Tagged: DRC
Women Hold The Key To Long Lasting Peace
GUARDIAN GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT NETWORK (London)
Photo: Arne Hodalic/UNHCR
OPINION
by Mary ROBINSON 12. August 2013
Women have suffered most as a result of conflict in DRC and the Great Lakes region – their voices must be heard
Not a week goes by without reports of fresh fighting in the eastern areas of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Violence and destruction have ravaged the Great Lakes region of Africa for two decades, claiming more than 5 million lives. Yet the situation rarely makes the headlines.
What strikes me is the lack of outrage and horror, particularly given the disproportionate impact the conflict is having on women and children. As I asked the UN security council last month, how can we accept a situation where rape and sexual violence – which, let us be clear, are war crimes – have become the norm?
When Ban Ki-moon asked me to become his special envoy for the Great Lakes in March, I felt a particular responsibility to the mothers, daughters and grandmothers who – since my first visit to the region, as president of Ireland in 1994 – have shared with me what they have suffered in Bujumbura, Bukavu, Goma, Kigali or Kinshasa.
In 20 years of killings, rape, destruction and displacement, these women have suffered most. Yet I believe they are the region’s best hope for building lasting peace. My job now, and the job of the international community, is to support them in every way we can.
Women’s voices should not only be heard because they are the victims of the war. Their active participation in peace efforts is essential, because they are the most effective peace builders. As men take up arms, women hold communities together in times of war. This makes them stronger and better equipped to play a key role in securing real peace, as we have seen in Northern Ireland, Liberia and elsewhere.
My approach to peace-building involves not just political leaders, but all of civil society, including women. Without their full support and participation, no peace agreement can succeed. How many secret deals have been negotiated in the Great Lakes region, only to be ignored or forgotten by the signatories for lack of transparency and accountability?
I believe the peace, security and co-operation framework for the DRC and the region, signed in Addis Ababa in February 2013 by 11 African countries, provides an opportunity to do things differently. That is why I have called it a framework of hope. I have started to work on its implementation top-down, with the 11 heads of state who signed the agreement, and bottom-up, with the people of the region who will be its real beneficiaries.
As the first woman to be appointed UN special envoy, I have promised to ensure that women’s voices are heard at the negotiating table. Last month, with Femmes Africa Solidarité and the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region, we brought together more than 100 women from across the region – including the gender ministers of the DRC, Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi – in Bujumbura. One upshot of the meeting has been to ensure the consequences of sexual violence are included in the benchmarks we are developing to measure progress in the implementation of the peace agreement.
I feel energised by the leadership shown by the women I met in Bujumbura.
They are taking full responsibility for peace, security and development in the region. Reaching across national borders, they are innovative, collegial and practical. I rely on them to hold their leaders to account for the full implementation of the framework of hope.
As special envoy, I will continue to support female-led initiatives. I am pleased the World Bank has allocated $150m (£98m) to finance gender-based projects, in addition to the $1bn already pledged for the region. I encourage the donor community to be even more strategic in its support of the framework of hope. It is crucial to demonstrate the economic benefits of a lasting peace based on development – what I call the peace dividend.
Almost six months after the signing of the peace agreement, armed groups are still roaming in eastern Congo, sowing terror and destruction. This is not acceptable. I have heard the region’s people voice their frustration and anger at the slow pace of change. However, I am confident that, with the support of civil society – including women – we can succeed in bringing peace to the region.
I have often heard my friend Desmond Tutu, a fellow member of the Elders, say: “I am not an optimist, I am a prisoner of hope.” The women of the Great Lakes are keeping my hope alive.
Fleeing to ‘the enemy’
A man accused by the Congolese Army of being a spy of M23 rebels is tied and taken away on July 16 in Munigi on the outskirts of Goma (photo AFP/Getty)
THE RWANDA FOCUS
22 July 2013
It was the strangest of sights: a group of 85 members of the Congolese Army (FARDC) crossing the Rubavu border into Rwanda. Yet instead of an attack, as one would expect considering the belligerent language coming from Kinshasa, the soldiers on Thursday came begging for refuge, after one and a half day of intensive fighting with the M23 rebels.
The men were received by their RDF colleagues, and handed over to UNHCR officials.
The event follows fresh fighting between FARDC and M23 rebels which started about a week ago in the areas of Mutaho and Kanyarucyinya villages, about 15 kilometers from Goma.
It wasn’t the only defection the FARDC suffered last week. Lieutenant colonel Rwabukamba Mugisha, one of its senior officers, likewise surrendered to the M23. The latter also managed to capture a Tanzanian called Christopher George, believed to be attached to the newly-formed UN intervention brigade, and who was found fighting alongside the genocidal Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) in the Rucuru.
The fighting also resulted in the U.N. issuing an official complaint on Friday against mistreatment and mutilation by the FARDC of dead bodies suspected of M23 fighters, as well as mistreatment of detainees. In addition, secretary general Ban Ki-moon last Wednesday said that the UN was revising its support to the Congolese army units.
“The Secretary-General is deeply concerned about reports of alleged mistreatment of M23 detainees and desecration of corpses of M23 combatants by the Congolese armed forces,” Ban’s press office said.
“Monusco has launched the process of reviewing its support to FARDC units suspected of being involved in these incidents,” Said Ban statement adding that the Secretary-General calls on the DRC to bring the perpetrators of these reported acts to justice.”
The UN reaction follows an incident in which FARDC showed images of the corpses being pulled on their army pickups on the roads whereas detainees suspected to be members of the M23 rebels were also shown on DRC Television while being mistreated by FARDC. U.N. peacekeepers had reported the abuse of M23 rebels by the Congolese army and requested the Kinshasa government to investigate these claims and to hold the perpetrators of these acts accountable.
‘Not the first time’
Speaking to The Rwanda Focus on Friday, Rene Abandi, the M23 spokesman in charge of foreign affairs, welcomed the U.N. reactions to the FARDC behavior. “It is not the first time FARDC has behaved in such an inhuman way and we are happy that the U.N. has now shown concern about this serious matter,” he said.
Abandi also accused the Kinshasa government of not being responsible regarding the indiscipline and cruelty among the FARDC in the east of the country, saying that whenever they commit crimes, the central government says that it’s FARDC members who have to be held accountable even though they get their commands from Kinshasa.
“It is not the first time FARDC has behaved in such an inhuman way and we are happy that the U.N. has now shown concern about this serious matter.”
Rene Abandi, M23 spokesman in charge of foreign affairs
He called upon the international community and the Congolese people to speak the truth about the reasons behind the conflict in the eastern part of the country instead of telling lies. M23 began taking parts of eastern Congo early last year, accusing the DRC government of failing to honor a 2009 peace deal. That deal ended a previous rebellion and led to the rebels’ integration into the army, but they have since deserted again.
Abandi said that there is a need for the international community to always ensure that the DRC leadership is held accountable for the crimes committed by its army and that the culture of impunity prevailing among the FARDC is brought to a halt.
“The M23 will never agree to work with the Kinshasa leadership which is based on ethnic divisionism, unless they change their political agenda and respect all Congolese nationals irrespective of which region or tribe they come from,” Abandi said, adding that nevertheless they are still willing to have a dialogue with the government since it is the only way to bring peace and stability in the eastern Congo.
To complicate matters further, the M23 spokesman accused the FARDC of working with the FDLR, many of whose members have participated in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsis. “The issue of the Genocide is an international challenge which requires to be addressed by all nations around the world and it’s in this regard that I encourage the international community to be concerned as to why DRC government is still providing a safe haven to the FDLR rebels who are genocidaires,” Abandi said.
The list of crimes by the FARDC doesn’t end there. In February, the United Nations also threatened to withdraw support for two Congolese battalions after soldiers raped at least 97 women and 33 girls, some as young as 6. According to a U.N. human rights report, the peacekeeping mission decided to keep working with the battalions after 12 senior officers, including the commanders and deputy commanders, were suspended and about a dozen soldiers charged over the rapes in Minova.
Provocative and deliberate
The arrival of the 85 FARDC soldiers in Rwanda is all the more surprising considering that on Monday, two bombs were fired from an area controlled by the Congolese army and Monusco into Gasiza and Kageshi cells, Busasamana sector in Rubavu.
“Two bombs landed at Kageshi and Gasiza Cells, Busasamana Sector, Rubavu District, Western Rwanda at 3.05pm,” RDF spokesman Brig. Gen. Joseph Nzabamwita was quoted as saying in a statement released by the government.
“This was a provocative and deliberate act by FARDC and Monusco since there was no fighting nearby between the warring factions,” Nzabamwita said, adding that there were no casualties.
However, in a press conference held last Wednesday in Kinshasa, Monusco flatly denied the allegations of “deliberate bombings” of Rwanda territory.
That drew an angry reaction from the Rwandan government, which said that the gratuitous denial by Monusco without prior investigations constitutes a dangerous pattern since it’s not the first time the UN force has denied verifiable attacks on Rwanda territory. The ministry of defense issued a statement indicating that proof of the attack had been verified by the Expanded Joint Verification Mechanism (EJVM).
In addition, defense and military attachés from mainly Western countries on Thursday visited the two Rubavu villages which were hit by the mortar bombs. The attachés included those from the US, Belgium, France, Germany and Tanzania. The envoys were also briefed by Joseph Nzabamwita.
In November last year, during the battle for Goma, FARDC fired 15 bombs into Rwanda territory, killing several civilians. At that time, too, Monusco kept silent and defended itself even when Kinshasa apologized for the bombing, which it said was done by undisciplined officers who fired without orders.
M23 fighters have previously also accused Monusco of lending a hand in attacking their group, but the force denied the accusations, saying the mission has only tried to intervene in the conflict for the purpose of protecting civilians.
“Monusco supports us in logistics. It assists us with combat rations, fuel … It supports us with its aviation when we need to fight the enemy. It also acts to evacuate our wounded at the front, even for moving the military,” said FARDC spokesman Col Olivier Hamuri in a recent statement.
Related articles:
MONUSCO Mortar Rebut Dangerous (The New Times, 18 July 2013)
The ministry of defence has denounced denial by the UN Mission in the Congo (Monusco) that mortar bombs landed on Rwandan territory from the Congolese side of the border this week, saying the rebuff poses a danger to civilians.
On Monday, the Rwanda Defence Forces protested what it described as “a provocative and deliberate act by FARDC (the Congolese army) and Monusco”, saying the two bombs that landed in Kageshi and Gasiza cells, Busasamana Sector in Rubavu District, originated from the area under Congolese army and the UN peacekeepers control.
Monusco yesterday denied mortars were fired on the Rwandan territory. [read all…]
Provocative Cross-Border Bombing From DRC ( Rwanda Focus, 15 July 2013)
Rwanda’s ministry of defense has confirmed the deliberate bombing today on Rwandan territory from a DRC area controlled by FARDC and Monusco.
“Two bombs landed at Kageshi and Gasiza cells, Busasamana sector, Rubavu District, Western Rwanda at 15h05,” said military spokesman brig-gen Joseph Nzabamwita. “This was a provocative and deliberate act by FARDC and Monusco since there was no fighting nearby between the warring factions. Fighting between FARDC and M23 started on Sunday, and we have credible information that FDLR is currently embedded in FARDC.”[read all…]
Foreign Minister Mushikiwabo tells UN during debate on Eastern DRC: Enough words — it’s time for action
Statement by H.E. Louise Mushikiwabo, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation at the Security Council Debate on the Situation in the Great Lakes Region
Source: Minister of Foreign Affairs Cooperation (Rwanda)
New York, 25 July 2013 — Secretary Kerry, Honourable Ministers, Excellencies and Distinguished Delegates, Let me begin by thanking the US and Secretary Kerry for convening this most important debate in support of the Peace, Security and Cooperation (PSC) Framework and for the Presidential Statement just adopted. Allow me also to thank the Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon for his statement as well as the World Bank President, Dr. Jim Yong Kim, and Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region of Africa, Mary Robinson for their valued contributions and briefings. Taken together, their extraordinary efforts, exhausting travel schedules and financial commitments to regional development priorities amply demonstrate their sincere commitment to the Peace, Security, and Cooperation Framework- a visionary, comprehensive and inclusive strategy to end decades of conflict and instability in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. I also thank AU Commissioner Ramtane Lamamra for his revealing briefing on regional efforts undertaken towards finding peace in the Great Lakes Region.
Let me also acknowledge the presence of Honourable Ministers from countries of the region and from fellow Council members.
Rwanda warmly welcomes the new Special Envoy of the US to the Great Lakes Region and the new SRSG and Force Commander of MONUSCO. Together, with Special Envoy, Mary Robison, I wish to assure you of Rwanda’s total collaboration.
Mr. President,
Rwanda is very pleased and supports the Presidential Statement; we nonetheless believe it could have been strengthened by including ongoing regional efforts, particularly in support of the Kampala peace talks established under the auspices of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region. Indeed, we urge the UN’s Special Envoy, Mary Robinson, to play an active part in seeing through the Kampala talks without much further delay. Her engagement would be a welcome and helpful contribution.
We have gathered today out of a shared determination to make peace in the Great Lakes Region a lasting reality. Having endured devastating conflict within our own borders nearly two decades ago, the people of Rwanda have worked tirelessly to rebuild a peaceful and thriving nation but we are also very aware that our destiny is inextricably tied to that of our neighbors.
Let me put it in the clearest possible terms: in order to secure long-term peace and prosperity for Rwanda into the future, we need a peaceful and prosperous DRC. As long as conditions persist that allow more than thirty rebel groups to roam in Eastern DRC with impunity — or as long as men and boys see nothing in their futures beyond crime, violence and conflict — such a transformation will remain beyond reach. The Framework of Hope, along with regional peace efforts, opens the door to that kind of profound and necessary change. Rwanda is eager to do its part and live up to its commitments – as a neighbor and a regional partner, as well as through the Framework agreement.
Allow me to lay out some concrete actions of my government has taken so far:
We have disarmed, interned and relocated away from the DRC border more than 600 M23 combatants who crossed into Rwanda as a result of infighting in March 2013. In his report dated June 28th, the Secretary-General commended Rwanda for the positive role it played in disarming Bosco Ntaganda’s troops. We have asked the United Nations to take responsibility for these combatants. It is important to note that Rwanda cannot bear this burden alone. We invite the international community to devise and implement a long-term solution for this group of former combatants. Rwanda has also worked with the UN to accommodate roughly 70,000 Congolese nationals who have sought refuge in Rwanda, and to take the necessary steps to ensure their safe return home as soon as possible.
In addition, as the Secretary General mentioned in his report on the implementation of the PSC Framework, the Government of Rwanda reported the presence of several high-ranking M23 members who crossed the border from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to seek refuge in Rwanda, including UN Sanctioned individuals.
When M23 leader General Bosco Ntaganda surrendered to the U.S. Embassy in Kigali on March 18th, Rwandan authorities offered facilitation for his transfer to The Hague.
We can all agree that the economic components of the Framework must be implemented alongside its political and security aspects. To that end, Rwanda is working to boost regional cooperation through enhanced economic integration and close collaboration in cross-border trade.
Just last month, Rwanda mining authorities seized 8.4 metric tons of smuggled minerals and are in the process of returning them to DRC authorities, as has been our practice in the past.
We are also exploring several other opportunities for economic cooperation including a strategic bilateral project with the DRC on Lake Kivu.
Finally, Rwanda supported and has been facilitating the deployment of the Intervention Brigade. We did so because we believe that it could help pacify the region, and serve as a deterrent thereby allow MONUSCO to carry out its Protection of Civilians responsibility and, critically, create the space necessary to implement the Peace and Security Framework as well as for regional peace efforts.
Mr. President,
But as Special Envoy Mary Robinson has stressed in the past, the Framework is a shared endeavour and its success depends on each party living up to their respective commitments.
Rwanda is one of the eleven countries who make up the Expanded Joint Verification Mechanism (EJVM), by which developments in conflict-affected areas are examined thoroughly and with transparency and accountability. We therefore urge the Security Council to attach value to the work of the EJVM, and for their findings to inform the decisions we reach and resolutions we agree to.
On the recent FDLR-FARDC collusion, Rwanda remains seriously concerned. The Security Council received a letter (document S/2013/402) from my Government with details, so I will not repeat the specifics today. Nevertheless, Rwanda requests concerned parties to halt any further threats to its territory and its population such as the recent bombing into Rubavu district from the DRC territory. Nor can the peace process withstand destructive military alliances.
While Rwanda views any alliance between the FDLR and FARDC as a threat to regional security, we will not allow these disturbing developments to derail our commitment to peace.
Mr. President,
I cannot stress enough Rwanda’s goodwill and ongoing support for the Peace, Security, and Cooperation Framework. We believe it offers a realistic path to lasting peace and security for the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Great Lakes region at large. But we must not veer off course, and we must understand that this vision is only achievable alongside regional peace initiatives, as well as genuine political will on the part of all affected states.
Further, the international peacekeeping force in the DRC is forging unchartered territory with the deployment of an Intervention Brigade as well as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. UN peacekeepers must take great care to respect all relevant international laws, and adhere strictly to their mandate.
Since the consequences of instability in the Eastern DRC fall so heavily on Rwanda, we are eager to take full advantage of this historic opportunity for peace and security and, despite the serious risks I have outlined, we can see early signs of progress.
Mr. President,
A plan without action is just words, and, when it comes to the eastern DRC, there have been enough words. There has been enough speechifying and report writing. And there has been more than enough grandstanding, especially by unaccountable actors who seek profit and publicity from the region’s misery. It is time for such forces to move aside. This is the time for accountable parties to stand up and step forward. Now is the time for action.
Thank you.
—————————————————— N O T E —————————————————————
This statement was an answer to State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki announcement two days before Secretary of State John Kerry was scheduled to chair a special session of the U.N. Security Council on the Great Lakes regional conflict. She said:
“We call upon Rwanda to immediately end any support to the M23, withdraw military personnel from eastern DRC, and follow through on its commitments under the framework,”
Read Article (Voice of America): “U.S Calls On Rwanda to End M23 Support”
Senior UN Official Spotlights Local Sustainable Solutions for Hunger
UN SERVICES
22 July 2013
Photo: WFP
Visiting Rwanda, the head of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) highlighted approaches to end food insecurity in Africa that support local initiatives, long-term development and sustainability.
“Here in Rwanda, WFP is providing the life-saving food assistance that we are known for to tens of thousands of refugees, but we and our partners are also supporting community-based agriculture and livelihoods projects that assist the poorest and most vulnerable Rwandans as they build a brighter future for their families,” said the agency’s Executive Director, Ertharin Cousin, at the end of her three-day visit to the country.
“When speaking with small-scale farmers and rural families, I could see very clearly the difference that rural development initiatives have made in helping people improve their lives.”
Ms. Cousin said the progress made on development in Rwanda illustrates the importance of close and effective partnerships between UN agencies, communities and government in helping in empowering people to lift themselves out of poverty.
“I met one woman farmer who started with nearly nothing, and now has become so successful that she’s been able to build her family a new house, and put her children though school,” said Ms. Cousin, who also met with displaced persons and refugees on both side of the border shared by Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
During her visit, Ms. Cousin also visited the Nkamira refugee transit centre and a successful terracing and watershed management project in Rulindo district, in northern Rwanda. She also visited and spoke with farmers in eastern Rwanda who belong to an agricultural cooperative in Kirehe district through which they are selling their surplus maize and beans to WFP via the Purchase for Progress initiative, known as “P4P”.
P4P aims to use WFP’s purchasing power to help connect smallholder farmers to markets. In Rwanda, the programme has grown from a WFP project into a national initiative, boosting productivity and improving the lives and livelihoods of small-scale farmers.
Since 2011, WFP has purchased 33,000 metric tons of combined food commodities – maize and beans – worth $15.5 million, through a combination of P4P purchases and regular food procurement.
WFP and the Rwandan Government are also exploring ways to link the P4P programme to food-for-education initiatives, providing students with a daily school meal grown in their own communities and turn schools into regular customers for local farmers.
This was Ms. Cousin’s first visit to Rwanda as WFP Executive Director. While in the country, she also met with top Government officials, including Prime Minister Pierre Damien Habumuremyi, and with the heads of UN agencies in Rwanda.
More about the Purchase for Progress (P4P) Project
Connecting farmers to markets
As the world’s largest humanitarian agency, WFP is a major buyer of staple food. In 2012, WFP bought US$1.1 billion worth of food – more than 75 percent of this in developing countries. With the Purchase the Progress (P4P) initiative, WFP is taking this one step further. P4P uses WFP’s purchasing power and its expertise in logistics and food quality to offer smallholder farmers opportunities to access agricultural markets, to become competitive players in those markets and thus to improve their lives.
The five-year pilot initiative links WFP’s demand for staple food in 20 countries with the expertise of a host of partners who support farmers to produce food surpluses and sell them at a fair price. By 2013, at least half a million smallholder farmers will have increased and improved their agricultural production and earnings. By raising farmers’ incomes, P4P turns WFP’s local procurement into a vital tool to address hunger. Learn more
Source: allafrica.com, WFP
Ready to Receive All Returning Refugees As Cessation Clause Comes Into Effect
GOVERNMENT OF RWANDA (Kigali)
2. July 2013
Photo: Rwandan refugees on the move in Kisangani, Zaire. (UNHCR, H.J. Davies)
Kigali — On Sunday, June 30, the cessation clause concerning Rwandan refugees came into effect. This means that Rwandans who fled the country between 1959 and 1998 have lost their refugee status across the world.
This follows a process that began in 2002 where the Rwandan government approached the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) saying that the reasons that caused Rwandans to flee were no longer applied and that Rwanda was ready to receive all refugees.
In 2009, after many field visits, UNHCR concurred with the government that Rwanda was stable and safe. It was decided after consultation with key stakeholders and host countries, who all validated the strategy, that cessation would come into effect in 2013.
We are ready to receive all refugees
Speaking to journalists at a press conference, Minister of Refugee Affairs, Seraphine Mukantabana said that Rwanda was safe and stable, ready to receive all returning refugees.
“We have done everything possible to facilitate the process for refugees. They can either choose to return home and Rwanda is doing everything we possibly can to facilitate this. Refugees can also choose if they have economic and personal ties in the countries of host, to remain there and become naturalised. In this case, Rwanda is ready to facilitate them with passports so they can join the community of Rwandans living abroad,” she said.
Minister Mukantabana also revealed that passport application forms had been sent to all Rwandan embassies abroad or in the institutions in charge of refugees in countries that host Rwandan refugees so that the process of acquiring Rwandan passports would be speeded up.
“We have also prepared, together with our partners, a comprehensive program to receive and reintegrate all refugees into their communities. The plan covers areas such as land questions, justice questions and how to earn a living after the first few months.”
We congratulate the Rwandan government for doing its part- UNHCR
Neimah Warsame, UNHCR Representative in Rwanda, congratulated the government for facilitating both returning refugees and those who will choose to remain in host countries. “I salute the country’s leadership for availing passports for those who will remain in host countries and for remaining engaged in the process. We had extensive consultations with stakeholders and all host countries have re-validated their agreement with cessation. We also want to assure everyone that UNHCR undertakes comprehensive monitoring to make sure all refugees are properly reintegrated and what we have seen is promising. Local leaders are taking care of returnees.”
Host countries at different levels of readiness
Over the weekend 170 refugees returned from the DRC and indicated that many more wish to return. The DRC, where the largest number of Rwandan refugees live, has asked for three months to be able to assess the number of Rwandan refugees in the country. From there, discussions will begin on repatriation and local integration options.
Other countries like Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi have already indicated that they are ready to apply cessation and have set up local integration mechanisms.
Uganda has 4000 and Congo Brazzaville has 8000 refugees that fall under cessation criteria. They are currently in discussions with Rwanda on the way forward.
To date, more than three million Rwandans have returned post genocide. It is estimated that about 100,000 Rwandan refugees remain around the world.
“The process does not happen overnight, implementation of cessation can take a year or more but what is certain, we are proud that Rwandans today do not have to be called refugees and we encourage all refugees to make their choice to either return or seek local integration options,” concluded Minister Mukantabana.
Related article:
Passports Awaiting Rwandans After Loss of Refugee Status
Hundreds of Rwandan returnees from regional neighbours have been streaming into the country on a daily basis ahead of the June 30 deadline
An intense registration program is under way to provide passports for tens of thousands of Rwandans who lost refugee status on June 30 as a result of the UN cessation clause, but prefer to stay in the host countries.
The activation of the clause concerning Rwandan refugees means that Rwandans who fled the country between 1959 and 1998 have lost their refugee status across the world, according to the UN refugee agency UNHCR. In 2009, after many field visits, UNHCR concurred with the government that Rwanda was stable and safe. It was decided after consultation with key stakeholders and host countries, which all validated the strategy, that cessation would come into effect in 2013. [read more…]
Source: allAfrica. com
Why President Kagame will not negotiate with FDLR
12. June 2013
written by Jennifer Fierberg
Photo: Rwandan President Paul Kagame. Source: foreignpolicy.comThe Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) remain a topic of much debate among those who research and spend time in the Great Lakes Region of Africa. There are a few schools of thought as to who this group is and what their motives are.
The first school of thought is the ‘official narrative’ provided by the Government of Rwanda which states that the FDLR planned out and committed genocide in 1994, fled into the DRC to live in refugee camps in order to escape persecution by the government that “stopped the genocide” and took power in Rwanda. Less than two years after the genocide the ruling party in Rwanda, the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF), invaded Eastern Congo in order to seek vengeance on these escaping ‘genocidaires’ and bring justice to them.
In contrast to the official report, Wikipedia states:
“The Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda is the primary remnant Rwandan Hutu rebel group in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is often referred to as simply the FDLR after its original French name: the Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda. It has been involved in fighting from its formation on 30 September 2000 throughout the last phase of the Second Congo War and the fighting which has continued since then. It is composed almost entirely of majority ethnic Hutus opposed to minority Tutsi rule and influence in the region. The FDLR was formed after negotiations between the Army for the Liberation of Rwanda and the remnant Hutu military command agreed that the ALiR be dissolved. Paul Rwarakabije was appointed commander in chief of the entire force, but ALiR had to accept the political leadership of the FDLR.”
On May 26th 2013, during the 21st African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the President of Tanzania, Kikwete, advised the President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, to negotiate with the FDLR in order to stop the 16 years of war that this situation has created. President Kagame did not respond himself rather his Minister of Foreign Affairs, Louise Mushikiwabo, stated “they would not negotiate with a terrorist group,” and demanded an apology from President Kikwete. A spokesperson for the government of Tanzania stated in reply to a request for an apology that, “President Kikwete will not apologise because his statement was based on facts. We ask Rwanda to take this advice. Our President cannot apologise for the truth.”
The FDLR published a press release in response to President Kikwete’s request and stated in part:
“The Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) are rejoicing and firmly support His Excellency Mr Jakaya Mrisho KIKWETE, Tanzanian President’s proposition of setting about global and pacific solutions of the conflicts which have been prevailing up to date within the African Great Lakes region in general and the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in particular; which proposition suggests a resolution by means and ways of organizing relevant dialogues between all the involved warring parties.”
The decision to seek peace seems to remain in the hands of President Kagame, yet he has emphatically stated that he will not negotiate with the FDLR under any circumstances. There has been a long war in Eastern DRC at the hands of Paul Kagame and his endless quest for “justice” against the FDLR. If there remain members of the FDLR who committed genocide in 1994 they would be a least 50 years of age now. It would appear that Kagame’s motives are out of vengeance rather than justice.
Ironically, in 1993 Paul Kagame and his rebel group, the RPA, were in the midst of negotiations with the then President of Rwanda Juvenal Habyarimana, in Arusha, Tanzania in order to reach and sign a joint power sharing agreement. Paul Kagame was leading a group of Tutsi refugees who were returning home to Rwanda. These negotiations were to provide a path for peaceful return. On April 6, 1994 President Habyarimana was returning home by plane after having just signed a power sharing agreement to incorporate the RPF into the government when his plane was shot out of the sky on the orders of Paul Kagame and his rebels triggering the 1994 genocide.
Sharing power with the previous government of Rwanda was not enough for Paul Kagame; he wanted total power which he seized in the weeks following the assassination of President Habyarimana.
For President Kagame to negotiate with the FDLR and come to an agreement then he would be giving up his strangle hold on Eastern DRC thereby giving up his unlimited access to the minerals and other geostrategic interests keeping his pockets lined and full. Peace in Eastern DRC means there is no need for Rwanda to be in Eastern DRC. Since the government of Rwanda has stated that “Peace in Eastern DRC is in the best interest of the region”, President Kagame should be willing to prove that by negotiating for that peace through talks with the FDLR.
Time will tell whether history will repeat itself in Rwanda or if the trajectory of this country will change resulting in peace in The Great Lakes Region of Africa.
Source: Inyenyeri News
Angelina Jolie Raises Rape Awareness in DRC
Angelina Jolie travels to the Nzulo camp in eastern Congo to highlight the use of rape as a weapon of war and to raise awareness of the issue on an international level. (March 26)
Germany Unblocks U.S.$26 Million Suspended Aid to Rwanda
photo: Steve Terrill
Berlin Government has announced its decision to release the Aid to Rwanda following its suspension over UN accusations that Rwanda was backing M23, a rebel group in DRC; Germany will be releasing €21Million (US$26m)
Germany Minister for International Cooperation announced the decision following an official visit of Rwanda’s Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo to Bundestag Berlin, on behalf of the government of Rwanda.
Berlin government is convinced that Rwanda is working on finding permanent solution for the Eastern Congo and that any reports or allegations claiming Rwanda to cause insecurity in the DRC could be baseless and false.
According to the information from Rwanda Envoy to Germany, Ambassador Nkurikiyinka on 31 January 2013, the release of the suspension of Germany aid to Rwanda Proves once again that allegations against Rwanda are groundless.
Reports say, almost all parties across the German political scale agree to the releasing of suspended aid to Rwanda
Planned German aid to Rwanda had suspended in response to a UN report accusing the central African country of supporting rebels in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo.
Source: News of Rwanda
Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda
“Hunting Fdlr” A Shabel reportage “Responsabilities of genocide in Rwanda have to be shared, beetween hutu and tutsi. The new UN report, published the 1st october 2010 is a step in the right direction. We ask for justice, we ask to make clear what happened in Rwanda. Until that, we will continue to fight to protect our people”. We meet Mister Laforge, the spokesman of FDLR (Democratic forces for the liberation of Rwanda) and his general staff, after two days walking in the forest, in a little thatched hut. The long path starting from the little village of Niabyondo is sometimes like a river because of the torrential rain. The front line, a part of an impenetrable forest, is disputed by the congolese Fardc and the Mai Mai militias, allied with the Fdlr. We are in the Masisi region, north Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo. On the “Goma – Walikale” axis, many military operations are leaded by the governemental forces Fardc. The target are the Fldr forces, and the hutu rwandan refugees. Especially now, after the Un Report, they are a serious threat to the geopolitical stability of the entire region. So dozens of Fardc platoons with tutsi commanders are moving on the axis, with no veichles, no food, no water, no logistics. By foot. In this axis, the villages are every day under attack of unknown militia: rapes, killings, robberies. Mass rape is the new trend here. The victims are women. It is hard to understand who are the responsibles. Here, every armed or bandit group …
Source: www.i4u.com
Rwanda Prime Minister Challenges UN’s Drones Use In DRC
Dr. Pierre Damien Habumuremyi, (Rwanda’s P.M)
The United Nations (UN) has been challenged over its recent proposal that it would use aerial Vehicles in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a suggestion that Rwanda’s Prime Minister Dr. Pierre Damien Habumuremyi said; it would be illogical.
While commenting through a public social media Twitter, The Prime Minister said “….UN in DRC does not need drones to do what it is supposed to do. Instead of spending on surveillance drones, it is more logical to invest in supporting the region’s peacemaking efforts”
Bottom of FormDr. Habumuremyi also stated that the use of such military technology will not help the peace process in the country nor in the region and added that more issues should be considered in solving the conflict in the Eastern Congo.
“DRC need good will from leadership, good governance, respect of human rights for all citizens, including Rwandaphones not the use of drones” he noted.
The Prime Minister’s comments come only three days after the government of Rwanda opposed a proposal that the United Nations had tabled on Tuesday 8th January 2013 to deploy a unit of surveillance aerial vehicles also known as Drones in the Democratic Republic of Congo, arguing that “Africa must not become a laboratory for intelligence devices from overseas”
UN suggested that it intends to modernize its peacekeeping operations, and may deploy a fleet of its own drones both in Central and West Africa peacekeeping missions for the first time, only few days after Rwanda took its two year seat in the UN Security Council (UNSC).
According to UN officials in the Peacekeeping Department, at least three unarmed surveillance drones may be deployed in the eastern region of Congo, and such information has been communicated to DRC, Rwanda and Uganda governments.
Olivier Nduhungirehe, a Rwandan diplomat at the United Nations cautioned over such Hi-tech military use, saying the Drones could be used to collect intelligence information from “Kigali, Kampala, Bujumbura or the entire region.” It is even feared that the unmanned drones might be armed, despite UN Officials assurance that there is no intention to arm the drones or to spy on countries that have not consented to their use.
Various governments from developing world in which Rwanda belongs fear that, the drones will open up a new intelligence-gathering front dominated by Western powers and potentially supersede African and Asian peacekeepers who now act as the United Nations’ overseers on peace related missions.
The action is the first step in a broader bid to integrate unmanned aerial surveillance systems, which have become a standard feature of Western military operations, into the United Nations’ far-flung peacekeeping domain.
In the 1990s, the United States and other major powers infiltrated the U.N. weapons inspection agency to surreptitiously collect intelligence on Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s military; one of the reasons why Developing countries shun from any attempt of Drones hovering above their territories.
U.N. military planners say they see a need for drones in many other missions, including Darfur, Sudan and South Sudan, where the United Nations monitors tensions along the border of the two countries. But they acknowledged that they have little hope that Sudan would permit them.
The organization has ordered a feasibility study into their use in Ivory Coast along with the pending deployments in the Congo.
The said aerial vehicles equipped with infrared technology can detect troops hidden beneath forest canopy or operating at night, allowing them to track movements of armed militias, assist patrols heading into hostile territory and document atrocities. They are about 150 miles and are able to hover for up to 12 hours at a time.
Drones are unmanned aerial vehicles UAVs that are used by military in various ways including missile testing, air strikes, aerial refuelling, surveillance, transporting cargo, live-fire exercises and long-range bombing.
Source: News of the Rwanda , 15.1.13
Amakuru 