UPR Info

Take all appropriate measures to prevent and combat all forms of disability-based discrimination

Adopt legal provisions recognizing the full legal capacity of persons with disabilities

Take measures to prevent child marriage, including by developing a national action plan and dedicating resources for its implementation

Take further measures to prevent child marriage

Take steps with a view to prohibiting early and forced marriage

Take the necessary institutional measures to ensure that street children in transit centres are not subjected to arbitrary detention or ill- treatment

Ensure adequate resources for programmes focusing on children, especially children with disabilities

Ensure the proper application of Law No. 17/2017 establishing the National Rehabilitation Service so that no violation of the rights of the child is committed

Enact an explicit prohibition of the corporal punishment of children in all settings, including at home

Put in place appropriate mechanisms to combat gender-based violence

Strengthen efforts to improve the constitutional and policy framework with an aim to ensure women’s participation in all levels of decision-making

Take further steps to improve the enrolment of women at the tertiary education level

Consider introducing a year of mandatory and free preschool education

Continue efforts to reduce maternal mortality rates, in particular by removing obstacles to access to termination of pregnancy in its existing legal clauses and continuing the public debate geared towards the ultimate decriminalization of abortion

Amend its legislation in order to legalize the termination of pregnancies in cases of risk to the life of the pregnant woman, rape, incest and severe impairment of the fetus

Provide families living in poverty with adequate social protection and create income-generating opportunities for them

Promote the integration of women into the labour force and adopt a gender-sensitive and adequately resourced employment policy

Facilitate the employment of persons with disabilities in both the public and the private sectors and ensure their access to all public services

Adopt and implement comprehensive policies to increase employment opportunities for persons with disabilities and take more measures to promote the integration of women into the labour force

Support, through economic and social policies, the institution of the family and the preservation of family values

Ensure effective protection of the rights of the child, especially with regard to prevention, prosecution and elimination of sexual exploitation of children

Establish effective mechanisms, procedures and guidelines for the mandatory reporting of cases of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of minors

Reinforce measures to protect the rights of children and youth from sexual violence, abuse and trafficking

Adopt a comprehensive policy to avert sexual exploitation and abuse of children, as well as all forms of slavery and trafficking

Eradicate child sexual exploitation and abuse by strengthening relevant legislation and establishing appropriate monitoring and reporting mechanisms

Accelerate the adoption of the bill on trafficking in persons and child labour

Accelerate the process of adoption of the national action plan against human trafficking

Complete the adoption of the national action plan against human trafficking

Protect the legitimate work of human rights defenders and political opponents

Strengthen its progress on democratization, the broadening of political and civil space and the protection of human rights defenders

Ensure the rights to freedom of opinion and expression, peaceful assembly and association; fully investigate threats, arbitrary arrests, intimidation and harassment of human rights defenders, who are recognized as stakeholders in the national Human Rights Action Plan; and review the registration of NGOs in order to simplify the process

Guarantee the independence of civil society organizations and human rights defenders

Guarantee a vibrant civil society and the independence of NGOs by revising laws affecting their registration and operations

Take measures to foster a safe, respectful and enabling environment for civil society and human rights defenders, free from persecution, intimidation and harassment, and to relax the requirements for registering NGOs

Ensure a safe and enabling environment for civil society, including by lifting onerous registration requirements on civil society organizations

Guarantee the protection and freedom of expression of politicians, journalists and rights defenders and fight against the impunity of the perpetrators of violence against them

Take measures against the legal ambiguity regarding the competences of media regulatory bodies such as the Rwanda Media Commission in order to strengthen their independence against government interference and align them with international standards

Enhance freedom of expression by amending the 2018 Penal Code to repeal the offence of spreading false information or harmful propaganda with intent to cause hostile international opinion against the Rwandan Government and insults or defamation against the President

Amend article 2 (19) of the media law to broaden the definition of journalist in order to include citizen journalists, freelance journalists and bloggers, in accordance with international standards on freedom of expression

Remove from the legislation any provision that violates the right to freedom of expression

Take concrete steps to ensure media independence

Take measures to protect freedom of expression and protect journalists from harassment and injustices

Take further measures to protect journalists and human rights defenders

Protect and uphold the freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, including by respecting and supporting free and independent media, in line with international human rights standards

Strengthen freedom of expression, in line with the Constitution of Rwanda and international law, particularly through the establishment of a binding legal instrument that guarantees the independence of the Rwanda Media Commission

Promote media freedom by creating a legal framework for the self- regulatory Rwanda Media Commission

Ensure that the right to freedom of religion or belief is guaranteed and protected within Rwanda, and that religious minorities are treated equally as regards their human rights and fundamental freedoms

Investigate cases of extrajudicial arrests, unlawful detentions and arbitrary executions

Combat impunity for the crime of enforced disappearance

Increase transparency in the legal system and commission independent investigations into allegations of extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, deaths in custody and unlawful detentions

Ensure that members of marginalized groups – including persons with disabilities, children living in the streets and also lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex individuals – do not become subject to arbitrary detention or ill-treatment by the security forces

Allow independent investigations of allegations of torture and ill- treatment in detention facilities

Take all appropriate measures to ensure that all reported cases of torture, enforced disappearance and arbitrary detention are investigated and ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance

Take all necessary measures to combat impunity for the crimes of enforced disappearance and human trafficking

Conduct independent investigations into all cases of excessive use of force by security forces, as well as extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances, in order to bring those responsible to justice

Consider investigating all allegations of extrajudicial, arbitrary or summary executions and enforced disappearances

Guarantee the protection of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people against violence, harassment and arbitrary arrests

Repeal all legal provisions that are discriminatory towards women and adopt comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation; furthermore, strengthen efforts to raise awareness of existing legislation and to fight prejudices and stereotypical attitudes that lead to discriminatory practices against women

Enact legislation recognizing the full capacity of persons with disabilities

Adopt the implementing decree for the law determining the offences and penalties in general

Ratify and fully align its national legislation with all the obligations under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, as previously recommended

Adopt comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation that addresses direct and indirect discrimination and encompasses all the prohibited grounds of discrimination, including sexual orientation and gender identity

Ensure, in law and in practice, the protection of the rights of vulnerable groups of its population, particularly women, children, persons with disabilities, older persons as well as ethnic minorities

Establish a permanent national mechanism for the implementation, reporting and monitoring of human rights recommendations, considering the possibility of receiving cooperation for this purpose, within the framework of Sustainable Development Goals 16 and 17

Accelerate the adoption of the bill on trafficking in persons

Continue to make efforts to bring its domestic legislation in line with the international treaties Rwanda was party to before the Constitutional amendment of 2015

Ratify the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

Ratify the International Labour Organization Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189), to advance Sustainable Development Goals 5.4, 8 and 16

Sign and ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons

Ratify the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

Ratify the Optional Protocol to Convention on the Rights of the Child on a communications procedure and the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, on an individual complaints mechanism

Ratify the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a communications procedure, as well as the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

Ratify the main international human rights treaties that are still pending, in order to make progress on Sustainable Development Goals 5, 11, 13 and 16

Enhance the implementation of existing legislation to prevent child marriage

Take all necessary measures to prevent, prosecute and eliminate the exploitation of children in the sex industry, including within the tourism sector

Take all legal and administrative measures that are necessary to prevent, prosecute and eliminate the exploitation of children in the sex industry, including within the tourism sector

Screen, identify and provide support to trafficking victims, including those held in government transit centres

Take measures to protect human right defenders and journalists from harassment and attacks and ensure independent credible investigations of alleged cases and the prosecution of offenders

Conduct thorough, impartial and independent investigations into all reports of harassment and attacks on human rights defenders and journalists, and bring those responsible to justice

Amend Law No. 04/2012 and Law No. 05/2012, in consultation with civil society organizations, in order to remove existing restrictions on their legal registration

Consider reviewing the registration requirements for both national and international NGOs with a view to simplifying the process

Promote the right to freedom of expression by ending detentions and harassment of members of the media and civil society for their reporting

Amend article 96 of the Penal Code regarding incitement to genocide to bring it into line with international standards on freedom of expression

Continue efforts to promote religious tolerance by ensuring accommodation for religious minorities in the workplace

Continue to participate in and engage with cases ongoing at the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights

Independently and transparently investigate credible allegations of unlawful or arbitrary arrests and detentions, killings and enforced disappearances of human rights defenders, political opponents and journalists, prosecuting alleged perpetrators under the law

Ensure due process and conduct effective and objective investigations regarding cases of alleged arbitrary arrest, detention and extrajudicial executions, including those which may constitute enforced disappearance

Carry out independent investigations into all allegations of human rights violations such as forced disappearances, arbitrary and prolonged detentions, extrajudicial executions and torture and ill-treatment in detention centres and ensure the prosecution of alleged perpetrators

Ensure an independent, impartial investigation of all allegations of extrajudicial, arbitrary or summary executions and enforced disappearances, as well as the prosecution of those found guilty

Conduct transparent, credible and independent investigations into allegations of extrajudicial killings, deaths in custody, enforced disappearances and torture, and bring perpetrators to justice

Include, under article 6 of its Constitution, the prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation

Criminalize the compulsory recruitment of children in the national armed forces and non-State armed groups

Criminalize the compulsory recruitment of children in the national armed forces and non-State armed groups

Criminalize the compulsory recruitment of children into national armed forces and non-State armed groups

Recommit to Rwanda’s previous declaration under article 24 (6) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights to allow individuals and NGOs to bring cases directly to the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights

Cooperate fully with the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment to allow a country visit as soon as possible

Ensure that the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment is able to visit the country

Provide the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment unrestricted access to all places of detention, in full respect for the principle of confidentiality and freedom from reprisal

Cooperate fully with the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and facilitate a country visit as soon as practicable

Respond positively to pending visit requests to the country by the special procedures

Ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

Ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

Ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

Take action to eliminate all cases of enforced disappearances and ensure that all cases of enforced disappearance are thoroughly and impartially investigated and perpetrators are brought to justice

Accede to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance

Consider ratifying the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, in accordance with the recommendation accepted by the country during the first cycle

Ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, the Optional Protocol to Convention on the Rights of the Child on a communications procedure and the Optional Protocol to International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

Ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance

Ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance

Consider ratifying the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance

Reconsider ratifying the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance

Become a party to and implement the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance to ensure compliance with international standards, in line with our previous two recommendations

Ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and implement policies to halt this practice

Proceed with the early ratification of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance

Sign and ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance

Ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance

Ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

Finalize the ratification of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance

Accede to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, as a remaining part of the core international human rights treaties

Ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

Ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance

Ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

Accelerate the implementation of the national action plan to eradicate statelessness

Ensure that all reception centres for refugee and asylum-seeking children are adapted to their needs and that all unaccompanied and separated children have access to national refugee status determination procedures, as well as investigate any reports of the alleged disappearance of children from refugee camps, in particular adolescent girls

Continue efforts to promote and protect the rights of refugees, in particular their rights to food, education and access to clean and safe drinking water

Intensify efforts to safeguard the rights of immigrants and refugees

Take appropriate measures to prevent and address all forms of disability-based discrimination

Raise awareness of the key provisions of Ministerial Order No. 007/2016 and the Special Needs and Inclusive Education Policy among all relevant stakeholders, including persons with disabilities, so as to ensure their effective implementation

Continue effective measures to protect the rights of persons with disabilities, including persons with albinism

Enhance protection of the rights of persons with disabilities and effectively address domestic violence against women and children

Guarantee to persons with disabilities, especially children with disabilities, the right to an inclusive quality education and health services, with accessible environments and adequately trained teachers and professionals to provide individual support

Strengthen national bodies responsible for guaranteeing the rights of people with disabilities and ensure their full integration into society

Adopt the necessary measures to protect the integrity of persons with disabilities in all settings, including the prevention of forced treatment and forced sterilization of persons with disabilities

Intensify efforts to protect and provide assistance to children living in the streets by strengthening national rehabilitation services and working to inculcate positive behaviours, and provide them with education and professional skills

Ensure full access to education, health and social services for children in disadvantaged or vulnerable situations, including children with disabilities, children in street situations, children affected by HIV/AIDS, children living in poverty or in child-headed households and children from historically marginalized communities, including the Batwa

Increase efforts to eradicate child labour

Make further efforts to promote respect for the rights of children and combat child labour, as well as all forms of violence and exploitation against children

Intensify efforts to promote and protect the rights of the child

Effectively address the issues of teenage pregnancy, child labour and the inaccessibility of children with disabilities to educational facilities and an adequate standard of living

Continue to take steps to strengthen the legal framework for the protection of children and the rights of children

Put in place adequate safeguards and measures to face the high rate of child abandonment, based on the principle of the best interests of the child, while working to address the root causes of this phenomenon

Continue to allocate the necessary budgetary and other resources required to promote and protect children, particularly those living in poverty

Continue efforts to combat discrimination and violence against women, such as domestic violence

Enhance its efforts to combat all forms of gender-based violence against women, including domestic and sexual violence

Enhance efforts to combat all forms of gender-based violence, including domestic and sexual violence

Implement the Law on Prevention and Punishment of Gender-based Violence and ensure zero tolerance among law enforcement agencies for gender- based violence

Enhance its efforts to combat all forms of gender-based violence against women, including domestic violence and sexual violence

Continue its efforts to strengthen the legal framework to combat gender-based violence against women, including domestic and sexual violence

Ensure the effective application of its legislation against gender-based violence and investigate, prosecute and condemn perpetrators of sexual and gender-based violence

Enhance efforts to combat all forms of gender-based violence against women, including domestic and sexual violence