Who Upholds the Principles: Government, Citizens and Daily Life

20 min

A boundary dispute on the hill

Two neighbours in a rural cell disagree about where the line between their plots runs. One has planted bananas a metre into land the other says is his. Tempers rise. What happens next shows whether the fundamental principles live only in the Constitution or also on the hillside.

The neighbours first talk, with family elders present.
When that fails, they take the matter to the Abunzi committee of the cell, whose members are "persons of integrity who are recognised for their conciliation skills" (Article 142).
Only if conciliation fails does the dispute go to a court, which decides by law.

Every step applies a principle: dialogue and consensus (f) first, then the rule of law (d) as the last resort. Notice that both government institutions and ordinary citizens play a part.

Definition

Duty bearer: a person or institution that has an obligation to respect, protect or carry out a right or principle. The State is the main duty bearer, but Chapter V of the Constitution also gives duties to citizens.

Civic participation: taking an active part in public life, for example by voting, attending community meetings, joining umuganda or reporting wrongdoing.

Two sets of roles, one goal

Principle	What government does	What citizens do
(a) Fight genocide, denial and ideology	Courts try genocide ideology and denial under Law N° 59 of 2018; the State preserves memorial sites (Article 52); civic education is organised by the Ministry of National Unity and Civic Engagement (MINUBUMWE).	Take part in Kwibuka; refuse and report denial, including online; support survivors.
(b) Unity, no discrimination	Gives equal access to public services and jobs; prohibits discrimination (Article 16).	Reject divisive talk and jokes; choose friends, members and workers on merit.
(c) Power-sharing	Applies Article 62 when forming the Cabinet; hosts the National Consultative Forum of Political Organisations (Article 59).	Vote; join or form a party freely within the law; accept results lawfully.
(d) Rule of law, democracy, equality	Keeps courts independent; the Office of the Ombudsman and the Gender Monitoring Office watch over justice and gender equality; the National Electoral Commission runs elections.	Obey the law; pay taxes; report corruption; treat girls and boys equally at home and at school.
(e) Social welfare and justice	Supports needy survivors and persons with disabilities (Articles 50 and 51); runs programmes for poor households.	Join umuganda; contribute to community health insurance; help vulnerable neighbours.
(f) Dialogue and consensus	Holds the National Umushyikirano Council (Article 141); sets up Abunzi committees (Article 142).	Settle disputes by discussion; speak at community assemblies; listen before deciding.

Worked example: applying the principles to everyday situations

Situation 1. A school prefect election has two candidates. One tells voters, "Vote for me, I am from your district."
Analysis: the appeal is to region, not merit. It goes against principle (b). A good response from pupils is to ask both candidates about their plans instead.

Situation 2. A cooperative of 20 coffee growers elects a committee of five, all men, although half the members are women.
Analysis: principle (d) asks for at least 30% women in decision-making organs. $0.3 \times 5 = 1.5$ , so at least two of the five should be women. Members can raise this at the next general assembly, which is dialogue (f) in action.

Situation 3. A shopkeeper is asked for a bribe to get a trading licence faster.
Analysis: paying would break the rule of law (d). The shopkeeper's civic duty is to refuse and report it, for example to the Office of the Ombudsman.

Warning

Do not write that "the government upholds the principles and citizens benefit". That leaves out half the answer. Chapter V of the Constitution is titled "Duties of the State and of citizens" for a reason: principles fail if citizens do not live them, however good the institutions are.

Tip

Name the institution. In answers on roles, a named body (the Office of the Ombudsman, the Gender Monitoring Office, the National Electoral Commission, an Abunzi committee) is worth more than "the government".

Important

Discuss. Should taking part in umuganda be seen as a duty, a right or a choice? Use the idea of civic participation and principle (e) in your answer.

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Practice

Define a duty bearer and name the main duty bearer in Rwanda.
Give two roles of citizens in upholding principle (a).
Name the body that conciliates disputes at cell level and the article that sets it up.
A sector youth committee has 7 members. What is the smallest number of women it needs to meet the 30% minimum? Show your working.
A classmate shares a post online that mocks survivors of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Which principle is at stake, and what should a responsible citizen do?
Evaluate the claim that institutions matter more than citizens in upholding the principles.

Show answersHide answers

A person or institution with an obligation to respect or carry out a right or principle. The State is the main duty bearer.
Any two: take part in Kwibuka; refuse and report denial or ideology; support survivors; teach younger people what happened.
The Abunzi committee, set up by Article 142.
$0.3 \times 7 = 2.1$ . Two women would be 2 out of 7 ≈ 28.6%, which is below 30%, so at least 3 women are needed (≈ 42.9%).
Principle (a): mocking survivors can be a form of genocide ideology or denial. A responsible citizen does not share it, tells the classmate why it is wrong, and reports it to a teacher or the authorities.
A good answer weighs both: institutions supply rules, courts and resources; citizens decide daily whether to discriminate, pay bribes or talk instead of fighting. Neither works alone, so the claim is only partly true.

Sources and credits

Articles 16, 50 to 52, 59, 62, 141 and 142 and the bodies named in Article 140 of the Constitution of the Republic of Rwanda of 2003 revised in 2015, as revised in 2023, Republic of Rwanda (copy hosted by MINECOFIN). Article 142 quoted word for word.
Law N° 59 of 2018 on the crime of genocide ideology and related crimes, Republic of Rwanda, via RwandaLII.
Photo: Umuganda rusange mu Rwanda, Claude Nizeyimana, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Written by Ganzaa: the case, the table, the worked example and the exercises. This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.

1A boundary dispute on the hill

2Two sets of roles, one goal

Worked example: applying the principles to everyday situations

A boundary dispute on the hill

Two sets of roles, one goal