President under pressure after over Congo allegations, but Blair says
Rwanda is still coping with the fallout from 1994 genocide
Chris McGreal in Washington
Saturday January 1 2011
The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/31/tony-blair-rwanda-paul-kagame
Tony Blair has defended his close personal and working relationship
with one of Africa's most controversial leaders, Rwanda's Paul Kagame,
even as foreign governments distance themselves over accusations of
war crimes and the suppression of political opposition.
Blair has described Rwanda's president as a "visionary leader" and a
friend after making the central African country the focus of the work
of his charity, the Africa Governance Initiative (AGI), to turn around
the continent's fortunes.
The initiative includes placing officials hired by Blair in Rwanda's
institutions such as the president's policy unit, the prime minister's
office, the cabinet secretariat and the development board to assist
with administration. Blair is leading a similar programme in Sierra
Leone and Liberia, and says he intends to expand it to other African
countries.
But the relationship has come under increasing scrutiny following a UN
report that accused Kagame's forces of war crimes, including possibly
genocide, in the east of Democratic Republic of Congo, and charges
that the Rwandan government is increasingly authoritarian after the
opposition was effectively barred from challenging Kagame in August's
presidential election. The White House has criticised Kagame for the
suppression of political activity and made clear that it does not
regard Rwanda as democratic.
But Blair said allowances have to be made for the consequences of the
1994 genocide of hundreds of thousands of Tutsis and suggested that
Kagame's economic record outweighed other concerns.
During a recent visit to Washington to meet the US secretary of state,
Hillary Clinton, and promote his Africa initiative, Blair told the
Guardian: "I'm a believer in and a supporter of Paul Kagame. I don't
ignore all those criticisms, having said that. But I do think you've
got to recognise that Rwanda is an immensely special case because of
the genocide. Secondly, you can't argue with the fact that Rwanda has
gone on a remarkable path of development. Every time I visit Kigali
and the surrounding areas you can just see the changes being made in
the country."
Kagame, pictured below, has been a particular favourite of Britain.
Blair's former development secretary, Clare Short, directed large
amounts of aid to Rwanda and lavished praise on Kagame. Rwanda also
recently joined the Commonwealth.
For many years, Kagame, a Tutsi who led the forces that ended the
genocide, was praised by other leaders ? Bill Clinton called him "one
of the greatest leaders of our time" ? amid continuing guilt over the
major powers' failure to stop the murder of the Tutsis and out of a
belief that he had brought relative stability to a troubled region.
But the publication of a UN report in October accusing Rwanda of war
crimes in eastern Congo, including the wholesale massacres of Hutu
civilians and the plunder of minerals, tarnished Kagame's image. He
has vigorously denied the accusations but human rights groups have
been documenting such crimes for years.
Blair rolled his eyes at mention of the UN report, which he questions,
and suggested that Rwanda's occupation of eastern Congo for many years
was justified by the continuing threat from Hutu extremists.
"He (Kagame) and I specifically discussed this," Blair said. "They
[the Rwandan government] very strongly push back against the
allegations that are made.
"You've got to understand that it's a very difficult situation in
Congo because you've got the rival forces fighting each other and
that's spilling across into his territory."
Kagame has also been forced on the defensive over his re-election in
August, with 93% of the vote, after his main rivals were jailed and
barred from running after being accused of stirring up ethnic hatred
between Hutus and Tutsis after what Human Rights Watch called
"persistent harassment and intimidation" of their parties by the
government, and the curbing of criticism in the press including the
banning of two newspapers. The deputy leader of a third opposition
party was murdered in July.
There is a growing perception among human rights groups that Kagame
has used accusations of "divisionism" and "genocide ideology" to
suppress legitimate political criticism. But Blair said the Rwandan
government's sensitivity is justified because of the country's recent
history.
"When they get upset about any form of politics that leaches at all
into ethnic rallying cries, it's for a reason," he said. "You can't
just dismiss that reason. I don't ignore these criticisms at all.
Indeed, I've discussed these with the president. He's someone I've got
to know well and I'm a believer in him, and I believe I won't be
disappointed.
"You've got to make a judgment about this, and my judgment, rightly or
wrongly, is that he is somebody who does want to do his best for his
country, is doing his best for his country, and is a huge focus of
stability in a place that still desperately needs it when we're only
16 years after the genocide."
However, there is also concern that a rising generation of Hutus will
increasingly feel shut out of the political process, deepening ethnic
divisions once again as extremists revive accusations of Tutsi
domination.
Governing principles
Tony Blair's Africa Governance Initiative (AGI) is one of a series of
programmes the former prime minister is juggling on the world stage,
along with his duties as a Middle East envoy, for his faith
foundation, a climate change initiative and a foundation to promote
sport.
The AGI, a registered charity, launched its first project in Rwanda in
2008 and provides the model for similar programmes in Liberia and
Sierra Leone, both rebuilding after devastating civil wars. It
involves placing Blair's staff in high government offices, such as
presidential policy units and cabinet secretariats, to build
"effective governance" through "a combination of on-the-job coaching
and support and formal and informal training".
Blair says a key to its success is a new generation of African leaders
not hidebound by history.
"There is a clear sense by this generation of African leaders that the
future of Africa is in their hands and they're not interested in a
debate about the colonial past," he said. "They're very much eager to
get their countries sorted out. They're perfectly willing to listen
and learn from the outside. They're also keen on bringing in quality
private sector investment and that is the way you build a country."
But the initiative is open to criticism for promoting a model that
pressures African states to again surrender political and economic
autonomy.
guardian.co.uk Copyright (c) Guardian News and Media Limited. 2011
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