Last week in the French countryside, life was comprised of rain storms, running, a family, more running, butterflies, and a return to children. While crossing the lush green landscapes turned almost unearthly by sunrise and sunset, I continuously hoped that the upcoming 600 page UN report to be released sometime in September about Rwanda, titled Democratic Republic of Congo, 1993-2003, will reveal a truth that is a long time coming.According to RFI, Le Monde first broke the story of the anticipated and lengthy UN report by citing that it “will detail mass killing of Hutu refugees by Rwandan forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo in the late 1990s.”
Thus, the report is possibly anticipated to confirm the otherwise taciturn act of genocide in Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) against the Hutus. Courtesy of RFI and AFP pictured here are Rwandan troops in the DRC.
According to the NY Times article U.N. Congo Report Offers New View on Genocide, the Rwandan government is outraged, claiming that “it is immoral and unacceptable that the United Nations, an organization that failed outright to prevent genocide in Rwanda and the subsequent refugees crisis that is the direct cause for so much suffering in Congo and Rwanda, now accuses the army that stopped the genocide of committing atrocities in the Democratic Republic of Congo.”
Yet, Le Monde’s article confirms the UN remains cautious because UN Secretary General “Ban Ki Moon is uneasy with any use of the term ‘genocide’ in the final version of the report - and that he has warned its authors to verify the legal basis of any accusations they make.”
September marks a filled month for the UN due to the Rwanda report finally being released alongside the happening of the UN Summit, plenary meetings of high-level UN officials in New York City on September 20 - 22, 2010 to assess completion of the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDG), due to be fulfilled in 2015. Also, extremely important is the upcoming UN Women, a new UN entity, which could be exceptionally paramount in advancing achievement of the MDGs depending on funding and construct.
Look for more in-depth coverage on UN Women in Kate Stence’s next Her Blueprint post.
