Grandstand. The normalization of diplomatic relations between France and Rwanda, which has made good progress over the past two years, could soon be put to the test. A new report by the UN group of experts on the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) accuses several high-ranking Rwandan officers of providing support to the M23 armed group, which has committed numerous atrocities in eastern Congo.
In this context, the gestures of President Emmanuel Macron to recognize France’s troubled past in Rwanda and to appease the relationship between the two countries could well put Paris at odds with its responsibility, in particular as a as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, to fight against the serious human rights violations perpetrated in eastern Congo.
The M23, an armed group created in 2012 in eastern Congo and once again a major player a decade later, attacked and occupied large areas of North Kivu province. Over the past year, Human Rights Watch has interviewed more than 200 people, including victims and witnesses to atrocious crimes committed by the rebel group. These residents told us that the M23 committed massacres and gang rapes when they took over towns and villages. Its members also resorted to forced labour, burning and destroying homes and civilian infrastructure.
In the village of Kishishe, M23 fighters killed dozens of people whose bodies were buried in at least fourteen mass graves. The resumption of fighting between the M23, the Congolese armed forces and other armed groups has displaced more than a million people and created a catastrophic humanitarian situation, worsening the most serious displacement crisis on the continent.
Thirty years of strained relations
After the publication of the United Nations report, France condemned, as it should, the support given by Rwanda to the M23. But words alone will not suffice. France should support the application of international sanctions against Rwandan officers responsible for supporting the armed group. All security assistance to Rwanda should also be suspended until Kigali stops supporting the rebels responsible for abuses.
France and Rwanda have experienced thirty years of tense relations since the Rwandan genocide of 1994. It was orchestrated by political and military extremists from the Hutu ethnic group who mainly targeted members of the Tutsi ethnic group. This tragedy claimed the lives of more than half a million people in a few months. France had supported the Rwandan government at the time, but also aided and trained its army as well as some of the forces that later perpetrated the genocide. President Macron’s historic visit to Kigali in May 2021 marked the beginning of a renewed partnership between the two countries, particularly in the area of ??business and security.
France now relies on the Rwandan army in the context of military operations in northern Mozambique and the Central African Republic. Since July 2021, Rwanda has deployed thousands of troops to fight an insurgency linked to the Islamic State (IS) group in Cabo Delgado province in northern Mozambique. The conflict has caused immense suffering among civilians and forced TotalEnergies to temporarily suspend its lucrative liquefied natural gas production business.
The deployment of the Rwandan army has been hailed as having restored some stability to the region, allowing thousands of people to return home. TotalEnergies has also resumed its activities in Cabo Delgado. However, for Rwandan dissidents living in Mozambique, the deployment has coincided with an upsurge in threats and attacks.
In the Central African Republic, France withdrew its last troops in December 2022, making Rwanda the main troop contributor, both via the UN peacekeeping mission and via a bilateral agreement.
Red lines not to cross
Many governments would like to distinguish Rwanda’s contribution to peacekeeping from its overt complicity in the atrocities committed in eastern Congo. But the two are intrinsically linked. As proof, Major General Alex Kagame, the new commander of the Rwanda Defense Force (RDF) Joint Task Force in Mozambique, was previously in charge of a division which, according to the UN group of experts , was responsible for an attack by Rwandan forces against a Congolese army position. In their latest report, UN investigators denounced the role of at least two Rwandan commanders who, according to the media, would have been welcomed by the chief of staff of the French army in 2022 in Paris.
The question now is whether the French government will live up to its responsibilities. Re-establishing ties with Rwanda should not come at the expense of the victims of the ongoing atrocities in the DRC. During his visit to Kigali in 2021, acknowledging France’s role in the genocide, Emmanuel Macron asked for forgiveness and promised “a respectful, lucid, supportive and mutually demanding alliance”. Rwandan President Paul Kagame greeted his speech by saying, “Truth heals. »
The truth today is that Rwanda’s support for the M23 is no longer in doubt. Kigali was quick to deny any involvement, as it did a decade ago, despite the mounting evidence. Nevertheless, the UN report will provoke debates within the European Union and the UN Security Council to decide whether sanctions should be put in place against the Rwandan commanders, as well as those of the M23 and other rebel groups responsible for abuses. France’s position could be decisive.
On Rwanda, Paris should adopt a cohesive, principled strategy – one that refuses to make impunity for Rwanda’s support for the M23 the price to pay for security assistance or forgiveness for past wrongdoings, no matter how serious. President Macron should make it clear that regardless of France’s historical responsibilities, there are red lines his partners should not cross, and supporting mass crimes is one of them.