An Amnesty International statement on US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s upcoming trip to the Great Lakes Region has once again revealed the contempt, or plain disrespect for governments like Rwanda’s. This is always the case, since organs like Amnesty International pursue one agenda only: control of the affairs of other country through their pseudo activist missions.
“In Rwanda, Secretary Blinken must take this opportunity to call on President Kagame to refrain from any action that could further destabilize the region and put at risk millions of civilians in the Eastern DRC,” reads the AI statement in part. “In addition, he must press President Kagame on the numerous human rights violations in Rwanda, including threats and restrictions faced by human rights defenders and journalists, and should raise concerns over the failure by Rwanda to guarantee a fair trial in the case of Paul Rusesabagina.”
For reasons only known to them, the Amnesty International somehow believes that Secretary Blinken will be carrying a big stick on his upcoming visit to the Great Lakes region, for the purpose of holding Rwanda to account over Congo’s internal problems, leadership failures, not mentioning lecturing Rwanda on “human rights.”
No doubt Amnesty International is stuck in its colonialist mindset, but countries like Rwanda do what is best for them, and their citizens, plus it is highly irresponsible to peddle the fallacy that Rwanda has anything to do with problems of DRC, an independent state!
Amnesty International’s patronizing statement fails to recognize that Rwanda is a sovereign state inhabited by people with the capability to make sound decisions as well as determine their own destiny. They ignore the fact that Rwanda will receive the US top diplomat for discussions on equal terms concerning issues of mutual interests.
While Secretary Blinken will be welcomed to visit Rwanda as an ally in the fight against terrorism and a partner in various aspects of development and cooperation, he is not coming to Rwanda to arbitrate into matters that have already been settled by competent courts of law, that is to say, convicted terrorist Rusesabagina’s case.
Rwandans have gained enough experience and resilience along the way and have nothing to learn from lectures by Amnesty International or anyone else about governance and human rights.
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