Every country, including Rwanda, has its own history, challenges and aspirations that are considered when setting its pattern of democracy.

Therefore, democracy is not a one size fits all. Every country has the right to choose a democratic system that suits its own national conditions. History has repeatedly proven that it is not feasible for Rwanda to copy the political system of other countries.

But then, who defines democracy?

The Global North seems to have self-proclaimed itself as a teacher of democracy for the rest of the world, but theirs is only arrogance and bullying.

Democracy comes from the Greek words "demos" meaning people and "kratos" meaning power. When combined, it can be thought of as "power of the people,” meaning a way of governing which depends on the will of the people.

Rwanda chose consensual over confrontational democracy. The country opted for a consensual democracy that consists of quest for solutions through dialogue and consent. The Constitution of Rwanda provides for power sharing and recognizes a multiparty system.

Related: Democracy the Rwandan way: You don’t have to be abrasive

Political organizations provide a platform for Rwandans to exercise the above constitutional choices with responsibility to promote the principles of democracy, uphold the unity of Rwandans, the integrity and the security of the country.

They are also expected to educate the citizens on engaging in political activities based on democracy, on expressing the right to vote and to be elected as well as ensuring equal access for women and men to elective mandates and functions of the government.

Rwandan political organizations are obliged to reflect gender equality and complementarity, whether in the recruitment of members, putting in place organs of leadership and in their operations and activities.

Each political organization must have at least 30 percent of posts in decision-making organs awarded to women.

Related: Why Rwanda subscribes to consensual democracy

The Constitution of Rwanda has established the National Consultative Forum of Political Organizations (NFPO), a platform where political organizations recognized in Rwanda meet and discuss the country’s problems and national policies.

The organization serves as a framework for conflict mediation between political parties, and for the promotion of the code of conduct which should characterize the political leadership in Rwanda.

That is why the country experiences no elections-related violence.

Bad political leadership that characterized the first and second republics of Rwanda led to divisionism, discrimination and ethnicization which resulted in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Most of the then political parties focused on ethnicity, with the aim of promoting the Hutu while repressing the Tutsi.

In the aftermath of the Genocide, Rwandans chose consensual democracy, a model that underpins three choices which Rwandans have made: unity, accountability and thinking big. The choices have been the guiding principles of post-genocide Rwanda.

Today, we have a multiparty system with no discrimination. All Rwandans stand for unity, security and fighting genocide ideology, and that is our democracy.

There are critics of the Rwandan model of democracy who say that it is not vibrant, that it stifles the opposition, and that the elections are boring because they do not see confrontation between political parties, as seen in many countries. But, does violence define real democracy?

Related: Those berating us on democracy, is there no log in your eye?

The 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi was caused by bad politics.

Rwandans vowed to leave behind such bad politics and to build a new nation.

Political organizations decided to embrace mature politics, which could be difficult for the critics to comprehend because they just hear about Genocide, but have no clue about its real effect on Rwandan society.