The dictator Kagame at UN

The dictator Kagame at UN
Dictators like Kagame who have changed their national constitutions to remain indefinitely on power should not be involved in UN high level and global activities including chairing UN meetings

Why has the UN ignored its own report about the massacres of Hutu refugees in DRC ?

The UN has ignored its own reports, NGOs and media reports about the massacres of hundreds of thousands of Hutu in DRC Congo (estimated to be more than 400,000) by Kagame when he attacked Hutu refugee camps in Eastern DRC in 1996. This barbaric killings and human rights violations were perpetrated by Kagame’s RPF with the approval of UK and USA and with sympathetic understanding and knowledge of UNHCR and international NGOs which were operating in the refugees camps. According to the UN, NGO and media reports between 1993 and 2003 women and girls were raped. Men slaughtered. Refugees killed with machetes and sticks. The attacks of refugees also prevented humanitarian organisations to help many other refugees and were forced to die from cholera and other diseases. Other refugees who tried to return to Rwanda where killed on their way by RFI and did not reach their homes. No media, no UNHCR, no NGO were there to witness these massacres. When Kagame plans to kill, he makes sure no NGO and no media are prevent. Kagame always kills at night.

16 Dec 2012

Remarks to the Rwandan Community

Brussels, Belgium, 15 December 2012

By Brian Endless, PhD, Loyola University Chicago and Senior Advisor to the Hotel Rwanda Rusesabagina Foundation

Thank you very much for asking me to join you. It is a pleasure to be here today on this auspicious occasion, and to meet many of you in person for the first time.

I have been extremely lucky to be able to work with Paul Rusesabagina and his foundation for a little more than five years now. Paul and I have enjoyed an interesting relationship from the time we met. Kitty Kurth here likes to think that she introduced us. In fact though, we came together through the Rwandan Ambassador to the US, James Kimonyo. You see, Paul, Amb. Krueger and Kimonyo were speaking together at a panel discussion. While I of course knew of Paul before this time, we had never met.

During that discussion, which was attended by several hundred members of the Rwandan community from across the United States, I first heard Amb. Kimonyo give the official position on life in Rwanda. You see, according to Kimonyo, everything in Rwanda is excellent now. There are no Hutus or Tutsis. All problems have been resolved. All difficulties have been reconciled. There are some dissenters, but they are rare. All people in Rwanda are happy, healthy, and on their way to wealth.

Kimonyo drew the perfect picture that the Rwandan government would like us all to believe. Kimonyo also made it clear that Paul and Ambassador Krueger were two of those terrible people who were trying to cause dissent among Rwandans. Unfortunately for Kimonyo, Paul, Amb. Krueger, and the many Rwandans in attendance would not let those words stand, and they made it clear that the truth was very different.

I was very interested to watch Kimonyo as the audience questioned him, and he became more and more frustrated. And then at one point, he had had enough. Kimonyo turned to the audience, and declared that Paul and Amb. Krueger were liers who were fighting against the Rwandan people. In fact, he stood up in front of the assembly, and angrily told us a very interesting story. He claimed to have proof, indisputable proof, that Paul and Amb. Krueger had been seen in South Africa just a few months before, using Foundation money to purchase guns for Hutu rebels based out of the Congo.

Naturally, the audience was infuriated. Amb. Krueger quickly jumped up to rebut the story, but Paul calmed everyone down and took control. And I will never forget his words, he said: "it is rare to see a distinguished Ambassador lying in public, but that is what is happening here. This story is a lie, and I can prove it right now." Paul then pulled out his passport, and showed the entire crowd the date stamps, proving that he was in the United States on the date that the gun running meeting supposedly occurred in South Africa.

This was my introduction to Paul, to modern day Rwanda, and to the lengths to which the Rwandan government will go to lie about and silence anyone who criticizes its record.
This was also the beginning of my work with Paul and his foundation. When I began working actively on issues in Rwanda, I was an American professor who thought I knew and understood the Rwandan genocide. What I came to realize over the past five years is how little I actually knew. I realized how much I had to learn about the Rwandan people and the complexities of politics and life inside of Rwanda.

Over those years I have developed a new sense for the truth about the terrible conditions imposed by the current Rwandan government – both on its own people, and on those in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo. I have also realized that those conditions all stem from poor leadership – from a man and a political party who are ruling for their own interests, and not in the best interests of all of the Rwandan people. They have created conditions in which only a small number of people may prosper, at the expense of others. And they have closed off politics and life in Rwanda so that many are forced to live in exile, some in terrible conditions, and many more flee the repression of the government each year.

I was asked me to speak for a little while today about the international political situation involving Rwanda. As you all know, not only are Paul Kagame's repressive politics felt inside of Rwanda, but the regime has also exported these politics to the DRC. We know the stories – more than 7 million deaths over the last 14 years. Rape and destruction of human lives and property. Human rights violations daily, including war crimes, crimes against humanity, and according to the United Nations possibly even a new genocide. And all of this done for access to conflict minerals and power. All to benefit elite leaders in Kigali.

I could spend hours telling you the story of the DRC, but many of you know it even better than I do. Rather than do that, I think it is good to focus here on some positive things that have been going on recently in the international community.

You see, starting with the UN's Mapping Report in late 2010, the world has finally begun to take notice of the DRC, and of Rwandan (and Ugandan) involvement in that country. Those of us at the Hotel Rwanda Rusesabagina Foundation have been working very hard to bring this issue to international attention, and we are starting to see great success.

Sadly, this is not an issue that the rich countries want to discuss. They would rather sit back and talk about their own economies, and their own problems. But since many of those rich countries, especially the US and the UK, are partly responsible for this conflict, it is our duty to push them to discuss it. We cannot let them sit back and fund a repressive government that attacks its neighbor for profit. We cannot let western companies profit off of conflict minerals, when we know the blood that is on that money. We must be the voice for those who cannot speak for themselves – for those who are affected by this conflict, and have no voice.

And that voice has been working. The UN has now reported regularly on the conflict in the Congo. And those reports actively call out both the Rwandan and Ugandan governments for their responsibility in driving this conflict. It is now clear to the international community that Rwanda is behind M23, and that this is not just some rebel force working to overthrow another African government. The most recent UN report even mentioned Rwandan leaders by name, stating clearly that Defense Minister General James Kabarebe is the one giving orders to M23 on behalf of the Rwandan government. And while the international community is still hesitant to make the connection, all of us in this room know that if Kabarebe is giving the orders, he is getting his commands directly from Kagame.

It is also important to know that we have many friends in the international community. Our friends in the governments of France, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Germany and many others have all come out in support of the Rwandan people, condemning the Rwandan government for their actions, and in more and more cases cutting off aid to that government.

Our friends in the UK are leaders here, cutting off over $20 million in aid to Kagame in response to what is happening in the Congo.

And in a very positive step, our friends in the US government are moving forward. They have cut off a small amount of aid, but are now willing to publically talk about the fact that Rwanda must push M23 to stop the violence.

We are doing good work, but we need to keep pushing more. To keep the pressure on.

Particularly in the US and the UK, given their influence at the UN and their long support for Kagame's government, we need to move forward.

It needs to be clear to those governments, and to the international community, that M23 is not just some rebel group. This is merely the latest incarnation of a Rwandan militia in the Congo. And as in the latest attack on Goma, this milita is often backed by the Rwandan military. The governments and leaders of the world need to stand up and be clear that this is not an internal fight in the Congo – this is Paul Kagame and his government, along with Museveni and his government, profiting off the suffering of their neighbors.

We need to keep pushing for real action. This should include not just sanctions against M23 leaders, but personal sanctions against Rwandan and Ugandan leaders. Freezing bank accounts, limiting travel in their expensive planes, and showing them that they cannot profit from the suffering of others.

As a recent New York Times article stated, we cannot just condemn the crimes that are going on. We must name the criminals. And in naming them, we must shame them into stopping their actions. And shame their international supporters into doing the right thing.


I was asked here to speak about the international side of the Rwandan situation, but I want to close by bringing this back to peace and democracy inside of Rwanda. Unfortunately, what is happening in the Congo is just a symptom of the bigger problem. As we all know, the problem is an undemocratic government, with a President and other elites who do not care about anything other than themselves.

Something that I have realized over the past 5 years is that this is the real tragedy of Rwanda, both now and throughout its long history. It is not a tragedy of Hutus and Tutsis fighting. It is rather a tragedy of elite leaders, who use ethnicity and drag ordinary people into their struggles for power.

What Rwanda needs is leadership that cares more about people than profits. Leadership that believes that change can come through peace, and that does not resort to violence when things get hard. Leadership that does not look to neighboring countries as a place to rape and plunder, but that looks to neighbors – and the entire world – as places where we can have peaceful cooperation, working together for all of the people, not just for a few.

Rwanda needs new leadership who speak for those who have no voice, not just for themselves.

In closing, I will share something that I realized very quickly when working with Paul Rusesabagina on Rwanda. For the benefit of all of the Rwandan people, peaceful change is absolutely crucial. The cycle of violence that has been going on since before colonial times, and that is clear in the current Rwandan government, must stop.

But I have also realized that peaceful change in Rwanda is not likely to come from within. The current government is TOO good at what it does, and that is repressing the people. Change will require work and organization from brave Rwandans in exile, who can be the voice for those in the country. And it requires continued and ongoing support from our friends in the international community.

Please remember though that those friends do NOT always understand Rwanda. And Rwanda is not as central to their lives as it is to ours. They may want to do the right thing, but we will need to continue to tell them what that right thing is. We need to keep reminding them of the continued human rights violations, about current violence in the DRC, and of the potential for more horrible violence in the future.

And we need to keep standing up and telling the world that they are already involved, and that their help is needed. We need to remind the world that they have a choice: they can do nothing, and the current government can continue on a path of harm. Or the world can join us in standing up for the Rwandan people, and in working for a better future in Rwanda, in the Congo, and in the region at large.

I thank you for your time, and hope that we can continue working hard to make peace in Rwanda a reality soon. Thank you.q

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-“The enemies of Freedom do not argue ; they shout and they shoot.”

The principal key root causes that lead to the Rwandan genocide of 1994 that affected all Rwandan ethnic groups were:

1)The majority Hutu community’s fear of the return of the discriminatory monarchy system that was practiced by the minority Tutsi community against the enslaved majority Hutu community for about 500 years

2)The Hutu community’s fear of Kagame’s guerrilla that committed massacres in the North of the country and other parts of the countries including assassinations of Rwandan politicians.

3) The Rwandan people felt abandoned by the international community ( who was believed to support Kagame’s guerrilla) and then decided to defend themselves with whatever means they had against the advance of Kagame’ guerrilla supported by Ugandan, Tanzanian and Ethiopian armies and other Western powers.

-“The enemies of Freedom do not argue ; they shout and they shoot.”

-“The hate of men will pass, and dictators die, and the power they took from the people will return to the people. And so long as men die, liberty will never perish.”

-“The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men.”

-“I have loved justice and hated iniquity: therefore I die in exile.”

The Rwanda war of 1990-1994 had multiple dimensions.

The Rwanda war of 1990-1994 had multiple dimensions. Among Kagame’s rebels who were fighting against the Rwandan government, there were foreigners, mainly Ugandan fighters who were hired to kill and rape innocent Rwandan people in Rwanda and refugees in DRC.

READ MORE RECENT NEWS AND OPINIONS

SUMMARY : THE TRAGIC CONSEQUENCES OF THE BRITISH BUDGET SUPPORT AND GEO-STRATEGIC AMBITIONS

United Kingdom's Proxy Wars in Africa: The Case of Rwanda and DR Congo:

The Rwandan genocide and 6,000,000 Congolese and Hutu refugees killed are the culminating point of a long UK’s battle to expand their influence to the African Great Lakes Region. UK supported Kagame’s guerrilla war by providing military support and money. The UK refused to intervene in Rwanda during the genocide to allow Kagame to take power by military means that triggered the genocide. Kagame’s fighters and their families were on the Ugandan payroll paid by UK budget support.


· 4 Heads of State assassinated in the francophone African Great Lakes Region.
· 2,000,000 people died in Hutu and Tutsi genocides in Rwanda, Burundi and RD.Congo.
· 600,000 Hutu refugees killed in R.D.Congo, Uganda, Central African Republic and Rep of Congo.
· 6,000,000 Congolese dead.
· 8,000,000 internal displaced people in Rwanda, Burundi and DR. Congo.
· 500,000 permanent Rwandan and Burundian Hutu refugees, and Congolese refugees around the world.
· English language expansion to Rwanda to replace the French language.
· 20,000 Kagame’s fighters paid salaries from the British Budget Support from 1986 to present.
· £500,000 of British taxpayer’s money paid, so far, to Kagame and his cronies through the budget support, SWAPs, Tutsi-dominated parliament, consultancy, British and Tutsi-owned NGOs.
· Kagame has paid back the British aid received to invade Rwanda and to strengthen his political power by joining the East African Community together with Burundi, joining the Commonwealth, imposing the English Language to Rwandans to replace the French language; helping the British to establish businesses and to access to jobs in Rwanda, and to exploit minerals in D.R.Congo.



Thousands of Hutu murdered by Kagame inside Rwanda, e.g. Kibeho massacres

Thousands of Hutu murdered by Kagame inside Rwanda, e.g. Kibeho massacres
Kagame killed 200,000 Hutus from all regions of the country, the elderly and children who were left by their relatives, the disabled were burned alive. Other thousands of people were killed in several camps of displaced persons including Kibeho camp. All these war crimes remain unpunished.The British news reporters were accompanying Kagame’s fighters on day-by-day basis and witnessed these massacres, but they never reported on this.

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25,000 Hutu bodies floated down River Akagera into Lake Victoria in Uganda.

25,000  Hutu bodies  floated down River Akagera into Lake Victoria in Uganda.
The British irrational, extremist, partisan,biased, one-sided media and politicians have disregarded Kagame war crimes e.g. the Kibeho camp massacres, massacres of innocents Hutu refugees in DR. Congo. The British media have been supporting Kagame since he invaded Rwanda by organising the propaganda against the French over the Rwandan genocide, suppressing the truth about the genocide and promoting the impunity of Kagame and his cronies in the African Great Lakes Region. For the British, Rwanda does not need democracy, Rwanda is the African Israel; and Kagame and his guerilla fighters are heroes.The extremist British news reporters including Fergal Keane, Chris Simpson, Chris McGreal, Mark Doyle, etc. continue to hate the Hutus communities and to polarise the Rwandan society.

Kagame political ambitions triggered the genocide.

Kagame  political  ambitions triggered the genocide.
Kagame’s guerrilla war was aimed at accessing to power at any cost. He rejected all attempts and advice that could stop his military adventures including the cease-fire, political negotiations and cohabitation, and UN peacekeeping interventions. He ignored all warnings that could have helped him to manage the war without tragic consequences. Either you supported Kagame’ s wars and you are now his friend, or you were against his wars and you are his enemy. Therefore, Kagame as the Rwandan strong man now, you have to apologise to him for having been against his war and condemned his war crimes, or accept to be labelled as having been involved in the genocide. All key Kagame’s fighters who committed war crimes and crimes against humanity are the ones who hold key positions in Rwandan army and government for the last 15 years. They continue to be supported and advised by the British including Tony Blair, Andrew Mitchell MP, and the British army senior officials.

Aid that kills: The British Budget Support financed Museveni and Kagame’s wars in Rwanda and DRC.

Aid that kills: The British Budget Support  financed Museveni and Kagame’s wars in Rwanda and DRC.
Genocide propaganda and fabrications are used by the so-called British scholars, news reporters and investigative journalists to promote their CVs and to get income out of the genocide through the selling of their books, providing testimonies against the French, access to consultancy contracts from the UN and Kagame, and participation in conferences and lectures in Rwanda, UK and internationally about genocide. Genocide propaganda has become a lucrative business for Kagame and the British. Anyone who condemned or did not support Kagame’s war is now in jail in Rwanda under the gacaca courts system suuported by British tax payer's money, or his/she is on arrest warrant if he/she managed to flee the Kagame’s regime. Others have fled the country and are still fleeing now. Many others Rwandans are being persecuted in their own country. Kagame is waiting indefinitely for the apologies from other players who warn him or who wanted to help to ensure that political negotiations take place between Kagame and the former government he was fighting against. Britain continues to supply foreign aid to Kagame and his cronies with media reports highlighting economic successes of Rwanda. Such reports are flawed and are aimed at misleading the British public to justify the use of British taxpayers’ money. Kagame and his cronies continue to milk British taxpayers’ money under the British budget support. This started from 1986 through the British budget support to Uganda until now.

Dictator Kagame: No remorse for his unwise actions and ambitions that led to the Rwandan genocide.

Dictator Kagame: No remorse for his unwise actions and ambitions that led to the  Rwandan genocide.
No apologies yet to the Rwandan people. The assassination of President Juvenal Habyarimana by Kagame was the only gateway for Kagame to access power in Rwanda. The British media, politicians, and the so-called British scholars took the role of obstructing the search for the truth and justice; and of denying this assassination on behalf of General Kagame. General Paul Kagame has been obliging the whole world to apologise for his mistakes and war crimes. The UK’s way to apologise has been pumping massive aid into Rwanda's crony government and parliement; and supporting Kagame though media campaigns.

Fanatical, partisan, suspicious, childish and fawning relations between UK and Kagame

Fanatical, partisan, suspicious, childish and fawning relations between UK and Kagame
Kagame receives the British massive aid through the budget support, British excessive consultancy, sector wide programmes, the Tutsi-dominated parliament, British and Tutsi-owned NGOs; for political, economic and English language expansion to Rwanda. The British aid to Rwanda is not for all Rwandans. It is for Kagame himself and his Tutsi cronies.

Paul Kagame' actvities as former rebel

Africa

UN News Centre - Africa

The Africa Report - Latest

IRIN - Great Lakes

This blog reports the crimes that remain unpunished and the impunity that has generated a continuous cycle of massacres in many parts of Africa. In many cases, the perpetrators of the crimes seem to have acted in the knowledge that they would not be held to account for their actions.

The need to fight this impunity has become even clearer with the massacres and genocide in many parts of Africa and beyond.

The blog also addresses issues such as Rwanda War Crimes, Rwandan Refugee massacres in Dr Congo, genocide, African leaders’ war crimes and crimes against humanity, Africa war criminals, Africa crimes against humanity, Africa Justice.

-The British relentless and long running battle to become the sole player and gain new grounds of influence in the francophone African Great Lakes Region has led to the expulsion of other traditional players from the region, or strained diplomatic relations between the countries of the region and their traditional friends. These new tensions are even encouraged by the British using a variety of political and economic manoeuvres.

-General Kagame has been echoing the British advice that Rwanda does not need any loan or aid from Rwandan traditional development partners, meaning that British aid is enough to solve all Rwandan problems.

-The British obsession for the English Language expansion has become a tyranny that has led to genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, dictatorial regimes, human rights violations, mass killings, destruction of families, communities and cultures, permanent refugees and displaced persons in the African Great Lakes region.


- Rwanda, a country that is run by a corrupt clique of minority-tutsi is governed with institutional discrmination, human rights violations, dictatorship, authoritarianism and autocracy, as everybody would expect.