Open Letter to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks during a visit

to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence in McLean, Virginia,

July 18, 2022. Saul Loeb/Pool via REUTERS

Warning!

The U.S. State Department has just officially announced that the U.S. Secretary of State will visit Africa from August 7-12, 2022.

He will visit South Africa, the DRC, and finally Rwanda. He will be received by the official authorities as it should be. But in countries where the freedom of speech and of the press is guaranteed, he will keep himself informed of the questions that the regime would not reveal to him. In Rwanda, however, he will only get the regime's version of events, and knowing how this regime is a champion of "technicalities", he might come back from the country very impressed and singing the praises of Paul Kagame's dictatorship.

Knowing the real situation in Rwanda and knowing that no ordinary citizen can address the American Secretary of State on a visit to Rwanda, we have taken the liberty of synthesizing the remarks of the Rwandan population and addressing them to Antony Blinken on their behalf. This is the purpose of this letter:

 

                                                                                                       Rwanda, August 2, 2022

 

To Mr. Antony Blinken,
Secretary of State of the United States
2201 C St NW,
Washington, DC 20520

 

Mr. Blinken,

It is with interest that we have learned that you are planning to visit Rwanda from August 10-12, 2022. You will certainly have the honor of being received by the Head of State of this country, the President for life, General Paul Kagame, who, at 65 years of age, has just spent 28 years as the President of this country.

You will naturally be impressed by being received by this dictator, especially since his propaganda services are masters in this kind of show. But the Rwandan people would like to warn you and draw your attention to the following points:

1. When shaking hands with General Paul Kagame, you should know that you are shaking a hand that is oozing with the blood of millions of victims of this self-proclaimed criminal "president".

2. During your meeting, be aware that you are facing a dictator who publicly declares that he does not adhere to universal values such as democracy, respect for human rights, or freedom of opinion and of the press.

3. You should also know that this dictator, who declares himself elected with 99% of the votes cast at each electoral masquerade, has banished the opposition in Rwanda. Those who dare to declare that they are politically and peacefully opposed to him are killed or imprisoned and the lucky ones end up in exile.

4. Know that his model of governance in the world is the regime of the Kim clan (Il-Sung, Jong-Il, Jong-Un) of North Korea, where there can be no opponents, therefore no street demonstrations, and where order and cleanliness are noticeable by any foreign observer who passes through Pyongyang. This is the same order and cleanliness that Kagame is imposing on the capital city of Kigali at the cost of thousands of Rwandan deaths, while the hinterland where 90% of Rwandans live has fallen back into the era of hewn stone.

5. You should also know, Mr. Secretary of State, that this dictator, who has been the great protégé of the United States since his military conquest of Rwanda in 1994, does not hesitate to pursue and kill on the territory of foreign countries, including the United States, opponents who have fled from him. He even allows himself to kidnap American citizens or permanent residents of the United States and boasts about it.

6. By virtue of your rank and duties, Mr. Blinken, you certainly know that this Paul Kagame who will be in front of you on August 10-12, 2022, is the one who is disturbing the peace in the great lakes region of Africa by destabilizing neighboring countries such as Burundi and especially the Democratic Republic of Congo.

And yet Mr. Secretary of State,

- The dictator Paul Kagame remains, since his military conquest of Rwanda in 1994, a protégé and favorite of the United States.

- His regime is the one that receives the most financial aid in the entire region, if not in Africa,

- Dictator Paul Kagame and his regime enjoy impunity for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed almost daily. This impunity is automatic because your country guarantees it and influences other powers or institutions to do the same: UN, EU, AU, etc.

This is why, Mr. Secretary of State, as you are responsible for defending the interests of the United States abroad, but also for the influence and the good image of the United States throughout the world, we wanted to draw your attention to the fact that the treatment that the United States is giving to Paul Kagame's dictatorship in Rwanda risks risk of causing your country to lose its credibility (if it hasn’t already done so) in the African opinion.

On this note, we ask you Mr. Blinken, that in Kigali you take your courage into your hands and dare to ask the dictator Kagame at least to release the American citizens or residents that he is illegally detaining, but also the journalists and Human Rights activists that he is making rot in his prison-moats for simple videos on YouTube that echoed the suffering of the population. Similarly, you should dare to ask him to stop his acts of destabilization of the DRC and give a strong and clear signal that the United States is not complicit in the project of balkanization of the DRC to attach the Eastern region of this vast country to the tiny Rwanda of Kagame. It is enough to declare that the M23, a group under which Paul Kagame operates in the DRC, is a terrorist group and that the countries that support it are liable to sanctions.

Please accept, Mr. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the expression of our respectful sentiments.

Sincerely,

Kanyarwanda Lamhda,
A Rwandan citizen
(Signed)