EngRegional
Rwandans are free to make their own choices
None
of the “Western powers” from the Global North ever showed its “superiority” in
stopping the mass killings that targeted the Tutsi from October 1990 to July
1994, until the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda was executed, claiming
more than one million innocent people within 100 days.
Only
the Rwandan Patriotic Front and its armed wing, RPA, put an end to the
Genocide, and started the country’s transformational journey.
Unity
and reconciliation made it possible for genocide perpetrators and survivors to
live together in harmony, with a common understanding of rebuilding their
nation. Those who committed genocide crimes were tried, and they served their
sentences.
While
the journey has restored hope for better and meaningful life to Rwandans, it
looked like a “threat” in the minds of the Westerners. They would not imagine
such an African country solving its problems without their intervention.
Several
tactics were employed to deal with such a “threat” to the West’s interests.
Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Freedom House, and recently,
Forbidden Stories, are among the many political tools used to portray the
Rwandan government as “a villain”, in a grand plan to undermine every
achievement by Kigali.
The
attacks on Rwanda by those so-called NGOs have born no fruits since Kigali
opted to consider the choices of Rwandans over wishes or “lessons” from the
West.
When
Rwanda chose consensual democracy – avoiding confrontational democracy which
often involves violence – the West’s “NGOs” complained that the country does
not tolerate the opposition.
Cleaning
and securing the country was reported by Westerners as “the cost of censoring
freedom of speech, and intimidating”. How would hygiene and environment
conservation be linked to intimidation?
Being
one of the UN’s top troop contributors, Rwanda’s peacekeeping missions through
bilateral arrangements were depicted by Westerners as motivated by economic
interests.
Rwanda
is not exporting security in Mozambique and the Central African Republic. The
country is simply exercising values and principles; namely the Responsibility
to Protect (R2P) and the Kigali Principles. The two are complementary and
primarily focus on the protection of civilians at risk of loss of life.
That
is the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) philosophy; one that is derived from the
country’s history; a history of fighting genocide perpetrators and protecting
civilians.
While
Rwanda’s decision to find African solutions for Africa’s problems means a lot
to the independence of the country and the continent in general, it is a log in
the eyes of Westerners.
But
Rwanda has decided to move on, regardless of all the fake narratives created by
the West’s NGOs in a bid to tarnish the image of the Rwandan government. Kigali
believes that the West cannot accept its success since the latter is not
credited for it.
The
case of Libya is among many others that highlighted how
the Global North leaves no stone unturned to destroy any African country with
independent solutions to its problems.
Former President of Libya was accused of being authoritarian, attacked by NATO forces, and killed in
October 2011. Since then, Libya has experienced no peace. The economy collapsed
after the infrastructure was destroyed. Today, Libyans are struggling to
survive, while their leader had tremendously improved his people’s well-being.
West
African countries have been struggling with the West’s interference in their
internal politics, leading to recurrent coups.
Rwanda, a stable country which invested more in avoiding external influence in its politics, envisions a brighter future by only satisfying the wishes of its people.
