Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Rwanda: Madame Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza yakatiwe igifungo cy'agasomborotso cy'imyaka umunani

Ikimenyetso kiragaragaye: mu Rwanda nta  butabera buharangwa!

Ntawe ugishidikanya ko ubucamanza mu Rwanda bubogamiye ku butegetsi bwa Perezida Pahulo Kagame ko kandi budashishikajwe n’ubutabera. Mu gihe urubanza rumaze, ntitwahwemye kubereka ko Urukiko Rukuru, rutigeze rwemera ibimenyetso byagiye bitangwa n’ababuranira Madame Victoire Ingabire, bagaragaza ko ari umwere mu byo aregwa. Ahubwo Urukiko Rukuru rwihaye ubushobozi budafite, bwo kwakira ibirego by’ibikorwa  bishobora kuba byarabaye mbere y’uko itegeko ribihana rijyaho, cyangwa se kwakira ibirego rudafitiye ubushobozi.
Byagaragaye ko impapuro zitemewe zavuye mu Buholandi, zigenewe kwerekana imikoranire hagati ya Madame Victoire Ingabire n’umutwe w’inyeshyamba FDLR, ari impimbano. Umushinjacyaha ntiyigeze ashyira ahagaragara ibimenyetso bihama Madame Victoire Ingabire. Kuba Urukiko Rukuru rwaragiye rwirengagiza ibyo rugezwaho n’ababuranira  Madame Victoire Ingabire, kuba urubanza rutagendera ku mategeko agenga imiburanishirize y’imanza, no kuba Urukiko Rukuru rwiha uburenganzira bwo kwakira  ibirego by’ibikorwa byabaye itegeko ribihana ritarajyaho, ibyo byose bigaragaza ko Urukiko Rukuru rwashyize inzitizi mu rubanza rwa Madame Victoire Ingabire.
N’ubwo ubutegetsi bwa Pahulo Kagame bwateganyaga ko urubanza rwa Madame Victoire Ingabire rujya mu rwego rw’imanza zisanzwe, byagiye bigaragara kenshi ko ubutegetsi bwivanze muri ruriya rubanza.
Kuba  umutangabuhamya  Michel Habimana, wari waje gushinjura Madame Victoire Ingabire, ahohoterwa mu buroko, avoka we umuburanira adashobora kumugeraho, kandi urukiko rutabizi, ibyo byatumye Madame Victoire Ingabire ava mu rubanza ku mugaragaro kw’italiki ya 16 Mata 2012. Michel Habimana yaje gusobanurira urukiko ibyamubayeho, n’ukuntu icyumba yarimo cyajagajazwe. Mu gusaba kugira icyo ageza ku rukiko, Madame Victoire Umuhoza yasobanuye ko ibyabaye kuri Michel Habimana birenze urugero, ko hari inzitizi nyinshi zagaragaye mu rubanza rwe, ko nta kizere afite ko abatangabuhamya bandi bazahabwa urubuga bahabwa n’amategeko bwo gushinjura uregwa. Yafashe rero icyemezo cyo kutazongera kwitaba urukiko, kubera ko abona nta butabera ashobora kubona mu Rwanda; kubera ko ubucamanza bubogamye kandi butigenga.
Ibyaha Madame Victoire Ingabire, umuyobozi mukuru wa FDU-Inkingi, aregwa, birimo guhungabanya umutekano wa Leta, kubiba amacakubiri, n’ingengabitekerezo ya Jenoside, byagaragaye ko ari umugambi w’ubutegetsi wo kumucecekesha burundu, kubera ko atavuga rumwe n’ubutegetsi.
Mu by’ukuri, uru rubanza ni urwa politiki.
Madame Ingabire Victoire arazira ko yatinyutse kuvugira ku butaka bw’u Rwanda ko ubutegetsi bwa Pahulo Kagame burenganya rubanda ibi birenze urugero, ko hagomba ubwiyunge mu Banyarwanda, ko hifuzwa ubutabera  burengera abiciwe bose, ko kandi abantu bose bagize uruhare mu bwicanyi bwabaye, babiryozwa. Ubutegetsi rero bugamije gutera ubwoba abandi Banyarwanda bafite igitekerezo cyo guhaguruka nka Madamu Victoire Ingabire, bakiyemeza guhangana n’ubutegetsi bw’igitugu bwa FPR. Ubutegetsi buragaragaza ko butemera na gato kugirana imishyikirano n’amashyaka atavuga rumwe nabwo, mu miyoborerere y’igihugu.
Kuri FDU-Inkingi, biragaragara ko ubutegetsi bwa Kigali butazigera bufungura ku bwende bwabwo urubuga rwa politiki. Nyuma y’imyaka ibiri n’igice irenga ishyaka ryacu FDU-Inkingi ryatse kwemerwa nk’ishyaka ryemewe mu gihugu, kugeza magingo aya, ubwo burenganzira bukaba butaratangwa, biragaragara ko ishyaka ryacu ritazigera ryemerwa n’ubutegetsi bwa Prezida Pahulo Kagame. Kuva Leta icira Madamu Victoire Ingabire igihano gikomeye cyo gufungwa, kandi yariyatashye yimirije imbere kwandikisha ishyaka no kwiyamamariza mu mwanya wa Perezida y’igihugu, ubutegetsi bwa Perezida Pahulo Kagame buragaciye ku mugaragaro kandi ku buryo budasubirwaho, ko inzira ya demokarasi, inzira y’ubutabera, ukwishyira ukizana n’ubwiyunge ku Banyarwanda, ntacyo bububwiye na gato. Tukaba dusaba abantu bose bakunda amahoro kandi bifuza ko imihererekane y’ubutegetsi mu Rwanda yagenda mu nzira ya demokarasi, ko bamagana iyi mikirize y’urubanza.
Ubutegetsi bwa Kigali, yego bumaze gushyira ku kagozi Madamu Victoire Ingabire rumucira igihano cy’igifungo kiremereye, ariko buribeshya ntibushobora kuvutsa Abanyarwanda ukwizera Madame Victoire Ingabire yabibye mu Banyarwanda, azanakomeza kubera urumuri.
N’ubwo bigaragara ko ubutegetsi bw’i Kigali bushyira imbere ingufu, bugamije kurwanya igitekerezo cyose kigamije gukemura mu bwumvikane ibibazo bya politiki, FDU-Inkingi ntizagwa muri uwo mutego. Inzira y’ingufu no kumena amaraso ntizigera iba inzira ya politiki yacu. Ni ubutegetsi bwa Kigali buzayidushoramo, sitwe tuzayihitamo. N’ubwo Perezida Pahulo Kagame yagaragaje kenshi ko adatinya kumena amaraso kugirango akomeze politiki ye y’igitugu, FDU-Inkingi irahamya ko akaga Abanyarwanda bagize karenze kamere; amaraso yamenetse ni menshi. FDU-Inkingi iharanira ko isimburana ry’ubuyobozi bw’igihugu bukorwa binyuze mu nzira y’imishyikirano. FDU-Inkingi irasaba Perezida Kagame kwemera mu mutuzo imishyikirano n’andi mashyaka ya politiki arwanya imitegekere mibi y’igihugu yagize akarima ke.
Niyo mpamvu FDU-Inkingi ihamagariye Abanyarwanda ku buryo buranguruye kwima amatwi ingamba zose zizakoreshwa n’ubutegetsi na ba rutwitsi batazatinda kwigaragaza, buririye kuri iyi mikirize iteye isoni y’uru rubanza n’uku gufunga urubuga rwa politiki, ngo barohe mu ntambara Abanyarwanda kugira ngo bagume cyangwa bajye ku butegetsi. Nyabuneka Banyarwanda mushishoze, inzira y’intambara no kuvusha andi maraso, ku bantu bazi Leta ya Kagame, ni yo mahirwe ye. Si inzira yo kubohora abaturage twe dushobora guhitamo ku bwende bwacu kuko tuzi ko yagumisha Abanyarwanda ku ngoyi igihe kirekire aho kubagarurira agaciro.
Igihe cy’impindura y’ubuyobozi bw’igihugu cyageze. Prezida Pahulo Kagame ari mu mayira abiri kandi niwe uzagena inzira ahitiyemo abanyarwanda. Ashobora guhitamo inzira y’imishyikirano n’amashyaka ya politiki atavugarumwe na Leta ye kugira ngo tugenere hamwe imiyoborere y’ubuyobozi bw’igihugu: icyo gihe azaguma ku butegetsi. Ashobora na none guhitamo gukurura Abanyarwanda mu ntambara. Ni amahitamo ye, ariko amenye ko icyo gihe we na hehe n’ubuyobozi bw’igihugu.

Intabaza yavuze, Mwidishyi!

Bikorewe i Lausanne mu Busuwisi, tariki ya 30 Ukwakira 2012.
Dr. Nkiko Nsengimana
Umuyobozi wa Komite Mpuzabikorwa ya FDU-Inkingi

Rwanda: Le verdict brutal et sans concession: Madame Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza condamnée à 8 ans de prison

La preuve est définitivement faite: la justice rwandaise ne marche pas

Pour qui doutait encore du manque d’équité et du manque d’indépendance de la justice rwandaise vis-à-vis du régime de Paul Kagame, que les yeux se dessillent. Tout au long du procès nous n’avons pas manqué de vous montrer combien la Haute Cour, faisant fi de la procédure judiciaire et des preuves nettes d’innocence présentées par la défense, a persisté dans ses errements et s’est déclarée compétente pour juger des faits, non prouvés et contestés par ailleurs par la défense, qui se seraient déroulés avant que la loi les réprimant n’existât ou des faits qui auraient été commis en dehors du territoire de compétence de la Haute Cour. Même le pourvoi illégal de documents venus des Pays Bas, censés montrer la collaboration de Madame Victoire Ingabire avec la rébellion armée des Forces Démocratiques de Libération du Rwanda (FDLR), s’est révélé être une baudruche. Le Procureur n’a pas fourni, au-delà de tout doute raisonnable, les preuves de culpabilité de Madame Victoire Ingabire. En ne considérant pas les témoignages et les entorses graves à la procédure présentés par la défense, de surcroît, en ne respectant pas les principes juridiques élémentaires de non rétro-activité de la loi pénale et de la compétence territoriale, la Haute Cour a failli à dire le droit et a renié à Madame Victoire Ingabire tout droit à un procès équitable.
Alors que le régime voulait faire du procès de Madame Victoire Ingabire un acte banal de justice de droit commun, il a été pris, à plusieurs occasions, en flagrant délit de la manipulation de la justice. En effet, la décision prise le 16 avril 2012 par Madame Ingabire de se retirer du procès est venue au moment précis où, contrairement à la procédure, un des témoins de la défense, Monsieur Michel Habimana, venait de subir des menaces et des interrogatoires illégaux musclés en prison, en l’absence de son avocat, sans autorisation de la Cour. Et, quand, le lendemain, le témoin est revenu à la Cour rapporter l’incident, en l’informant en même temps que sa cellule avait été fouillée de fond en comble, Madame Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza a demandé à la Cour de pouvoir s’exprimer. Au vu de l’extrême gravité du fait rapporté, considérant ce fait comme certainement prémonitoire des obstructions futures aux dépositions des autres témoins attendus pour sa défense, en plus des irrégularités accumulées tout au long du procès, Madame Victoire Ingabire s’est levée pour annoncer à la Cour, qu’elle avait perdu toute confiance en l’institution judiciaire et qu’elle se retirait définitivement du procès. Elle venait de donner la preuve par neuf que la justice rwandaise ne fonctionnait pas et qu’elle était sous l’emprise totale du pouvoir exécutif.
Le procès intenté par le pouvoir contre la Présidente des FDU Inkingi est un procès politique

Les faits reprochés à la Présidente des FDU-Inkingi d’atteinte à la sûreté de l’Etat, de divisionnisme, de négationnisme, se sont révélés être des montages destinés à condamner coûte que coûte une opposante politique qui dérange. Il n’existe plus aucune ombre d’un doute: le procès intenté par le pouvoir contre Madame Victoire Ingabire est un procès éminemment politique. Madame Victoire Ingabire dérange à cause de son parti pris pour la réconciliation et pour une justice rendue à toutes les victimes et à tous les bourreaux; elle dérange pour son combat résolu contre la dictature du général Paul Kagame. En condamnant une personne innocente à une aussi lourde peine, en plus pour des faits qui relèvent exclusivement de la politique, le pouvoir cherche à réprimer toute opinion dissidente et ainsi maintenir la population dans la peur et dans la soumission, sous son emprise totalitaire. En même temps, le régime de Kigali a donné à l’opinion nationale et internationale un signal sans ambiguïté qu’il n’était certainement pas prêt à ouvrir le moindre espace politique et à entrer en dialogue avec son opposition politique.
Les FDU-Inkingi restent toujours attachées au règlement pacifique des différends politiques
Il est à présent acquis pour les FDU-Inkingi que le régime rwandais n’ouvrira pas, de son gré, l’espace politique. Après deux ans et demi de demande d’enregistrement du parti sans succès, il est désormais clair que le Président Paul Kagame n’agréera jamais les FDU-Inkingi. En condamnant à une peine de prison Madame Victoire Ingabire, laquelle était rentrée au pays avec la mission de faire agréer les FDU-Inkingi et de se présenter aux élections présidentielles, le régime rwandais opère une rupture politique essentielle qui devrait être condamnée par tous les acteurs nationaux et internationaux, tant de la société civile que du monde politique, épris de paix et soucieux de la transition démocratique au Rwanda.
Le pouvoir vient de condamner Madame Victoire Ingabire à une peine d’emprisonnement, mais il ne peut pas emprisonner l’espérance qu’elle a suscitée et qu’elle incarne désormais. La Présidente des FDU-Inkingi a tracé le chemin de l’émancipation que le régime ne pourra plus barrer, ni indéfiniment, ni impunément.
Même si la formation politique des FDU-Inkingi constate une fois encore la propension du régime de Kigali à privilégier la force dans le règlement des conflits politiques, nous ne nous laisserons pas démontés par le secret espoir du régime rwandais de nous entrainer dans la voie de la violence. La violence ne sera jamais notre choix politique. Elle nous sera imposée par le pouvoir de Kigali. Même si le général Kagame a montré par le passé qu’il pouvait tolérer n’importe quel prix humain pour l’accès ou le maintien au pouvoir, pour les FDU-Inkingi, les dégâts humains induits par la tragédie passée de notre peuple sont déjà considérables qu’il convient de se garder d’en créer de nouveaux, car les conséquences humaines seraient plus incommensurables. Les FDU-Inkingi restent attachées à la voie de la négociation et continueront à le demander, envers et contre tous, afin d’assurer une transition paisible de notre pays vers la démocratie et vers la réconciliation.  Les FDU-Inkingi espèrent que le général Kagame saisira cette perche tendue pour accepter sans contrainte des négociations avec son opposition politique.
L’heure est encore au choix possible pour le Président Kagame
Nous lançons un appel solennel au peuple rwandais pour qu’il ne cède pas aux sirènes va-t-en-guerre pressés qui, devant cette impasse de fermeture de l’espace politique, ne tarderont pas à se manifester et chercheront à l’entrainer dans la lutte armée pour se maintenir ou accéder au pouvoir. Une telle aventure, destinée à attirer une clientèle crédule, servirait, à regarder de près, à légitimer plus le pouvoir en place qu’à offrir des possibilités réelles de libération populaire.
L’heure est encore au choix possible pour le Président de la République Paul Kagame. Ce dernier peut décider de rester au pouvoir par les négociations, que nous lui demandons d’ouvrir avec son opposition politique. Le Président Paul Kagame peut aussi décider de partir par les armes qu’il nous aura lui-même imposées.

Il est minuit moins cinq passé, Docteur Schweitzer!
Fait à Lausanne, le 30 Octobre 2012.
Pour le Comité de Coordination des FDU-Inkingi
Dr. Nkiko Nsengimana
Coordinateur

Rwanda: 8-year prison sentence for Political prisoner Ingabire

Kigali, 30 October 2012

Finally the High court issues ruling in Ingabire political case: 8 years in prison for genocide ideology and conspiracy against the government by use of war and terrorism. This kangaroo ruling is “politically and intellectually dishonest” and so poorly formulated but the political prisoner Madame Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza, FDU-Inkingi Chairperson, is not filing an appeal because she has totally lost confidence in this judiciary circus. By giving orders to the judicial to sentence Madame Victoire Ingabire to 8 years behind bars, President Paul Kagame's regime has missed the last corner for any chance of reconciliation, unity and stability in this country. Rwanda will never be the same.

The prosecutor's key witnesses all pleading guilty after questionable detention in military intelligence facilities receive the following sentences: Vital Uwumuremyi 4 years 6 months, Tharcisse Nditurende and Noel Habiyaremye 3 years 6 months, Jean Marie Karuta 2 years 7 months.


This is a conclusion of a long chapter of hope that the current dictatorship would understand how important peace, genuine unity and sustainable reconciliation are. The sentence comes amidst unrelenting interferences of President Paul Kagame and his government which has been shifting goals hoping to psychologically erode the moral of the political prisoner. She was arrested in October 2010 and charged with forming an armed group with the aim of destabilising the country, complicity to acts of terrorism, conspiracy against the government by use of war and terrorism, inciting the masses to revolt against the government, genocide ideology and divisionism.

According to international human rughts organisations, the process was marred by intimidation, interferences and unfairness. On 8 October 2012, Amnesty International wrote that "the trial of opposition politician, Victoire Ingabire, provides another example of where judges have failed to probe the detention conditions of defendants.(...) The court prevented Victoire Ingabire’s defence team from asking questions about detention conditions in Camp Kami, as the co-accused themselves had not lodged a complaint. They were unable to clarify if the co-accusers’ evidence may have been coerced or induced. The court made no efforts to obtain notes taken during the interrogations of the co-accused at Camp Kami, even though they might have contained exculpatory information potentially instrumental to Victoire Ingabire’s defence, such as indications that the statements were not made voluntarily..."
We call upon members of FDU-Inkingi, all members of the opposition and all Rwandans to remain calm and to get ready for the day to march until freedom is won. Until our last breath, we will not give up.

FDU-Inkingi
Interim Vice President
Boniface Twagirimana.

Rwanda: A brutal and uncompromising verdict: Madame Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza was sentenced to 8 years in prison


The Rwandan justice system is broken. 
 
All of you who might still doubt the unfairness and the lack of independence of the Rwandan justice system with regard to the regime of Paul Kagame, open your eyes. Throughout the trial, we tirelessly showed you how the High Court, by violating basic judicial procedures and evidence of innocence presented by the defense, persisted in its wanderings and declared itself competent to judge the facts all of which were unsubstantiated and were contested by the defense, the facts that apparently occurred before the law repressing them was enacted or the facts that have been committed outside the jurisdiction of the High Court. Even the illegal acquisition of the evidential documents from the Netherlands, which were supposed to show the collaboration of Madame Victoire Ingabire with the armed rebellion of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), turned out to be a windbag. The Prosecution failed to provide, beyond any reasonable doubt, the evidence of guilt for Madame Victoire Ingabire. By refusing to consider the testimonies and breaches to the judicial procedure that were presented by the defense team, and moreover, by violating the basic legal principles of non-retroactivity of criminal laws and jurisdictions, the High Court failed to interpret the law and therefore denied to Madame Victoire Ingabire the right to a fair trial.
While the Kigali regime wanted to transform the trial of Madame Victoire Ingabire into banal act of criminal law, on several occasions, it was caught in a flagrant meddling into judicial proceedings. Indeed, the decision of April 16, 2012 by Madame Ingabire to withdraw from the trial came in at the right moment, when in grave violation of basic judicial procedures, one of the defense witnesses, Michel Habimana, had suffered intimidations and illegal interrogations in prison, in the absence of his lawyer, and without proper authorization from the Court. The next day, when the witness returned to the Court, he reported the incident and informed the court that his cell was searched from top to bottom. Therefore, Madame Victoire Ingabire requested the Court the right to speak. In view of the extreme gravity of the above reported incident and considering the facts as obviously prescient of future obstructions to the expected testimonies from other witnesses in her defense, and keeping in mind several irregularities accumulated throughout her trial, Madame Victoire Ingabire told the Court that she had completely lost confidence in Rwanda’s judiciary and that she was permanently withdrawing from the trial. By doing so, she irrevocably proved that the Rwandan justice system was broken and that it was under the total control of the executive.
The lawsuit against the Chairperson of FDU Inkingi is politically motivated.
The allegations against the Chairperson of FDU-Inkingi including, endangering the state security, divisionism, and genocide denial, have been proven to be fixtures aimed at absolutely condemning a disturbing political opponent. There is no longer any doubt: the lawsuit initiated by the Kigali regime against Madame Victoire Ingabire is a highly political trial. Madame Victoire Ingabire disturbs the Kigali regime because of her strong commitment to reconciliation and justice for all victims and all perpetrators; she distrurbs because of her resolute struggle against the dictatorship of General Paul Kagame. By condemning an innocent person to such a lengthy prison term solely on facts that exclusively relate to politics, the Kigali regime intends to suppress any dissenting voice and thereby keep the population in fear and submission under its totalitarian grip. At the same time, the Kigali regime has sent a clear signal to national and international public opinion that it certainly was not ready to open any political space and engage in dialogue with its political opposition.
FDU Inkingi remains strongly committed to peaceful struggle.
It is now clear for FDU-Inkingi that the Kigali regime will never willingly open up the political space. After two and a half years of unsuccessful application for the registration of our party, it is now clear that President Paul Kagame will never register FDU-Inkingi. By condemning to prison term Madame Victoire Ingabire, who had returned home with the mandate of registering FDU-Inkingi and standing in the presidential elections, the Rwandan regime has caused a major political shift which must be condemned by all national and international stakeholders including civil society and political activists that love peace and are concerned about democratic change in Rwanda.
The Kigali regime has just sentenced Madame Victoire Ingabire to prison term, but it will never reverse what she has already accomplished and the hope she now embodies. The Chairperson of FDU-Inkingi has built the path to emancipation which the Kigali regime can no longer block, neither indefinitely nor with impunity.
Even though the political party FDU-Inkingi notes once again the propensity of the Kigali regime to favor the use of force to settle political disputes, we will not let ourselves be torn apart by such a secret hope of the Rwandan regime which aimed at leading us into violence. Violence will never be our political choice. Such a violent path would be imposed upon us by the current regime in Kigali. While General Kagame has shown in the past that he could tolerate any human cost to access or hold on power, for FDU-Inkingi, human damages caused by the past tragedy in Rwanda are already considerable enough so that we should all use caution not to add on new ones, because if we did human consequences would be more immeasurable. The political party FDU-Inkingi remains committed to negotiations and will continue to request them, against all odds, to ensure a peaceful transition of our country towards democracy and reconciliation. The party FDU-Inkingi hopes that General Kagame would seize such an opportunity to accept, without any restrictions, direct talks with his political opposition.
The choice is still up to President Paul Kagame.
We launch a solemn appeal to all of the Rwandan people not to succumb to warmongering sirens which, owing to such an impasse resulting from the closing of political space, may soon come forward and try to lead us into the armed struggle in order to hold on or ascend to power. Such an adventure which is meant to attract gullible customers, would serve in reality, to legitimize the current regime instead of stirring up the real possibilities for a genuine popular liberation.
It is still up to President Paul Kagame. He may decide to remain on power through negotiations in which we are asking his regime to engage with his political opposition. President Paul Kagame may also decide to step down by force, a path that he would have himself imposed upon us.
The clock is ticking, Dr. Schweitzer!
Done in Lausanne, Switzerland, on October 30, 2012.
For FDU-Inkingi Coordinating Committee
 
Dr. Nkiko Nsengimana
Coordinator

Monday, October 29, 2012

Rwanda : le jugement de l’opposante Ingabire, « moment historique », selon son parti

 
APA-Kigali (Rwanda)
Le parti non encore agréé de l’opposante rwandaise Victoire Ingabire a qualifié de « moment historique » son jugement prévu pour mardi, dans un procès pour complicité de terrorisme, propagation de l'idéologie du génocide, sectarisme et divisionnisme, atteinte à la sûreté intérieure de l'Etat, création d'un groupe armé avec l'intention de provoquer la guerre.

« Ce moment est historique dans la lutte pour la démocratie, la justice et les libertés au Rwanda (…) Un jour dont nous nous souviendrons tous »,affirment dans un communiqué en anglais, les Forces démocratiques unifiées (FDU), qui disent ne pas douter du verdict. 

« Le régime de Paul Kagame a décidé de condamner le leader de l’opposition », souligne le texte. « En ce moment particulier de notre histoire, les FDU appellent tous les Rwandais, les membres et les amis du parti à rester calmes et regarder à l’horizon le vent du changement » », poursuit ce communiqué. 

« La voie de la communauté internationale n’a pas été suffisamment forte pour sauver une mère innocente des dents d’une justice fantôme politisée », regrettent les FDU, saluant « le courage et la détermination de l’accusée ». 

« Madame Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza est un héros vivant », ajoute le texte.

Le Parquet a requis la perpétuité contre Mme Ingabire qui rejette les accusations portées contre elle et boycotte son procès. L'accusation a affirmé disposer de preuves de transferts d'argent de Mme Ingabire au profit des Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda (FDLR), une rébellion hutu rwandaise qui multiplie les exactions dans l'est de la République démocratique du Congo (RDC) et que Kigali qualifie de "terroriste".

Partie suivre une formation aux Pays-Bas peu avant que n'éclate le génocide des Tutsi en 1994, Mme Ingabire n'est revenue au Rwanda que début 2010. Elle avait cherché, en vain, à se présenter à l'élection présidentielle rwandaise.

Paul Kagame, dont le Front patriotique rwandais (FPR, ex-rébellion) a stoppé le génocide, avait été réélu avec 93% des voix.
 
RE/od/APA
2012-10-29 14:25:16

Blood stains Rwanda's seat in the UN


By Marta Martinelli

EUROPEANVOICE.COM 

25.10.2012
The EU could – and should – do more to hold Rwanda to account for fuelling the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Rwanda is a darling of donors, including the European Union. Its roads are being paved, poverty is being fought valiantly and child mortality is declining. All in all, it is a good case study for enthusiasts for the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals.
This happy picture has, however, been tainted by Rwanda's involvement in the rebellion that is plaguing the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). A UN report in June confirmed that Rwanda was providing extensive support not only to the recently established M23 rebel group but to others too. Rwanda's response has been to protest its innocence and claim there is an international plot to discredit its government.
The implausibility of that claim is accentuated by its record of violent intervention across its borders – four times since 1996, most recently in 2007, when it backed rebels led by General Laurent Nkunda.
So it might come as a surprise that Rwanda now has a seat on the UN Security Council as one of its non-permanent members.
Stranger still is that some international donors have barely changed their position towards Rwanda. Although Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands have suspended budgetary aid to Rwanda, other Western powers have not followed suit. The UK first suspended all budget support and then re-established half its aid, citing the need to continue to support Rwanda's poorest citizens. The US has suspended a token $200,000 (around €160,000) of military aid. And the EU has done little other than to tell both Rwanda and Congo that securing peace in their region is primarily their own responsibility.
But Rwanda is not the only one responsible for the situation. As part of the 2009 agreement that ended the last conflict, the EU, among others, pushed for the speedy integration of armed rebel groups into the ranks of the Congolese army. Although a necessary price for peace, this effort has come back to haunt the DRC. Rather than breaking down rebel units, their chains of command were left intact, several former rebel leaders were promoted, and soldiers remained stationed in areas where they had operated as rebels. Deserters from these units now form a major part of M23 rebel forces.
The EU's subsequent efforts to ensure a lasting peace in the DRC have been heavily criticised: for a lack of effective co-ordination with other donors; for an unclear strategy; for failing to deliver aid to the neediest; and for inadequate monitoring of progress. Arguably, its work has been undermined by aims pursued individually by EU member states. Today, with no sign of the conflict abating and Rwanda's continued interference in the DRC, we see the results of the imperfect 2009 solution.
But the Congolese government too should be held to account. Its system of governance is undemocratic, authoritarian and untransparent, and favours patronage networks that contribute to a dysfunctional state. Its track record on democracy promotion and justice is deteriorating steadily. Its indifference to reform over the past decade has provided fertile ground for the M23 rebellion and nourished grievances.
All this is a sign that the EU's approach to aid-giving, which is based on strengthening state institutions (in part by channelling support directly into the budget), may need to be reviewed in situations where institutions are unco-operative. Short-term efforts to address the crisis only in security or humanitarian terms, whilst valuable, have also proved insufficient.
Rather than waiting until the UN Sanctions Committee meets in November, as it has announced it will, the EU needs to take a stand now. It must lead other donors – including its own member states – in stepping up diplomatic efforts, and demand that, as a member of the Security Council, Rwanda lives up to international peace and security standards.
It must also be ready to suspend its aid to Rwanda, and condition institutional aid to the DRC on satisfactory progress towards political reform. Both measures can pave the way for further steps to address the long-term causes of instability between the two countries.
Marta Martinelli is a senior policy officer for African issues at the Open Society Institute – Brussels. She previously worked in a range of peace-building roles in the Great Lakes
© 2012 European Voice. All rights reserved.

Rwanda: Message à Mr. Paul Kagame re: Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza

A Monsieur Paul Kagame,
Président du Rwanda.
 
Monsieur le président,
 
A la veille de la condamnation de Madame Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza, je tiens à envoyer ce message (je suis sûr qu'il a des gens qui suivent les échanges sur ce forum et qui le lui transmettront):
 
Monsieur le président,
 
Vous avez ordonné l'arrestation et l'emprisonnement de Madame Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza et vous savez pertinement qu'elle n'a rien à voir avec les charges que vous avez demandé de fabriquer contre elle. Ceci a été un acte de lâcheté de votre part.  En votre qualité de général et numéro 1 du pays, vous vous débattez contre une femme, une mère de famille, sans arme, sans argent, qui à peine rentre de son exil... tout simplement par peur de l'affronter dans des élections démocratiques. C'est très lâche et vous n'êtes pas un gentleman.
 
Si demain vous maintenez votre décision d'ordonner la prison à perpétuité contre Madame Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza, vous aurez raté une dernière occasion de sauver votre honneur si vous en avez encore. Oui vous avez le pouvoir de l'emprisonner et vous pensez que tout le monde va vous craindre? Mon oeil, c'est juste l'inverse qui va se produire. A partir de demain si vous maintenez votre décision, vous allez vous rendre compte de votre bêtise.
 
Vous estimez que l'Amérique est très occupée par des élections et que les médias seront distraits ... comme vous avez pensé en ordonnant l'assissinat de votre frère d'arme Kayumba Nyamwasa pendant la coupe du monde de football en Afrique du Sud. Vous serez surpris. Les foudres vont s'abattre contre vous, vous serez lâché par tout le monde même par vos derniers amis (Blair, Bill, etc ...) par ce que malgré tout ce sont des gentlemen.
 
Un conseil, laissez Madame Victoire en paix, notre Victoire à nous, battez vous contre les hommes de votre rang svp ... Si vous persistez à vous battre contre une femme, rentrez chez vous, fermez la porte, éteignez la lumière, il y en a une qui vous attend, à la maison chez vous.
 
Monsieur le Président, ce message est adressé à vous, et à vous seul, que les autres s'abstiennent.
 
A bon entendeur, salut.
 
Oscar Nkurunziza
DHR yahoo Group
29-10-2012
 
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Sunday, October 21, 2012

Patrick Mbeko on the admission of Rwanda to the United Nations Security Council

UN Security Council condemns ‘any and all outside support’ to M23 armed group in eastern DR Congo

Amb. Gert Rosenthal of Guatemala presides over the Security Council meeting on the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe
 
19 October 2012 – The United Nations Security Council today reiterated its condemnation of and demand for an end to all external support being provided to armed groups – in particular the group known as the March 23 Movement (M23) – which have been destabilizing the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) over recent months.
“In this regard, the Security Council expresses deep concern at reports indicating that such support continues to be provided to the M23 by neighbouring countries. The Security Council demands that any and all outside support to the M23 as well as other armed groups cease immediately,” Ambassador Gert Rosenthal of Guatemala, which holds the Presidency of the Security Council for the month of October, said in a presidential statement.
“The Security Council calls upon all countries in the region to condemn the M23, as well as other armed groups, and to cooperate actively with the
Congolese authorities in disarming and demobilizing the M23 as well as other armed groups and dismantling the M23 parallel administration,” the statement added.
The DRC’s eastern provinces of North and South Kivu have witnessed increased fighting over recent months between Government troops and the M23, which is composed of soldiers from the DRC’s national army who mutinied in April.
In addition to the violence leading to an alarming humanitarian situation, marked by rape, murder and pillaging, the fighting has displaced more than 300,000 people, including many who have fled to neighbouring Rwanda and Uganda, as well as within DRC.
Peacekeepers from the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in DRC (MONUSCO) have been aiding the DRC’s Government troops in their efforts to deal with the M23. Earlier this week, six UN peacekeepers and a local interpreter were wounded in an overnight ambush while returning from a patrol with 12 other peacekeepers near Buganza in North Kivu province after finding the bodies of four civilians.
As well as expressing deep concern regarding the deteriorating security and humanitarian crisis in the eastern DRC – caused by the M23 as well as other armed groups – the Council also condemned the M23’s attacks on civilians, humanitarian actors and UN peacekeepers, and its abuses of human rights, including summary executions, sexual and gender based violence and large-scale recruitment and use of child soldiers.
It called for perpetrators, including individuals responsible for violence against children and acts of sexual violence, to be apprehended, brought to justice and held accountable for violations of applicable international law.
“The Security Council expresses its intention to apply targeted sanctions against the leadership of the M23 and those acting in violation of the sanctions regime and the arms embargo and calls on all Member States to submit, as a matter of urgency, listing proposals to the 1533 Committee,” according to the Council’s presidential statement.
The Council’s 1533 Committee deals with an arms embargo which applies to non-governmental entities and individuals operating in eastern DRC, as well as targeted travel and financial sanctions.
In the presidential statement, the Security Council stressed the urgency of constructive engagement and dialogue between the DRC and its neighbours, especially Rwanda, and the need to address the underlying causes of the conflict in eastern DRC.
It welcomed the efforts of Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, as well as of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the African Union (AU), to restore peace and security to the area.
The ICGLR held a meeting at which it discussed the issue of eastern DRC in Kampala, Uganda, last week.
“The Security Council takes note of the decisions by the ICGLR and the AU regarding the deployment of a ‘Neutral International Force’ in eastern DRC and takes note of the ongoing coordination efforts between these organizations and the United Nations to clarify the objectives, modalities and means of the proposed Force in relation to MONUSCO,” according to the Council statement.
In September, the ICGLR launched, in the eastern DRC town of Goma, the so-called Expanded Joint Verification Mechanism (EJVM). First discussed in June, the mechanism is a technical body, comprising experts from both DRC and Rwanda and those of the UN and AU, to address DRC-Rwanda border security issues.
“It further welcomes,” the Council statement read, “the support provided by MONUSCO to the EJVM and encourages, in coordination with ICGLR members, the participation of MONUSCO, as appropriate and within the limits of its capacities and mandate, in the activities of the EJVM and the reporting on any flow of arms and related materiel across borders of eastern DRC.”
The Council also called on the Secretary General to continue his ‘good offices’ and to explore, when appropriate, further high-level diplomatic mechanisms to facilitate dialogue between relevant parties, including on the underlying causes of the conflict in the African country’s east.
In addition to other methods, the UN chief uses his ‘good offices’ – steps taken publicly and in private, drawing upon his independence, impartiality and integrity – to prevent international disputes from arising, escalating or spreading.
MONUSCO, with 19,000 uniformed personnel, is the latest iteration of UN peacekeeping missions that have helped to bring stability and civilian elections to the vast nation after it was torn apart by civil wars and rebel movements. Outside of the east, much of the country has achieved a measure of stability.
 
Source: UN News Centre

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