Ugandan security bodies have taken farther shameful steps in their ongoing quest to torture Rwandans by attacking under-aged minors who are in Uganda for academic purposes.
On the night of March 13, 2019, a group of three Rwandans stranded at Kagitumba border from Uganda where they have experienced excessive torturing and their belongings seized illegally. They appeared with horrible stories about what they have been through in Uganda during the time they have been captured by Ugandan security forces.
Surprisingly, among the received Rwandans is Ngabonzima Amon, a 15 years old boy who is still doing his primary academics. The Gakenke-born teenage left home on October 05 2018 to visit her sister in Uganda.
When their bus reached Ishaka, Amon and his collegue were taken out bus and reported to POLICE station on the suspicion of being ‘Rwandan spies’.
Three people who say that they had been illegally detained and harassed in Uganda ( photo courtesy )
It has been lamented that Uganda violates Rwandans’ rights in Uganda because it fears that some of them are spies sent by Kigali to destabilize Ugandan security. However, there haven’t been any tangible evidence from high profile personnel in Uganda to clarify how these spies actually work in Uganda.
Moreover, some of captured men and women are ordinary people who have been operating their activities in Uganda for years.
The same case with Gashongore Xavier. This man has been in Uganda for 19 years where he shaved people and worked in agriculture sector before being handcuffed on 1ST February in Bundibugyo where he stayed. He was doing his usual activities of shaving when a group of men seized him. He also branded spy agent for Rwandan government despite being in Uganda for 19 years.
Considering the seriousness of these accusations, Mr. Amon, his colleague and Xavier were quickly transferred from POLICE station to Makenke-military camp located in Mbarara, and this is the time they started to face unhuman torturing acts, according to their testimonies.
“We were in separate cells in the basement floor. They would fill in water which we spent days and nights in” Said Amon. “In the morning, they would scale up our heads and spread water inside our nose” Added the teenager.
These torturing activities would result in intense bleeding and coped with other harsh conditions, some Rwandans felt it too much to bear and their lives would unfold to their endings.
“In military camp, we were beaten in the morning and before we go to bed. They gave us military uniforms to wear so that surrounding citizens would never suspect anything wrong with us”. Said Xavier, who also was in Makenke military camp.
Both Rwandans claimed to have left around 40 other Rwandans in that military camp and when they reached to Kagitumba boarder, they had no single item as all their belongings were seized in Uganda.
RWANDANS IN UGANDA HAVE RISKS.
Rwandans based in Uganda are required to be cautious of their own safety as their lives can be can face major risks including deaths. In general, more than 980 Rwandans have been deported home while 190 others are still held by Ugandan security forces, some of them in unknown prisons.
Fidele Gatsinzi upon arrival from Uganda where he endured extreme torture by Ugandan intelligence services ( Photo courtesy)
hese activities have forced Rwanda through its foreign ministry to release a statement prohibiting Rwandans to go to Uganda unnecessary while the situation is still at worst stages. The decision immediately reduced the flow of people so significantly that bus agencies which transported people between Rwanda and Uganda were forced to reduce their normal transport tours from eight buses to just one per day, citing the reduction in consumption.
President Kagame revealed that most of Rwandans whose lives are at big risks are the ones who refuse to cooperate with Rwanda National Congress (ANC), a terrorist group which work freely in Uganda with the aim of cracking down Rwandan government, according to the president.
In his remarks at the beginning of Umwiherero, which was held for 16th time in Gabiro, Kagame noted that some RNC members have established authorities to the extent they can tempt Ugandan security forces to catch some Rwandans who refuse to join RNC.
“These Rwandans are captured with the advice of the so called RNC, consisted of people who used to be here, KAYUMBA Nyamwasa and others… they are in Uganda, others in Burundi… So they work with authorities to identify some Rwandans who must be in the system of Rwanda; who don’t understand RNC, don’t understand that we have to fight against Rwanda, [that] we have to remove Kagame and RPF”. Said the president.
It is believed that RNC recruit Rwandans and other nationals to put them in militant group which works in East of RDC. The United Nation report has revealed that Kayumba Nyamwasa’s terrorist group has a functional military group located in RDC with the aim to destabilize Rwanda.
It is also believed that this militant group was at the heart of two conversations which involved RNC’S top diplomat, Charlotte Mukankusi, and the Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni. Charlotte, who worked as assistant of Kayumba when he was still Rwandan ambassador to India, was in Uganda from 1 to 6 March and encountered Museveni twice before flying back.
She revealed to Museveni how RNC army works and their long term project of building a strong army capable of finally toppling Rwanda government. Museveni is said to have been thrilled by the whole plan and promised to help them. The president also advised RNC to recruit more militants in order to build a strong group of army.
Charlotte is not the only top RNC leader to have spent some time in Uganda, a country which host many other RNC members including Phirbert RUJUGIRO, a famous businessman who is among main sponsors of RNC, using his vast businesses held in Uganda.
STAGNANT RELATIONSHIP WOOES ECONOMIC GROWTH
According to The The EastAfrican newspaper Rwanda Goverment had been mobilising its private sector to find alternative markets to source commodities previously coming from Uganda.
For instance, import duty charged on a pair of sandals rose from Rwf280 ($0.3) to Rwf1,500 ($1.7) while shoe importers were asked to pay Rwf2,000 per pair ($2.2), up from Rwf480 ($0.5).
“It became clear that Rwandan traders were importing goods from Uganda that were not made there yet they could easily mobilise themselves and place orders directly from manufacturers in Asia, including China and Malaysia,” a source within the Rwandan government said.
Rwandan traders who used to import individually have now formed associations to import directly from Asia and other markets through Dar es Salaam.
Kigali has established a loan facility—estimated at Rwf1.04 billion ($1 million)—to help traders import directly from China.
The funds will be available to any group comprising 52 people, with individuals contributing Rwf3 million ($3,333) each.
The Express News
