Tory ministers told to come clean over threat of war in Rwanda after UN warning

13 March 2024 , 17:00

714     0

Rwanda has been criticised over its support for the M23 militia group (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Ministers must come clean about the threat of war in Rwanda, campaigners have warned.

The Foreign Office has repeatedly refused to release its assessments about tensions between the African nation and its neighbour, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It comes after the US told the two countries they must “must walk back from the brink of war” last month.

The Government's silence has been branded "unacceptable" as Rishi Sunak tries to push through legislation declaring Rwanda a safe country. In recent weeks the US State Department has voiced its alarm over escalating violence in the DRC, while Rwanda told the UN Security Council its neighbour is trying to "cause regime change in Rwanda using force".

It says it is taking this threat seriously. DRC President Félix Tshisekedi has previously accused his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame of acting like Hitler as tensions ramp up.

Hotel Rwanda hero Paul Rusesabagina, who saved hundreds of lives during the 1994 genocide, told The Mirror he fears his homeland may soon be a war zone. But despite repeated requests from The Mirror, the Foreign Office has declined to provide its assessments of the tensions.

Teachers, civil servants and train drivers walk out in biggest strike in decade

Rwandan President Paul Kagame was likened to Hitler by the DRC (AFP via Getty Images)

It comes as Mr Sunak's Safety of Rwanda Bill is set to appear before MPs on Monday after being savaged in the House of Lords. Steve Smith, chief executive of charity Care4Calais, accused the Government of showing a "willful ignorance" of damning UN reports that found Rwanda is backing a murderous militia group. He said ministers haven't provided a "shred of evidence" to disprove a Supreme Court ruling that Rwanda isn't a safe country.

Mr Smith told The Mirror: "Throughout the court challenge, their lawyers dismissed evidence on Rwanda's human rights record, the persecution of the Rwandan LGBT community and the killing of at least 11 refugees in 2018 who were protesting against food shortages. That they won't publish recent assessments on tensions with DR Congo is entirely consistent with their approach to date.

"It displays a stubbornly wilful ignorance of UN reports that Rwanda continues to back the M23 terror group that is committing mass murder and rape across eastern DRC. This worrying lack of transparency is unacceptable when the Government is trying to push MP's and Lords to overrule the Supreme Court and self-proclaim that the Rwanda plan is safe."

Mr Rusesabagina, who was portrayed by US actor Don Cheadle in 2004 film Hotel Rwanda, last month told The Mirror: “Rwanda is not a safe country. It is a boiling volcano. There is no freedom of expression. War in the Congo that is driven by Rwanda is about to boil over, and this could lead to the conflict moving into Rwanda. Rwanda could be a war zone soon, and is definitely not safe."

Speaking at a UN Security Council briefing on February 20, US Ambassador Robert Wood said: "Rwanda and the DRC must walk back from the brink of war." He called on all sides to resume peace talks, stating: "These regional diplomatic efforts—not military conflict—are the only path toward a negotiated solution and sustainable peace."

Lib Dem home affairs spokesman Alistair Carmichael said: “It’s deeply disappointing that Conservative ministers continue to bury their heads in the sand - not just about the unworkable and immoral Rwanda scheme, but about human rights abuses and security concerns in Rwanda itself. However, it's hard to be shocked by this sort of behaviour from a Conservative Government who is determined to push on with a deplorable policy that is burning a hole in the taxpayer's pocket."

Last month the UN Security Council heard there had been a "dramatic spike" in hostilities between Congolese national forces and the Rwanda-backed 23 March Movement (M23) militia. The Security Council was urged to order Rwanda withdraw its support for the group. Meanwhile Rwanda told the council that DRC-supported Hutu extremists have been targeting innocent civilians and allowed hate speech and persecution to be normalised.

Dave Burke