The Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders has taken note of the judgement by the attachment judge in Brussels concerning the freezing of the bank account of the Rwandan Embassy.
He is pleased that the judge has followed the Belgian State and that the bank account of the Rwandan Embassy in Brussels has been released.
Didier Reynders said he hopes that Rwandan government unfreezes the accounts of the Belgian Embassy in Kigali.
Rwanda had also responded by freezing bank accounts belonging to the Belgian embassy in Kigali after seeing its own accounts in Brussels frozen in October 2011 over a business dispute.
The freezing of bank accounts on either sides resulted from a business dispute between Rwanda government and a Rwandan businessman living in Belgium, Gaspard Gatera.
Gatera was allegedly demanding over Euros 200,000 for a service rendered to government. This prompted Gatera to sue Rwanda government in a Belgium court successfully applying to freeze the Rwandan accounts because he said the Rwandan government owes him money.
Rwanda has since urged the Belgian authorities to lift the freeze, saying it violated international laws.
“Principle of reciprocity”
In 2011, Rwandan officials said Gatera’s company had done consultancy work at Kigali’s agriculture ministry failed to deliver on its contractual obligations and the contract was terminated.
Rwandan Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo said that Rwanda froze the Belgian embassy accounts on the “principle of reciprocity”.
In Brussels, Michael Malherbe, spokesman for the Belgian Foreign Ministry, confirmed the mutual freezing of accounts.
“We don’t give this case any political meaning. It started as an issue between random parties,” he said.
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