Kagame faces off with US over human-rights abuses
The East African - 1 hour ago
By Joint Report The EastAfrican
Posted Saturday, June 7 2014 at 15:26
US special envoy for the Great Lakes Region Russell Feingold speaks
with President Paul Kagame in Kigali. Photo/FILE
In Summary
Rwandan security organs have in recent months conducted operations in
the northwestern part of the country, rounding up dozens of people
suspected of working with FDLR.
US government expressed concern that Rwandan authorities had held
individuals incommunicado for periods of up to two months before
presenting them in court.
Rwanda is in the spotlight over claims of human rights abuses, with
the US State Department expressing concern over "the arrest and
disappearance of dozens of Rwandan citizens," which has drawn a sharp
reaction from President Paul Kagame.
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Rwanda to 'arrest or shoot' anyone posing a security threat
President Kagame said Rwanda would continue to arrest or "even shoot
on the spot" individuals who wish to destabilise the country's
security.
Rwandan security organs have in recent months conducted operations in
the northwestern part of the country, rounding up dozens of people
suspected of working with the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of
Rwanda (FDLR). The DR Congo-based rebel outfit is linked to the 1994
genocide against the Tutsi.
The US government expressed concern that Rwandan authorities had held
individuals incommunicado for periods of up to two months before
presenting them in court.
READ: Diplomatic pressure over human rights
"We are encouraged that Rwandan authorities have recently taken steps
to bring a number of these individuals before a court. Nonetheless,
the United States remains concerned that there are additional
individuals who may still be held incommunicado and without due
process of law. We are also concerned by credible reports that
individual journalists were threatened, and that the Government of
Rwanda ordered the suspension of a call-in radio programme that
provided citizens with a platform to discuss current events," the
Department of State said in a statement.
The State Department's June 4 call for the Rwanda government "to
respect the rights under Rwandan law and international human rights
law of the individuals detained and arrested" followed an attack on
Human Rights Watch that had made the claims, two days earlier by
Rwanda's Ministry of Justice.
In a commentary, published by Rwanda's New Times newspaper, the
ministry accused HRW of engaging in "a deliberate, sustained and
politically motivated propaganda campaign against the government of
Rwanda."
READ: Rwanda govt trashes HRW 'disappearances' report
The ministry added that "HRW seems to have become more overtly the
campaign mouthpiece of the FDLR, the armed genocidaires who after
committing genocide in Rwanda in 1994, were given safe passage to
eastern DR Congo and have been accorded, ever since, a lucrative safe
haven and shelter from justice."
And, while addressing residents of Nyabihu district in the
northwestern part of the country, President Kagame rebutted the US
statement within hours: "Those who talk about disappearances ... we will
continue to arrest more suspects and if possible shoot in broad
daylight those who intend to destabilise our country.
"My government would not tolerate anyone who wished to throw grenades
at innocent citizens and babies in the name of politics. Those who
have a problem with the government should come to me instead of
throwing grenades at innocent civilians and babies. I should be the
one responsible, but they also know the consequences of coming for
me," the president said.
On Wednesday, the Minister for Foreign Affairs Louise Mushikiwabo
responded to the accusations of disappearances, saying that the
government was dealing with a specific security challenge in the north
of the country, where FDLR and their associates have been infiltrating
and recruiting fighters.
She said a judicial process was underway to try suspects accused of
masterminding grenade attacks in different parts of the country, and
that the issue had been discussed with diplomats.
"In all instances, police and security agencies in Rwanda have acted
lawfully. Accused individuals are entitled to, and receive, due
process. Suggestions otherwise, including claims of disappearances,
are false. We call on all parties to refrain from discourse and
actions that embolden the FDLR and its allies, and thereby endanger
the lives of Rwandans. Rwandan authorities, like in any other country,
will act swiftly and decisively to address such threats. The people of
Rwanda deserve no less," Ms Mushikiwabo said.
Carina Tertsakian, the HRW's senior researcher on Rwanda, said the
critical US statement was "similar" to the assessment published by
Human Rights Watch on May 16. "We welcome that," the London-based HRW
official said in a telephone interview, referring to the US rebuke.
"It does go a bit further than before," she observed.
http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/news/Washington-rebukes-Kigali-over-human-rights-abuses/-/2558/2340362/-/d89yrx/-/index.html
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