Regional body condemns Kabuye’s arrest

NYARUGENGE - The Executive Secretary of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), Ambassador Liberata Mulamula, has once again strongly condemned the November 9 arrest in Germany of the Chief of State Protocol, Rose Kabuye. Amb. Mulamula was addressing different stakeholders gathered at Serena Hotel for a three-day Great Lakes Region media conference. “I would like to reiterate our solidarity with the people and government of Rwanda in condemning the injustice against Madam Rose Kabuye,” she said in her speech.Her condemnation comes after a recent ICGLR press statement which described the German authorities’ actions as a blatant abuse of the Principles of Universal Jurisdiction. Mulamula added that the arrest of Kabuye reflects on some of the concerns raised by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Member States of the ICGLR in a meeting which was held on May 22, 2008 in Brazzaville, Congo.Member countries in the meeting expressed great concern that the abuse of the principles of universal jurisdiction was a deliberate offence to the sovereignty of the member states of the ICGLR and other African countries in general.In a press conference after the meeting, Mulamula noted that during the African Union Summit held in Nairobi mid this year, Heads of State and Government of the African Union directed the African Commission to work together with the European Union Commission and the United Nations in order to jointly address the matter.She added that it was suggested that a joint AU-EU Committee should be formed to seriously examine the issue in order to avoid the abuse of the principles and disrespecting the sovereignty of African States.“The arrest of Kabuye has taken place before the consultations have reached a conclusion. This could have a negative impact on the relations between African countries and the European Union,” she explained.She called upon the media in the Great Lakes Region to join their collective efforts in seeking justice and respect for the sovereignty of African countries.Mulamula added that there is an important influence the media has on people as socialisation agents even more than politicians and sometimes better than religious leaders.‘We in Great Lakes Region need to be lectured about the role and impact of the media not only in democratisation and governance, but also in our daily lives,” she underscored.She also noted that there has been a noticeable media role in both constructive and destructive ways. She added that the media has been part of both the problems and solutions.The ICGLR is comprised of 11 countries, including Rwanda. Ends

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Regional body condemns Kabuye’s arrest