Paper long abstract:

Ethics is of course a prerequisite for conducting good research, but what if this means that you will not have access to relevant data? In this paper I would like to show how applying the norms and conditions of the Rwandan Ethics Committee prevents the researcher from freely conducting research and hinders his or her access to the Rwandan peasantry. With being in line with the conditions of the Ethics Committee the researcher would become too closely linked to the Rwandan government and would not be able to voice the thoughts and feelings of rural Rwandans. In obeying to national ethical codes the researcher would then sort of betray the people he wants to give a voice to. How ethical is that?