The RDI-Rwanda Rwiza Party unreservedly supports Mrs. SAMANTHA Power's statement.

The Rwandan Dream Initiative (RDI)-Rwanda Rwiza Party graciously acknowledges the statement made by USAID Administrator, Madame SAMANTHA Power, concerning the peril faced by the inhabitants of the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), specifically in the province of North Kivu, due to the ongoing war led by the RDF/M23 group, supported by the Rwandan government under the leadership of Paul Kagame.

In her statement, Mrs. SAMANTHA Power emphasizes the ongoing clashes between the Congolese Army and the M23 rebels, bolstered by Rwanda, which have resulted in the displacement of over one million people since March 2022. She also reports the distressing loss of lives in this region, where innocent civilians, including men, women, and children, are succumbing to hunger and enduring egregious human rights abuses. Mrs. Power calls upon the Rwandan government to desist from supporting the M23 and swiftly withdraw its troops from the DRC.

The RDI-Rwanda Rwiza Party unconditionally supports Mrs. SAMANTHA Power's statement and reiterates its condemnation of the Rwandan government, led by the autocrat Paul Kagame, who has been in power for 29 years. The RDI-Rwanda Rwiza Party vehemently urges the cessation of the massacres perpetrated in the DRC, a neighboring country within the Great Lakes Region, as previously expressed in March 2023.

The RDI-Rwanda Rwiza Party seizes this opportunity to remind Mrs. Samantha Power that President Barack Obama's administration supported the SADC community and the Congolese government in expelling the M23 rebels from eastern Congo in 2013. At that time, these rebels were allied with Kagame's RDF forces in capturing the town of Goma. We hold hope that President Joe Biden's administration will not hesitate to assist the DRC government in permanently dismantling these criminals who continue to plunge the DRC and the entire region into mourning.

In response to Mrs. SAMANTHA Power's statement, the RDI-Rwanda Rwiza Party condemns the spokesperson for the Kigali government, Mrs. Yolande Makolo, for disseminating Twitter messages filled with falsehoods and animosity towards the DRC government and Rwandan refugees residing in the country. These refugees have endured nearly three decades of persecution under Kagame's regime, with no protection or respite.

The RDI-Rwanda Rwiza Party categorically rejects the position taken by the Rwandan government and boldly implores it to halt these criminal massacres. Rwanda has witnessed countless deaths, and it is high time for this to cease, ensuring a brighter future for all Rwandans and Congolese.

Published in Brussels, June 2, 2023

By Faustin TWAGIRAMUNGU,

President of RDI-Rwanda Rwiza.