In Summary
Anyway, her boss, Kagame, joined in the fracas
doing worse than his inexperienced appointee. Again, arrogance was the
sickness! YouTube was there to post it for anyone to hear that rubbish!
As we all know, for three months now senior
officials of the Rwandan regime have been badmouthing President Jakaya
Kikwete as a person and Tanzania as a country simply because he said
something they didn’t like.
The row started on May 26 in Addis Ababa in a
brainstorming session when Kikwete suggested to the leaders of the
African countries faced with rebel fighting – Uganda, Rwanda, and the
Democratic Republic of the Congo – to hold talks with their enemies. The
UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon, was a witness.
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni responded
respectfully, but without any commitment, while Rwandan President Paul
Kagame remained speechless. The DRC leader, President Joseph Kabila,
agreed and things moved forward. No one was coerced into endorsing that
advice.
Suddenly after the meeting, Rwandan Foreign
minister Louise Mushikiwabo launched a tirade, insulting Kikwete and
telling him to apologise. She said quite a lot, and clearly demonstrated
the lack of diplomatic acumen that a foreign minister is expected to
marshal.
Probably, Mushikiwabo wanted to appear
tough, but actually (excuse my language) ended up looking stubborn and
amateurish. Come on, if a head of state cannot insult another head of
state, how can a mere minister dare to do so?
Anyway, her boss, Kagame, joined in the fracas
doing worse than his inexperienced appointee. Again, arrogance was the
sickness! YouTube was there to post it for anyone to hear that rubbish!
The group that Kikwete was referring to with
regards to Rwanda is the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda
(FDLR), a claimed ethnic Hutu militia force linked to the 1994 genocide.
Rwanda has failed to wipe out this bush group for 19 years now, hence,
Kikwete’s advice.
Anyway, fast forward to July 25, Kikwete is now in
Kagera, the region that, frankly, is a second home to Rwandans on this
earth. President Kikwete, as the Commander-in-Chief, while attending a
Heroes Day ceremony, assured Tanzanians that our troops are ready to
defend the country in case of any challenge. He did not mention any
potential aggressor.
However, the press and Rwandan officials, and Malawians as well, made it a big deal
twisting the otherwise very usual statement into a severe warning. Let
us be serious, did they want the Commander-in-Chief of one of the most
successful militaries in Africa, himself a retired military officer, to
say the opposite?
Secondly, Kikwete, after hearing of the plight of Tanzanians living in the northwestern
part of Tanzania, ordered all undocumented immigrants to get out of
Tanzania within two weeks. Remember, according to our law, being an
illegal immigrant is a crime.
Kikwete issued that order because he was tired of hearing that Tanzanians in that area live
under the mercy of armed thugs from the neighbouring countries that we
have been helping to stabilise for decades. That part of Tanzania is
awash with small firearms from Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and the DRC and
they are spreading everywhere killing innocent Tanzanians.
Kikwete’s order was meant to secure the area and
make it easy for security organs to fulfil the mission. He did not aim
at any specific populace as Rwandan officials now claim that Tanzania is
expelling Rwandans as retaliation.
Retaliation? For what? Kikwete is on the record on July 31 as
having said that although Tanzania is shocked with how Rwanda has chosen
to behave, the country harbours no ill intent against its neighbour.
As we speak, several thousand
Rwandans who were living illegally in Tanzania have already crossed
border back to their country of origin. What is wrong with that?
Now, suddenly, the “tough” Mushikiwabo is
complaining why Tanzania didn’t consult Rwanda through diplomatic
channels. She even added that since the two countries belong to the East
African Community (EAC), then this matter should have been handled
differently.
Now, abruptly, diplomacy exists? Oh! And even the
EAC exists as well! Gosh! We thought the two did not exist that is why
Kagame and Mushikiwabo had to say what they said against Tanzania and
Kikwete!
It must be known that, Tanzania is not expelling
Rwandans; Tanzania is only allowing undocumented immigrants, not only
Africans, but everybody to immediately return to their home countries
without facing any trial. Nothing more!
Any other suggestion that Tanzania is punishing
Rwanda is unfortunate, and so is the thinking that Tanzania was readying
itself for military action against one or two smaller countries.
I think Rwandan officials need to swallow their
pride and respect Tanzanians for what we have done for them in the last
fifty years, a reason why many Rwandans are living in Tanzania today.
We all know why Rwanda is angry at Tanzania, and
Kikwete’s advice is not the real reason. But anyway, it is good that
Rwandan officials are now preaching diplomacy!
Source: The citizen
Source: The citizen
