President Kagame said Rwandans need to sleep assured that the country is safe and secure. Photos/Eric Ruzindana/KT.
President Paul Kagame says Rwandans should sleep peacefully knowing that the country is safe and secure, downplaying threats of war targeting Rwanda echoed by neighbouring countries.
The Head of State, while delivering a state of the nation address at the opening of the 19th National Dialogue Council -Umushyikirano 2024, without naming countries or individuals, said that Rwanda is ready to repulse any security threats and those perpetuating it would pay the price.
President Kagame, made the remarkes following threats by Felix Tshisekedi of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), to wage a war on Rwanda, declarations which have been backed by Burundi’s President Evariste Ndayishimiye, who offered to ‘help’ in removing the leadership in Rwanda.
He pointed out that there have been relentless efforts over the years to make the conflict in Eastern DRC “Rwanda’s war”, yet in reality, Rwanda continues to pay the price of Kinshasa’s failure to solve its internal problems.
“Today, we have over 100, 000 refugees here in Rwanda. During recent fighting, another 16, 000 refugees crossed over, joining an existing 80, 000 Congolese refugees,”
“The international community knows the truth, those developed countries often come and pick some families or individuals and relocated them to those countries. Five out of 100, 000 people. How does that solve the problem,” President Kagame said.
President Kagame said there are efforts to make DRC’s war ‘Rwanda’s war’.
He said that the same people have looked on as the same issues that produce the refugees, which is hate speech and ethnic cleansing in Eastern DRC, go on, including the ongoing propagation of the same.
President Kagame said he is aware there have been continued efforts to blame the situation in Eastern DRC on Rwanda, despite the leader of that country previously acknowledging the deeply rooted issues that have led to the situation.
Without mentioning Tshisekedi or the country, President Kagame said the said individuals have gone on to make declarations of war on Rwanda, with the support of some of their friends, but warned that any such threats or attempts to destabilise Rwanda would be met dire consequences.
“When it comes to defending this country that suffered for so long and nobody came to help, I don’t need permission from anybody to do what we have to do to protect ourselves,” President Kagame said.
“I will say it in broad daylight. I have said it to those who matter in this problem and that’s what is going to happen. There will be nothing crossing these borders of this small country of ours,” he added, urging Rwandans to go home and sleep peacefully.
President Kagame described the warmongering as empty threats, more like a balloon with air, which he said is deflated by a prick of a needle. He added that if Rwanda is put in a situation where it has to defend herself, the consequences can be dire.
He pointed out that Rwanda would not allow a situation when it can be setback to the situation 30 years ago, where it lost millions of people to ethnic hate, the country would do anything to fightback and those behind it would pay a heavy price.
“You have seen I have not answered these insults that are coming from the south, from the west; those are just words, those don’t kill,” President Kagame said, emphasizing that Rwanda is not about exchanging insults.
“That’s not us, but they will learn something, that they made a big mistake. Absolutely a big mistake,” President Kagame said, adding that Rwanda has refused to be provoked and will not provoke anybody.
“We don’t provoke any situation. In fact, we even refused to be provoked. We were provoked and we ignore it, for as long as doesn’t across a certain line,” he said, pointing out that Rwanda does not mind the unfounded accusations because the country has its own burdens to worry about.
Diplomats were in attendance.
“We know our own burden, but now we’ve got other people’s burden to carry,” he said, adding that Rwanda won’t accept that.
“For the defence of this country, when we are right, when we are attacked, I don’t ask anybody’s permission. Not at all. The country is safe, is secure and will always be,” President Kagame said.
The Head of State said that the same individuals are working with Rwandan exiles, trying to turn them into future leaders of Rwanda but that won’t work.
