Announcement from the CNRD-Ubwiyunge Party to Rwandans.
Announcement from the Party CNRD UBWIYUNGE to Rwandans wherever they may be and to all who hope for Peace, Reconciliation and Democracy in Rwanda.
President of CNRD — UBWIYUNGE
We, Rwandan refugees in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) together with many Rwandan refugees in diaspora, have decided to form the organization above with the hope and plan to return to our homeland in peace and dignity. We hereby disassociate ourselves with the organization FDLR that is led by Major General Victor Byiringiro, for we find that he can no longer uphold and fulfill the mandate that his organization promised to the Rwandan refugees in the DRC — including to protect, care and advocate for , the Rwandan refugees and to work towards a dignified return home.
The plight of Rwandan refugees mainly in the DRC but also in other countries has been for far too long ignored and forgotten by the International Community whilst Rwandan armed forces and security agents continue to hunt and kill refugees in the name of pursuing genocidaires. CNRD does not represent any fugitives from justice nor do we condone any act of injustice wherever it is committed . We are men, women and children that have become destitute as a result of crimes against humanity that have been perpetrated against us by the authoritarian regime in Rwanda that has shown contempt for Human rights, Democracy, Peace and Reconciliation.
Many refugees that have been forcibly or voluntarily returned to Rwanda have been mistreated and vilified. They have reported that they have lost even the little dignity that they had even when they were destitute refugees in the DRC. At the same time, Kigali has never ceased attacking and killing refugees in Congo while the international community keeps a blind eye. We find that this situation is unacceptable and we are hereby calling upon the International Community to consider the human plight of the Rwandan refugees in the DRC and other countries.
Our condition for returning to Rwanda must be consistent with evidence of a state where the rule of law is respected, where there is democracy and open dialogue, the respect for human rights, and where all Rwandans are treated with respect and dignity. Stating our condition for return does not mean that if these conditions are not met, we will accept the fate of a life in destitution for generations to come. By the virtue of our human rights as afforded to us by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we are prepared to demand these rights by all lawful means that will be at our disposal.
We denounce the common accusations that have characterised the Rwandan government and its media that hundreds of thousands of Rwandan refugees in the DRC and elsewhere are genocidaires. This is not only reprehensible, it’s utterly false and should immediately stop. Millions of Rwandans fled the country, fleeing merciless killings perpetrated by the RPF army that was killing men, women and children indiscriminately. The same RPF army pursued refugees and massacred countless Rwandans and Congolese, memory that cannot be forgotten nor erased from the memories of survivors, whom we aim to speak for. For this reason, we cannot accept rhetoric of the RPF regime to negate this history and paint Rwandan refugees, most of who have been born in refuge, with the crime of genocide as thus legitimizing state sponsored massacres of innocent refugees.
We are calling upon Rwandans in the diaspora refugees in other parts of the world and Rwandans in Rwanda to stand with us as we seek an end to unjust conditions that have been imposed upon us by the dictatorship in our country and by the impunity that reigns in Rwanda where crimes against humanity committed against Rwandan refugees and the people of, Congo whom we have lived among continue, and continue to go unpunished. We welcome collaboration and assistance from those that love peace, justice and democracy. Together we shall achieve peace and true reconciliation, a peaceful repatriation of refugees to Rwanda and a brighter future for all.
Rutchuru the 6th , June 2016.
Wilson Irategeka
President of CNRD — UBWIYUNGE
