“What leads people to criminal activities is poverty, lack of assets, lack of money. Our youth are here, they won’t stand before people begging, the way to avoid crime is to seek financial capability as much as possible, and I believe that if the institutions continue to align with FPR’s ideology in their projects, we’ll get there.”
These are some of the words expressed by Rwanda’s Minister of Youth, Utumatwishima Abdallah, on May 2023 when he was giving his remarks during the 35-year celebration of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (FPR Inkotanyi).
Minister Utumatwishima indicated that the teachings of President Paul Kagame could help the youth avoid falling into crime and even assist them in achieving their goals.
The 2022 National Census showed that the population of Rwanda was approximately 13,246,394, with over 60% of them being youth.
Youth are seen as the backbone of development activities since they are the ones with the physical energy to work, create innovations, learn, and adapt to changes effectively.
One of the concerns, however, is that this youth demographic who is supposed to become a driver of transformations in the country’s economy, is plagued with crimes.
When youth are involved in criminal activities, they waste time on non-productive activities, forsaking development efforts and undermining them instead.
In addition to being consumed by crime and imprisonment, the constant appearances in court further hinder the country’s progress, and the crimes committed have repercussions on the country’s economy.
Crimes prevalent among the youth
Statistics from the Prosecutor General’s Office of Rwanda indicate that out of the 116,349 individuals prosecuted for crimes in 2022 and 2023, a significant number were aged between 18 and 30.
Some of the major crimes that Rwandan youth are facing in the courts this year include theft, breach of trust, use of threats, and statutory rape (sleeping with underage girls).
The data shows that out of those prosecuted for theft, 40,586 were youth aged between 18 and 30, making up 59% of all prosecuted individuals. Those aged between 14 and 18 make up 4.3%, and those between 30 and 40 are 24.1%.
Article 168 stipulates that theft using a weapon or threats is punishable by a prison sentence of not less than five years but not more than seven years and a fine of not less than 3,000,000 Rwandan francs but not more than 5,000,000 Rwandan francs.
The second most common crime among Rwandan youth is assault and battery as 11,354 out of the 28,333 prosecuted individuals, or 41% of all prosecuted individuals, were aged between 18 and 30.
On this charge, those aged between 31 and 40 make up 31.7%, while those aged 14 to 17 comprise 1.7% or 477 individuals.
This crime is punishable by a prison sentence of not less than three years but not more than five years, and a fine not less than 500,000 Rwandan francs but not more than 1,000,000 Rwandan francs.
The use of threats is also one of the crimes mostly committed by the youth, with 1,889 individuals aged between 18 and 30 being convicted.
The Rwandan Penal Code states that anyone who uses threats to harm another person, whether those threats are verbal, in gestures, signs, images, or writing, is guilty of a crime.
If convicted by the court, the punishment is a prison sentence of not less than one year but not more than two years and a fine of not less than 300,000 Rwandan francs but not more than 500,000 Rwandan francs.
More than 1000 young people were also prosecuted for is breach of trust.
The law stipulates that any person who is given or entrusted with something is supposed to return it or use it for a specific purpose but if the person uses it for his own advantage, destroys it, degrades it, or gives it to another person, commits the crime of breach of trust.
If convicted by the court, the punishment is a prison sentence of not less than three years but not more than five years and a fine of not less than 500,000 Rwandan francs but not more than 1,000,000 Rwandan francs.
One of the most distressing crimes is statutory rape (sleeping with underage girls), with 2753 youths, accounting for 58.7% of all those prosecuted.
The law stipulates that any adult who abuses a child under 14 years of age will receive a life sentence that cannot be reduced due to mitigating circumstances. However, a precedent set by the Supreme Court indicates that this sentence can be reduced.
In the draft revision of the Penal Code, it is proposed that this crime be included among the inalienable crimes.
