Rwanda says genocide law fair, not stifling opposition

KIGALI (Reuters) - The Rwandan government justified a genocide law which bans ethnic divisionism and denied claims it is used to stifle freedom of speech.

"There is genocide ideology not only in Rwanda but all around. The forces of genocide are real. Legislation is in place, it has a purpose (and) we think the law is fair," said Justice Minister Tharcisse Karugarama late on Thursday.

Rights groups, including Amnesty International, say the legislation, which came into force in 2008, is vague and ambiguous and is often employed to silence legitimate criticism and discredit opposition parties.

"Rwanda has an obligation to prohibit speech that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence," said Tawanda Hondora, Deputy Director for Africa at Amnesty International in a statement.

"But Rwanda's laws on genocide ideology too often conflate legitimate political dissent with such incitement," he said.

Amnesty International this week urged the government to investigate intimidation claims by opposition groups, and uphold its commitment to freedom of expression.

Incumbent President Paul Kagame, who rebuilt the central African country in the aftermath of the 1994 genocide of 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus, is expected to win a second seven-year term in August presidential elections.

Amnesty said previous elections were marred by intimidation.

Two vocal opposition leaders are being investigated by authorities for remarks which the broadly pro-government local press have called divisionist.

Bernard Ntaganda from the Social Party Imberakuri and Victoire Ingabire, head of the unregistered United Democratic Forces (UDF), face 10 to 25 years in jail if found guilty.

Local media has criticised Ingabire for public remarks calling for the prosecution of war crimes and crimes against humanity by the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) against Hutu.

Frank Habineza, leader of the unregistered Democratic Green Party, accused the RPF of intimidating party members and using the genocide law against opposition parties.

"(The RPF) are trying to make sure that they squeeze everybody, make everybody keep quiet by use of force or law ... there is collaboration with state organs," he said.

Rwanda is nominally a multiparty democracy but in practice analysts say the real power lies in the hands of Kagame.

(Editing by Louise Ireland)