The Dutch government Thursday last week announced its decision to cancel a financial aid package of almost 5million Euro’s meant for the Rwandan government.

The basis of this punitive measure being the highly disputed United Nations Security Council report, which alleges that Rwanda is supporting the National Congress for the Defense of the People (CNDP); in the protracted DR Congo war.

The government of Rwanda has not been given an opportunity to react to these baseless allegations, being made in New York. That is why we have branded this move by the Dutch as being uninformed, myopic and disastrous.  

The speed with which punitive measures have been put in place itself being highly suspect. Before the ink was dry on a highly confidential report, meant to be presented to an esteemed authority in international affairs, its contents were already in targeted newsrooms in western countries.

Too good to be true, before those to whom fingers are pointing have been given the right to reply, measures for their censure are already in place.

Consequently, one cannot help but conclude that the compilers of the report worked in cahoots with the authors of the method of punishment, in this case the Dutch.

This is where the disaster comes in. So often African countries have pointed to the selective application of international norms and standards.

Rules are broken in pursuit of certain political agendas that in most instances maintain the servitude status of African countries, hence, killing the credibility of the whole UNSC report and any political dialogue process that would have followed forthwith.

The fact that the Dutch have gone out of their way to give a guilty verdict to the Rwandan government without giving them a right to reply kills or pours cold water on any further discussions on the report.

A report we maintain is based merely on hearsay and pub gossip, carrying nothing substantive warranting such rushed irrational responses. Unless there is a bigger political agenda that goes beyond the Congo conflict we are yet to learn of.

In this regard the condescending attitude of the Dutch government must be condemned in the strongest terms. Especially in view of the fact that the governments of Rwanda and DR Congo are making considerable progress at dealing with the real cause of the conflict, the FDLR rebels, whom they have now both agreed to root out and disarm. Including other multilateral processes led by esteemed persons, who are yet to comment on the reports’ contents.

The Dutch decision is then out of context of the mood on the ground in the Great Lakes region. Notwithstanding the fatigue progressive Africa has with financial sanctions. The Dutch agenda will not hold.

Rwanda fights on.

Ends