Thread by @docrussjackson

#THREAD

There are some uncanny similarities between the authoritarian Government of #Rwanda, & the increasingly authoritarian UK Government.

#NotInMyName

theconversation.com/how-authoritar…

To manage their image abroad, authoritarian states try to advance a favourable narrative about themselves. They do things like hire public relations firms to produce positive content, disseminate propaganda themselves & cultivate friendly foreigners who can speak on their behalf.

But they also try to silence, obscure, or discredit criticisms of their rule.

They try to “spin” negative news stories, sow discord or paranoia in activist communities at home & abroad, & repress their critics.

During his decades in power, Rwandan leader Kagame has systematically undermined opposition, manipulated elections & repressed critics at home & abroad, & like many other authoritarian leaders, not least Putin, he has also amended the constitution so he can rule until 2034.

In 2020, the Sweden-based Varieties of Democracy Institute ranked Rwanda 150th out of 179 countries in the world on its index of liberal democracy. In other words, clearly authoritarian.

Kagame’s ruling political party – the Rwandan Patriotic Front – pays a lot of attention to its image abroad. Rwanda is an avid consumer of PR services from firms based in Europe & the US - arguably the world's largest providers of advice on 'reputation management' & manipulation.

The same year that Kagame won over 95% of the vote in the manipulated 2003 election, #Rwanda’s embassy in the US contracted PR firms to boost the image of the country & its leader. As Kagame consolidated power domestically, it was important to be seen positively in the US & UK.

The Rwandan Patriotic Front is hyper-sensitive to criticism. It’s so touchy that what foreign academics write garners attention. Responses are sometimes published in party-loyal newspapers or other medua platforms.

In 2013, the Rwandan ministry of foreign affairs contracted an American academic to “establish a publishing record” in popular & academic venues about the Rwandan diaspora. Years later, the same academic did appear as a government witness at Rusesabagina’s trial.

Even more consequentially, its agents have been involved in extraterritorial repression, including assassination plots which target critics abroad.

As shown with Rusesabagina’s case, the state wants to avoid the reputational damage that comes with transnational repression.

It probably also wants to signal to potentially troublesome exiles that nobody is out of reach. #Rwanda is not the only state to use these tactics. At least 33 authoritarian states collectively paid PR & public affairs firms hundreds of millions of dollars in 2018 & 2019.

This is only in the US, only self-reported, & only overt. The scope is much wider. Nor is it just today’s dictatorships that try to influence their international information environment. South Africa’s apartheid regime went to extraordinary lengths to manipulate its image abroad.

And now, the UK's increasingly authoritarian Government's plan to deal with the illegal transportation of some of the most vulnerable people on earth, is the illegal transportation of some of the world's most vulnerable people to one of the most authoritarian regimes on earth.

And here's a #THREAD about the uncanny, undeniable & disturbing parallels between Boris Johnson's Government & the Nazi regime of the 1930s that doesn't even mention their idea of forcibly relocating Jews to Madagascar.

#Rwanda #NeverForget #NeverAgain

https://twitter.com/docrussjackson/status/1371265857108738048?s=20&t=j3RxNJBF7sF0rQrMFMDByg

I don't believe in coincidences: in October, Dubai ports giant DP World (owners of P&O ferries) & Britain's development finance agency CDC Group announced investment of up to $1.72 billion in 'logistics infrastructure' in Africa - including #Rwanda. 🧐

reuters.com/world/africa/d…

https://twitter.com/maybulman/status/1514713171243814912?s=20&t=H6bOIK4Jnufg9JCUa0H3UA

https://twitter.com/docrussjackson/status/1514962777089138688?t=Eru8BMvhtP5hZExx1vu9sA&s=19