African Great Lakes Observer

Human Rights Watch: Time for a review of UK policy on Rwanda August 1, 2011 26 tweets TOP 5K retweet A few weeks ago, a British journalist called me to discuss the human rights situation in Rwanda. We began by talking about the 2010 elections, in which President Paul Kagame was re-elected with 93% of the vote after three opposition parties had been excluded from the race; one opposition leader had been imprisoned; another opposition party member and an independent journalist were murdered; and a prominent government opponent narrowly escaped assassination in exile. After a few minutes, the journalist interrupted me and asked, in a puzzled tone: "Why does our government continue supporting Kagame? What is so special about Rwanda?" By Carina Tertsakian, 29 July 2011 There is something special about Rwanda: the genocide of 1994, which saw more than half a million people wiped out in three months in a killing campaign orchestrated by Hutu extremists against the Tutsi minority. ...

  Canada: Stop Training Militia Members for Rwanda ( http://www.salem-news.com/articles/august022011/rwanda-rfp-tr.php )   Dr. Theogene Rudasingwa for Salem-News.com The Rwandese Patriotic Front (RPF) has re-established a one-party, authoritarian system of government that is even more repressive than the government that was in power prior to the genocide. Dr. Theogene Rudasingwa (KIGALI, Rwanda) - RWANDA NATIONAL CONGRESS The Right Honorable Stephen Harper Prime Minister of Canada Office of the Prime Minister 80 Wellington Street Ottawa, ON K1A OA2 Canada VERY URGENT 2nd August, 2011 Dear Rt. Hon. Harper, Re: PETITION FOR THE PREVENTION, SUPPRESSION AND PUNISHMENT OF CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES OF MILITIA GROUPS IN THE SERVICE OF THE GOVERNMENT OF RWANDA ON CANADIAN TERRITORY We, the members of the Rwanda National Congress (RNC), hereby petition the Government of Canada and the Council of Gatineau City to cancel a program of the Government of Rwanda to recru...

Britain and EU increase aid to Ethiopia while ignoring human rights warnings Britain and the EU have increased aid to Ethiopia while ignoring repeated diplomatic warnings of human rights abuse and concerns that Western funding is being used as a tool of repression by the country's regime. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/ethiopia/8681975/Britain-and-EU-increase-aid-to-Ethiopia-while-ignoring-human-rights-warnings.html Britain and EU increase aid to Ethiopia while ignoring human rights warnings Britain and the EU have increased aid to Ethiopia while ignoring repeated diplomatic warnings of human rights abuse and concerns that Western funding is being used as a tool of repression by the country's regime. By   Bruno Waterfield , Brussels 10:30PM BST 04 Aug 2011 An investigation by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism and BBC Newsnight has found that as Ethiopia is hit by drought and famine, communities are being denied basic food, seed and fertili...

Rw andans don't need to claim genocide or else to feel or honour their losses Christopher Black, Lead Counsel, General Ndindiliyimana Source: Posted on July 27, 2011 by therisingcontinent   Discussions on how to call atrocities committed in Rwanda since October 1 st , 1990 and in the whole Great Lakes region of Africa since 1996, this until today, appear ongoing. They may not even have an end at any time. As evidence, even survivors of the holocaust continue reminding the world that what happened to the Jews in Hitler's Germany was genocide. It is their right to do so. However, motives of those who fight nails and toes out to claim that mentioned atrocities were genocide or else seem often not genuine or disinterested. They come out as defending a brand name instead of a humanitarian cause. I lost lots of my family, friends and neighbours in the Rwandan atrocities. The Rwandan government even denies thousands of survivors the right to be called survivors, only because th...