To the UN Sec Gen Bank – Moon

Rwanda has invaded its vast neighbour since 1996 with the pretext of eliminating the FDRL, the Kigali government is accusing of genocide back in 1994 and genocide ideology.

President Paul Kagame has been lashing out at Western countries and International organisations, saying they are the cause of the ongoing crisis in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). No doubt the international community has failed to grasp the dynamics of the politics of the region of the great lakes.

 

The chronology of conflicts that led up to the FDLR and the whole crisis in the DRC is no myth to the whole international community. Whereas  it true ,they are some elements that committed Genocide in Rwanda in Congo, the majority of the FDLR are like many Rwandans that have been fundamentally denied basic freedoms that the West enjoy in their respective countries and its people cherish.

 

Venal leaders are the curse of Africa. If sub-Saharan Africa is “in a mess,” to quote Julius Nyerere, Tanzania’s founding president, it is a mess made by its leaders. To be sure, Africa has its geographical constraints, a cascade of tropical medical ills, and a complex of colonial legacy. However, the international community has continued to support the same regimes they are constantly criticizing of human rights abuses and gross human rights atrocities.

 

The Security Council and the whole of the international community should anticipate, prevent and respond more nimbly to conflict causes across the vast and varied African continent rather than giving ultimatum to some resistance groups against the brutal regimes in the region.

Indeed, the international community should stress the need to address the root causes and regional dimensions of the violence and underline the valuable contribution of democratization and opening of the political space in the region as a way of reducing the current armed conflicts in the region including the FDLR.

 

It is for this reason that the Great Lakes Human Rights Link acknowledges the efforts of the African Union and the international community to pacify the region, but emphasis   should be put on resolving the FDLR issue peacefully bearing in mind the civilians who will be caught up in the crossfire. We also recognize the importance of a comprehensive strategy comprising operational and structural measures for preventing armed conflict and encourage the development of steps to address its root causes such as poverty, weak State institutions and political exclusion.

 

To ensure sustainable peace, the Rwandan leader should be informed by the regional leaders and the international community that using the barrel of the gun will exacerbate the fragile peace that the Congo had just got with heavy price, and the FDLR has been peacefully disarming.

We have the view that the People of Congo and the many Rwandans who will be caught up in the crossfire should be taken into account as history has shown us that conflicts are not resolved by military means.

Noble Marara acting Sec Gen Great lakes human rights link

CC

President Yoweri Museveni Uganda

President Jakaya Kikwete Tanzania

President Jacob Zuma SA