Rwanda's Paul Kagame warned he may be charged with aiding war crimes
US tells president he could face prosecution for arming groups that carried out atrocities in Democratic Republic of Congo
Drenching rain adds to misery of refugees in E. Congo rebellion: UN humanitarian chief visits
By Associated Press, Published: August 8
KANYARUCHINYA, Congo — Drenching rain punctuated by frightening bursts of thunder and forked lightning on Wednesday compounded the misery of some 280,000 refugees from Congo’s eastern rebellion, whose plight was highlighted by a visit from the U.N. humanitarian chief.
Baroness Valerie Amos trudged through puddles of muddy water on the outskirts of Goma, the eastern provincial capital, to greet people who had rivulets of water dripping down their faces as they waited in line. They were given a sack containing a blanket, pot, plastic sleeping mat, soap, sanitary towels, a jerry can and plastic sheeting to cover tiny huts put together with twigs and leaves.
Bring President Kagame to the International Criminal Court!
Jennifer Fierberg, MSW Salem-News.com
Many believe that President Kagame should be praised for “stopping the 1994 genocide” but one should read the history on how the genocide started.
Rwanda President Paul Kagame during a recent visit to William Penn University, photo by Jennifer Fierberg Salem-News.com
Rwanda President Paul Kagame during a recent visit to William Penn University, photo by Jennifer Fierberg Salem-News.com
(WASHINGTON DC) - Over the last two months the Government of Rwanda has faced some of the hardest financial and public relation challenges since the 1994 Genocide. The UN Group of Experts has found unequivocal evidence that Paul Kagame is providing weapons, soldiers; communication equipment and ammunition to a rebel group in the DR Congo called the M23.
Indict Kagame and Museveni: To End U.S.-sanctioned Wars of Impunity In Africa
Former Liberian President Charles Taylor was eventually prosecuted, tried, convicted and sentenced to 50 years by a Special War Crimes Tribunal for his role in the atrocities committed during the civil war in Sierra Leone.
Since 1998, both Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni and Rwanda's Paul Kagame have played a role similar to Taylor's -- promoting and engaging in Congo's internal war, which has been even much more brutal, with more than 7 million estimated dead and millions of women and men raped.
Both Uganda and Rwanda continue to be U.S. "allies." Rather than seek the prosecution of Gen. Museveni and Gen. Kagame, the United States has protected the two autocrats for decades.
So the two generals continue to promote conflict in Congo in order to maintain the chaotic environment which permits each country to plunder hundreds of millions of dollars worth of Congo's mineral and natural resource wealth. Kagame and Museveni see Congo as one huge mining concession. The civilians killed are mere collateral damages: obstacles to resource plunder. Domestically, within their countries, both Gen. Kagame and Gen. Museveni have also crushed opposition by pro-democracy activists.
After years of turning a blind eye, on July 22 the U.S. Department of State finally announced that Washington was suspending about $200,000 in military aid to Rwanda for its role in the recent flareup in fighting in Congo. "We have deep concerns about Rwanda's support to the Congolese rebel group that goes by the name M23," Victoria Nuland, the State Department spokesperson said.
M23, a newly-created armed terrorist organization is loyal to Bosco Ntaganda, who's wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to face trial on war crimes charges. The U.S. announcement followed a report in June by a United Nations Group of Experts linking Rwanda to M23: Rwanda had trained and supplied fighters to M23 and provided weapons.
Intoxicated with the orgy of looting from Congo, Rwanda's army and Uganda's acted like vampires. They even fought a pitched battle, in the Congolese city of Kisangani, to determine which country would control the minerals in that region. This would be akin to the U.S. occupation army fighting against its U.K. allies, over who gets to steal Iraq's oil.
So Rwanda and Uganda concluded a truce: Now Rwanda steals from Congo's Kivu region, while Uganda steals from Congo's Ituri region.
The roles of both Rwanda and Uganda in Congo's atrocities are well-documented.
In 2005 the International Court of Justice (ICJ) found Uganda liable for what amounts to war crimes --massacres, plundering, mass rapes-- and granted Congo $10 billion; not a dime has been paid. Separately, on June 8, 2006 The Wall Street Journal reported that Gen. Museveni had contacted then UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and urged him to block a criminal investigation by the ICC. Gen. Museveni has yet to be indicted by the ICC for Uganda's role in the Congo crimes.
One of the several reports documenting Rwanda's own role in the Congo crimes was a United Nations "Mapping Report" in 2010. It concluded that Rwanda's army under Gen. Kagame had committed genocide against Hutu refugees who had fled to Congo following the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. Yet, until the July 22 announcement suspending military assistance, Washington had routinely ignored the atrocities in the Congo linked to Rwanda.
Why does the U.S. continue to ignore the crimes linked to Uganda?
In Uganda's case, it's likely that the quid pro quo was for Uganda to send tens of thousands of troops, which it did, to Somalia, to bolster the government there. Washington fears anarchic Somalia was becoming a haven for al-Qaeda and other hostile forces.
Similarly, Rwanda provides soldiers for international peace-keeping operations, including to the Sudan's Darfur region. The left had sends troops to enforce peace in the Sudan while the right hand sends plundering marauding soldiers to Congo.
Will there be a fundamental shift in U.S. policy towards Rwanda and Uganda? Was the announced military aid suspension to Rwanda made for symbolic public relations until the conflict dies down?
One reason why the U.S. couldn't remain silent was that while the Expert Group's report was circulating, Susan Rice the U.S. ambassador to the UN was trying to get Russia and China to sign on to tougher sanctions against the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria, for his alleged atrocities in the uprising there.
Russia and China could have accused the U.S., correctly, of hypocrisy: after all, ambassador Rice had initially tried to block the UN report linking Rwanda to M23.
Moreover, the U.S. has yet to call for Gen. Kagame to be held criminally liable for Rwanda's role in the Congo crimes; just as President Taylor was held responsible and prosecuted for Liberia's role in Sierra Leone.
And, while the Obama Administration recently announced an Africa Policy that would push for democratization and the building of enduring institutions of state, rather than relying on autocrats, Uganda continues to get carte blanche.
During her ongoing tour of Africa, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a stopover in Uganda this week. She apparently forgot her memo about the new policy on her plane: Clinton never publicly mentioned the word "democracy" while in Uganda.
Charles Taylor must be wondering what he did wrong.
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