MUKAMASIMBA
JF-Expert Member
- Aug 11, 2013
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President Paul Kagame has expressed reservations about promises by the international community to use military means to attack and defeat the FDLR militia which remains a huge security threat to Rwanda.
"The way FDLR issue is being handled, it's as if killing people was not such a bad thing after all," said Kagame.
"Elsewhere, when people kill people on the streets, it's an outrage, when the same is done in Rwanda, it's political grievances," he added.
Kagame made the remarks on Thursday during a press conference at his Urugwiro Village office in Kigali.
The FDLR leadership and ideology are blamed for the 1994 Rwanda genocide in which one million innocent people mainly Tutsi were killed by the Hutu militias.
After being defeated by Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) led by Kagame, the extremists fled to the then Zaire (now DRC) where they also launched a fresh campaign to exterminate the Congolese of Tutsi origin.
Fed up with their atrocities in Eastern DRC and threats to destabilize Rwanda, the regional bodies SADC, UN and ICGLR, gave FDLR several deadline, the last one being January 2, 2015, to surrender guns and demobilize.
Only the old, weak and sick fighters were handed to SADC and DRC authorities.
The command chain of the dangerous militant outfit remains intact. It is reported more fighters have since been recruited to replenish FDLR ranks with the view of attacking Rwanda.
In a leaked memo, UN officials said there was ample evidence to suggest that FDLR are preparing for war. Helicopters were also seen dropping logistics in FDLR-controlled territories this month.
Kagame today said, "We have learnt a lot from others by being in the Security Council and we will keep learning from those lessons."
He further said UN has cracked the whip on other militia groups but "when it comes to FDLR, there are all kinds of excuses: these are children, they are mixed with civilians…there are lessons learnt from past attitudes and there are also lessons to learn from promises for the future."
Asked about his preparedness for war, Kagame stated, confidently: "If the disarmament of FDLR fails, Rwanda will tighten its internal security to make sure that nothing will destabilize the country."
He said Rwandans should hold him accountable should he fail "to take care" of the FDLR threat.
"Rwanda will keep getting better in ensuring its internal security, whatever happens to FDLR," said Kagame.
Kagame also spoke extensively about the terror attack on the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in France in which several people were killed.
"Who won't anyone be angry at people walking into a room and shooting people? We all want free speech but why attack religion?" wondered Kagame.
Maintaining that all and sundry should be enraged by the attack in Paris, Kagame challenged the media to respect diversity.
"If you know that some people are going to be outraged by your artwork, why would you go on and publish it?" asked Kagame.
He also addressed the Vision2020 goals, saying a lot has been achieved in developing infrastructure, private sector and security but quickly added Rwandans need to do more to be where they want to be.
Source:Chimpreports.
