‘With the Arab world in rubble, is the Great Lakes Region next?’

Editor, THERE WAS never any likelihood that the ICGLR would be allowed to succeed in bringing a peaceful resolution to the M23 rebellion and starkly showing Monusco out for the colossal and expensive failure it is. The ICGLR-mediated peace process had to be discredited and destroyed at all costs; and the UN – with the invaluable assistance of Presidents Kikwete and Zuma, and a cacophonous chorus of powerful non-state actors like HRW, ICG and the western media – has delivered on this short-term goal. Now, with the famous Force Intervention Brigade and Hervé Ladsous’ drones soon in place, we can wait for the next phase of this strategy to be launched. The airborne massacre of Rumangabo, for which the UN is co-responsible given its close logistical and tactical support of the FARDC-FDLR-Mai Mai coalition’s operations, is merely the opening probing shot in this macabre strategy. And based on their refusal to accept any responsibility for introducing cholera to Haiti that killed thousands of its citizens, how much do you bet they will accept any liability for their role in the Rumangabo and other war crimes in the DRC? Hint: what reparations have they paid for the million dead of Rwanda due to their cowardly refusal to honour their obligation to protect innocent people in 1994? Nada, zilch, zero! All Rwandans ended up with is another very thirsty dollar-guzzler (the UN is good at expensive ventures) called ICTR that became a source of comfortable livelihoods for lawyers and international bureaucrats but delivered little in terms of justice and absolutely no material benefit for the victims as opposed to coddled genocidaires. Mwene Kalinda, KigaliRwanda ********************* OUR BEAUTIFUL world is worse than a jungle where at least lions eat zebras for survival but not for power and luxuries. For the DRC case, why is the international community refusing to solve the conflict from roots and start with the cause of more than 20 rebel movements? Why in the world have they chosen to demonise Rwanda? Why do they seem to not care about finding a peaceful solution? Why can’t they think that lasting peace in the region can come from addressing the people’s grievancies (social inclusion, good governance, unit in diversity and reconciliation, nationality issues, security...) since these are creators of endless unrest? Why are we doomed to have generations of bloodsheds, have our mothers and sisters raped (during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi and now in DRC) and then blindly agree to be used by every celebrity, watchdog, and retired politician who wish to clean their image? LK, KigaliRwanda Reactions to Pan Butamire’s opinion, “With the Arab world in rubble, is the Great Lakes Region next?”, (The New Times, July 27)

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‘With the Arab world in rubble, is the Great Lakes Region next?’