrations the Rwandan human rights body have decided to come up with charges to take Museveni to International criminal court for abusing Human rights of Rwandan citizens in Uganda