Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame has strongly rejected suggestions that his country should absorb thousands of refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo).
Speaking at a swearing-in ceremony for new government officials, Mr Kagame said Rwanda is currently hosting about 130,000 people who have fled persecution in eastern DR Congo.
The Rwandan leader questioned the identity of these refugees, asking whether they were ethnic Rwandans being ejected from DR Congo or Congolese citizens unwanted due to “bad politics”.
Mr Kagame insisted the refugees are Congolese nationals, criticising what he described as attempts to force Rwanda to accept them based on ethnic ties.
He said Rwanda’s problem with DR Congo is the FDLR, a militia founded by remnants of the perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, which is armed by the Congolese government.
“What right do you have to say that these people should stay here [in Rwanda]?” he asked, in an apparent challenge to international pressure.
The president expressed frustration with Congolese leaders who, he claims, refuse to address the issue and instead make it “Rwanda’s problem”.
His comments highlight ongoing tensions between Rwanda and DR Congo, rooted in a complex history of ethnic conflict and population movements in the Great Lakes region.
He has hovewer warned that any attempts to attack Rwanda due to its small size would be stopped, adding “our rights are as huge as those of these big countries.”
The refugee situation has been a source of diplomatic friction, with DR Congo previously accusing Rwanda of supporting armed groups in its eastern regions – a charge Kigali has consistently denied.
He said the international community should find a permanent solution for the tens of thousands of Congolese refugees who have lived in Rwandan camps for years, instead of resettling dozens of them in third countries.
