IMPAMVU YANTEYE GUFATANYA NA KAYUMBA NYAMWASA

http://youtu.be/L7TAexArNIQ

Le régime de Kigali veut réécrire l’histoire du Rwanda en décidant de fêter l’indépendance le 4 juillet

http://www.walf-groupe.com/actualites/52-quotidien/international/11051-samuel-hakizimana-president-de-l-urrs-le-regime-de-kigali-veut-reecrire-l-histoire-du-rwanda-en-decidant-de-feter-l-independance-le-4-juillet

SAMUEL HAKIZIMANA, PRESIDENT DE L'URRS : «Le régime de Kigali veut réécrire l'histoire du Rwanda en décidant de fêter l'indépendance le 4 juillet»

 Catégorie : International

 Publié le lundi 1 juillet 2013 16:00

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Cette année encore les Rwandais vont fêter leur accession à la souveraineté internationale dans la discorde. Si pour le régime de Kagamé, l'indépendance est de plus en plus assimilée à la date du 4 juillet 1994, date à laquelle les rebelles du Front patriotique rwandais ont pris le pouvoir, pour le commun des Rwandais, c'est la date du 1er juillet 1962 qui marque l'indépendance du pays. Le Président de l'Union des ressortissants rwandais au Sénégal (Urrs), Samuel Hakizimana, revient sur cette histoire de date qui risque de réveiller les démons dans cette partie de l'Afrique.

 

 

Wal Fadjri : Officiellement le Rwanda a accédé à la souveraineté internationale le 1er juillet 1962. Mais de plus en plus c'est la date du 4 juillet 1994, correspondant à la prise du pouvoir par le Front patriotique rwandais, qui est fêtée. Comment analysez-vous cette situation ?

 Samuel HAKIZIMANA : Au Rwanda, le mois de juillet est chargé d'histoire. C'est le 1er juillet 1962 que ce pays s'est libéré de la tutelle belge et a accédé à son indépendance. C'est aussi le 4 juillet 1994 que le Front patriotique rwandais (Fpr), mouvement rebelle dirigé par Paul Kagame, a pris le pouvoir à Kigali. Connaître l'histoire d'une nation permet de mieux comprendre son présent. Avant l'indépendance,  une monarchie tutsie -représentant 14% de la population- appuyée et soutenue d'abord par les colons allemands puis par la tutelle belge régnait sur le reste du peuple rwandais à majorité Hutu 85% et de Batwa 1%. 

En 1959, la révolution sociale a renversé la monarchie et abouti au référendum du 25 septembre 1961 qui instaura la république. Le 1er juillet 1962, le Rwanda accédait à l'indépendance. Pendant et après la révolution, les nostalgiques du pouvoir monarchique s'exilèrent dans les pays limitrophes. Ils déclenchèrent une guerre de reconquête contre le Rwanda qui aboutit à la prise du pouvoir à Kigali par le Fpr le 4 juillet 1994. Depuis, la date de l'indépendance fut jetée aux oubliettes. En lieu et place  est fêtée la date du 4 juillet.

N'est-ce pas là une drôle de façon d'interpréter les événements au Rwanda ?

Oui effectivement, les nouvelles autorités du Rwanda veulent  réécrire l'histoire du pays. Elles ont changé l'hymne et le drapeau national, les noms des rues et des places publiques. Elles font comme si, entre 1959 et 1994, rien ne s'était passé dans ce pays.
 
Qu'est-ce qui justifie, selon vous, cette volonté de réécrire l'histoire du pays ?

Les autorités actuelles ont conquis le pouvoir par les armes. Elles veulent imposer leur vision des choses, celle du vainqueur. Ceci est une source constante de division du peuple rwandais et une entrave notoire à la réconciliation nationale que Kigali prétend chercher. Alors que ces autorités s'évertuent à nier l'existence des ethnies au Rwanda, elles entretiennent sciemment et savamment le mythe de la suprématie tutsie qui ignore tout ce qui a été fait en dehors d'eux.

 En tant que ressortissant rwandais vivant au Sénégal, que comptez-vous faire pour contribuer à trouver des solutions à ce problème ?

L'Union des ressortissants rwandais au Sénégal a toujours demandé aux autorités et au peuple rwandais de s'asseoir autour d'une table pour chercher une solution idoine à ce problème. Plus d'une fois, nous avons écrit au président  Kagame pour lui demander de reconsidérer cette politique discriminatoire. Nous poursuivons dans cette voie. Nous restons convaincus que la réconciliation nationale ne peut se faire en ignorant les effets marquants de l'histoire d'un peuple.

Propos recueillis par Magib GAYE

Fw: *DHR* Tanzania: Obama calls on neighbors to stop fuelling DRC conflict

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: agnesmurebwayire <agnesmurebwayire@yahoo.fr>
To: Democracy_Human_Rights@yahoogroupes.fr
Sent: Monday, 1 July 2013, 20:31
Subject: *DHR* Tanzania: Obama calls on neighbors to stop fuelling DRC conflict

 

Drazen Jorgic and Fumbuka Ng'wanakilala - Reuters, July 1, 2013

http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSBRE96010420130701?irpc=932

U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday called on states around the Democratic Republic of Congo's eastern region to stop fuelling conflict there and implement a peace deal.

After 11 nations signed the peace agreement, the United Nations started deploying an intervention force, MONUSCO, to neutralize armed groups in the mineral-rich area that has been racked by conflict for years and is desperately underdeveloped.

But a U.N. experts report seen by Reuters last week said military officers from Rwanda and Congo were fuelling violence in the region by supporting rival groups, despite the U.N.-brokered deal signed in February.

Rwanda has repeatedly denied meddling. Earlier accusations that it was backing rebels prompted a halt in some Western aid.

"The countries surrounding the Congo, they've got to make a commitment to stop funding armed groups that are encroaching on territorial integrity and sovereignty of Congo," Obama told a news conference in Tanzania, the last leg of an Africa tour.

"They've signed on a piece of paper, now the question is whether they follow through," he said. "Countries surrounding Congo should recognize that if the Congo stabilizes, that will improve the prospects for their goals and their prosperity."

The U.N. report said the M23 rebels continued to recruit fighters in Rwanda, helped by sympathetic Rwandan officers.

It said elements of Congo's military had cooperated with a Rwandan Hutu rebel group against the M23, a Tutsi-dominated rebellion of former Congolese soldiers that has demanded political concessions from President Joseph Kabila in Kinshasa.

Obama said he had discussed with President Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania, which has contributed to the U.N. intervention force, "how we can encourage all the parties concerned to follow through on commitments they've made".

"That means, for example, President Kabila inside Congo, he has to do more and better when it comes to dealing with the DRC's capacity on security issues and delivery of services," the U.S. president said at the joint news conference with Kikwete.

"We are prepared to work with the United Nations, regional organizations and others to help him build capacity," he said, adding that ultimately it was in the "self-interest" of regional countries to act to end the conflict.

"We can't force a solution on to the region. The people's of the region have to stand up and say that enough, it's time to move forward in a different way," Obama added.

__

Rwanda's refugees should not be forced to return

A "cessation clause" invoked by the UN could remove protections for many of the world's 100,000 Rwandan refugees. Last Modified: 30 Jun 2013 13:26

Yoletta Nyange Yoletta Nyange is a Rwandan-born journalist who has lived and worked across several countries including UK, Venezuela, Tunisia, Ethiopia and the Sudans, covering international affairs. RSS

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Paul Kagame came to power in 1994 when the Rwandan Patriotic Front captured the capital, Kigali [Getty Images]

On June 30, roughly 100,000 Rwandan refugees around the world lost their refugee status and could become stateless if they do not return to Rwanda. Arguing that Rwandan refugees no longer have a reasonable fear of persecution if they return, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has invoked a "cessation clause" applying to Rwandans who fled their country before December 31, 1998. The clause essentially frees host countries from their economic, political and ethical duty to provide sanctuary and services to refugees. As a result, Rwandan refugees fear losing their food ration cards, having their children expelled from school, being fired from their jobs, and being pushed into the abyss of statelessness. Rwandan refugees aren't the only ones to have been affected by cessation clauses, which have been applied to 26 other nationalities in the past. With the clause in effect, refugees face three options: voluntarily repatriate to Rwanda, appeal or challenge the cessation clause to stay in their host country, or apply for asylum again in a third country.  Letter from my Child - Rwanda: Children of Bad Memories The UNHCR maintains that it only implements such clauses after ensuring that human rights and general conditions in the refugees' countries of origin have improved and calls these "ceased circumstances". The agency sees the cessation clause as part of a long-term strategy to push states to commit to lasting solutions. States are free to choose whether to implement the cessation clause, but are encouraged to put in place certain procedures to transition refugees to alternative statuses such as local integration programmes. Thankfully, countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia and South Africa have defended the status of Rwandan refugees living there. Yet although life may have become better for some refugees who have returned home, Rwanda is still one of the least peaceful nations in the world: according to the Institute for Economics and Peace's 2013 Global Peace Index, the country ranks 135 out of 162 states. Accordingly, many Rwandan refugees view this cessation clause as a scam, a global fraud of unprecedented scale. It adds insults to their injuries and should be revoked. Rwandans and Paul Kagame In April 1994, after a plane carrying the Rwandan and Burundian presidents was shot down, killing both men, members of Rwanda's Hutu majority launched a genocidal campaign that resulted in the deaths of more than half a million people of both Tutsi and Hutu ethnicities. By the time the Rwandan Patriotic Front, an ethnic Tutsi army led by Paul Kagame, captured the Rwandan capital, half the country's population had fled, fearing for their lives. More than 800,000 Hutu crossed into Congo within four days, one of the largest and fastest refugee exoduses in modern times. But Rwanda's new masters did not want to rule over ghost towns, and needed a sizeable portion of the refugees to return. As a result, the government tried to reassure Hutu refugees that the worst was over, creating the narrative: "Rwandans are one, there are no problems in Rwanda - and please come back."  Rwandans are one indeed. Yet under the rule of Kagame - who has served as Rwanda's president since the RPF's triumph in 1994 - ethnic Hutus have been cruelly mistreated by the government, subjected todeportation, intimidation, and detention. The government's passing of a law in 2004 banning ethnic distinctions - discussing the topic in a manner deemed provocative can even result in jail time - has had the effect of granting only a handful the right to grieve from a collective pain afflicting Rwanda. The cessation clause is only the latest chapter in this agony. Kagame - or the "Darling Dictator", as a New York Times op-ed referred to him - has built his credentials on the heroic tale of having stopped the Tutsi genocide and sending the Hutu "genocidaires" into exile. The president's story has been that those who do not want to live in Rwanda have a dark, ugly past to hide and are running away from prosecution. While it cannot be ruled out that some genocide perpetrators may have quietly resettled abroad, it does not justify branding all refugees and their unborn children as criminals on the run.  The Rwandan government has come to realise that casting all exiles as 'genocidaires' was clumsy and deeply harmful to its attempt to brand itself as a business-friendly 'Singapore of Africa'. The fact is that Rwandans living inside and outside the country are overwhelmingly Hutu, and are part and parcel of the country's fabric. Rwanda's exiles cannot be discarded, if only because they foster the sole space where a healthy conversation about Rwanda is possible. Not everyone wants to go back to Rwanda, and certainly not all at once. The Rwandan government has come to realise that casting all exiles as "genocidaires" was clumsy and deeply harmful to its attempt to brand itselfas a business-friendly "Singapore of Africa". Rwanda needs the exiled Hutu elites, and not the other way around. Between 2005 and 2011, Rwandans living abroad have sent more than $500m in remittances to support their family and friends back home, including $166m in 2011 alone - a major reason why Rwanda's economy has risen from the ashes since Kagame became president. Many argue that Rwanda's policy of marginalising its Hutu exiles stems from the fear that these remittances may create an underground economy, a potentially destabilising financial force and long-term political danger that cannot be controlled by the state: Tutsi traders, under the previous Hutu administration, had bought influence from the allowances received from their exiled relatives. Accordingly, Kagame has begun to - reluctantly - court rich Hutu to extend his web of influence as he wants to avoid a similar episode at all costs. The government has launched a series of suspicious programmes such as Rwanda Day, Agaciro Fund and Come and See, targeting the Rwandan diaspora, "to help dispelrumours among the refugees, mainly spread by genocide perpetrators that the country is not peaceful and that refugees are arrested or killed upon repatriation". Enrolling in the Come and See expedition is free. Former participants have even reported receiving stipends from the government. In exchange, the participants who return commit to preach the gospel of Rwanda's rapid growth. To his credit, Kagame has boosted Rwanda's international profile, securing highly sought-after positions for a handful of former Rwandan refugees. The head of the African Development Bank and the secretary general of the East African Community are both Rwandans, and in April 2013 a Rwandan served as president of the UN Security Council. Another Rwandan was recently appointed to lead the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Mali, after successfully leading the African Union-UN mission in Darfur. The country is also said to be eyeing the top job at UN Women. But although Rwanda has made some impressive strides, such as lifting one million people out of poverty in the past five years, the country remains an autocratic state, and the government has been suspected by foreign governments of supporting attacks and funding hit squads against exiles living abroad. Understandably enough, many Rwandans dread returning to their home country. But now that the cessation clause has been invoked, that may be what many are forced to do. Yoletta Nyange is a Rwandan-born journalist who has lived and worked across several countries including UK, Venezuela, Tunisia, Ethiopia and the Sudans, covering international affairs. Erasing The Nuba is Nyange's highly acclaimed debut documentary. Follow her on Twitter: @Bubulcusibis The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial policy. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2013/06/20136301155211706.html

Rwanda's refugees should not be forced to return

A "cessation clause" invoked by the UN could remove protections for many of the world's 100,000 Rwandan refugees. Last Modified: 30 Jun 2013 13:26

Yoletta Nyange Yoletta Nyange is a Rwandan-born journalist who has lived and worked across several countries including UK, Venezuela, Tunisia, Ethiopia and the Sudans, covering international affairs. RSS

Tweet

Paul Kagame came to power in 1994 when the Rwandan Patriotic Front captured the capital, Kigali [Getty Images]

On June 30, roughly 100,000 Rwandan refugees around the world lost their refugee status and could become stateless if they do not return to Rwanda. Arguing that Rwandan refugees no longer have a reasonable fear of persecution if they return, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has invoked a "cessation clause" applying to Rwandans who fled their country before December 31, 1998. The clause essentially frees host countries from their economic, political and ethical duty to provide sanctuary and services to refugees. As a result, Rwandan refugees fear losing their food ration cards, having their children expelled from school, being fired from their jobs, and being pushed into the abyss of statelessness. Rwandan refugees aren't the only ones to have been affected by cessation clauses, which have been applied to 26 other nationalities in the past. With the clause in effect, refugees face three options: voluntarily repatriate to Rwanda, appeal or challenge the cessation clause to stay in their host country, or apply for asylum again in a third country.  Letter from my Child - Rwanda: Children of Bad Memories The UNHCR maintains that it only implements such clauses after ensuring that human rights and general conditions in the refugees' countries of origin have improved and calls these "ceased circumstances". The agency sees the cessation clause as part of a long-term strategy to push states to commit to lasting solutions. States are free to choose whether to implement the cessation clause, but are encouraged to put in place certain procedures to transition refugees to alternative statuses such as local integration programmes. Thankfully, countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia and South Africa have defended the status of Rwandan refugees living there. Yet although life may have become better for some refugees who have returned home, Rwanda is still one of the least peaceful nations in the world: according to the Institute for Economics and Peace's 2013 Global Peace Index, the country ranks 135 out of 162 states. Accordingly, many Rwandan refugees view this cessation clause as a scam, a global fraud of unprecedented scale. It adds insults to their injuries and should be revoked. Rwandans and Paul Kagame In April 1994, after a plane carrying the Rwandan and Burundian presidents was shot down, killing both men, members of Rwanda's Hutu majority launched a genocidal campaign that resulted in the deaths of more than half a million people of both Tutsi and Hutu ethnicities. By the time the Rwandan Patriotic Front, an ethnic Tutsi army led by Paul Kagame, captured the Rwandan capital, half the country's population had fled, fearing for their lives. More than 800,000 Hutu crossed into Congo within four days, one of the largest and fastest refugee exoduses in modern times. But Rwanda's new masters did not want to rule over ghost towns, and needed a sizeable portion of the refugees to return. As a result, the government tried to reassure Hutu refugees that the worst was over, creating the narrative: "Rwandans are one, there are no problems in Rwanda - and please come back."  Rwandans are one indeed. Yet under the rule of Kagame - who has served as Rwanda's president since the RPF's triumph in 1994 - ethnic Hutus have been cruelly mistreated by the government, subjected todeportation, intimidation, and detention. The government's passing of a law in 2004 banning ethnic distinctions - discussing the topic in a manner deemed provocative can even result in jail time - has had the effect of granting only a handful the right to grieve from a collective pain afflicting Rwanda. The cessation clause is only the latest chapter in this agony. Kagame - or the "Darling Dictator", as a New York Times op-ed referred to him - has built his credentials on the heroic tale of having stopped the Tutsi genocide and sending the Hutu "genocidaires" into exile. The president's story has been that those who do not want to live in Rwanda have a dark, ugly past to hide and are running away from prosecution. While it cannot be ruled out that some genocide perpetrators may have quietly resettled abroad, it does not justify branding all refugees and their unborn children as criminals on the run.  The Rwandan government has come to realise that casting all exiles as 'genocidaires' was clumsy and deeply harmful to its attempt to brand itself as a business-friendly 'Singapore of Africa'. The fact is that Rwandans living inside and outside the country are overwhelmingly Hutu, and are part and parcel of the country's fabric. Rwanda's exiles cannot be discarded, if only because they foster the sole space where a healthy conversation about Rwanda is possible. Not everyone wants to go back to Rwanda, and certainly not all at once. The Rwandan government has come to realise that casting all exiles as "genocidaires" was clumsy and deeply harmful to its attempt to brand itselfas a business-friendly "Singapore of Africa". Rwanda needs the exiled Hutu elites, and not the other way around. Between 2005 and 2011, Rwandans living abroad have sent more than $500m in remittances to support their family and friends back home, including $166m in 2011 alone - a major reason why Rwanda's economy has risen from the ashes since Kagame became president. Many argue that Rwanda's policy of marginalising its Hutu exiles stems from the fear that these remittances may create an underground economy, a potentially destabilising financial force and long-term political danger that cannot be controlled by the state: Tutsi traders, under the previous Hutu administration, had bought influence from the allowances received from their exiled relatives. Accordingly, Kagame has begun to - reluctantly - court rich Hutu to extend his web of influence as he wants to avoid a similar episode at all costs. The government has launched a series of suspicious programmes such as Rwanda Day, Agaciro Fund and Come and See, targeting the Rwandan diaspora, "to help dispelrumours among the refugees, mainly spread by genocide perpetrators that the country is not peaceful and that refugees are arrested or killed upon repatriation". Enrolling in the Come and See expedition is free. Former participants have even reported receiving stipends from the government. In exchange, the participants who return commit to preach the gospel of Rwanda's rapid growth. To his credit, Kagame has boosted Rwanda's international profile, securing highly sought-after positions for a handful of former Rwandan refugees. The head of the African Development Bank and the secretary general of the East African Community are both Rwandans, and in April 2013 a Rwandan served as president of the UN Security Council. Another Rwandan was recently appointed to lead the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Mali, after successfully leading the African Union-UN mission in Darfur. The country is also said to be eyeing the top job at UN Women. But although Rwanda has made some impressive strides, such as lifting one million people out of poverty in the past five years, the country remains an autocratic state, and the government has been suspected by foreign governments of supporting attacks and funding hit squads against exiles living abroad. Understandably enough, many Rwandans dread returning to their home country. But now that the cessation clause has been invoked, that may be what many are forced to do. Yoletta Nyange is a Rwandan-born journalist who has lived and worked across several countries including UK, Venezuela, Tunisia, Ethiopia and the Sudans, covering international affairs. Erasing The Nuba is Nyange's highly acclaimed debut documentary. Follow her on Twitter: @Bubulcusibis The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial policy. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2013/06/20136301155211706.html