Overview

• The championships are underway in Kigali, the first time cycling’s flagship event has been staged in Africa, with the UCI praising Rwanda’s transformation and hospitality.
• Human Rights Watch reports years of repression that have silenced critics through killings, disappearances, and harassment, shrinking space for independent media, opposition parties, and civil society.
• Opposition leader Victoire Ingabire was arrested in June and is on trial with 14 party members, with five members of her parties reported dead or missing under suspicious circumstances since 2017.
• HRW says the Rwanda‑backed M23 committed war crimes in eastern DRC, including more than 140 summary executions in July, a claim Rwanda denies.
• Rights groups warn authorities have rounded up people deemed “undesirable” before major events and say the race risks sportswashing, urging robust human‑rights due diligence as Rwanda expands its ‘Visit Rwanda’ sports branding with clubs such as Arsenal and Bayern Munich.