KIGALI, Rwanda—Rwandan President Paul Kagame on Friday said he will run for a third term in office after his second seven-year term expires in 2017, a move opposed by the U.S., a key ally.
The announcement in his end-of-year message follows last month’s constitutional referendum in which 98% of Rwandans voted to approve a revised constitution to allow Mr. Kagame to extend his tenure in office.
“You requested me to lead the country again after 2017. Given the importance and consideration you attach to this, I can only accept,” Mr. Kagame said
Mr. Kagame became president in 2000 after being Rwanda’s de facto leader since the end of the country’s genocide in 1994. He is credited with stabilizing the country and promoting economic growth after the mass killings, but critics say he is an authoritarian ruler who doesn’t tolerate opposition and he is accused of human rights abuses.
Rwanda’s political opposition criticized the referendum as undemocratic, and the U.S., a key Rwandan ally, has opposed Mr. Kagame’s bid to stay in power.
Appearing to address these concerns, Mr. Kagame said “even misguided or deliberately harmful criticism can be the start of a conversation…what is important is that we respect each other.”
—Copyright the Associated Press
Jan. 1, 2016