{{The U.S. has rejected as \u201cunnecessary\u201d calls to cut aid further, appoint a special envoy, and place a sanctions regime against Rwanda, according to an Inter Press Service report.}}<\/p>\n
The U.S. Assistant Secretary of State, Johnnie Carson, on Tuesday December 11 told a subcommittee hearing of the U.S. House of Representatives that further punitive actions, including squeezing aid to Rwanda, were unnecessary, noting that the U.S. government has no proof that any aid given to Rwanda has been \u201cmisused or rechanneled into the conflict in DRC\u201d.<\/p>\n
Over the past fiscal year, the United States has given some 195 million dollars in development assistance to Rwanda, primarily for use in health and agriculture programmes.<\/p>\n
Washington, however, earlier this year suspended around US$200,000 in military aid to the Rwandan military.<\/p>\n
Johnnie Carson appeared before the subcommittee amidst accusations that the U.S. administration\u2019s response to the continued crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was inadequate.<\/p>\n
Since April, violence has spiked in the eastern part of the DRC, perpetrated in part by an armed group known as the M23 – a group that three U.N. reports this year have found to be receiving support from the Rwandan government, a key U.S. ally. Rwanda has rejected the accusations.<\/p>\n
Johnnie Carson said the U.S. has repeatedly pressed Rwanda to halt and prevent any and all forms of support to Congolese armed groups. <\/p>\n
Some Western countries, including the U.K., E.U. and several Scandinavian countries want to impose sanctions on Rwanda.<\/p>\n
Earlier, according to a New York Times story, Susan E. Rice, the United States ambassador to the United Nations and a leading contender to succeed Hillary Rodham Clinton as Secretary of State reportedly defended Rwanda in a meeting with the French.<\/p>\n
At the meeting with the British and French two months ago, according to an unnamed diplomat familiar with the meeting, Ambassador Rice objected strongly to a call by the French envoy, Gerard Araud, for explicitly \u201cnaming and shaming\u201d Kagame and the Rwandan government for its support of M23, and to his proposal to consider sanctions to pressure Rwanda to abandon the rebel group.<\/p>\n
\u201cListen Gerard,\u201d she said, according to the diplomat quoted by The New York times. \u201cThis is the DRC. If it weren\u2019t the M23 doing this, it would be some other group.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ambassador Rice is known to be an admirer of President Kagame\u2019s government from the days when she worked at Intellibridge, a strategic analysis firm in Washington that worked closely with Rwanda.<\/p>\n
Her spokesperson, Payton Knopf, howeve said her brief consultancy at Intellibridge would have no impact on her work at the United Nations.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe implements the agreed policy of the United States at the U.N,\u201d Knopf said.<\/p>\n
Over the past eight months, the renewed conflict in Eastern DRC has displaced some 2.4 million people, culminating in the recent fall of Goma, the largest city in the eastern part of the country, to the rebels.<\/p>\n
The IPs r eport said although the M23 leadership has now pulled out of Goma and entered into difficult peace talks, many analysts worry over the fact that these are being sponsored by Uganda, thought to be hardly a neutral player, and the lack of Rwanda\u2019s representation in the negotiations.<\/p>\n
Aaron Hall, a policy analyst with the Enough Project, a Washington-based anti-genocide watchdog, reportedly told IPS that the current peace talks between the M23 and the Congolese government only constitute a \u201cband-aid solution\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cFirst off, it\u2019s being chaired by Uganda, which has been implicated for supporting the M23. Second, the talks are only being held between the Congolese government and the M23 rebels, when clearly other groups have stated that they understand the involvement of Rwanda, which is not at the table,\u201d Hall reportedly said.<\/p>\n
Hall appeared to back a position proposed by several Rwandan politicians and diplomats that involves addressing the \u201clong-term, systemic issues\u201d of the crisis in DRC.<\/p>\n
According to IPS, Hall said this would include tackling not only Rwandan and Ugandan policies and actions, but also the inability of the Congolese government to create viable judicial and political institutions in the east.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut the leaders currently appear interested only in the cosmetic issues,\u201d Hall said. \u201cWhat we need is a commitment from the international community to create a comprehensive framework to move towards the resolution of underlying issues that bubble up every few years but never actually get resolved.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a recent speech to parliament in Kigali, Rwandan President Paul Kagame, denounced the western world\u2019s use of aid as a means of coercion against Rwanda for allegedly supporting M23.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is no country in this world that receives aid and accounts for it better than Rwanda. There is none. <\/p>\n
So, I am not sure if these people who give us aid want us to develop,\u201d Kagame said, \u201cThey give us aid and expect us to remain beggars. <\/p>\n
They give you aid so that you forever glorify them and depend on them. They keep using it as a tool of control and management.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kagame added: \u201cYou follow what goes on in the Congo. One part, actually the main part, where crimes are committed in broad daylight, that\u2019s none of their business. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s okay because people who are being killed, who are being raped, maybe deserve it.<\/p>\n
And then they turn to the other part and say everything wrong that has happened in the Congo now has to have people who should be responsible \u2013 the so-called M23. <\/p>\n
People who are raped and killed in Kinshasa, M23 is blamed and Rwanda must condemn it. People killed in Kindu, in Uvira, wherever, M23 is responsible and Rwanda must condemn it. <\/p>\n
People who raped young girls who are in those refugee camps, it\u2019s M23. Even now in the territory that is occupied by representatives of that international community (the UN peacekeeping force MONUSCO).\u201d<\/p>\n
Finally, Kagame said, \u201cThey say: `Freeze, freeze aid to Rwanda, suspend…\u2019 What is the connection?\u201d<\/p>\n
He appealed to Rwandans to fight for Rwandans so as to have what they deserve and that is no less than dignity. \u201cAgaciro \u2013 the dignity that we have,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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