UNPO and the African Initiative for Mankind Progress Organization (AIMPO) submitted information to the Human Rights Committee for its 144th Session, which will take place between the 23rd of June and the 25th of July 2025, to assess Rwanda’s implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Rwanda signed and ratified the ICCPR in 1975, signalling its dedication to uphold an array of civil and political rights including the right to life, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, self-determination, the right to participate in public affairs, and the right to a fair trial. The report highlighted that although Rwanda has made strides in upholding civil and political rights, some of its policies have had detrimental impacts on the Batwa community, who have been a member of the UNPO since 1993.
The Batwa live throughout Rwanda in small groups and have long been discriminated against for their culture and traditions. They are traditionally forest-dwelling hunter gatherers who have a long history of marginalization, which worsened upon the arrival of European colonial powers.
The Batwa people’s struggles illustrate the indivisible nature of human rights. The high levels of poverty (95% compared to the national level of 39.1%), poor health services, and high rates of illiteracy (51% compared to the 14% national average) continue to act as significant barriers to the community. UNPO highlighted that both categories of rights are integral for Batwa human development, and how the realization of poverty reduction and the successes of any development initiatives will be limited and marginal without sufficient political inclusion of the Batwa people.
AIMPO and UNPO’s report noted how in the aftermath of the catastrophic genocide in 1994, the government made legislative overhauls which fundamentally restructured society. Article 54 of the Constitution bans the recognition of ethnic minorities, citing categorization as a source of division which contributed to the genocidal violence. Therefore, disadvantaged groups are collectively referred to as ‘Historically Marginalised People’ (HMPs). The organisations argued that this grouping overlooks specific harms faced by the Batwa and hampers opportunities to develop more targeted and culturally sensitive approaches to issues affecting their community.
Furthermore, many Batwa lack official paperwork like birth certifications, national identity documents, and health insurance which are essential for accessing healthcare and other basic services. The report detailed how negative conceptions about Batwa people are normalised in Rwandan society, which depicts them as lazy and unintelligent. This, in turn, affects their access to formalized employment opportunities and educational opportunities, with particularly protracted effects felt by Batwa women. UNPO noted that between 2009 and 2020, only a reported 40 Batwa students graduated in Rwanda. These issues also illustrate how the Batwa are routinely excluded from international and domestic legal protections created to guarantee equality under the law, such as Article 26 of the ICCPR; Article 16 of the Constitution; and Law No 68/2018 (addressing gender discrimination).
The Batwa people are currently only represented by one senator in the national senate and have limited agency to make decisions for their communities. UNPO’s highlighted the lack of washing facilities and disinfectant during COVID-19, which prevented Batwa people from implementing health and safety measures as a recent example of how limited representation impacts key areas of human development.
Despite constitutional provisions like Article 39 and related laws facilitating the registration of community-based organisations, the Batwa often cannot create associations promoting their cultural identity or advocating for their specific needs, contravening Articles 19 (Freedom of Expression), Article 26 (Right to Take Part in Public Affairs) and Article 35 (Freedom of Peaceful Assembly) of the ICCPR. UNPO noted how this further restricts Batwa political representation and protections.
Additionally, Article 54 limits the ability of NGOs and other grassroots movements from lobbying for specific issues faced by the Batwa people, due to its preclusion of political groups from basing themselves around characteristics like race, ethnic group, tribe, sex, and religion. UNPO documented how the group Communauté des Autochtones Rwandais (CAURWA) faced government threats around their legal status and charity licence renewal in 2004 and 2007 for including the term ‘Indigenous’ from their title and references to the Batwa people as the country’s first inhabitants.
Land dispossession and restricted access to ancestral sites has limited the Batwa’s right to practice their religion without interference, protected under Article 18 of the ICCPR and the Law Determining Offences and Penalties in General (2018) under Rwandan law. The report outlined how displacements from ancestral lands are often carried out without consultations or compensation.
Article 38 of the Rwandan Constitution protects the right to freedom of expression and opinion and the ability to impart and receive information, which is reinforced by several other laws. UNPO asserted that progressive implementation of these laws is often limited by the concurrent criminalisation of dissent, which is framed as divisive. This has ramifications on wider Rwandan society and has led to self-censorship by journalists, with the Batwa’s vulnerability placing them at greater risk of repression and silence.
UNPO and AIMPO call on the Republic of Rwanda to permit indigenous and minority communities to identify themselves freely in line with Article 19 of the ICCPR and to develop policies in line with international standards to facilitate access to ancestral lands and address endemic issues of exclusion and poverty in the Batwa community.
Cover picture ©WitnessImage – Luca Catalano
