Editor's Note: Angus
Deaton
Dear Dr Binagwaho, as
usual in your Kagamism style whoever disagrees with the Kigali Singapore
economic mirage is called different names. At least because Angus Deaton is a
white guy from USA or wherever Dr. Binagwaho has showed a kind of respect and
called him a racist if Deaton was like me from Rwanda and was either a Tutsi,
Dr, Binangwaho could have called him a failure which is fair enough but if he
was a Hutu like me, she could have immediately branded me a genocidaire because
any Hutu who does not agree with Tutsis like Binagwaho is branded either
Interahamwe or a genocidaire. Thank God she didn’t brand Prof. Angus Deaton a
genocide denier since it is their new tool to resist any sort of critiques or
criticism. They believe that they are the only people who should be always
right but they have to remember that when they put their ignorance out there
everyone is entitled to his/her opinion here is not in Rwanda my dear where we
cannot even sneeze. Binagwaho’s fury is another kind of leadership blindness
that we the people of Rwanda know and accept very well. Here in Rwanda there
are only a one group allowed to look intelligent, that is the Kagame group and
his people, among them Dr. Binagwaho, the rest who are mostly Hutus are either
branded interahamwe, genocidaires, or good for nothing who should be rotting in
jail to keep the city of Kigali clean.
About health sector in
Rwanda in general. You will hear the pro Kagame people such as Bill Clinton, Pr
Rick Warren, and Tony Blair the most notorious drumbeaters say that the Rwandan
healthcare system is the best. I am a Rwandan and living inside Rwanda. I am an
educated guy who has worked for the USAID, OXFAM, WB, and IMF as a consultant.
I know everything going on in Rwanda and around me. The health system here is
not pro people. Let’s start with the Rwandan health community program called “mutual
or mutual.” In 2014 my Aunty Nyirakanyamanza was jailed because she failed to
pay her healthcare contribution of FRW 570= USD 0. 78. She was taken to jail
locally known as Mabuso and the local defense personnel came and took her only
goat and went to sell in order to cover her health insurance. This is the true
story about majority of Rwandans but since most of the poor people are Hutus
they cannot talk because of the obvious reasons. If Dr. Binagwaho could dare a
Western Professor like Angus Deaton, then you can understand what my own mother
and myself had to endure every day since we are living is inside Rwanda,
especially coming from the Hutu tribe of this country. If we were called
racists without being licked up by the RPF military policy navy cruiser, we
would feel very much lucky. Dr Binagwaho is used to the Harvard cheerleaders,
especially those from the school of Public Health who have been earning bonuses
from publishing articles under Dr. Binagwaho and yet she never understands the
content of her work although it is published under her name.
Of course the West will
never accept that Kagame and his group have been a failure not only to Rwandans
but to the entire continent, especially the Great Lakes region where the UN
Mapping Report on DRC has said that if it is proved in court Kagame and his
team can be charged with carrying out a genocide. Then comes this group of Peter
Singer’s like who have been dangerously rushing out endorsement of effective
altruism without going into deeper of how that Western aid works in Rwanda. Being
in Rwanda and being luckily an educated Rwanda let me breakdown what aid has
done to Rwandans, which people like Binagwaho, Rick Warren, Bishop Rucahana
will never accept that has been happening. Kagame owns two private jets at a
cost of 58 Million USD in a country where more than 70% of Rwandans are
struggling to survive on a less than a dollar a day. Of course they will tell
he deserves it because he stopped the Tutsi genocide but they won’t tell you
that Rwanda had only 6 million when the Tutsi led RPF took over power in 1994
and 85% of those 6 million were Hutus, whereas only 14% are Tutsis and yet more
than 1 million Rwandans were killed. If according to IBUKA more than 500000
Tutsis survived out of 840000 in total then who are those 660000 Rwandans
killed and who killed them? Maybe our fellow educated Binagwaho can tell us
what really happened to over 600000 Rwandans killed in 1994 and where they were
buried. Bill Clinton will never admit that his plans to bring a change in
African leadership fell flat on its face considering what Kagame, Museveni,
Meles Zenawi, and Kabila have been doing in the last 20 years. Kagame has
become a king of Rwanda after changing the constitution to allow him to roll
forever, Museveni has become the Kabaka of Buganda having ruled over 30 years
and still on, whereas the Ethiopia of Zenawi recently killed over 140
University protestors in Oromo and no one ever mentioned. That is what Africans
have inherited from the West. When western aid come to Rwanda in the name of
scholarship, Kagame will tell you that they will be shared among Rwandans but
behind the doors he will instruct people like Dr Binagwaho to identify Tutsi
kids to send to western colleges. Among 10 scholarship 7 will be given to
different Tutsi kids regardless of their qualifications whereas the rest 3
spots will be shared among Hutus who work as RPF cadres. But when we go to US,
Canada, Australia, we are instructed not to disclose our tribes lest the world
could realize that Hutus have been oppressed. Hutus in this country are here to
pay taxes and Tutsis manage them. That is what we are here for.
Coming back to Kigali
Kagame is praised of having more women in leadership but they don’t bring in
two important factors that in 1994 majority of the people killed were educated
men. They won’t tell you that those Rwandan educated men who were not killed
were jailed by Kagame the rest fled the country. Therefore Rwanda remained no
educated men apart from women who apart from being women they are easy to
control that is why Kagame built on the narrative of women and equality then
hid his weaknesses of fearing men in his government, apart from the facts that
most men wouldn’t like to work with Kagame because like Dr. Binagwaho, he doesn’t
tolerate different views as we have seen in the recent serial killing of his
fellow Tutsis who brought him to power including: Col. Karegeya, his personal
doctor Dr Gasakure, businessman Rwigara Assinapol, and foreign assassination
squads in Brussels which target even foreign journalist such as the Canadian
Judy Rever among others. Of course Dr Binagwaho will tell you that we hate
Kagame that is why we tell the truth since we are not from the West if she
forgive us she will brand us as people who have genocide ideology not
genocidaires. Rwanda is a country of a Thousand Hills and a thousand holes. Welcome
the country of two tales and to be a Tutsi grants you unlimited immunity.
Thank God there are still
few people who accept to tell the truth like Professor Angus Deaton even if it
hurts the system. They have chosen to go with their academic professionalism
rather than the bonuses from the Kigali government. Rwandans feel relieved and
thankful.
Very interesting .. thank you for posting
ReplyDeleteThis is a link to Prof Deaton's reply: http://bostonreview.net/blog/angus-deaton-reply-dr-agnes-binagwaho Note that Prof Deaton is a recipient of the Nobel Prize in Economics.
ReplyDeleteI have now read this, Prof Deaton's original essay, and Deaton's reply to Dr (now Prof) Binagwaho.
Prof Binagwaho's response is really over the top; unduly hostile. Like President Kagame, she is Tutu. The essence of this debate is that the health improvements in Rwanda, since the genocide (now officially called the "genocide against the Tutsis", even though many Hutus were killed, the violence started when a Hutu president's plane was shot down, and the Tutsi military leader attributed to ending the genocide is now in power) matter more than freedom of speech and human rights abuses (including murder) against dissidents. It's a utilitarian argument, and seems justifiable over a short period. But is it, over the longer period?
I think another genocide in Rwanda is likely, unless the society can become fairer. On the positive side, the birth rate is falling and should fall even more.
I went to a conference on Rwanda in 1996, in London, attended by the then Rwandan ambassador. There was almost a fight. It was very unpleasant, the ambassador was very aggressive. I am reminded of that by Prof Binagwaho's tone.
sorry Prof Binagwaho is a Tutsi, not a "Tutu" though maybe that is the only solution! (unless you are Twa!)
ReplyDeleteThank you Buttler. However when you say the birth rate has reduced it is true this is because it is in the Paul Kagame and Dr Binagwaho Rwanda Vision 2050 of making sure by then the Hutu tribe would have become the minority. This is achieved through Dr Binagwahos plans to use forced vasectomy against Hutu men so that they will not give birth. This controlled approach to reducing Hutu birth rate has been going on since 1996. This is what to be a Hutu in todays Rwanda mean. Although Tutsis are only 14% of the Rwandan population they recieve 90% of the Rwandan scholarships to go and study in USA, EUROPE, CANADA, JAPAN, AUSTRALIA, and CANADA. Whereas Hutu brilliant kids are forced to pay their tuition in Butare National University.
DeleteIf the Hutu birthrate is now lower than Tutsis that will lead to resentment. I think the birthrates of both Hutus and Tutsis has been too high. It is more humane to prevent births than to kill people. However, I do not support forced sterilisation of any group.
DeleteI have written a blog about this called ""Effective altruism" and oppression in the dark heart of Africa"
ReplyDeleteIt can be read at http://globalchangemusings.blogspot.com.au/2017/01/effective-altruism-and-oppression-in.html