News
At least 70 killed in militia attack in western DR Congo
People displaced by the ongoing fighting gather at refugee camp on the outskirts of Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo, on July 11, 2024
KINSHASA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO —
At least 70 people, including nine soldiers and a soldier's wife, were killed when armed men attacked a village in western Democratic Republic of Congo, local authorities said, as violence intensifies between two rival communities.
The attack took place on Saturday in the village of Kinsele, around 100 kilometers (60 miles) east of Kinshasa, the capital. Because of insecurity and poor infrastructure in the region, deadly attacks can take days to be reported.
Kinsele is in the Kwamouth territory, where for the past two years conflict has raged between two local communities — Teke and Yaka — leading to the deaths of hundreds of civilians.
As Congo battles armed groups in the east, violence has also intensified in the western part of the country.
The attackers were members of the Mobondo militia, an armed group presenting itself as defenders of the Yaka people.
"As of [Monday], 72 bodies have already been found and the search continues to find other bodies in the bush," David Bisaka, the provincial deputy for the Kwamouth territory, told The Associated Press in a phone interview.
Security services on site continue to search for the bodies "after the army succeeded in routing this militia" for the second time in a week, Bisaka said. The Mobondo militia first tried to attack the same village on Friday.
Following Saturday's attack, the bodies found included those of nine soldiers and one woman, the wife of a soldier, the head of a nearby village, Stanys Liby, told the U.N.-funded Radio Okapi.
The conflict over land and customary claims in the Kwamouth territory erupted in June 2022 between so-called "native" and "nonnative" communities, according to the advocacy group Human Rights Watch.
Tensions flared in June 2022 over land rights and customary taxes between the Teke, historical inhabitants of the region, and farmers from various other ethnic groups, including the Yaka, who settled near the Congo River more recently.
Despite a cease-fire agreed upon in April 2024 in the presence of Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi, clashes between the two communities have continued and even intensified in recent weeks, with the Congolese army failing to quell the violence.
The army is also struggling to contain the violence in the eastern part of the country, which has been torn by decadelong fighting between government forces and more than 120 armed groups seeking a share of the region's gold and other resources.
Violence in the eastern part of the country has worsened in recent months as security forces battle the militias. Earlier this month, a militia attack on a gold mine in northeastern Congo killed six Chinese miners and two Congolese soldiers.
TWO ARMIES ACCUSED OF BACKING DR CONGO'S FEARED REBELS
Image: AFP. M23 rebels are accused of setting up a parallel administration in eastern DR Congo
LUCY FLEMING IN LONDON & DIDIER BIKORIMANA IN NAIROBI
UGANDA IS BACKING M23 REBELS FIGHTING ACROSS ITS BORDER IN EASTERN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO, UN EXPERTS SAY, WARNING THAT A RAPIDLY ESCALATING CRISIS “CARRIED THE RISK OF TRIGGERING A WIDER REGIONAL CONFLICT”.
THE WELL-ARMED M23 IS OFTEN ACCUSED OF BEING A RWANDAN PROXY FORCE, BUT THE UN EXPERTS HAVE PUT FORWARD EVIDENCE TO SUGGEST THAT IT ALSO HAS UGANDA’S SUPPORT.
UGANDA HAS DENIED THE ALLEGATIONS IN THE UN REPORT THAT ALSO ACCUSES RWANDA OF HAVING UP TO 4,000 TROOPS IN DR CONGO FIGHTING ALONGSIDE THE REBELS.
IN RESPONSE, RWANDA DID NOT DENY THE ALLEGATION AND TOLD THE BBC THE DR CONGO GOVERNMENT LACKED THE POLITICAL WILL TO RESOLVE THE CRISIS IN ITS MINERAL-RICH EAST, WHICH HAS WITNESSED DECADES OF UNREST.
THE UN EXPERTS SAID THAT RWANDAN TROOPS WERE "MATCHING IF NOT SURPASSING" THE NUMBER OF M23 FIGHTERS, THOUGHT TO BE AT AROUND 3,000 IN MID-APRIL, ON CONGOLESE SOIL.
RWANDA HAS LONG BEEN ANGERED BY THE PRESENCE OF ETHNIC HUTU REBELS, KNOWN AS THE FDLR, IN EASTERN DR CONGO - JOINT OPERATIONS IN THE PAST HAVE FAILED TO ELIMINATE THEM.
THE GROUP’S LEADERS ARE ACCUSED OF TAKING PART IN THE 1994 RWANDAN GENOCIDE, IN WHICH 800,000 ETHNIC TUTSIS AND MODERATE HUTUS WERE KILLED.
THE TUTSI-LED M23 FIRST EMERGED WITH GREAT FEROCITY IN 2012, ONLY TO BE DEFEATED THE FOLLOWING YEAR WITH THE HELP OF A MULTINATIONAL FORCE WHEN MOST OF ITS FIGHTERS FLED TO CAMPS IN RWANDA AND UGANDA.
THEY BEGAN TO REARM THREE YEARS AGO AND THE GROUP NOW CONTROLS SWATHES OF TERRITORY IN THE NORTH KIVU PROVINCE, WHERE THE UN REPORT SAYS M23 HAS INSTALLED A PARALLEL ADMINISTRATION.
THREE MILLION PEOPLE ARE ESTIMATED TO HAVE FLED THEIR HOMES BECAUSE OF THE FIGHTING.
THE UN EXPERTS’ 293-PAGE REPORT, EXTERNAL, WHICH COVERS EVENTS UP UNTIL MID-APRIL, HAS JUST BEEN PUBLISHED - BUT IT WAS FIRST HANDED TO THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL SANCTIONS COMMITTEE AND THEN SENT TO THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL LAST MONTH.
THEIR REPORT ALSO WARNED THAT BURUNDI’S MILITARY HAD BEEN INVOLVED IN OPERATIONS WITH THE CONGOLESE ARMY AGAINST THE M23 AND RWANDAN SOLDIERS, EXACERBATING REGIONAL TENSIONS.
DR CONGO'S FOREIGN MINISTER THÉRÈSE KAYIKWAMBA WAGNER SAID SHE WAS CONCERNED BY THE ALLEGATIONS OF COLLUSION BETWEEN THE UGANDA ARMY, M23 AND RWANDAN MILITARY.
SHE SAID THE ISSUE WOULD BE TAKEN UP WITH UGANDA WITH WHOM DR CONGO HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN A JOINT OFFENSIVE AGAINST ANOTHER REBEL GROUP, THE ISLAMIC STATE-LINKED ALLIED DEMOCRATIC FORCES (ADF), WHICH ATTACKS BOTH COUNTRIES.
BUT THE UN REPORT SAID IT WAS LIKELY THAT UGANDA WAS ALLOWING M23 SUPPLIES AND NEW RECRUITS THROUGH ITS TERRITORY.
“SINCE THE RESURGENCE OF THE M23 CRISIS, UGANDA HAS NOT PREVENTED THE PRESENCE OF M23 AND RWANDA DEFENCE FORCE (RDF) TROOPS ON ITS TERRITORY OR PASSAGE THROUGH IT,” IT SAID.
UGANDAN MILITARY INTELLIGENCE OFFICERS HAD ALSO BEEN IN THE CONGOLESE TOWN OF BUNAGANA SINCE AT LEAST LATE 2023 “TO CO-ORDINATE WITH M23 LEADERS, PROVIDE LOGISTICS AND TRANSPORT M23 LEADERS TO M23-CONTROLLED AREA”.
THE REPORT ALSO NOTED THAT M23 LEADERS, INCLUDING ITS MILITARY CHIEF SULTANI MAKENGA - WHO IS SUBJECT TO A UN SANCTIONS TRAVEL BAN - HAD TRAVELLED TO UGANDA FOR MEETINGS.
UGANDA DEPUTY MILITARY SPOKESMAN, DEO AKIIKI, TOLD THE REUTERS NEWS AGENCY THE ALLEGATIONS IN THE REPORT WERE FALSE: "IT WOULD BE MAD FOR US TO DESTABILISE THE SAME AREA WE ARE SACRIFICING IT ALL TO HAVE IT STABLE.”
IMAGE: AFP. HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE HAVE FLED THEIR HOMES AS FIGHTING INTENSIFIES BETWEEN THE M23 AND THE CONGOLESE ARMY AND ITS MILITIA ALLIES
BUT THE REPORT FURTHER DETAILS UGANDA’S ALLEGED SUPPORT FOR THE ALLIANCE FLEUVE CONGO (AFC) - A NEWLY CREATED MOVEMENT REGARDED BY SOME ANALYSTS AS THE POLITICAL ARM OF THE M23.
IT IS LED BY DR CONGO’S FORMER ELECTORAL CHIEF AND SAYS IT WANTS TO BRING PEACE TO THE EAST, BUT ACCORDING TO SOURCES QUOTED IN THE UN REPORT, IT HAS BEEN SEEN AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO LEGITIMISE THE M23 “WHILE DIMINISHING THE ROLE OF RWANDA IN THE CRISIS”.
A JOINT AFC-M23 STATEMENT IN RESPONSE TO A LEAKED VERSION OF THE REPORT SAID THE UN EXPERTS HAD DISTORTED THE SITUATION WHICH MIGHT “OBSTRUCT THE CREATION OF LASTING PEACE”.
IT ALSO GAVE DETAILED ACCOUNTS OF OTHER THINGS IT FELT WERE INCORRECT, LIKE AN ALLEGED M23 ATTACK AT GOMA AIRPORT AND THE M23’S ALLEGED FORCED RECRUITMENT AND USE OF CHILD SOLDIERS, WHICH RWANDA DENIES TOO.
THE AFC-M23 ALSO DENIED RWANDA’S INVOLVEMENT IN THE CONFLICT, SAYING THE “OBSESSION WITH ESTABLISHING A CONNECTION BETWEEN M23 AND RWANDA PARTICIPATES IN FUELLING THE HATE IDEOLOGY WHICH IS THE ROOT CAUSE OF THE VIOLENCE” IN EASTERN DR CONGO.
THE UN REPORT SAID BY EARLY APRIL 2024, THE M23 AND RWANDA MILITARY’S AREA OF INFLUENCE WAS THE LARGEST EVER RECORDED - REPRESENTING A 70% INCREASE SINCE NOVEMBER.
IT SAID THAT THE DEPLOYMENT OF ADVANCED MILITARY TECHNOLOGY AND EQUIPMENT BOLSTERED JOINT M23-RWANDAN MILITARY OPERATIONS, “ALTERING CONFLICT DYNAMICS” INCLUDING BY GROUNDING ALL CONGOLESE MILITARY “AIR ASSETS”.
THE REPORT INCLUDED PHOTOS AND SCREENGRABS GIVING DETAILS OF THE WEAPONS AND DRONES USED – ALLEGEDLY PROVIDED TO THE M23 DESPITE AN ARMS EMBARGO.
RWANDA’S GOVERNMENT SPOKESPERSON YOLANDE MAKOLO ACCUSED CONGOLESE PRESIDENT FÉLIX TSHISEKEDI OF SABRE-RATTLING.
“HE HAS ALSO CONSISTENTLY THREATENED TO DECLARE WAR ON RWANDA,” SHE TOLD THE BBC, ACCUSING THE CONGOLESE ARMY OF FINANCING AND FIGHTING ALONGSIDE THE FDLR.
SHE SAID DR CONGO HAD ALL THE POWER TO DE-ESCALATE THE SITUATION IF IT WANTED TO “BUT UNTIL THEN RWANDA WILL CONTINUE TO DEFEND ITSELF”.
A REGIONAL FORCE FROM THE SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY (SADC) WAS DEPLOYED AT THE END OF LAST YEAR TO HELP DR CONGO'S MILITARY DEAL WITH CONFLICTS IN THE EAST.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY THE BBC'S GLADYS KIGO
DR CONGO SOLDIERS SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR DESERTION
Image: Reuters. A lawyer for the soldiers says he will appeal against the sentence
WEDAELI CHIBELUSHI, BBC NEWS
Twenty-five soldiers with the Democratic Republic of Congo's army have been sentenced to death for fleeing battles against the notorious M23 rebels in the conflict-hit east of the country.
The soldiers were also convicted of theft by a military tribunal as they stole goods from shops in a nearby village after abandoning their positions, an army spokesman said.
Four of the soldiers' wives were acquitted by the military court of receiving goods looted by their husbands.
In March, the government lifted a moratorium, in place for more than 20 years, on the death penalty being carried out after the justice minister cited the need to remove "traitors" from the army.
A lawyer for the soldiers, two of whom were captains, said he would appeal against the sentence, which was handed down on Wednesday by the military tribunal in DR Congo's North Kivu province.
In addition to the 25 who received death sentences, one soldier was given a 10-year prison sentence and another was acquitted.
In May a military court in the city of Goma sentenced eight soldiers to death for "desertion" and "cowardice" when fighting rebel forces. They, too, are appealing against their sentences.
The M23 rebels have over the last few days captured several towns, including the strategic town of Kanyabayonga.
Neighbouring Rwanda is widely accused of backing the M23, but the government in Kigali denies it.
The UN has said that the current situation in North Kivu is "particularly concerning".
In the past week more than 150,000 civilians fled their homes, it said, worsening a humanitarian crisis in a region where 2.8 million people had already been displaced.
North Kivu is also "perilous" for humanitarian workers, the UN added.
On Sunday two aid workers with the charity Tearfund were killed after their convoy was attacked in the town of Butembo.
The army's fight against the M23 and other rebel groups in the east has long been hampered by the disarray within its ranks.
The army is seen as unprofessional and badly disciplined. Soldiers complain of poor pay and a lack of equipment.
Both the UN and regional states have troops in DR Congo to support the army, but they have failed to stem the violence.
M23 fighters are said to be well-armed and disciplined.
The rebel group began operating in 2012 ostensibly to protect the Tutsi population in the east of DR Congo, which had long complained of persecution and discrimination.
Despite Rwanda's denials, UN experts - along with France and the US - say the M23 is supported by President Paul Kagame's government.
Additional reporting by Emery Makumeno in Kinshasa
US CITIZENS FACE CHARGES ‘PUNISHABLE BY DEATH’ IN ALLEGED COUP ATTEMPT IN CONGO
Three US nationals on trial in Democratic Republic of Congo over events in May described as an attempted coup
Agence France-Presse in Kinshasa, Fri 7June 2024
More than 50 people, including three US citizens and a Belgian, have gone on trial in the Democratic Republic of Congo over what the army has described as an attempted coup.
The actions of the three Americans were “punishable by death”, Judge Freddy Ehume told the military court in the DRC capital, Kinshasa.
Marcel Malanga and Taylor Christian Thomson, both 21, and 36-year-old Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun were the first of the defendants to stand before the judge to hear the charges read out against them.
“These acts are punishable by death,” the presiding judge of the Kinshasa-Gombe military court told the three.
Another 50 or so defendants then took the stand one by one under a large tent in the grounds of the Ndolo military prison to hear the charges. All appeared in blue-and-yellow prison uniforms at their trial, which started at about 11.40am local time and was followed closely by western diplomats, journalists and lawyers.
The alleged coup attempt occurred on 19 May, when armed men attacked the home of the economy minister, Vital Kamerhe, in the early hours before moving on to the nearby Palais de la Nation that houses President Felix Tshisekedi’s offices.
They were seemingly filmed brandishing the flag of Zaire – the name of the central African country during the rule of the dictator Mobutu Sese Seko – and chanting that Tshisekedi’s government was over.
The army later announced on national television that security forces had stopped “an attempted coup d’état”.
The alleged plot was led by Christian Malanga, a Congolese man who was a “naturalised American” and who was killed by security forces, the army spokesperson Gen Sylvain Ekenge said.
Malanga’s son, who is a US citizen, was one of the three Americans to face trial on Friday.
Ekenge said about 40 of the assailants, of “various nationalities”, had been arrested and a further four killed, including Christian Malanga.
The motive behind the alleged incident remains unclear but the government condemned it as an attempt to “destabilise” the vast country’s “institutions”.
Four women are among the accused, as well as at least one Belgian national, Jean-Jacques Wondo.
Wondo, a military expert of Congolese origin, was arrested two days after the events, on 21 May.
He is accused of being an “accomplice of Christian Malanga” by “providing transport” for the alleged putschists, his lawyer, Masingo Shela, said.
Wondo denied the charge against him and would defend himself, Shela added.
According to a court document, a total of 53 defendants are being tried, including Christian Malanga, even though he is dead.
The charges include “attack, terrorism, illegal possession of weapons and munitions of war, attempted assassination, criminal association, murder [and] financing of terrorism”, according to the document.
© 2024 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. (dcr)
RWANDA’S TOP UK DIPLOMAT OVERSAW USE OF INTERPOL TO TARGET REGIME OPPONENTS
Exclusive: Johnston Busingye formally appointed days after UK agreed Rwanda asylum deal with Paul Kagame in 2022
Tom Burgis in London, The Guardian, 28 May 2024
Rwanda’s top diplomat in the UK oversaw the use of the international justice system to target opponents of the country’s rulers around the world, the Guardian can reveal.
New details of the Rwandan government’s suppression of opposition beyond its borders add to concerns about the regime at the heart of Rishi Sunak’s asylum policy.
During nine years as Rwanda’s justice minister and attorney general, Johnston Busingye, now the high commissioner to the UK, presided over at least three cases in which Rwandan exiles who had defied the authorities were detained, deported or declared wanted on dubious grounds.
In one case, the ulterior motive behind Rwanda’s request for an international criminal alert against a former senior official was considered so flagrant that it was cancelled by the agency responsible for issuing them.
Busingye speaking to reporters in 2015. Photograph: PA Images/Alamy
IT IS NOT THE FIRST TIME BUSINGYE HAS BEEN LINKED TO ACTS OF REPRESSION BY THE RWANDAN GOVERNMENT. WHILE HE WAS JUSTICE MINISTER, BUSINGYE ADMITTED THE REGIME TOOK PART IN AN OPERATION IN DUBAI TO SEIZE PAUL RUSESABAGINA, A DISSIDENT WHO INSPIRED THE FILM HOTEL RWANDA.
THE LANTOS FOUNDATION, A US HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANISATION, ASKED THE UK TO IMPOSE SANCTIONS ON BUSINGYE AFTER HIS NOMINATION. THE LABOUR MP CHRIS BRYANT SAID AT THE TIME THAT BUSINGYE “SHOULD BE ON OUR LIST OF SANCTIONED INDIVIDUALS, NOT PEOPLE BEING ESCORTED TO BUCKINGHAM PALACE TO HAVE THEIR CREDENTIALS AGREED BY HER MAJESTY”.
FOR SEVEN MONTHS, BUSINGYE’S NOMINATION AS THE AMBASSADOR IN LONDON WENT UNCONFIRMED. THEN, IN APRIL 2022, THE RWANDA ASYLUM DEAL WAS AGREED WITH THE AUTHORITARIAN PRESIDENT, PAUL KAGAME. DAYS LATER, BUSINGYE WAS INVITED TO THE PALACE TO BE FORMALLY APPOINTED.
A SPOKESPERSON FOR THE LANTOS FOUNDATION TOLD THE GUARDIAN THE TIMING “RAISES THE QUESTION OF WHETHER THERE WAS, IN FACT, A CONNECTION BETWEEN THE ASYLUM DEAL AND THE UK’S DECISION TO ULTIMATELY ACCEPT BUSINGYE’S CREDENTIALS”.
A FOREIGN OFFICE SPOKESPERSON SAID: “NOMINATIONS FOR AMBASSADORS OR HIGH COMMISSIONERS ARE CONSIDERED ON A CASE-BY-CASE BASIS IN THE USUAL WAY AND A RANGE OF FACTORS ARE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT BEFORE A DECISION IS MADE.”
THE RWANDA POLICY APPEARED TO HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED LAST WEEK. SUNAK HAD WANTED THE FIRST FLIGHTS TAKING ASYLUM SEEKERS TO THE EAST AFRICAN COUNTRY TO GO IN JULY, BUT THIS SEEMED UNLIKELY IN THE LEAD-UP TO THE GENERAL ELECTION. A HIGH COURT JUDGE HAS ASKED THE UK GOVERNMENT TO CONFIRM THE EARLIEST DATE IT INTENDS TO START REMOVING ASYLUM SEEKERS.
Sinister side of Kagame’s ‘safe’ regime
When he announced the UK’s deal with Rwanda, Boris Johnson, then prime minister, said: “Let’s be clear, Rwanda is one of the safest countries in the world.” An investigation, Rwanda Classified, by an international coalition of journalists including the Guardian, coordinated by Forbidden Stories, shows that for some who cross Rwanda’s ruler, nowhere is safe.
Kagame came to power in 1994, when the Tutsi rebel army he led overthrew the Hutu regime that had unleashed genocide. After 100 days in which more than 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus had been killed, little was left of Rwanda. Kagame restored order and charted an economic recovery aided by western powers that had stood by while the massacres raged.
Yet there was always a more sinister side to Kagame’s rule. The fallout from the genocide triggered war in neighbouring Congo. Although peace was declared in 2003, Rwanda has maintained a hold on eastern Congo. A recent UN report said Rwandan troops were operating alongside M23, a Tutsi militia that rapes, kills and loots with impunity.
The journalist John Williams Ntwali died in suspicious circumstances in 2023.
WITHIN THE COUNTRY SOME JOURNALISTS HAVE SAID THEY FEEL THREATENED. JOHN WILLIAMS NTWALI, A LEADING RWANDAN REPORTER WHO PUBLISHED SENSITIVE STORIES ABOUT KAGAME’S REGIME, WAS WARNED HE WOULD “END UP IN PRISON OR DEAD” BEFORE HE DIED IN SUSPICIOUS CIRCUMSTANCES IN 2023. REPORTING BY RWANDA CLASSIFIED HAS FOUND THAT THE AUTHORITIES HAVE GIVEN CONFLICTING ACCOUNTS OF WHAT BEFELL HIM.
KAGAME’S INFLUENCE STRETCHES BEYOND CENTRAL AFRICA. HIS OPPONENTS ABROAD LIVE IN FEAR THAT THEY MIGHT SUFFER THE SAME FATE AS HIS FORMER INTELLIGENCE CHIEF, WHOSE BLOODIED BODY WAS FOUND IN A SOUTH AFRICAN HOTEL ROOM. A WESTERN JOURNALIST WHO HAS REPORTED ON SUSPICIOUS DEATHS OF KAGAME’S ENEMIES HAS BECOME THE TARGET OF A SMEAR CAMPAIGN.
YET KAGAME HAS A CHORUS OF PROMINENT ADMIRERS, AMONG THEM THE CONSERVATIVE MP ANDREW MITCHELL. FROM 2020 TO 2022, MITCHELL WAS PAID NEARLY £40,000 FOR NINE DAYS’ WORK A YEAR BY A BANK FOUNDED BY KAGAME’S FORMER FINANCE MINISTER. MITCHELL IS NOW A FOREIGN OFFICE MINISTER. A FOREIGN OFFICE SPOKESPERSON SAID: “ALL THE MINISTER’S PREVIOUS INTERESTS WHEN HE WAS A BACKBENCHER HAVE BEEN DECLARED IN THE CORRECT WAY.”
MITCHELL HAS BEEN A STAUNCH DEFENDER OF WHAT HE CALLS KAGAME’S “REMARKABLE” REGIME. HE HAS RAISED THE CASE OF FIVE RWANDANS LIVING IN THE UK WHOSE EXTRADITION KAGAME’S REGIME HAS DEMANDED. THEY DENY ALLEGATIONS OF COMPLICITY IN THE GENOCIDE. THE UK POLICE ARE INVESTIGATING BUT A BRITISH COURT HAS RULED THAT, BECAUSE THEY WOULD NOT HAVE A FAIR TRIAL, THEY SHOULD NOT BE EXTRADITED.
Photographs of some of the people who were killed during the 1994 genocide, displayed at the Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre. Photograph: Dai Kurokawa/EPA
IN 2019 MITCHELL QUOTED BUSINGYE, THEN JUSTICE MINISTER, AS SAYING: “THE UK WILL GO DOWN IN HISTORY AS THE ONLY COUNTRY IN EUROPE WHICH KNOWINGLY SHIELDED ALLEGED RWANDAN GÉNOCIDAIRES FROM JUSTICE.”
CAMPAIGNERS WARN THAT THE USE OF THE GENOCIDE BY BUSINGYE AND FELLOW MEMBERS OF KAGAME’S REGIME TO ATTACK OPPONENTS CASTS A SHADOW OVER GENUINE ATTEMPTS TO HOLD THE PERPETRATORS OF 1994’S ATROCITIES TO ACCOUNT.
Abuse of Interpol red notices
In 2013 Busingye was appointed attorney general and justice minister. The following year, alongside Kagame, he welcomed to Rwanda the head of Interpol, the international agency that runs global cooperation between police forces, to launch a renewed hunt for fugitive génocidaires.
Questions quickly surfaced about how Rwanda uses red notices, the worldwide alerts Interpol issues when one of its member countries wants a suspect arrested.
In July 2016, Enoch Ruhigira, a Rwandan living in New Zealand, visited Germany and was arrested. Before the genocide, he had served as a senior official in the Hutu regime. When the killing started, Ruhigira distributed machetes and organised roadblocks to snare Tutsis, according to a 2004 red notice against him, seen by the Guardian.
The red notice had been withdrawn a year before his arrest, after it emerged that Ruhigira had fled Rwanda before the crimes he supposedly committed. Ruhigira was released without charge after eight months.
Another exiled Hutu, Leopold Munyakazi, is now in a Rwandan prison. Munyakazi was a member of the opposition. He moved to the US in 2004 and claimed asylum. According to Human Rights Watch, Interpol issued red notices in 2006 and 2008 accusing him of genocide.
In 2016 he was deported even though an investigation by the US immigration authorities was “almost certainly” compromised by a Rwandan spy, according to a leaked FBI report.
In Rwanda he was sentenced to life for genocide but an appeal judge quashed the conviction due to lack of evidence. Then he was given nine years for “genocide denial” because he had said: “I refer to it as civil war, not genocide; it was about political power.” Munyakazi’s case was an example of “abusive restrictions on free speech”, Human Rights Watch said.
The leaked FBI report, written in 2015 while Busingye was justice minister, said Rwanda had been “attempting to manipulate … the Interpol red notice system”.
Five years later, in 2020, Interpol issued another alert on behalf of Rwanda. This time it was for Eugene Gasana, who had served as Rwanda’s ambassador to the US and the UN. His diplomatic career, and his long friendship with Kagame, ended when he disagreed with the president’s plan to extend his rule.
The red notice said Gasana was wanted under a warrant issued by Rwanda’s top prosecutor – who reported to Busingye. His alleged crime was rape and sexual harassment.
Gasana told Interpol the allegations had been concocted by Kagame’s regime to “destroy him”, and that it could only be for an “ulterior motive” as he could not be extradited for a crime allegedly committed in the US.
Interpol’s internal watchdog sided with Gasana, finding that although one of his accusers had brought a civil claim, US law enforcement had “already investigated and declined to prosecute”. The red notice was cancelled in July 2021 for having a “predominant political dimension”.
An Interpol spokesperson said the agency “has a number of systems in place to avoid the abuse of our systems, and these have been significantly strengthened over the last few years”.
Bill Browder, an anti-corruption campaigner whom the Kremlin tried to hound through Interpol, said the international justice system was being “polluted” by “rogue regimes” including Russia, China, Iran and Venezuela abusing red notices. “For Rwanda to join that group while the UK government is saying it is a safe country to send asylum seekers is an absurdity.”
Yolande Makolo, Rwanda’s government spokesperson, said Rwanda had “built a fair and transparent system which has delivered justice to the victims” of the genocide. She added: “Rwanda has also worked with international partners to track down genocide suspects, or any other criminals, and we will continue to ensure that our justice system, in which Rwandans have a high level of trust, keeps our citizens and all those who live in Rwanda safe.”
DRC ARMY SAYS IT STOPPED ATTEMPTED COUP INVOLVING THREE US CITIZENS
Coup leader killed and 50 people, including Americans, arrested after men reportedly attacked presidency in capital Kinshasa
Reuters in Kinshasa, Sunday 19 May 2024
The leader of an attempted coup on Sunday in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been killed and about 50 people including three American citizens arrested, a spokesperson for the central African country’s army told Reuters. Gunfire rang out around 4am in the capital Kinshasa, a Reuters reporter said. Armed men attacked the presidency in the city centre, according to spokesperson Sylvain Ekenge. Another attack took place at the nearby home of Vital Kamerhe, a member of parliament who is tipped to become speaker, Kamerhe’s spokesperson, Michel Moto Muhima, and the Japanese ambassador said in posts on Twitter/X.
Vital Kamerhe, leader of the Union for the Congolese Nation party, at a meeting in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, in 2018.
Photograph: Baz Ratner/Reuters
Moto Muhima said two guards and an attacker had been killed in that incident. Ekenge also said one attacker was killed there. A shell fired from Kinshasa hit the city of Brazzaville in neighbouring Republic of Congo, injuring several people, that country’s government said in a statement, adding that one person had been hospitalised.
Ekenge named Christian Malanga, a US-based Congolese politician, as the leader of the attempted coup.
“Malanga was definitively neutralised during the attack on the Palais de la Nation, a certain Aboubacar was neutralised during the attack on the residence of Vital Kamarhe the others – around 50 including three American citizens – were arrested and are currently undergoing interrogation by the specialised services of the armed forces,” Ekenge told Reuters.
He said Malanga first attempted and aborted a coup in 2017 and that one of the American citizens arrested was Malanga’s son. A Facebook page appearing to belong to Malanga posted a livestreamed video of what appeared to be the attack. “We, the militants, are tired. We cannot drag on with [President Félix] Tshisekedi and Kamerhe, they have done too many stupid things in this country,” Malanga said in Lingala in the video, which has not been independently verified by Reuters.
The US ambassador, Lucy Tamlyn, said in a post on social media that she was “very concerned” by reports that US citizens had allegedly been involved in the events. “Please be assured that we will cooperate with the DRC authorities to the fullest extent as they investigate these criminal acts and hold accountable any US citizen involved in criminal acts,” she said.
The US embassy had earlier issued a security alert warning of “ongoing activity by DRC security elements” and reports of gunfire in the area. The United Nations’ stabilisation mission in the DRC said that its chief, Bintou Keita, condemned the incidents in the strongest terms and offered her support to the Congolese authorities in a post on X.
Tshisekedi was reelected for a second term as president in December, but has yet to name a government, six weeks after appointing a prime minister. Kamerhe was a candidate for speaker of parliament in an election that had been scheduled for Saturday but was delayed by Tshisekedi.
RWANDA-BACKED REBELS ARE CHOKING THE CONGOLESE PEOPLE, YET THIS IS ONE CONFLICT THE WORLD CAN EASILY END
Kagame’s regime is funding rape, killings and torture by the M23 militia, who have now cut off the city of Goma. But he can be stopped
Vava Tampa, The Guardian, 11 April 2024
The M23 militia group attacked the town of Saké in North Kivu last month, wounding eight UN peacekeepers and sending much of its population fleeing towards the provincial capital, Goma. The fall of the town in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) means the M23 now controls all roads in and out of Goma – and, by extension, critical mining sites and trading networks.
If the M23 wanted to overrun the capital, as it did in 2012, it would have done so by now. So why hasn’t it? The militia would struggle to keep hold of the city without the support of neighbouring Rwanda. Three UN investigations, the latest in December, have concluded that the M23 is armed and supported by President Paul Kagame’s regime. The UN imposed sanctions on the group in February.
It appears the militia is attempting to choke the Congolese people into submission by disrupting movement of goods and people, as well as the delivery of humanitarian aid including medicine, food and water to those trapped in Goma. Is Kagame’s plan to force the DRC government into a power-sharing agreement? That would give Rwanda access to and control of critical Congolese mines and business networks in North Kivu.
If more evidence was needed for the west to act to end this violence, then the fall of Saké must surely provide it. The number of M23-related displacements across North Kivu has risen to 1.7 million. Many, including more than 200,000 who have fled in recent weeks, are living in makeshift tents or at the homes of friends or relatives in Goma, which was already home to about 780,000 people, with almost a million more living on its outskirts. Disease is adding to the misery. The World Health Organization documented more than 52,400 cholera cases in the country last year – the highest since 2017. Measles rates have more than doubled, exceeding 320,000 cases, while deaths from the disease have tripled, from 1,800 in 2022 to more than 6,000 in 2023.
The conflict in DRC is different from those in Sudan, Ukraine and Yemen. There is no Russian or Chinese influence on the ground or veto at the UN security council, and there has never been any threat to US, British, European or Canadian citizens or interests. What is happening in DRC is perhaps the only conflict in the world that the international community could resolve relatively simply, costing British, US or EU taxpayers almost nothing. And because we can do so, we must.
The US and UK should back the creation of an international criminal tribunal for the DRC. Congolese people have been calling for this for more than 20 years – in 2003, the then president, Joseph Kabila, made a plea at the UN general assembly, and most recently in 2022 when the government petitioned the UN security council. We have tried everything else, including peacekeepers and peace deals, and the only thing that people and leaders have been asking for is the tribunal. Let’s give it a go.
The world must also immediately end support to Kagame’s regime. The UN, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty are clear that without Rwanda’s backing, the M23 couldn’t have killed, raped, tortured and displaced as many as it has.
We know this works because when the US, UK and others briefly stopped arming and funding Kagame in 2012 – after media coverage – the M23 was defeated and a brutal Rwandan-born warlord called Bosco Ntaganda, nicknamed “the Terminator”, was tried at the international criminal court where he was jailed for 30 years for 18 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
If Kagame is not stopped, the M23 will turn Goma – and, by extension, South Kivu’s provincial capital Bukavu, which relies on Goma for food and economic activities – into a pressure cooker of disease, starvation and despair that many defenceless Congolese people will not be able to escape.
A LA UNE DE LA PRESSE CE MARDI 16 AVRIL À KINSHASA, L’ARMÉE QUI ANNONCE L’ARRESTATION DE PLUSIEURS OFFICIERS SOUPÇONNÉS DE TRAHISON. LES JOURNAUX ET MÉDIAS EN LIGNE REVIENNENT ÉGALEMENT SUR CE REBONDISSEMENT DANS LE DOSSIER CHÉRUBIN OKENDE : LA FAMILLE DE L’ANCIEN MINISTRE DES TRANSPORTS, QUI REJETTE LA THÈSE DU SUICIDE PRÉSENTÉE PAR LA JUSTICE, PORTE UNE NOUVELLE PLAINTE.
RADIO OKAPI, REVUE DE PRESSE DE MARDI 16 AVRIL 2024
« ARRESTATIONS EN SÉRIE POUR TRAHISON : DES OFFICIERS DE L'ARMÉE ET DE LA POLICE CONGOLAISE DÉTENUS À KINSHASA », TITRE ACTUALITÉ.CD. LE GÉNÉRAL CHRISTIAN TSHIWEWE SONGESHA, CHEF D'ÉTAT-MAJOR DES FORCES ARMÉES DE LA RÉPUBLIQUE DÉMOCRATIQUE DU CONGO, A ANNONCÉ LUNDI LORS D'UNE PARADE MILITAIRE AU CAMP KOKOLO, L'ARRESTATION DE PLUSIEURS OFFICIERS DE L'ARMÉE ET DE LA POLICE POUR TRAHISON, PEUT-ON LIRE SUR LE SITE D’ACTUALITÉ.
DEVANT LES UNITÉS DE L’ARMÉE ET DE LA POLICE, LE CHEF D’ETAT MAJOR A DÉCLARÉ : « NOUS SOMMES EN GUERRE. IL Y A CEUX PARMI NOUS QUI SONT CORROMPUS ET INCITÉS À LA TRAHISON, PARFOIS PAR NOS PROPRES POLITICIENS. DES ARRESTATIONS ONT ÉTÉ EFFECTUÉES À LUBUMBASHI ET ICI À KINSHASA. C'EST GRAVE. » AUCUN CHIFFRE N'A ÉTÉ COMMUNIQUÉ, CEPENDANT, NOTE LE MÉDIAS EN LIGNE.
LE CHEF D'ÉTAT-MAJOR A ÉGALEMENT ADRESSÉ UN MESSAGE FORT AUX OFFICIERS PRÉSENTS, POURSUIT LE SITE D’INFORMATIONS, INTERROGEANT LEUR LOYAUTÉ, TOUT EN CRITIQUANT LES ACTEURS POLITIQUES QUI SERAIENT IMPLIQUÉS DANS DES ACTES DE TRAHISON, ALORS QUE LE PAYS FAIT FACE AU GROUPE REBELLE M23 SOUTENU PAR LE RWANDA.
« A LUBUMBASHI, DES OFFICIERS DE L’ARMÉE ET DE LA POLICE ARRÊTÉS POUR TRAHISON », TITRE ÉGALEMENT L’AGENCE CONGOLAISE DE PRESSE, QUI SE FAIT L’ÉCHO DES PROPOS DU CHEF D’ÉTAT-MAJOR DES FORCES ARMÉES DE LA RÉPUBLIQUE DÉMOCRATIQUE DU CONGO.
« VOUS N’AVEZ PAS LE DROIT DE TRAHIR VOTRE PAYS. CELUI QUI LE FERA LE PAIERA D’UNE MANIÈRE OU D’UNE AUTRE », A PRÉVENU LE CHEF DE L’ARMÉE, DANS DES PROPOS RELAYÉS PAR L’AGENCE CONGOLAISE DE PRESSE.
DANS UN CONTEXTE DE TENSION ACCRUE AVEC LES REBELLES DU M23 DANS LA PROVINCE DU NORD-KIVU, RAPPELLE ACTUALITE.CD, LE GOUVERNEMENT A ANNONCÉ LA REPRISE DES EXÉCUTIONS CAPITALES NOTAMMENT CONTRE LES PERSONNES CONDAMNÉES POUR TRAHISON, LEVANT AINSI LE MORATOIRE SUR LA PEINE DE MORT INSTAURÉ EN 2003.
SUR LA MÊME LANCÉE, FORUM DES AS REVIENT SUR CETTE PARADE ORGANISÉE PAR LE CHEF D’ÉTAT- MAJOR DE L’ARMÉE.
« LE GÉNÉRAL D'ARMÉE CHRISTIAN TSHIWEWE : NOUS COMBATTRONS JUSQU'À LA DERNIÈRE GOUTTE DE NOTRE SANG », TITRE LE TABLOÏD.
LES UNITÉS DES FORCES ARMÉES DE LA RÉPUBLIQUE DÉMOCRATIQUE DU CONGO (FARDC) ONT ÉTÉ APPELÉES À NE JAMAIS TRAHIR LA PATRIE AU COURS D'UNE PARADE MIXTE ARMÉE-POLICE PRÉSIDÉE LUNDI AU CAMP KOKOLO À KINSHASA PAR LE CHEF D'ÉTAT-MAJOR GÉNÉRAL, ÉCRIT LE JOURNAL. LE GÉNÉRAL D'ARMÉE CHRISTIAN TSHIWEWE, A PAR AILLEURS ANNONCÉ L'ORGANISATION, LE 30 JUIN, D'UN DÉFILÉ MILITAIRE DE SOUTIEN AUX ÉLÉMENTS DÉPLOYÉS AU FRONT, FAIT SAVOIR LE CONFRÈRE.
LA PRESSE REVIENT ÉGALEMENT SUR CE REBONDISSEMENT DANS LE DOSSIER CHÉRUBIN OKENDE, L’EX-MINISTRE DES TRANSPORTS RETROUVÉ MORT DANS SA VOITURE SUR L’AVENUE DES POIDS LOURDS À KINSHASA, EN JUILLET 2023. ALORS QUE LA JUSTICE PARLE D’UN SUICIDE, CETTE VERSION EST CONTESTÉE PAR LA FAMILLE DE L’OPPOSANT.
LA FAMILLE DU DÉFUNT A DE NOUVEAU DÉPOSÉ UNE PLAINTE AU PARQUET LE LUNDI 15 AVRIL 2024, INDIQUE ACTUALITÉ.CD. CETTE PLAINTE VISE À ÉTABLIR LES CIRCONSTANCES AYANT CONDUIT À LA MORT DE L'ANCIEN MINISTRE DES TRANSPORTS CHÉRUBIN OKENDE, PEUT-ON ÉGALEMENT LIRE SUR LE SITE DE L’AGENCE CONGOLAISE DE PRESSE. SELON L'AVOCAT DE LA FAMILLE, CITÉ PAR CE MÉDIA, UN FICHIER AUDIO PARTAGÉ SUR LES RÉSEAUX SOCIAUX, APPORTERAIT DE NOUVEAUX ÉLÉMENTS QUI CONTREDISENT LES CONCLUSIONS DE LA JUSTICE QUI AVAIT ESTIMÉ QUE LE DÉFUNT S’ÉTAIT SUICIDÉ.
DRC: THE VSV DEMANDS THE UNCONDITIONAL RELEASE OF PRO-DEMOCRACY ACTIVISTS BIENVENUE MATUMO AND FRED BAUMA
The Voice of the Voiceless for Human Rights (VSV) condemns and denounces with the utmost energy the continued detention of pro-democracy activists of the citizen movement Struggle for Change (LUCHA), in this case Bienvenu Matumo and Fred Bauma . The VSV demands their immediate and unconditional release in order to allow them to continue their activities of promotion and defense of human rights.
On another aspect, the VSV welcomes the release of some of their colleagues including, among others, Crispin Tshiya and Jean Paul Mualaba.
As a reminder, All these pro-democracy activists were arrested by security service agents, Saturday February 3, 2024, at the esplanade of the Palais du Peuple in Kinshasa during a rally to commemorate and denounce the 600 days of occupation of the town of Bunagana, in eastern DRC, by M23 rebels.
The VSV is surprised that pro-democracy activists were arrested and illegally detained when they were demonstrating to denounce Rwandan aggression and the occupation of part of the national territory by the M23, perpetrators of numerous massacres and others. massive violations of human rights.
The VSV calls on the Congolese authorities to put an end to these types of arrests, arrests and arbitrary detentions, which nonetheless constitute a step backwards in terms of the fundamental freedoms of citizens, including the freedom to demonstrate.
Ultimately, the VSV demands the immediate and unconditional release of Bienvenu Matumo and Fred Bauma who have not committed any crime.
Done in Kinshasa on February 5, 2024.
THE VOICE OF THE VOICELESS FOR HUMAN RIGHTS (VSV)
UN PEACEKEEPERS CLOSE BASE IN PREPARATION TO LEAVE DR CONGO
The UN mission has been told to leave due to inefficiency in protecting civilians from armed conflict
People protest against Western partners outside the MONUSCO mission's headquarters in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo (Justin Makangara/Reuters}
Al Jazeera The United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which has helped in the fight against rebels for more than two decades, has closed one of its key bases as it prepares to leave the Central African nation this year at the request of the government.The mission, also known as MONUSCO, closed a major base near the city of Bukavu in a ceremony on Thursday attended by Bintou Keita, the head of MONUSCO, along with DRC military and government officials.DR Congo names first female prime minister amid escalating violence.
DR CONGO NAMES FIRST FEMALE PRIME MINISTER AMID ESCALATING VIOLENCE
DRC: Judith Tuluka Suminwa appointed Prime Minister. Copyright © africanews © Présidence - RDC
President Felix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) announced the appointment of Judith Suminwa Tuluka as the country's first female prime minister on Monday. This landmark decision fulfills a campaign promise made by President Tshisekedi and marks a significant step towards gender equality in Congolese politics
By Afolake Oyinloye, Africa News
Judith Suminwa Tuluka, a former planning minister, assumes her new role at a critical juncture for the nation, particularly in the strife-torn eastern region. The area, rich in minerals and resources, has been plagued by relentless violence, leading to the displacement of millions of civilians and earning the dubious distinction of being one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.
Addressing the nation in her inaugural speech aired on state television, Prime Minister Tuluka pledged to prioritize peace and development efforts, particularly in the conflict-ridden eastern provinces. She expressed deep concern for the plight of those affected by the ongoing violence and reaffirmed her commitment to finding sustainable solutions to the crisis.
However, Prime Minister Tuluka's appointment comes amidst the arduous task of forming a new government, a process expected to involve extensive negotiations with various political factions. Despite the challenges ahead, her appointment symbolizes a significant breakthrough in Congolese politics and offers hope for greater inclusivity and representation in governance.
The situation in eastern Congo remains dire, with numerous armed groups vying for control and perpetuating a cycle of violence and instability. Both local and international peacekeeping efforts have struggled to contain the conflict, further exacerbating the suffering of the civilian population.
President Tshisekedi, who secured reelection for a second term last December, has reiterated his commitment to addressing the root causes of the violence. He has accused neighboring Rwanda of backing rebel groups operating in eastern Congo, allegations vehemently denied by Rwandan authorities.
The United States has called for restraint from both Congo and Rwanda, urging diplomatic dialogue to prevent further escalation of tensions. Additionally, the U.S. State Department has emphasized the importance of regional cooperation and the withdrawal of foreign troops from Congolese territory.
As Prime Minister Tuluka assumes her new role, she faces the formidable task of steering the nation towards stability and prosperity amidst daunting challenges. Her appointment represents a historic milestone in Congolese politics and underscores the importance of gender equality and women's empowerment in national leadership.
THE UNITED KINGDOM IS DEEPLY CONCERNED BY THE WORSENING CONFLICT IN THE EASTERN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO: UK STATEMENT AT THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL
FROM FOREIGN, COMMONWEALTH & DEVELOPMENT OFFICE AND JAMES KARIUKI
President, I’ll make three points.
First, the United Kingdom is deeply concerned by the worsening conflict in eastern DRC. This has resulted, as we’ve heard, the deteriorating humanitarian situation. This has resulted in the large-scale displacement of people from their homes and high levels of sexual violence, including in IDP camps. The United Kingdom has committed $126 million in humanitarian funding to eastern DRC.
Second, MONUSCO’s efforts remain critical. We urge all parties to immediately end attacks on peacekeeping troops. Such attacks undermine MONUSCO’s ability to deliver on its mandate, including to protect civilians and to build the capacity of the DRC’s security forces. We also call on all security parties to coordinate and deconflict their activities. We also emphasise our commitment to a gradual, responsible and sustainable withdrawal. We call on the DRC government, through close coordination with MONUSCO, to assume its protection responsibilities for the civilian population in line with the joint disengagement plan.
Third, the United Kingdom notes with concern the increased tensions between DRC and Rwanda and between Rwanda and Burundi. We have condemned the continued advance of UN-sanctioned M23 Forces and have called on all external actors to end their support for armed groups in DRC. We have engaged Kigali and Kinshasa on the need for dialogue and have urged them to use their influence to de-escalate tensions and to seek a cessation of hostilities. We also encourage both Presidents Kagame and Tshisekedi to engage directly with each other to bring an end to the conflict.
In conclusion, President, the United Kingdom welcomes and encourages the continued engagement of the Great Lakes region, including the valuable work of the UN Special Envoy. We commend the efforts of regional leaders to encourage dialogue and de-escalation. We reiterate our support for the Nairobi and Luanda processes and we are encouraged by progress and talks in Luanda. President, there is no military solution to this conflict. We must make every effort to bring the parties back to political processes. The United Kingdom stands ready to support efforts all efforts in this regard.
Thank you.
