Rwanda’s high court has acquitted former presidential hopeful, Diane Rwigara and her mother Adeline Rwigara who were facing charges for inciting insurrection and forgery of documents.
The court in Kigali ruled that the Rwigaras were innocent after finding that there was no sufficient evidence provided by the prosecutors to charge the two.
Diane Rwigara, 37, was facing charges of forgery of election signatures related to her unsuccessful bid to run for presidency last year. Rwigara allegedly submitted forged signatures to the National Electoral Commission to raise the mandatory 600 signatures required by an independent candidate.
Her mother, who was also acquitted this Thursday, was facing charges of inciting insurrection and discrimination.
Rwanda’s Minister of Justice and Attorney General posted a statement about the case of Diane and Adeline Rwigara saying that, “The Government respects the court’s verdict on the case of Diane Rwigara and Adeline Rwigara and will carefully study its implications.”
“We condemn all attempts by external actors to inappropriately influence judicial processes in Rwanda. We will continue to vigorously enforce our laws on electoral integrity, public safety, and respect for the judiciary,” the statement concluded.
