Author: Serge Iradukunda

The White House, in a statement on April 3, 2024, confirmed that the 42nd President of the USA will lead a five-member team designated to the East African country by President Joe Biden during the event dubbed ‘Kwibuka 30’.

“President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. today announced the designation of a Presidential Delegation to attend Kwibuka 30, the 30th Commemoration of the 1994 Genocide, on April 7, 2024, in Kigali, Rwanda.”

“The Honorable William Jefferson Clinton, 42nd President of the United States of America, will lead the delegation,” the statement reads in part.

Other members of the Presidential Delegation are Eric Kneedler, United States Ambassador to the Republic of Rwanda, Mary Catherine Phee, Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of African Affairs, U.S. Department of State, Casey Redmon, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Legislative Affairs, National Security Council, and Monde Muyangwa, Assistant Administrator of the Bureau for Africa, U.S. Agency for International Development.

Clinton was the US President when the Genocide against the Tutsi happened, having served as Head of State from 1993 to 2001.

He made his first visit to Rwanda – the first of such a visit by a US President to the country – four years after the genocide on March 25, 1998, and apologized to the Rwandan people for the killing of more than a million people during the genocide.

Clinton, while addressing genocide survivors at Kigali International Airport during a brief three-hour visit, said the international community together with nations in Africa bear responsibility for the killings. He said US and other countries did not act ‘quickly enough’ after ‘a government-led effort to exterminate Rwanda’s Tutsi and moderate Hutus began’.

“The international community, together with nations in Africa, must bear its share of responsibility for this tragedy, as well. We did not act quickly enough after the killing began. We should not have allowed the refugee camps to become safe haven for the killers. We did not immediately call these crimes by their rightful name: genocide. We cannot change the past. But we can and must do everything in our power to help you build a future without fear, and full of hope,” Clinton said.

He called for increased vigilance in the world to prevent such atrocities in the future.

“We owe to those who died and to those who survived who loved them, our every effort to increase our vigilance and strengthen our stand against those who would commit such atrocities in the future here or elsewhere,” he added.

Clinton further made a $2 million contribution to the Genocide Survivors Fund and encouraged other nations to follow suit to help the survivors and their communities find the care they need.

Clinton’s successor, George Bush, also visited Rwanda in February 2008 as part of his five-nation African tour.

Bush affirmed that the US would stand with Rwandans in their country’s rebuilding process after the Genocide against the Tutsi.

“Laura and I have just finished going to a memorial for the – that recognizes the horrors of the genocide that took place here. This is a moving place that can’t help but shake your emotions to your very foundation. It reminds me that we must not let these kind of actions take place; that – and that the people of Rwanda need help to reconcile, to move forward, after a brutal period,” he said after his visit to the Kigali Genocide Memorial.

He added, “I guess the only thing I can finish saying is that, you know, we ask for God’s blessings on those who still hurt, and on those who long for help, and on the kids whose lives had to have been deeply affected by the trauma of the moment. And we thank the museum officials for their generosity and hospitality, and for putting on such an exhibit to remind people that there is evil in the world, and evil must be confronted.”

During the visit, Bush also opened the US Embassy offices in Kacyiru within Kigali City.

This issue was addressed by President Kagame on April 1, 2024, during his conversation with Radio10 and Royal FM, in a discussion that covered various national concerns.

Journalist Aissa Cyiza asked President Kagame why the issues in the eastern DRC remain unresolved despite numerous discussions aimed at solving the situation, including agreements signed in Luanda, Angola, Nairobi, Kenya, and elsewhere, which have been largely ineffective.

President Kagame pointed out that the problem lies within the DRC itself, although people tend to focus only on the country’s eastern part. He highlighted that the issues in this region are due to the country’s leadership.

The President noted that while these problems are generally caused by the country’s governance, sometimes different leaders impose this burden on Rwanda.

However, he stated it is inappropriate and that the DRC’s burden should be borne by the Congolese and their leaders, not Rwanda or its leaders. “The burden should be on the Congolese and the leaders of Congo, not on Rwanda or the leaders of Rwanda. Rwanda has been carrying the burden of the DRC for a long time, and it is enough. Carrying the burden of Congo is like carrying the corpse of a hyena.”

The President mentioned that Rwanda has many of its issues to solve, making it infeasible to take on the burdens of other countries, including those of the DRC, which continues to be imposed on Rwanda.

President Kagame described the problems of this country west of Rwanda as a mix of numerous political dynamics, including regional and international politics, sometimes leading to some countries preventing others from exploiting this nation’s wealth.

“The Europeans say if we don’t treat Congo well and give it everything it wants, even if it’s not reasonable, Congo will fall to the Chinese, to the Russians, accepting the evil of Congo and emulating it, and carrying its burden so others don’t have to carry it so they can do what they do there.”

President Kagame expressed that whatever they do there and their cooperation does not bother Rwanda. However, he is concerned that those seeking to benefit from the DRC misuse Rwanda.

He mentioned that the issues in Congo are due to its leadership and the frequent changes in leadership, but even with these changes, nothing improves; the problems remain the same.

“Why do they do it if it yields nothing? What are they suffering from then? It’s said we have a problem because we have a leader who doesn’t change, but if nothing changes, even Rwanda will change. It’s about planning to ensure that this change does not become a reason for things not going well in Rwanda. A positive change is no problem.”

Besides these, President Kagame talked about the oppression of Congolese who speak Kinyarwanda, particularly the Tutsis in this country, stating that the hunt against them all should remind them of the need for peaceful coexistence.

“Among themselves, they should not be divided into Tutsis and Hutus. Once they start seeing it that way, those who persecute them find a gap to mistreat them, and all of them suffer.”

He stated that they should not have to ask for rights but should be granted them, asserting that the denial of these rights is why there are endless wars today, with people being killed and others becoming refugees in different countries. The President emphasized that the solution must come from the Congo, not Rwanda or even the United Nations.

President Kagame highlighted that another reason for the ongoing conflicts in the eastern DRC is the FDLR, who committed genocide in Rwanda but have been given a place in the country, provided with military equipment, with the goal of attacking Rwanda.

“This is not something we can solve; it is up to the DRC to address. We can only help in solving it. But what remains is to ensure that it does not adversely affect us and cause security issues. That is the responsibility we all bear.”