Rwandan and Congolese armies conspire to annihilate helpless refugees in DR Congo
Below is a letter drafted to President Barack Obama with regard to the ongoing crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Please send the letter to President Barack Obama and to the Representatives/Senators in your respective States/Countries.
The letter needs to go as both electronic and hard copies from as may people as possible.
Contact the White House:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/
Physical Address:
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
Phone Numbers:
Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
FAX: 202-456-2461
Together,
Let's Do It!
Rwandan and Congolese armies conspire to annihilate helpless refugees in DR Congo.
Mr. President OBAMA,
On January 20, 2009 Rwandan President General Kagame sent thousands of troops in DRC officially to hunt down the Hutu rebel forces of the FDLR but in reality to carry out another mass slaughter of helpless Congolese Civilians as well as refugees. Those who are suffering the most are the elderly, women, and children. The last times the Rwandan and Ugandan armies invaded the Congo for the same purpose, they instead occupied large areas of eastern Congo and more than 5 million innocent civilians were killed.
This is the first time in the history of humanity that a host country NOT ONLY has invited the army of the country of origin, which the refugees have run away from, to come in and carry out armed military persecution against the refugees, BUT ALSO is actively participating in this violent persecution. A neutral and international inquiry is warranted to investigate how both Presidents Joseph Kabila of the DR Congo and Paul Kagame of Rwanda colluded to annihilate thousands of helpless unarmed refugees and their Congolese hosts. Worse yet, these two countries namely Rwanda and Congo's armies have teamed up with WANTED WAR CRIMINALS such as BOSCO NTAGANDA to carry out this operation.
Most of the 500 members of Parliement have signed a petition against this operation, demanding an immediate return of Rwandan troops to Rwanda. These are the representatives of the people. Please help carry out the wishes of the Congolese people which is cleary the return of Rwandan Defense Forces to Rwanda. In addition, numerous voices have been raised inside the DR Congo and across the globe to protest this blatant attempt to exterminate helpless refugees who have run away from General Kagame’s ruthless RPF army dictatorship government in Rwanda.
The UN has already shown needed toughness in its recent expert reports by identifying DRC’s and Rwanda ’s responsibilities in feeding the violence in eastern Congo . Through its assistance mission in the Congo – MONUC – the UN must display the same toughness in calling the belligerents to account for any crimes of war, crimes against humanity and crimes of genocide that they may have committed during this military operation. In fact, the recent UN Security report in December 2008 indicated that Rwandan Troops were already in Congo as part of the CNDP abusing civilians and committing war crimes such as rape, looting, amputations, mass murder, sodomy, summary executions and the use of child soldiers.
Mr. President, the situation calls for immediate intervention. We ask that you appoint a Special Envoy for the Great Lakes region of Africa to mediate a solution to these unending wars. What we need is not more bloodshed, but your leadership in STOPPING this senseless violence and bringing all Rwandans around a negotiating table to resolve our problems peacefully. We need equitable justice, truth and reconciliation in Rwanda. Like other Presidents in the Great Lakes region of Africa, President Kagame must learn to talk to his opposition. There is no one better suited than you to give HOPE back to the hopeless millions of people of Rwanda, Congo and the Great Lakes region of Africa.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
(Fellow Full Name, City, State/Country)
posted by Mamadou Kouyate @ 9:05 AM
9 Comments:
I was wondering if you had seen the article that came out yesterday (2009-02-17) in which the Ambassador to the DRC, William John Garvelink, “…praised the joint Congolese-Rwandan offensive against Rwandan Hutu rebels in the east of the country” saying that “The joint DRC-Rwanda military operations in the east of Congo are showing real successes. The Rwandan rebels of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) had lost ground and would not pose the same threat that they had in the past, he added."
I am assuming that this is the current US State Department’s position on the presence of both Rwanda and Uganda in the DRC (remember former Asst Sect’y of State Jendayi Fraser was a BIG proponent for a military solution in the DRC to the LRA) . The scary part is that both Rwanda and Uganda are now claiming that they have no intention of leaving the DRC until “their problems” are resolved.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090217/pl_afp/drcongorwandaugandaconflictrebelsus;_ylt=AtBpN6N1vcW71q0UOjrpy8a96Q8F
US praises operation against Hutu rebels in DR Congo
Tue Feb 17, 1:50 pm ET
KINSHASA (AFP) – Washington's ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Congo on Tuesday praised the joint Congolese-Rwandan offensive against Rwandan Hutu rebels in the east of the country.
"The joint DRC-Rwanda military operations in the east of Congo are showing real successes," William John Garvelink told reporters.
The Rwandan rebels of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) had lost ground and would not pose the same threat that they had in the past, he added.
Neighbours DR Congo and Rwanda have put past differences behind them to launch the military operation against the FDLR, some of whose members have been implicated in the 1994 genocide of ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus in Rwanda.
The FDLR, estimated at around 6,500 men, crossed over into the east of DR Congo after the Tutsi forces chased them out of Rwanda in 1994.
Garvelink also praised another joint operation against the Ugandan rebel force the Lord's Resistance Army -- this time by Congolese, Ugandan and south Sudanese forces -- in northeast Congo, which borders Uganda and Sudan.
The three countries launched that operation on December 14, but they have so far failed to capture the movement's leader, Joseph Kony.
Lorraine M.Thompson, Ph.D.
lorraine@pairofdocs.net
www.pairofdocs.net
Tel: 734-215-1007
Fax: 815-572-8208
Dear Lorraine,
Thank you for your comment.
The ongoing crisis in the Great Lakes region of Africa is a political
crisis that needs political solutions.
As stated in the letter to President Obama "Like other Presidents in
the Great Lakes region of Africa, President Kagame must learn to talk
to his political opposition". The ongoing military operation in DRC is in
reality aimed at carrying out another mass slaughter of helpless
Congolese Civilians as well as Rwandan refugees.
Those who are currently suffering the most are the elderly, women, and
children and no one dares to mention that there still are Rwandan
refugees in DRC.
What about the children of the FDLR rebels who were born in DRC since 1994? Are they also genocidaire?
Unfortunately, the US has always supported the Kigali regime in spite
that Kagame and his RPF movement have been indicted for war crimes and
crimes against humanity by two independent Western countries i.e. France and Spain.
Military operations of this kind denotes crucial ignorance of the reality on
the ground and are meant to prolong the suffering of innocent people and
will not resolve the current DRC crisis.
Proponents of such solutions should learn from their own past mistakes: having endorsed two invasions of DRC by RWANDA, and the last failed operation against LRA rebels despite strong help from AFRICOM!
Neutralizing the FDLR rebels (if it is even possible) will never solve the current DRC crisis.
An inter-Rwandan dialogue is what is crucially needed.
Western Powers involved in this crisis need to acknowledge this unfortunate reality and stop
their continuous support to war criminals such as Kagame and Museveni who are falsely
viewed by the the Western World as "new generation of African leaders" in the region.
For more info about plausible solutions to the current DRC crisis, please read on my blog the following article:
" Rwanda: Dealing with the reality, achieving common ground, and
betting on the future"
http://hungryoftruth.blogspot.com/2009/01/rwanda-dealing-with-reality-achieving.html
Thank you.
I don't think these letters will have any impact at all. The president is busy at this time, I don't even think that he will read any of them. We should Prepare a peaceful demonstration in DC, invite some journalists, depending on the number of people who will attend, we might get more attention than sending letters that won't be read at all. What do you guys think?
Dear Anonymous,
If you do not want to send the letter just don't do it.
However, do not discourage those who are committed to so.
Focus your effort on preparing demontrations,inviting journalists while others are writing blog posts, open letters, petitions, press releases, etc in order to counter Kagame's lies.
Be prepared though!
This struggle won't be easy but it must be won Sooner or Later.
Thanks.
Thank you Mamadou.
I have always been completely mystified as to how President Kagame has been
turned into the "ideal African leader". Given Kagame's close relationship
with the Clintons; I fear that US foreign policy will continue to give
preferential treatment to Rwanda.
I just went to http://presidentrdc.cd/ website and found this article
prominently displayed: L'Ambassadeur des USA en RDC face à la Presse
William GARVELINK: "les opérations conjointes sont une réussite totale"
http://presidentrdc.cd/lupourvous_garvelink.html
Regards,
Lorraine
Lorraine M.Thompson, Ph.D.
lorraine@pairofdocs.net
www.pairofdocs.net
Tel: 734-215-1007
Fax: 815-572-8208
Dear Lorraine,
You may be right or wrong. Who knows?
Time will tell if this situation in the Great Lakes region of Africa is meant to change or not.
We already saw these strange relationships with the Khmer-Rouge in Combodia, with the apartheid proponents in South Africa and now with war criminals in Rwanda and in DRC.
We all know that Kagame is a US puppet. Once the situation on the ground will no longer be in in his favor he will be useless and therefore dumped as was Mobutu, Savimbi, John Garang, Charles Tailor, Sadam Hussain, just to name a few.
Please read the following article: Rwanda, the key to peace in Democratic Republic of Congo
(http://hungryoftruth.blogspot.com/2009/02/rwanda-key-to-peace-in-democratic.html)
You will notice that even the DRC parliament is upset about this joint military operation against the FDLR. Just compare this situation with Bush's decision to go to war in IRAK! Time will tell...and the truth will finally be revealed. As you know the truth cannot be burried for ever...
Thanks.
Mamadou
Many Congolese denounced the arrogance of Paul Kagame, president of neighboring Rwanda.
Bukavu, February 15, 2009--"It took up to 30 years in exile for the Tutsi minority to prepare for their conquest of Rwanda. Do you think the Hutu majority, driven out with their army, treasury, public services, etc. would easily give up their struggle? What is needed is an inter-Rwandan dialogue, modeled to the one that took place in neighboring Burundi."
This proposal was recently made to the Belgian Senate by Théophile Habamungu, Vice-President of the Provincial Assembly of Sud-Kivu, as part of a mission in Brussels, Belgium.
The proposal is well received and echoed by all Congolese political actors bothin Kinshasa as well as in South and North Kivu, and by people from the Congolese civil society and the clergy.
The Rwandan Hutu refugees settled in the Congo, civilians and military alike have formed the FDLR (Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda). Kigali holds the FDLR rebels responsible for the genocide in which 800 000 people were killed in 1994 in Rwanda.
"The DRC disaster stems from Rwanda in 1994. Twelve times as many Congolese have died since then compared to the victims of the Rwandan genocide while our resources are being plundered. This complacency towards Rwanda has got to stop", he said.
"The Rwandan president Paul Kagame is too arrogant. His Western sponsors have made him to believe that he is the Napoleon of Africa. We rather see him as Hitler of Africa. He must take a closer look at what hapened in Burundi where the Tutsi minority and the Hutu majority have negotiated a power-sharing within the framework of democracy", he said.
Kigali Blamed
Pressure on Kigali began a few weeks ago. The United Nations has accused Rwanda of fomenting rebellion in the Congo. Sweden and Holland have already stopped their assistance. Critics are spreading in London. Germany has recently arrested and extradited to France Kagame’s chef of protocol for the downing of the Rwandan presidential aircraft in 1994, which triggered the Rwandan genocide.
The former regime in Rwanda was not flexible but there was no justification for the invasion of Rwanda by the RPF (Rwandan Patriotic Front) in 1990. This is the genesis of the drama, the original sin. The Great Western powers have supported the invasion and ultimately Habyarimana and France lost. But the big loser is the Congolese people”, said Leon Bariyanga, president of the Provincial Assembly of North Kivu.
"The Rwandan army comes back to DRC to hunt down the genocidaires. How can one distinguish a Congolese from a Hutu? How can one label as “genocidaire” the Hutu children who were born in the Congo since 1994? No, the solution resides in an inter-Rwandan dialogue", he said too.
"According to an advisor to President Joseph Kabila speaking under anonymity, "the Kagame regime is worse than the one of Habyarimana. However, Kagame continues to enjoy strong support from the United States just as Habyarimana did with France’s support. The world would like all of us to believe that the Kagame regime is a model to follow, but this regime is a real dictatorship financed from the looting of the Congo’s resources, "he said.
The European Union mission has just published its final report on the September elections in Rwanda. They hammered a central conclusion: bullying has marked the campaign and the balloting has clearly lacked transparency.
The FDLR leadership is based in Germany. In a recent text signed by its President, Dr Ignace Murwanashyaka, the FDLR "reiterate their firm conviction that the Rwandan political deadlock cannot be solved by arms, rather by a negotiated compromise".
But so far, Rwanda continues to turn a deaf ear.
I would like to jump into this conversation as well. I recall George W. Bush declaring mission accomplished. Was the mission really accomplished? Now the US Embassador in the Congo is also making the same statements. Military solutions have never solved political problems as mentioned above. Apartheid failed inspite of strong support from the US and its military.
The operation in Somalia in 1993 failed. The Iraq war has been a major flop with more than 4000 US troops killed, dozens of thousands severely injured, a high number of suicide and spouse killings among the troop, and over 600 000 civilians killed. The operation against the LRA has also been a major FLOP. Congolese on the ground are reporting that some of the attrocities attributed to LRA have actually been committed by the Ugandan troops. Vietnam war war a failure just to name a few where military operations failed and the people's wishes won over the power of guns.
As mentioned almost all 500 representatives of the Congolese people want the Rwandan and Ugandan troops returned home. But the US Ambassador calls it a success. The people are against it, they are suffering more than ever, and in the end all they know is the losses of loved ones, loss of limbs, or the experience of rape, sodomy and more. It is even more surprising that the Ambassador has not denounced the operation for its association with war criminals like Ntaganda. http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090219/wl_africa_afp/drcongorwandaunrestconflicticc;_ylt=AsTiDNvz65swdDWIE.M51RS96Q8F
I am not sure that this Embassador is interestedin peace or cares for one second about the Congolese people. The issue is political and it needs to be solved in Rwanda. Going after the FDLR only creates more FDLR members among the youth who are sodomized by being forced to have sex with their mothers.
As for the person who said that the letters will not have an effect, do not underestimate the power of written material. It may not have an immediate effect, but it is effective in the long run. Demonstrations are good as well. Please let us know when we can get with you to support your efforts.
Dear Mamadou,
I read the article you recommended.
Did you read the letter co-authored by Linda Milazzo and Georgianne Nienaber
(a self-professed "voice" of the Congolese people) requesting that Clinton
and Rice meet with CNDP/Nkunda at
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/39881 “Congolese Populist Movement
Requests URGENT Meeting With S.O.S. Clinton and U.N. Ambassador Rice”?
What do you think about this letter? If these women know Nkunda's history in
Kisangani as well as in the Kivus how could they ever support him?
Mystified,
Lorraine
Lorraine M.Thompson, Ph.D.
lorraine@pairofdocs.net
www.pairofdocs.net
Tel: 734-215-1007
Fax: 815-572-8208
Dear Lorraine,
Thanks for your comments.
Yes I did read that letter.
At once, I called this type of propaganda more sinister than the RPF’s one because it's so confusing, and it can be used as a powerful tool for misinformation. For those who are working to counter RPF propagandas there is a clear dichotomy between good and evil, but these people lobbying for the freedom of NKUNDA are so confusing and should be denounced by the latest energy.
When I read the letter for the second time I came to this conclusion: I would rather deal with the RPF propaganda than this one. There is room to wiggle with this one. However, with the RPF propaganda, we are not even able to breathe. The CNDP would shortly die off by itself without Kagame’s support.
The Western imperialist in the region is granted through Kagame. This is why, Kagame but not Nkunda, Ntaganda, or the FDLR, is the biggest threat for the security in the Great Lakes Region of Africa.
Understanding how these women (in the letter) who really know Nkunda as a war criminal could ever support him is as puzzling as the pillars of the US-Kagame relationships.
“Had the US “impunity policy” not been in place, Kagame might well have been prosecuted along with Military-1 defendants Bagosora and Nsengiumva, as ICTR Prosecutor Michael Hourigan recommended in early 1997. Kagame’s responsibility for the assassination of Habyarimana has been known to the ICTR Prosecutor since at least that time, if not early”.
“Had the US “impunity policy” not been in place, Kagame might well have spent the last decade awaiting trial at the ICTR, rather than getting rich from the resources of the Congo, and the blood of millions of Africans”.
For more info,
please read the article: Rwanda: No Conspiracy, No Genocide Planning ... No Genocide? (http://hungryoftruth.blogspot.com/2009/01/rwanda-no-conspiracy-no-genocide.html) by Prof Peter erlinder.
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