On Monday, Rwanda, represented by the Minister in charge of Emergency Management, Marie Solange Kayisire (whose docket includes refugee management), signed a joint communique with the DR Congo foreign minister, Christophe Lutundula, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, on the topic of the repatriation and reintegration of refugees from both countries. The meeting in Geneva was surprisingly largely free of the bombast and hyperbole that had become part and parcel of the DR Congo government’s foreign policy when dealing with Rwanda. There were, instead of lies and abuse, smiles and handshakes from the Congolese minister. The signed communique committed the two governments to recognise the right to return of refugees, upholding the principles of safe and dignified voluntary returns, addressing potential challenges relating to security for returnees, facilitating the exchange of information on conditions in areas of return, including through sensitization, and ensuring sustainable reintegration. Furthermore, the communique committed both governments to meet in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, in a month’s time to figure out not only how to revive the 2010 tripartite agreement (that unfortunately was not implemented) but also how to develop a comprehensive road map for the voluntary repatriation of Congolese and Rwandan refugees. As it stands today, Rwanda is home to over 80,000 Congolese refugees (80% of them from North Kivu province). And while unfortunately, there aren’t any accurate statistics for the number of Rwandan refugees in DR Congo, what we do know is that as per 2013 UNHCR statistics, there were approximately 100,000 Rwandan refugees around the world, living mainly in Burundi, DR Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, the Republic of the Congo, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The issues around the return of refugees are extremely close to my heart. As a former refugee myself, the concept of not having a place to call home is heartbreaking. It’s especially tragic when it’s something you don’t have to go through. Since the fall of the genocidal government, Rwanda has opened its doors to all its children. In fact, the Government went as far as to actively bring back the hundreds of thousands of refugees who had fled to Zaire, present-day DR Congo, following the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda and were being used as hostages by the killers. Beyond repatriating the refugees in the DR Congo, the Government has, in collaboration with its international partners, created a Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration (DDR) programme that is world-renowned. In addition, hundreds have benefited from the ‘Come and See’ programme that is funded by the Government. In a nutshell, since 1994, Rwanda has done all it can to bring its people home. I know for a fact that embassy officials actively beseeched members of the Rwandan refugee communities around the world to apply for Rwandan documents like IDs and passports. The message being, ‘even if you don’t want to repatriate to Rwanda, you have the right to Rwandan documents and the protections that citizenship offers.’ The plight of Congolese refugees living in Rwanda fills me with sadness. While they have been able to work and get an education in the country, the fact that some of them haven’t been able to return to their farms and fields for over 25 years is a tragedy that has gone on for far too long. That is why I want to encourage DR Congo to do two things: work with the region in order to remove the fundamental cause of the refugee issue (which is insecurity and the lack of clarity around the citizenship question) and; negotiate in good faith. Failing to do so will not only be a crying shame in terms of people’s lives; it will create further conflict. Something we all don’t need more of. The writer is a socio-political commentator
