Rwanda's Leading Murderer | Paul Kagame

KIGALI, Rwanda - Ever since the 1994 Rwandan genocide, the international community has been slow to criticize Rwanda's new government and slow to intervene in matters there. This hesitancy to get involved is rooted back to their fear of being to blame for another outbreak of civil war, or worse, genocide. Despite having dirty hands from not stepping in to prevent or stop the genocide, they're fearful of further worsening their guilt by interposing in Rwandan affairs and having a role in any resurgence of violence.

This pattern in the past two decades has created the perfect scenario for Rwanda's president, Paul Kagame. By the end of the genocide, he was viewed as an international hero for easing the chaos and in essence, helping to end the genocide. For his role in restoring stability in Rwanda, the international community paid him back by turning a blind eye to his illegal, murderous and scary actions that would continue to this day. His role in the First and Second Congo War are undeniable, as his political and military decisions were directly tied to thousands of deaths and continued war and violence that spread into neighboring countries.

Twenty years after the Rwandan genocide, Kagame is still in power and still continuing to enforce his intense and total grip on power across the country. Opposition leaders and journalists are commonly jailed, silenced, exiled, or worse, killed. In the past several months, over 40 bodies have turned up in Lake Wreru on the border of Rwanda and Burundi. Rwanda's government conveniently claims that since they were found in Burundi, they are Burundi's responsibility. However, the lake is fed by Akagera River that flows in from Rwanda. To add to the suspicion, many of the bodies were wrapped in plastic bags, indicating that the disappearances were planned and not accidental.

To add to Kagame's list of crimes, there have been a string of mysterious murders in South Africa where former Rwandan government officials that were exiled have been murdered in their hotel rooms and the like. Adding all of these occurrences up, it is evident that these events are not coincidences but are a part of a larger plan to remove dissent and criticism from the country. And without the international community stepping in to hold Kagame and his team accountable, how far will he go? After two decades of overlooking their wrongdoings, when it will it become too much?

Follow Jessamy on Twitter Twitter: @nahmias_report Africa Correspondent: @JessamyNichols

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Instability Returns to Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo

Jessamy Nichols, Africa CorrespondentLast Modified: 23:09 p.m. DST, 03 September 2013

DRC, Africa - Widespread fighting and instability are nothing new to the eastern side of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as it has been plagued by conflict ever since the Rwandan Genocide of 1994 spilled over into its borders.

The region, especially the area around Goma, have struggled to find peace since this crisis, and even the current issues can be traced back to this period.

The newest fighting is being caused by a rebel group, called the M23, who have been protesting the national government since April of 2012. The group is made up of members who were formally part of the Congolese national army, but mutinied to display their disapproval and disappointment with the national government that is led by President Joseph Kabila.

Since then, the group has made periodic attacks on civilians and government military forces, and in its most recent offensive, caused civilian casualties, widespread population displacement, and danger to UN peacekeeping forces (MONUSCO).

MONUSCO has practiced peacekeeping without force for over a decade now, but the M23's recent actions have prompted a military response from the UN troops. With their new mandate, certain UN peacekeepers are allowed to fire first and use necessary offensive actions in order to force M23 rebels to back down and put down their arms.

This moved was deemed necessary as the rebels have been given several options over the last few months to meet their requests, yet they continually return to violence. They have failed to follow up with peace talks and ignored demands to put down their weapons.

Beyond M23's responsibility for the chaos in Eastern Congo, the DRC's national government and neighboring country, Rwanda, also play a huge role in implementing peace. They have been involved in the fighting and tensions since the beginning, and thus they must make it their priority to finding a lasting solution before peace can be found.  Otherwise, once UN troops back off, the violence will eventually resume.

Follow Jessamy on Twitter Twitter: @nahmias_report Africa Correspondent: @JessamyNichols

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Democratic Republic of Congo's Conflict Driven Mining Industry

Jessamy Nichols, Africa CorrespondentLast Modified: 16:03 p.m. DST, 16 August 2013

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO − The mining industry in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has a plethora of side effects for the country that destroy the standard of living and overall wellbeing of the country.  The most unbearable one is the way that the mining industry spurs violence and civil war within the country. Because rebel groups are continually fighting over control of the mines and natural resources, turmoil and chaos are incessantly being reproduced.

This system has gone on for decades in the DRC which has unfortunately made it an expected way of life where vast regions are based around a “war economy.”[1] This is a horrifying concept as it means Congolese citizens are actually dependent on the illegal and informal economy based around the exploitation of natural resources and arms trafficking, instead of moving towards a formal market economy based on peace and respect of property.

When the illegal economy becomes a way of life, the actors involved totally “lose interest in peace” because they have no concept of how to make a living without it.[2] Besides this being dangerous in itself, it is also unsustainable, as eventually these natural resources will run out and those associated with the mines will have no other skills to make a living off of.

With this lack of desire for peace, mass killings have been all too frequent when it comes to fighting over control of mining areas. Rebel groups have used deliberate killings and massacres as a tool of war to fight their way to mining towns, leaving thousands of affected and harmed citizens in their wake.[3] Alongside these massacres, rebel groups will burn down villages and force whole populations to flee from their homes in order to maintain their rough reputation and gain complete control over the territory.

Besides coping with tragic deaths, the civilians left behind then also have to handle being displaced and without refuge.[4] Despite this heart wrenching reality that still continues today, international citizens and organizations fail to acknowledge that these decades of killing and destruction from armed conflict or war related causes have amounted to the “world’s deadliest conflict since WWII,” having victimized over 5.4 million Congolese citizens.[5]

This widespread and colossal conflict has been implemented through rebel groups using atrocious tools of war like “ethnic slaughter, executions, torture, rape and arbitrary arrest,” which leave very few citizens untouched.[6] This harrowing statistic should not need any other words to prove the terror of this situation, yet there are still further consequences while the globe stands by whilst the conflict endures.

Another catastrophic consequence of the DRC’s mining industry is the political and institutional instability that has come with the tumultuous control of the mines. Since the industry is fueled by armed conflict and rebel power, it has been indicatively hard for the central government to consolidate sovereignty and security. As rebel groups emerge and flex their persistent desire to take over mines and political control, the central government has been unable for years to maintain stability and fully oppress secessionist factions.

This hurts every citizen in the country, as years of political erosion have halted democratic reforms and institutional growth. During Joseph Kabila’s reign, this has destroyed his credibility, as shown by his ban on the mineral trade in September 2010 that he had to call off by March 2011 due to not being able to sever the ties between militia groups and mineral traders.[7] Whether this resulted from a lack of resolve, competence, or both, is up for debate, but regardless, the central government is incapable of fulfilling its goals.

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Published: 16 August 2013 (Page 2 of 2)

Outside of human rights atrocities, which top the list of negative consequences from the DRC’s mining industry, there are also the environmental consequences to consider as they additionally affect the state’s future. Soil erosion has been a major concern for outside observers, as those running the mines are not adhering to safe or sustainable standards, but are mainly thinking about making a profit in the present.[8] This creates a negative feedback loop where each year where environmental standards are not acknowledged for mining, the environmental deterioration builds on top of itself and becomes worse and worse, until it may become irreversible.

Additionally, one of the main areas where coltan is mined is Kahuzi-Biega National Park, which is home to the endangered mountain gorillas. The mining of coltan has greatly hurt the animal’s numbers as they are killed for bush meat and are indirectly killed through the clearing of the rainforest. Despite the DRC being an unlikely tourist spot currently, destroying the gorilla population also rids them of a profitable tourism opportunity in the future.[9]

The Congolese mining industry has also had extensive economic implications for the country, as every mineral illegally exploited and traded is another source of income that could be used to build and fix the weak country. Unfortunately, Congolese mining code is the third best in Africa in terms of giving advantages to investors, which means the country has an insignificant role in the mining agreement and then receives very much in turn for its national budget.[10]

This is indescribably regrettable because the wealth of natural resources within their territory is slipping through their fingers everyday, whereas if the central government and its international partners stepped up, they could pool at least portions of these riches for national benefit and development that could improve the lives of all Congolese citizens. For example, in Katanga, DRC, mineral tagging has been moderately put in place and the development trend has thus been very different because business flourishes while also giving a modern boost to development through local investments.

In other areas though, where tagging has not been introduced, international buyers only buy illegally through Uganda and Rwanda, instead of directing funds to the DRC. [11] While not perfect, tagging is a great starting point for moving towards a balance of industrial profit and developmental growth for the average citizen. Additionally, executing a minor taxation on mineral exports would also bring increases to the DRC’s GDP. When the actors involved let the minerals cross the border illegally and through rebel hands, they are losing the chance to tax the goods and turn that into investments in “basic infrastructure and social provisions.”

When they do not do this, they are allowing the immense wealth to be sacrificed to neighbors. For example, Rwanda made 250 million USD from coltan alone in eighteen months despite having no coltan within their borders![12] Another way to ensure taxation would be to invest in smelting and manufacturing facilities on their own soil so they could more diligently track the trade process and make a profit off of it[13], as shortened trading chains leaves less space for conflict minerals. When viewed in summary in this manner, it is evident that the mining industry is creating massive impediments for the DRC, and that these wide-ranging consequences must be tackled sooner rather than later.

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Follow Jessamy on Twitter Twitter: @nahmias_report Africa Correspondent: @JessamyNichols

Related articles

• Inside the DRC's Artisinal Mining Industry (amnestyusa.org)
• Natural resources used as weapons (newint.org)
• Rights abuses on both sides in DRC conflict (IRINnews.org)
• DRC Open to Talks With Armed Groups (voanews.com)

[1] Grespin, Whitney. "Blood Coltan?" Journal of International Peace Operations 6, no. 3 (December 2010): 27-30. pg 28. [2] Ibid, pg 28. [3] Human Rights Watch. "The Curse of Gold." hrw.org. June 1, 2005. http://www.hrw.org/reports/2005/06/01/curse-gold. pg 32, 34. [4] Ibid, pg 29. [5] Grespin, pg 27. [6] HRW, pg 9. [7] International Crisis Group. Conflict Minerals in DRC. January 18, 2012. http://www.crisisgroup.org/en/publication-type/key-issues/country/conflict-minerals-in-drc.aspx. [8] Grespin, pg 29. [9] Nisa. COLTAN MINING IN THE CONGO: WE ALL HAVE BLOOD IN OUR HANDS. September 10, 2011. http://www.cookiesound.com/2011/09/coltan-we-all-have-blood-in-our-hands/. ; Grespin, pg 29. [10] Abadie, Delphine. "Canada and the geopolitics of mining interests: a case study of the Democratic Republic of Congo." Review of African Political Economy (Routledge) 38, no. 128 (June 2011): 289-302., pg 295. [11] Group of Experts on the DRC. "Letter to the Chairman of the Security Council." United Nations, 2012, 1-44., pg 40. [12] Grespin, pg 27. [13] Group of Experts on DRC, pg 37.