Rwandans have been recently strongly advised against travel to Uganda – rightly so. Of course, this was a difficult conclusion owing to the fundamentals of regional integration, a principle Rwanda strongly subscribes to. But, when it comes to the well-being of one’s citizens, every country will do whatever it takes to ensure their safety. The safety of Rwandans in Uganda was no longer guaranteed and despite several calls to cease illegal detentions and arbitrary arrests, the Government was left with no option but to advise its citizens against travel to what has turned out to be a bad neighbor. Regional media has been awash with falsehoods and opinions regarding the cause of the deepening rift between Uganda and Rwanda. What this has done is to continue misleading ordinary citizens and yet the smart thing to do would be pressuring the aggressors to cease their actions. It is not uncommon for countries to have differences amongst themselves. However, what is disturbing is the continual actions by Uganda aimed at destabilizing Rwanda. This, without doubt, is a fundamental violation of a good neighbor policy. To make matters worse, several efforts to ask Uganda to cease such detrimental efforts have fallen on deaf ears. Good neighbours do not destabilize or work with those with intent to distabilise their neighbours. Good neighbours do not torture, torment or terrorize innocent neighbouring citizens. Good neighbours should listen, prioritize and address any concerns raised by neighbours. If Ugandan authorities adopted the above principles of a good neighbour, it will go a long way to address the problems between the two countries.
