Exiled Critic of Rwandan President Found Beheaded in Uganda
The headless body of Robert Kabera, a former Rwandan army sergeant major and outspoken critic of President Paul Kagame, was found outside Kampala, Uganda. He had fled Rwanda and sought asylum in Uganda.
The body of Robert Kabera, a 50-year-old former Rwandan army sergeant major and vocal critic of Rwandan President Paul Kagame, was found beheaded on the outskirts of Kampala, Uganda's capital, over the weekend. Local residents discovered it. Kabera was living in exile in Uganda, and his death adds to concerns about the safety of Rwandan dissidents abroad.
Ugandan police spokesperson Kituuma Rusoke said on Monday that the head had still not been recovered. The Rwandan government has not publicly commented on the killing.
Who Kabera was
Kabera left Rwanda after being accused of sexual assault, which he denied. He applied for asylum in Uganda, citing political persecution. He had built a public profile as a musician and YouTuber, with more than 144,000 subscribers on his channel and over 800 videos, many of them critical of Kagame and his administration.
According to his family, Kabera had travelled to inspect a construction site roughly 45 km (30 miles) outside Kampala before he died.
His widow, Jeanne d'Arc Rwigema Uwizeye, told BBC Great Lakes in a written message that she fears for her family's safety. "It is scary. I feel crazy, the children and I don't have security," she said.
Earlier cases
Several critics of Kagame have been killed, both in Rwanda and abroad. In 2014, Patrick Karegeya, a former Rwandan intelligence chief who had helped set up an opposition party, was found dead in a hotel room in Johannesburg, South Africa. In 2019, South Africa issued arrest warrants for two Rwandans accused of his murder.
