As of Thursday, 595 refugees had returned, including 452 from Mahama camp and 143 from other cities. The other 1,503 returned to their country in three batches.
The ministry said it would continue to help the rest return to their homeland in peace.
The majority of the refugees fled the country following the political crisis that gripped Burundi in 2015 when the then President, the late Pierre Nkurunziza decided to seek a third term, leading to countrywide protests as people opposed the move.
The first batch of refugees returned on August 27 and was welcomed by the President of Burundi, Gen Maj Evaritse Ndayishimiye.
President Kagame said in a twit yesterday that their contribution to the liberation of Rwanda today is the reason the country is where it is in its achievements and current economic development that all Rwandans are enjoying.
“To all patriots of our country and friends who walked this seemingly insurmountable journey that put us where we are today and did us proud today as a nation; we salute you and thank you!!! Dukomerezaho…!!!” Kagame said.
It has been 30 years since the Rwanda Patriotic Army (RPA), the armed wing of RPF-Inkotanyi, launched the liberation struggle to topple the genocidal government, a journey that lasted for four years.
The ‘October 1’ was the start of the four-year journey that was aimed to end social divisions, restore unity, establish a democratic leadership, and defend the sovereignty of the country, among others.
On October 2, 1990, the first commander of RPA, Maj. Gen. Fred Gisa Rwigema was shot dead.
While the army was missing its former commander, that was when the then Maj. Paul Kagame cut short his military studies in the U.S to return and reorganize the fighters and led them until the country was liberated.
The decision was taken reaffirming an earlier decision that was taken on the suspect but rejected by his defense team arguing that Kabuga was not physically fit to stand trial in Tanzania due to his poor health condition.
Kabuga was arrested in Paris in May 2020, ending a manhunt that lasted more than two decades of evading justice for his crimes committed during the 1994 genocide against Tutsi. The 87 year-old suspect was indicted in 1997 on seven criminal counts including genocide.
He is accused of assassination as a crime against humanity, extermination as a crime against humanity, rape as a crime against humanity, persecutions on political, racial, or religious grounds as crimes against humanity in addition to various war crimes
On June 3, the Paris Court of Appeal, responsible for examining the validity of the arrest warrant issued by the Mechanism for International Courts (MTPI), ordered Kabuga’s surrender to international justice under the International Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) now the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) based in Tanzania.
Kabuga had appealed this earlier court decision of his transfer to Arusha but the court upheld the defense he is expected to use his health conditions to convince the court to be tried in France and not be sent to the International Criminal Tribunal court in Arusha, Tanzania for trial.
The fake dollar notes were in the denominations of US$100, Police said.
The suspected counterfeiters were arrested separately in Gisenyi town with materials, including a computer, printer and papers, which they were using to produce the fake dollar notes.
Chief Inspector of Police (CIP) Bonaventure Twizere Karekezi, the Police spokesperson of the Western region, said Police first arrested Ngarambe, who identified Nsanzamahoro as his co-conspirator.
“A resident informed the Police that Ngarambe had counterfeit money. Ngarambe was located and arrested in possession of six fake notes of USD100 and 101 other pieces of paper cut in form and size of currency notes, which would be printed into more fake money,” CIP Karekezi said.
He added: “Ngarambe, after his arrest, identified Nsanzamahoro, also a resident in Gisenyi, as his accomplice and who prints the fake money.
Police went to Nsanzamahoro’s house where he was arrested with five notes of $100 and recovered a computer and printer, which they were using to make the fake monies.”
Apparently, the suspects would search dollar notes on the internet, add some colours with the computer before printing them.
All the eleven fake notes had the same serial number.
The serial number corresponds with that found on other fake dollars, which were also seized from a woman arrested in Rubavu District, recently.
CIP Karekezi thanked the resident, whose community policing spirit led to the arrest of the duo, and called for continued partnership and ownership in fighting such high impact crimes, which affect the economy and particularly small businesses, which are mainly targeted.
Article 296 in the penal code says “any person who, fraudulently counterfeits, falsifies or alters coins or bank notes which are legal tender in Rwanda or abroad, notes issued by the treasury with its stamp or brand, either banknotes or alike that have legal tender in Rwanda or abroad, or one who introduces or issues in Rwanda such effects or notes with knowledge that they are forged or falsified, commits an offence.
Upon conviction, he/she is liable to imprisonment for a term of not less than five (5) years and not more than seven (7) years.”
It is a bill approved by the Cabinet on July 15, 2020, and has already been submitted to the Chamber of Deputies, for a valid date, to be discussed in the commission. The bill consists of 58 articles, with the approval of the successor to Organic Law n ° 30/2008 of 25/07/2008 on citizenship.
It is a law in the definition of a new project, which is said to need to be amended to reflect the laws that have been in place since 2008, as well as the national policy that Rwanda prioritizes.
In this project, it is planned to simplify the process of applying for and obtaining Rwandan citizenship, that is, based on the birth of at least one parent of Rwandan origin.
It will be requested and launched at the Rwanda Registrar’s Office, the person requesting registration as a Rwandan to be done will be issued with an identity card “after consultation with the competent authority”.
The power to grant other citizenship shall be retained by the Cabinet, while the granting of honorary citizenship shall be vested in the President of the Republic.
{{Added reasons for citizenship acquisition}}
The bill seeks to increase the grounds for applying for and granting Rwandan citizenship, including to foreigners who are “of national interest”, regardless of the five years they are said to must have been in the country.
These include the granting of Rwandan citizenship to a foreigner with special talents, investment or sustainable activities.
In general, the bill provides 11 reasons for granting Rwandan citizenship, namely of non-origin.
These include being born on Rwandan soil, an unborn child, marriage, due to the mother of an unborn child, national interests, special talents, investment or large and sustainable activities, living in Rwanda, dignity, immigration and statelessness.
{{Acquisition through marriage }}
A non-Rwandan citizen may acquire Rwandan nationality through a lawful marriage to a Rwandan spouse.
Under Rwandan law, a marriage must be in existence for at least three years to grant eligibility for Rwandan nationality.
On this point, changes were made preventing people to get married in order to easily access the citizenship.
It also says that marriage alone, even when fulfilling the time requirement, cannot guarantee the acquisition of Rwandan nationality if it has not been registered in a Rwandan registry of civil status.
But if the marriage was done in “bad faith” to facilitate the acquisition of nationality, it will be revoked, the Bill says, while the effect of revocation will be extended to children and dependants.
In the current law, the deprivation of Rwandan nationality cannot have adverse effects on the deprived person’s spouse and children neither will divorce — if the marriage was in “good faith”.
Another dramatic change includes the tripling of time required for a foreigner to acquire nationality on grounds of residency. Whereas it required a foreigner to reside in Rwanda for five years before applying for citizenship, it will now take 15 years if the Bill is passed into law.
Dual citizenship is still protected under the bill. Individuals must declare their dual citizenship status within three months of the date on which they acquired a second nationality.
The move also comes on the heels of the government’s announcement that it will phase out ordinary passports by June 2021 and replace them with the East African Community passport.
The farewell working lunch organized by Rwandan women peacekeepers, was attended by Women Network’s executive members.
It was held at Rwanda Formed Police Unit Two and Three (FPU-2 and FPU-3) base camp in the capital Juba.
The FPU-2 and FPU-3 contingents operating in Juba will soon be returning home after completing their tour of duty that lasted 18 months.
The two Rwandan Police contingents have combined 92 women peacekeepers.
In their message, the Women Network commended their Rwandan colleagues for their professional contribution to the UNMISS mandate.
They also thanked them for “exhibiting the heart to serve at the frontline of FPU operations.”
The departing Rwandan female peacekeepers were further appreciated for all that they have achieved as women in service and for ably holding command positions from unit commander level, platoon commanders to section commanders and medical staff, against all odds.
“You served with excellence, looked after each other as sisters, sacrificed to leave your children and loved ones to serve as peacekeepers, and standing side-by-side with your male counterparts to make a difference,” the Network partly said.
“Challenges faced was just another day on the job as professionally trained women.”
Rwanda FPU-3 contingent commander, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Jackline Urujeni also acknowledged the impact of the network in influencing women in service.
SSP Urujeni further thanked the UNMISS Police Commissioner for all the support to Rwandan Police women adding that they will leave with cherished memories and great time shared with the Women’s Network in promoting women in service and in peacekeeping in particular.
During the farewell lunch, Rwandan women peacekeepers handed over their financial contribution to support the activities of the Network.
It is expected that at the outset, once the first vaccine is approved, Rwanda will be given a few vaccines, which will focus on protecting people working in the health sector and others who are considered to be most critical.
The first phase will protect about 3% of the population, which means that out of 12.5 million people living in Rwanda today, about 375,000 will be vaccinated against Coronavirus.
The United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) will also monitor the delivery of these vaccines, advising countries to first vaccinate health workers, as they are among the most likely to be infected with Coronavirus; yet it is not a must, therefore, each country will use the vaccine given to it as it pleases.
It is expected that in the middle of next year, Rwanda will be given other special vaccines, especially those in those categories that may be severely affected by Coronavirus, including elderly people and those with other diseases.
This category is likely to leave more than 10% of the population vaccinated against Coronavirus, and will focus on areas with the highest number of Coronavirus infections. As in Rwanda, Kigali will be given priority in light of the current rate of infection.
Rwanda is also likely to be vaccinated for the third time, in case of severe outbreaks of Coronavirus and there is an inability of its clinics to cope with the severity of the pandemic.
The phase is expected to be completed by the end of next year, at which point the WHO predicts that the pandemic could see its end completely.
The Director General of the Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC) Dr. Sabin Nsanzimana, who recently told IGIHE that the Rwandan government plans to vaccinate at least 25% of the country’s population, saying this could significantly reduce the spreading rate.
At the time, he said, “once the vaccine is available, at least 25% of Rwanda’s population will be vaccinated for more effective results.”
The COVAX Forum is made up of a total of 156 countries, of which 92 developing countries which are eligible for funding, and the other 64 have the ability to multiply vaccinate, and are in the network in order to provide assistance.
All of these countries are home to 64% of the world’s population, so if they achieve their goal, it will help the Earth cope with the spread of Coronavirus. Meanwhile, the United States, China, and Russia are not in the forum.
In order for at least two billion people to be vaccinated against Coronavirus next year, the world needs $ 3.4 billion, of which $ 2 billion is needed no later than this year in order for developing countries to be vaccinated before next year.
Currently, there are about six vaccinations that have reached the third phase of the experiment, which is the last before they are approved and given to the public. It is not yet known when the vaccine will be approved, it is said that it might be released between November and December.
Meanwhile, Russia has announced that its vaccine has been approved and that the country will start giving it to their citizens next month, with more than 100 million expected to receive it. The vaccine, however, has not been approved by WHO.
Critics of COVAX say the way this forum will work will not be productive, for the vaccine is set to be given to countries that do not have high levels of Coronavirus, while countries with high levels of infection should be receiving the special attention.
However, WHO says that even if countries have a small number of infections, they could increase unexpectedly, which is why they need to be addressed early.
The former Division Manager in charge of energy in the Ministry of Infrastructure (Mininfra) has been in custody (Mageragere prison) accused of corruption-related crimes since July where his case had been postponed on technical grounds.
The court decision taken this Tuesday rhymes with the earlier solicited sentence of six years jail term, requested by the public prosecution.
Nyamvumba is accused of asking for a bribe worth Rwf7.2 billion from Javier Elizalde, a Spanish investor who had submitted and won a tender to set up street lighting in Rwanda. The tender was won in in 2019 and priced at Rwf72 billion to light up streets on 955.8 Km but later on reduced to Rwf48.4billion after the budget request was revised in the budget statement of 2019/2020.
It is alleged by prosecution that after the tender process was finally approved and submitted for funding in the ministry of finance, and before its execution early this year, Nyamvumba contacted Elizalde (who was not in Rwanda) asking for an urgent meeting over the tender progress.
The duo finally managed to meet in one of the hotels in Kigali, where Elizalde in his testimony stated that Nyamvumba asked for 10% commission to have the tender processed faster.
Elizalde is said to have been shocked over the request and subsequently informed the Rwanda Investigation Bureau for further investigation and arrest over attempted soliciting of a bribe.
During interrogation Nyamvumba told prosecution that he had solicited the money on behalf of Jean Damascene Niyomugabo – the proprietor of Master Steel Rwanda who was to jointly work with Elizalde to speed up the tender process.
Prosecution said that investigators collected evidence from testimonies of some of the ministry officials who confirmed the alleged discourse and intent to solicit a bribe in the name of the infrastructure ministry.
On these allegations Nyamvumba denied involvement in the alleged charges slapped on him citing inconsistences in prosecution evidence of which he said there was no linkage to the alleged crime since he had no authority on the decision made on the tender itself.
Court ordered Nyamvumba to also pay a court fine of Rwf21billion. He can appeal the ruling in the next five working days.
The ceremony, which took place at the Royal Palace of Belgium on September 29, 2020, was held in compliance with the COVID-19 measures.
Ambassador Dr. Sebashongore and the Belgian King Philippe Léopold Louis Marie held a conversation mainly centered on relations between the two countries, and also about Rwanda’s relations with its neighboring countries.
After leaving the Kingdom, the Ambassador immediately received Rwandans and their friends in Belgium in an evening of celebration.
Ambassador Dr. Sebashongore, thanked President Kagame for his entrusting him with the task of representing Rwanda in Belgium.
President Kagame made the remarks on Tuesday during the Virtual Leaders Meeting on SDG Financing which brought together leaders from governments and international organizations to discuss specific actions to help countries and people address the devastating financial and socioeconomic impacts caused by COVID-19.
The meeting was convened to reflect the work done over the last five months by finance ministries, the UN and other international organizations and some of the world’s leading economists to find the policy options and solutions that can advance comprehensive multilateral response to the devastating social and economic impacts of COVID-19.
The Head of State said that SDGs are the world’s yardstick for much needed progress on human development, thanking the United Nations Secretary General António Guterres, together with the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, and the Prime Minister of Jamaica, Andrew Holness, for convening the meeting.
“The 2030 Agenda may be off-track, but that does not mean we have to accept a smaller future. On the contrary, we can build back better and stronger by embarking on new and innovative approaches suited to the challenges ahead. That means adopting an implementation mindset and not doing business as usual,”
“Rwanda was pleased to co-lead the Discussion Group on Recovering Better for Sustainability, together with the European Union, Fiji, and the United Kingdom,” President Kagame said.
He said that Africa’s recommendations focus on four key strategies in close alignment with both the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement, the first one being building resilient national health systems with Universal Health Coverage at the center.
“Second, double down on the digitalization of our economies and education systems by investing in new technologies and high-speed internet,”
“Third, orient action toward inclusion and fairness, especially for women and young people. Fourth, leave no one behind by ensuring adequate social and financial protection for the most vulnerable amongst us,” President Kagame said.
He pointed out that the financial system can be a force multiplier, but there is a need to strengthen adherence to global standards and norms by reporting data in a transparent and comparable manner.
“The menu of policy options being presented today gives each country the tools to prevail in its unique context. We cannot allow the Sustainable Development Goals to become a victim of the COVID-19 pandemic or any other unexpected shock. Let’s stay focused.”
