Thanks
Leila,
is
wrong and we shall not give up but continue to fight for Rights of Congo people
with the rest of those Great Lakes Region of East Africa till we break him by
blocking all his panya-route and finally Ban-ki-moon with ICC Hague must do the
needful in their part.
Kagame
must feel the pressure from this sanctions and people of Congo must join with
us all to show Kagame he must behave right or face consequences of fire with
fire.........
Judy Miriga
Diaspora
Spokesperson
Executive Director
Confederation Council
Foundation for Africa Inc.,
USA
Rwanda president slams US sanctions over child soldiers
Rwandan President Paul
Kagame on Friday angrily condemned US decision to impose sanctions against his
country
Rwandan President Paul Kagame, pictured
on October 22, 2012, angrily condemned a US decision to impose sanctions against
his country for allegedly backing rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo who
recruit child soldiers (AFP Photo/Karim Sahib)
2 hours ago
Rwandan President Paul
Kagame, pictured on October 22, 2012, angrily condemned a US decision to impose
sanctions against his country for allegedly backing rebels in the Democratic
Republic of Congo who recruit child soldiers (AFP Photo/Karim
Sahib)
Kigali (AFP) - Rwandan
President Paul Kagame on Friday angrily condemned a US decision to impose
sanctions against his country for allegedly backing rebels in the Democratic
Republic of Congo who recruit child soldiers.
Kagame said the decision
would only play into the hands of other rebels made up of remnants of Hutu
extremists who carried out the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
"It benefits those enemies
of our country who seek to destroy what we are trying to build," Kagame said in
a speech to parliament.
The United Nations accuses Rwanda of backing the M23 rebels in
neighbouring eastern DR Congo, a charge the country has adamantly
denied.
On Thursday, Washington said it was invoking the 2008 Child
Soldiers Protection Act to end US financial and military assistance to
Rwanda.
But Kagame said the sanctions "benefit the people that throw
grenades here in Kigali and killed our children", referring to recent attacks in
the capital carried out in the run-up to parliamentary elections last
month.
"They don’t care about our children," he said, lashing out at
"those murderers who live in the DRC (and) in South Africa" -- a reference to
exiled Hutu extremists linked to the 1994 genocide as well as other
opponents.
The M23 rebel group was founded by former Tutsi rebels who
were incorporated into the Congolese army under a 2009 peace deal but who turned
their guns on their former comrades in 2012.
Kagame's government, also dominated by Tutsis, is accused of
backing the rebels as part of a proxy war against Hutu rebels in the DRC and to
seek influence in the country's mineral-rich eastern Kivu region.
Kagame repeated denials of covert support for the M23, and
described the sanctions as an "insult".
"I don’t understand why
Rwanda is treated... with such injustice," he said. "Rwanda is going to be
judged and held accountable for the mistakes made by others."
----------------------------
----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Leila Sheikh
To: "mabadilikotanzania@googlegroups.com"
Sent: Friday, October 4, 2013 11:28 AM
Subject: Re: [Mabadiliko] US sanctions Rwanda, others over child soldiers
From: Leila Sheikh
To: "mabadilikotanzania@googlegroups.com"
Sent: Friday, October 4, 2013 11:28 AM
Subject: Re: [Mabadiliko] US sanctions Rwanda, others over child soldiers
asante Jude
Leila
Sheikh
US sanctions Rwanda, others over child soldiers
Congolese M23 rebels hold their weapons as they
celebrate repelling an attack by another rebel group, …
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The
United States moved to block U.S. military aid to Rwanda because of its support
for the M23 Congolese rebel group believed to use child soldiers, the State
Department said on Thursday.
The sanctions also apply to
the Central African Republic, Myanmar, Sudan and Syria, according to the U.S.
State Department. It was unclear whether those nations receive U.S. military
assistance.
"Our goal is to work with
countries who have been listed to ensure that any involvement in child soldiers
- any involvement in the recruitment of child soldiers - stop," U.S. Assistant
Secretary of State for African Affairs Linda Thomas-Greenfield said.
State Department spokeswoman
Marie Harf said Rwanda was sanctioned because of its "support for the M23, a
rebel group which continues to actively recruit and abduct children" and to
threaten the stability of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
M23 is a Tutsi-dominated rebellion of former Congolese soldiers that began
taking parts of eastern Congo last year, accusing the government of failing to
honor a 2009 peace deal.
Rwanda will not receive U.S.
International Military Education and Training funds, which help train foreign
militaries, nor will it get U.S. Foreign Military Financing, which funds the
sale of U.S. military materiel and services, Harf said.
Brigadier General Joseph
Nzabamwita, spokesman for the Rwanda Defense Forces, said his country should not
be held responsible for events outside its control.
"It is surprising that Rwanda
would be liable for matters that are neither on its territory, nor in its
practices," he said. "As a long term partner of the Rwanda Defense Forces, the
United States has ample evidence that our forces have never tolerated the use of
children in combat."
"Rwanda's commitment to a sustainable solution that seeks to bring an end
to the DRC conflict and its consequences, including the use of child soldiers,
remains unchanged," he added.
"The collaboration between
the Government of Rwanda and the United States remains strong, particularly in
the field of peacekeeping, and Rwanda will continue to hold its forces to the
highest standards of professionalism and discipline," he added.
Harf, the State Department
spokeswoman, said she was not aware of Syria receiving any U.S. military
assistance. She also said she did not believe Syria or Myanmar receive such aid
and would check on whether or not Sudan did.
Three other countries whose
militaries are known to recruit and use child soldiers, however, received
waivers from the U.S. sanctions - Chad, South Sudan and Yemen, another State
Department official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The Democratic Republic of
Congo and Somalia received partial waivers, the official said, adding that the
Obama administration has decided such exemptions "would be in the national
interest of the United States."
By law, the U.S. State
Department must keep track of nations whose governments recruit and use children
as soldiers as part of its annual report on human trafficking. The 10 countries
affected by Thursday's actions were all cited in the State Department's latest
findings, issued in June.
Those countries can be denied
some types of U.S. funds for military assistance unless the White House grants a
waiver. The 2008 law also allows U.S. officials to block licenses needed for
those nations to buy military equipment.
It was not immediately clear
how much U.S. funding would be blocked because of Thursday's action.
Rwanda was not granted a
waiver because of its role backing the M23 rebels in nearby Democratic Republic
of Congo, Thomas-Greenfield, the top U.S. diplomat for Africa, said in an online
forum with reporters broadcast on the State Department website.
U.N. investigators and the Congolese
government have accused Rwanda of sponsoring the rebellion, a charge Rwanda
denies.
"Any support of those rebel
groups is seen as contributing to conflict in the region," Thomas-Greenfield
told reporters, adding that U.S. officials will continue to discuss the issue
with the Rwandan government.
The United States will still
support peacekeeping efforts in Rwanda, the other official added.
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