Friday, October 4, 2013

Rwanda president slams US sanctions over child soldiers



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)
AFP
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
 
 
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."
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----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Leila Sheikh
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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

Friday October 4th 2013
5 hours ago
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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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