Faustin Twagiramungu

Who is Faustin Twagiramungu?

Faustin Twagiramungu is an ethnic Hutu politician in Rwanda. He was prime minister from 1994 until his resignation in 1995, the first head of government appointed after the Rwandese Patriotic Front captured Kigali. He then exiled himself to Belgium for nearly a decade.

Twagiramungu stood as an independent candidate in the Rwandan presidential election of 2003. Running on a platform of full employment, regional security, and progressive taxation, he accused the government of attempting to silence his views. In the final count, he placed second with 3.62 percent of the vote. He initially did not accept the result, claiming that the incumbent Paul Kagame was leading the country towards a one-party system.

He attended university in Quebec, Canada, during the 1960s, during which time he met René Lévesque.