Gen Bosco Ntaganda whose arrest warrant has been issued by the ICC.
Our party has political differences with RPF regime as to which direction our country should take and it is still committed to a peaceful and democratic political revolution that would give breathing space in order to build the Rwanda that we all want. This is why our party sees the (M5) Rwanda Road Map to Peace as the only hope and viable channel to bring a peaceful political change desired by our people. At the same, when it comes to the matters of national interests, our party will never tremble to stand firm and shoulder-by-shoulder with Rwanda government to encounter any foreign threats and fears that may be directed at our people. The welfare of our children is non-negotiable and that goes at the core values of our party.
We, the RPP, will remain opposed to many policies of the RPF Rwanda government and the political direction it is taking Rwanda. But will remain united by our common desire to protect our people and especially our children from threats and fears and to ensure that never and never again will they be subjected to terror or intimidation. We will also ensure that never and never again will our country slip back into the hands of those who littered it with bodies and painted it with blood of its children.
As someone who lost 186 members of my family including my mother and son in the Rwandan genocide, I would not like my experience to be inflicted on other Rwandans. That’s why we need to act swiftly, collectively and responsibly to prevent the recurrence of our dark history. We also believe our region is quite rich, probably richer than Europe but our people live in poverty. This is the main cause for its civil wars and gross human rights abuses.
My party, the RPP, wishes to appeal once again to member states of the East African Community (EAC) group to admit the DRC, South Sudan, North Sudan and Ethiopia to the club. We are convinced that bringing these countries into the EAC will help to create jobs, better social conditions that may lay solid foundation for the regional political stability.
The RPP believes that people are fighting because of poverty and not ethnicity as portrayed by sectarian politicians and their foreign backers. Hence, ability to manage well regional economy is the only key to end regional political instabilities and conflicts.
We also believe that the position of MONUSCO in the DRC should be re-evaluated and reconsidered. The organisation has lost legitimacy and credibility as it has turned into a symbol of corruption and political instability in the region rather than a bridge that foments peace in the region.
John Karuranga is President of the Rwanda Peoples Party (RPP)