I must confess I have failed to understand how international diplomacy works, especially when it comes to our region. The current situation in Burundi has compounded my confusion. Here is a political crisis that has turned violent, in which hundreds, possibly thousands, have been killed and hundreds of thousands fled into neighbouring countries. The first reaction, and it is a human instinct, should be to help victims. The second is to sort out the problem and return the country to normality. That is the role of diplomacy. Burundi’s neighbours, including Rwanda, have done the decent thing and welcomed Burundian refugees with open arms. Unlike some of the richer countries of the West, they did not first agonise about how many to admit or raise barriers to block their entry. It is important to remember that the neighbours did not invite the refugees. Nor are they responsible for the political instability and insecurity in Burundi. All they have done is give sanctuary to people fleeing the violence caused by the political leadership of their country that has abdicated its responsibility to protect its citizens. The international community should be happy that part of the burden of Burundi is being borne by her neighbours and should therefore put more effort into solving the root cause of the problem in Burundi. Instead of doing that, they have added to the mess, as has become the habit in this region. First, there is the indifference. No one wants to get involved in the right way and resolve a problem that they all see and whose roots they know. They know that the cause is an inept leadership that failed to unite the country or deliver to its people. Instead it has unleashed terror on its own population. This, of course, is not the first time this occurs. It happened in Rwanda in 1994 and the grim consequences are well-known. Second, indifference leads to inaction. It may be possible to understand this from a certain standpoint. Perhaps the people of Burundi are not valuable enough to protect. Again, this has happened before with terrible consequences and may explain Rwanda’s frustration with the international community. Then there is the annoying habit of shifting blame for what is happening in Burundi to another country, in this case Rwanda. If you cannot be bothered to sort out a problem, and it is all right with your conscience, that’s fine. But why then turn around and burden another country with your guilt? This, too, is not new. Finally, there is another possible reason for the way the international community conducts diplomacy in this region. They love to sow discord, incite quarrels and then stand back and enjoy the spectacle as people go at each others’ throats, destroy whatever they have built and turn to them for help to rebuild. This approach by the international community follows a familiar, orchestrated pattern. First, an obscure NGO says it has evidence that Rwanda is recruiting and training Burundian rebels from refugee camps. Second, the media, other organisations and even governments pick this up and spread it as fact. Then the United Nations Group of Experts make a report, usually the testimony of a handful of anonymous, even fictitious people, and leak it. In the past, it has been proved that those who give such testimony have been bribed and coached on what to say by some organisations. Lastly, the United States and other governments latch on it and point to “credible evidence” (from hired witnesses) of Rwanda’s involvement. In the case of the US, a Congressional hearing in which the allegations are repeated usually follows. This is exactly what is happening in respect to the crisis in Burundi. No one seems to have stopped to ask what Rwanda would gain from stoking the fires of an already burning Burundi. Is it not in fact in its best interest to have a peaceful neighbour with whom to do business? But the accusations keep flying. This does not solve the problem, but could actually make it worse, with grave consequences for the country and the region. It has shifted responsibility for the crisis from President Nkurunziza and his government. He does not feel the need to resolve it quickly. He is emboldened and feels he has the licence to commit more atrocities without the fear of any action against him. It has also put some very dangerous ideas into his head. The face and voice of Nkurunziza’s government since he went into seclusion (hiding?), Alain Nyamitwe and Willy Nyamitwe, have of late begun beating war drums. When a neighbour’s house starts burning, you rush to help put out the fire, rescue its occupants, give them shelter and share with them what you have. This is what Rwanda and other neighbours of Burundi have done. You do not douse it so that it can burn more, which is what the action of the international community seems to be about. In the end it is the lives and future of ordinary people at stake, not the political lives of some individuals, or grand diplomatic schemes of various powers. jorwagatare@yahoo.co.uk
