Stop politicking about FDLR and act decisively

Editor, Refer to the story “UN: FDLR is abusing disarmament window” (The New Times, August 28). This record has been playing on and on and on for so long that Rwandans no longer believe anything coming out of New York.

Friday, August 29, 2014

Editor,

Refer to the story "UN: FDLR is abusing disarmament window” (The New Times, August 28). This record has been playing on and on and on for so long that Rwandans no longer believe anything coming out of New York.

We remember that the original reason for the creation of Monuc (later renamed Monusco) was to eliminate the threat posed to Rwanda by these génocidaires so as to take away Rwanda’s justification for incursions into the DR Congo to deal with that threat by itself.

Having set up shop in eastern DR Congo more than a decade ago and, more  recently, reinforced with a more offensive mandate and a robust combat capacity, Monusco seem to have completely forgotten or to willfully ignore their original raison d’être.

We want more than empty rhetoric and promises of keeping the military option on the table. We want to see that threat put into effect otherwise continued lack of real action will be confirmation that the goal is to keep our sub-region in perpetual instability to give the powerful actors on the world stage an excuse to remain in control of our affairs.

Show us; don’t simply tell us that you recognise the existential danger posed by this band of revanchist génocidaires to our people and others in the sub-region.

Mwene Kalinda, Rwanda