MDR tries to shed its past

The Mouvement democratique republicain (MDR), part of Rwanda's coalition government, has urged forgiveness for the "divisive ideology" of some of its leaders who incited the 1994 genocide. Rwandan radio said the party leader, Prime Minister Pierre-Celestin Rwigema, made the appeal on behalf of his party in a statement delivered on Saturday. The statement noted that some MDR members "transformed themselves into MDR-Power and led the 1994 genocide and massacres". It stressed that this genocide ideology was contrary to the MDR's principles of democracy and republicanism. Stating it wanted to bury the past, the MDR also announced sweeping changes with a different statute and new flag, the Rwanda News Agency (RNA) reported. The new red and green colours symbolise respectively the blood shed by Rwandans and the hope for a new, unified Rwanda. Rwigema explained that hardline party MPs had been expelled from parliament and further purges could be expected within the party. At the time of the genocide, the party was split into extremists and moderates, with Rwigema a member of the latter. He has rejected allegations of his involvement in the genocide as "political character assassination".