Igihe

Author: b_igi_adm1n

  • Why is Congo So Afraid of Rwanda?

    DR Congo, Tanzania and Rwanda-in-the-middle have all celebrated their fiftieth birthday and are thus about the same age.

    Why does the vastly rich Congo, whose population exceeds that of Tanzania by two and half times that of Rwanda, require any help to deal with Rwanda?

    So, could the problem be more with Congo than with Rwanda?

    In a way, Rwanda sits like a mirror at the heart of Africa. On one side there is a huge country that stretches as far as the ocean. On the other side, there is a huge country that stretches as far as the ocean.

    Congo, stretching from the Atlantic to the centre of Africa, has over 70 million people, Tanzania, stretching from the Indian Ocean to the centre of Africa has 45 million people, and tiny Rwanda has about 10 million.

    Both Tanzania and Congo are stupendously rich in minerals and forests.

    The “international community” is now accusing Rwanda of destabilising DR Congo. They could be right. But they should pause and ask why Rwanda isn’t destabilising Tanzania instead?

    After all, its geographical relation to the two countries is the same, except that Tanzania has 25 million fewer people than DR Congo, so it should be easier for Rwanda to mess up.

    Why don’t we hear of Rwanda sponsoring Tanzanian dissidents? Why is it inconceivable for Rwanda to be arming Zanzibari extremists to secede from the Union but it is routinely suspected of arming secessionists in eastern DR Congo?

    So, could the problem be more with Congo than with Rwanda?

    Dizzying wealth

    The international community has always been interested in Congo’s affairs, and in 1960/61, just after the country attained Independence, two “civilised” Western democracies decided that the best service they could render the Congolese people was to kill their popular, newly elected leader – Patrice Lumumba — to install a man who in their view would be more democratic and developmental — Joseph Mobutu.

    With such a record and credentials of reading what is best for the Congolese, the international community now believes it has found the cause of Congo’s problems – Rwanda.

    Those who want to solve DR Congo’s problems — and that should be almost everybody — would do well to ask the following question: Why does the vastly rich Congo, whose population exceeds that of Tanzania by two and half times that of Rwanda, require any help to deal with Rwanda?

    At seventy plus million people and dizzying wealth, DR Congo should be having a well equipped, well paid army of 1.4 million men under arms (at a standard ratio of one government-armed man for every 50 people).

    Why can’t DR Congo just overrun small, poor Rwanda and install a government of its choice?

    The answer is that DRC has the potential to be the richest, most advanced and most militarily powerful country in Africa.

    But it got stunted as a state from the time it became a personal property of King Leopold; and when it finally got a chance to start off towards development, its only ever legitimately elected leader was sentenced to death by two wealthy nations and executed by firing squad.

    Recently, leaders of SADC have expressed interest in the affairs of DR Congo. Let us hope they direct their collective brainpower towards establishing a working government in Kinshasa that uses the vast wealth of its people for their development.

    Published in NMG

    Joachim Buwembo is a Knight International fellow for development journalism. E-mail: [email protected]

  • Bemba’s Party Members Confident he Will be Let Free

    Members of a Congolese political party “Mouvement de Libération du Congo” (MLC) founded by Jean Pierre Bemba are confident that the outcome of their jailed party leader will be positive.

    Local radio Okapi quoted Jean-Lucien Busa, the MLC deptuy general-secretary saying, “MLC leaders are confident that Jean-Pierre Bemba will be freed and rejoin us as soon as possible.”

    Bemba, the leader of MLC and former vice-president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, is charged with crimes against humanity (murder and rape) and war crimes (murder, rape and pillaging) allegedly committed in the Central African Republic in 2002-2003.

    Busa explained that MLC is one of the main opposition parties in DRC.

    “Congolese all know that MLC troops went to the CAR because they had been invited to do so by a government democratically elected”, he explained.

    According to the Lusaka agreement, the MLC had the powers of a legitimate government on the portion of territory it controlled at the time, Busa said.

    Bemba was thus entitled to sign a deal with Ange-Félix Patassé, the then President of CAR.

    Busa also was quoted saying that MLC militants were visiting Bemba in jail almost daily and that the party was 100% behind its leader.

    Bemba has been granted eight months to present his defense.

  • Woman Arrested with Rolls of Cannabis

    A woman has been arrested found in possession with 41 rolls of cannabis.

    Julienne Kamashara 42, is being detained at Muhima Police station. Her arrest followed a tip-off from area residents who notified police of her acts.

    Kamashara, a resident of Kabahazi Cell, Gitega Sector in Nyarugenge District, was arrested on September, 3, and is reported to be part of the group that deals in narcotics in Kigali.

    Her arrest comes at a time when the anti-drug campaign is said to be paying off as the public have joined the campaign by reporting drug dealers.

    Residents described Kamashara’s acts as ‘regrettable’ noting that woman should not, in any circumstance, be involved in such shameful acts.

    Rwanda National Police is still conducting anti-drug campaigns among the population, highlighting the negative effects of drugs such as loss of lives, school dropouts and a source to criminal activities.

    A total of 1, 663 people, among them 163 females, were apprehended countrywide between January and May this year for narcotics related crimes, according to a police report.

  • When Will The Sex Worker Industry be Regulated?

    Here in Australia it is Child Protection Week…’Together We Care’ is this year’s slogan. It is a reflection of the African saying that it takes a village to raise a child…because indeed it does.

    My thoughts are with the families grieving for the loss of their daughters, sisters but most importantly, Mothers today…those women reported to have been strangled by a killer or killers in Kigali.

    All these women are alleged to have been prostitutes…it appears that for that profession they lost their lives. Reports to date indicate as many as 15 women have been murdered.

    My question is…when will the sex worker industry be regulated? Could these deaths have been prevented if the industry had been regulated?

    Is an Inquiry going to establish what measures could be taken to minimise risks of harm to prostitutes and the community at large in its relationship to this industry?

    We have done so here in my state, Queensland. Prostitution regulation legislation was introduced in the 1990s. We care about the health and safety of those men and women who work in the industry…and that of their clients. Turning a blind-eye to the vulnerability of these people is not good enough.

    It does take a community to raise a child….and the children of these prostitutes needed their mothers. It is time for the Rwandan community to take better care of its sex workers…and for the sake of the health of the whole community.

    Our Government regulation is also designed to reduce the likelihood of the spread of transmissible diseases and reduce/eliminate the involvement of organized crime in this industry.

    A regulated industry also means governments are more able to collect taxes from the businesses….businesses that are often otherwise controlled by organize crime syndicates well versed in tax evasion.

    To read more about government regulation in Queensland and how it works – go to this link: http://www.pla.qld.gov.au/ The Prostitution Licensing Authority is committed to:

    • the principles of respect, integrity and impartiality
    • promoting and improving safety and health in the sex industry and in the wider community

    • preventing corruption and organised crime in licensed brothels
    • ensuring that all its activities are based on the best information and research available to it.

    So, if you care about the lives of all Rwandans, talk to your politicians about how they feel about government regulation of the sex industry….for the sake of Rwandan children of prostitutes and for their mothers.

    Show those orphaned children and the 15 families of all those that have been murdered that ‘together we care’….the loss of their mother and all those other women murdered, has not been in vain…that the Rwandan government will make the industry safe for all workers in it and their clients….for this is acting in the ‘communities interest’.

    Together we care.

  • M23 Rebels Occupy Zones Formely Held By RDF/FARDC

    Congolese M23 rebel movement has reportedly occupied positions earlier occupied by Special forces of Rwanda and DRC.

    The newly occupied territories include Kiseguro about 20 miles north East of Rutshuru in North Kivu.

    Sources told Local Congolese media that M23 rebels are based in the main town of Rutshuru and control Kiseguro.

    It is said FDLR rebels controls the northern part of Kiseguro from Katwiguru Buramba up, then north Nyamilima to Ishasha. Mai Mai militias still occupy Nyamilima.

    Deployed from February 2011 to Rutshuru to hunt down the FDLR, the Rwandan special forces withdrew last Friday from villages of Katwiguru Kiseguro and Kaunga in Rutshuru territory.

    After the departure of Rwandan special forces, the FDLR held Saturday, September 1 Kiseguro an abandoned position.

    M23 later on Monday ousted FDLR from the area on September 3, apparently without fighting, specify the sources of local civil society.

    However, a few shots were heard in the area for at least ten minutes, add the sources.

    According to them, the civilian population on the axis Kiseguro Buramba are concerned about this situation and are reportedly fearing clashes between the rebels of the FDLR and M23.

  • World Bank Boss in Ivory Coast Today

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    Today September 4, the World Bank President Jim Yong Kim met Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara for talks followed by a dinner.

    “Reducing poverty and creating opportunity for people to succeed are vital to the World Bank Group’s mission and I plan to continue to strengthen our work towards these goals,” he said in a statement.

    “For this reason I chose Africa for my first official visit as World Bank Group President, recognising the priority given by the continent’s governments to faster growth and less poverty,” Kim said.

    In his talks with Ouattara, who currently heads the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Kim will review regional crises and the way the World Bank can best support their resolution, the statement said.

    Kim is expected to inquire about progress on security and reconciliation in Ivory Coast, where Ouattara came to power in April 2011 after a serious political and military crisis that cost some 3,000 lives in four months after his predecessor, Laurent Gbagbo, refused to admit defeat in elections.

    The World Bank group has invested about one billion dollars (793 million euros) in development programmes in the west African country.

    Kim will “meet with women leaders to discuss the importance of women to the country’s efforts to create jobs, open more businesses, and achieve lasting reconciliation and development in the former war-torn country,” the bank said.

    He will “meet unemployed young people, including former soldiers, who are learning new job skills in a World Bank-financed training program,” as well as visiting an industrial zone for small and medium-sized companies.

    The World Bank chief will leave Abidjan on Wednesday for South Africa, where he is scheduled to meet President Jacob Zuma.

  • Margaret Thatcher Suit Auctioned at US$39,670

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    A wool suit that Margaret Thatcher wore on the day she was confirmed as Conservative Party leader has sold at auction for 25,000 pounds ($39,670).

    An anonymous bidder bought the dress suit by British designer Mansfield, at a Christie’s auction in London late Monday.

    The auction also sold six other outfits — worn by Thatcher in the 1970s before she became prime minister — to a buyer in South Korea.

    Those outfits included a canary yellow dress with navy trim and a matching jacket that the former leader wore to the Conservative Party Conference in 1975.

    It was a blush pink outfit Thatcher wore in a BBC show in which she was interviewed on her skin care regime; and a silver and gold cocktail ensemble.

    In total, the outfits fetched a little more than 73,000 pounds.

    AP

  • EAC Child Rights Conference Concluded

    The East African Community Child Rights Conference that addressed Issues that negatively impact on the realization of Child Rights in the East African Community concluded September 3, at Royal Palace Hotel in Bujumbura, Burundi.

    Children and participants knocked into shape the Bujumbura Declaration and Recommendations on Child Rights and Wellbeing in the EAC.

    Hon. Leontine Nzeyimana, Burundi’s Minister for East African Community Affairs, who officiated at the closing ceremony informed delegates and the children that early childhood represents a window of great opportunities and the consequences of missing these opportunities are far-reaching, costing families and governments considerably.

    She said by anticipating the issues that negatively impact on the realization of child rights, the Community shall have made not only savings, but also strong and sustainable investments and noted that Partner States were experiencing high levels of primary school registration but few children make it to secondary levels of education.

    “This situation calls for action to live up to the commitments for a bright future of our children,” said the Minister.

    Nzeyimana said as it is in the early period of life that values, attitudes, behavior and basic life skills were shaped, thus “it was our individual and collective responsibility to nurture and reinforce in our children the values that foster peace and harmony, tolerance, respect for others, sharing, justice and equality”.

    Presenting the Bujumbura Declaration and Recommendations on Child Rights and Wellbeing in the EAC, the Deputy Secretary General in charge of Productive and Social Sectors Hon. Jesca Eriyo said the Conference was a historic event that operationalizes Article 120 of the EAC Treaty.

    “We are greatly indebted to the Partner States, our development partners and to all those who have lent critical support to the holding of this Conference which is of great significance to our region,” noted Hon. Eriyo.

    She said the Community was overwhelmed by the participation in the Conference at the high level of Ministers of various Ministries of the Partner States, EALA, National Parliament and the Representatives from respective organizations and the Inter-Agency working groups (UNICEF, Save the Children, Plan International, World Vision, African Child Policy Forum, and Elisabeth Glaser Foundation), adding that “with this response, we are encouraged of the high importance attached to the issue of Child’s rights but also of the readiness to implement the outcome of this Conference.

  • Sudanese Opposition warns of Failure in Khartoum-Juba talks

    The coalition of mainstream opposition parties in Sudan has warned against the consequences of failing to reach agreements on contentious issues with neighboring South Sudan within the deadline set by the UN Security Council (UNSC), accusing the Khartoum government of inviting such eventuality by procrastinating in the talks.

    Kamal Omar, the leading member of the National Consensus Forces (NCF) and political secretary of its faction the Popular Congress Party (PCP), said in a press conference held in the capital Khartoum on Monday that the UNSC would likely carry out its threat of sanctions against Sudan in the event of failure to reach an agreement with South Sudan.

    Sudan and South Sudan are due to resume negotiations over post-secession issues in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Tuesday.

    The UNSC extended until 22 September the deadline it gave to both countries to conclude talks or face non-military sanctions as stipulated under resolution 2046 which the UNSC adopted following the eruption of fighting between the two neighbors around the oilfields of Heglig.

    The previous round witnessed a yet-to-be-signed agreement on oil transit fees and the next round is expected to focus on the creation of a demilitarized zone along the border and cessation of alleged support to rebel groups.

    Omar said he does not rule out the failure of the talks and referral of the disputes to the Permanent Court of Arbitration due to what he described as the procrastination of Khartoum government in reaching a comprehensive settlement.

    The opposition official also touched on the issue of armed conflicts in Sudan’s border region of South Kordofan and Blue Nile. He said that the framework agreement that the government signed with the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement North (SPLM-N) on 28 June and later disavowed could have contributed to resolving the problem in the two regions.

    Omer accused some elements within the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) of “vetoing” the agreement and obstructing its implementation.

    Turning to the domestic arena, Omar commented on talk about the NCP’s intention to invite opposition parties for consultations on a new constitution.

    According to Omer, NCF factions, which also include the National Umma Party (NUP) of Al-Sadiq al-Mahdi and the Sudanese Communist Party (SCP), reject any dealing with the NCP and remain firmly committed to the goal of regime change.

    “We are talking about the fall of the entire regime after it failed to run the country” he intoned. Omar added that the protests that occurred in the country in response to the ending of fuel subsidies were “a rehearsal for the upcoming revolution”

    On a separate issue, Omar encouraged Islamist parties in the Arab world to boycott the Islamic Movement (IM) conference that the NCP intends to organize in November. He described the IM as a privately owned entity, in a veiled reference to its perceived conflation with the NCP.

    Meanwhile, Omer’s boss and PCP leader Hassan al-Turabi is due to travel on 9 September to the Qatari capital Al-Doha. While the purpose of the visit is unknown, Al-Turabi’s previous visits to Doha were organized to hold interviews with the prominent TV channel Al Jazeera.

    The latest interview Al Jazeera held with Al-Turabi was two years ago but Al-Jazeera failed to broadcast it for what some speculated as fears of fraying relations between Doha and Khartoum after the Islamist opposition leader spoke about sensitive issues including the alleged involvement of Sudanese officials in the attempted assassination of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in 1995.

    ST

  • Uganda Reports Two New Cases of Ebola

    Although Government of Uganda had earlier mentioned that the deadly Ebola disease had been contained, two new cases have emerged in Kibale district- the same place where several people succumbed to the deadly viral epidemic.

    Medical officials in Kibaale district have registered two new suspected Ebola cases.

    Uganda’s Monitor reported that Gertrude Keneema (25) and her four-year child, Tidiya Birungi, were admitted to Kagadi Hospital isolation ward on Sunday afternoon with clinical symptoms similar to those of Ebola.

    “They are admitted in an isolation ward at the hospital. They have received medication and they are stable,” the District health officer Dr Dan Kyamanywa said Tuesday.

    He says medical experts then carried out investigations to establish whether they had come into contact with an Ebola patient.

    “They do not have that history,” Dr Kyamanywa said adding that the two had fever, and were vomiting as well as passing blood.

    “We extracted a blood sample from them and sent it to the Uganda virus research institute for testing” Kyamanywa added.