Who are the Rwandese refugees in Uganda?

WHO ARE THE RWANDESE REFUGEES IN UGANDA???

“You keep scavenging in Uganda looking for what? Why don’t you build your country instead of going to Uganda to be beaten? What do you want there? We lived in Uganda as refugees, left Uganda and shed our blood liberating your country. Let them also come here.”
   Gen. James Kabarebe - June 2018.

From 1959 to 1973, the political turmoil in Rwanda saw thousands of Rwandese Tutsi  refugees flee to Rwanda's neighbours including  Uganda.  They were settled in several refugee camps that were set up in western Uganda. With the help of their Tutsi kinsmen who had earlier spontenously migrated and settled in western and central regions, some newcomers also found permanent settlement outside camps.  Many settled in areas of Buganda as casual labourers and that is how Masaka and the Luweero Triangle ended up becaming Banyarwanda strongholds.

All the post independence governments in Uganda sought to use the Tutsi refugees in their political manoeuvres.  The Tutsi refugees also wanted to take advantage of their hosts' opportunism not only for survival but to also get a way of regaining power back in Rwanda.  Consequently they took up positions in the economy, civil service, security services and partial integration through marrying off their girls to indigenous Ugandans. Their influence came to prominence when Museveni opted to massively use Tutsi refugees in building his army that helped him gain the presidency three decades ago.

Eventually in 1990, the Tutsi refugees in Museveni's army invaded Rwanda and overthrew the Hutu government culminating into the 1994 Rwanda Genocide.  The dislodged Hutu fled to different neighbouring countries except Uganda which they regarded as the aggressor.  It is only a handsome of entrapped Hutu refugees who ended up at Bakivaape camp in Isingiro district.  However, with the help of the majority Hutu Bafumbira in Uganda, some Rwandese Hutu melted into Ugandan society.  The Bafumbira Hutu had  been close to the ousted Hutu regime of Rwanda. Following the ascendancy to power by the Rwandese Tutsi in Rwanda, the former Tutsi refugees in Uganda returned to Rwanda in big numbers.

The new Tutsi establishment in Rwanda generalized the Hutu who had fled the country in their millions as genociders. With the backing of the Mobutu regime in Congo, the Hutu refugees embarked on efforts to regain lost power in Rwanda.  This gave rise to the joint invasion of Congo around 1996 to neutralize the Hutu threat and oust Mobutu.  This forced many Hutu to involuntarily return to Rwanda while others fled further into the jungles and even to other countries like Congo Brazzaville, Cameroon, Zambia and others.

The Museveni regime which at the time regarded itself as the guardian of the new Tutsi regime in Rwanda, would also help in picking a few Hutu refugees in Uganda and informally hand them over to Rwanda.  The situation remained the same until when their two armies fought against each other in Congo's Kisangani city.  The misunderstanding shifted to their respective capitals with fleeing politicians and senior army officers being hosted against each other.  Kagame assumed the presidency and Museveni who had opportunistic preference for the ousted weak Hutu President Bizimungu shifted his advocacy to Hutu rights.

The two regimes almost went to war but only to be averted by the intervention of the then British Foreign Secretary, Claire Short.  Despite various bilateral conflict resolution mechanisms put in place, the two strong men sustained an underground sour relationship.  The matter was worsened by the birth of the Rwandese dissident Tutsi led RNC that sought to make alliances with the Hutu dissidents to oust the Kagame regime.  Kigali has accused Museveni of providing sanctuary, moral and logistical support to RNC.  This development gave breathing space to Rwandese Hutu refugees in Uganda who saw a now friendly host country.

More Rwandese (both Hutu and Tutsi) continued to flee and seek sanctuary in Uganda by claiming political persecution.  However, many more also flee for economic reasons.  Even those Rwandes Hutu who had fled to Congo and elsewhere have over the years found sanctuary by relocating to Uganda.  Many conceal Rwandese identity and claim to be either Congolese or Burundians.  Others don't even avail themselves to the authorities but simply bribe their way and find permanent settlement outside refugee camps.  Others just use refuge camps as a mere stopover as they look for where to settle among Ugandans. That is how areas like Mubende, Kyegegwa, Mpigi, Kibaale and Lake Victoria Islands have come to be dominated by Banyarwanda.

All along Rwanda had been pushing for the denial of refugee status to Rwandese.  In this regard, it had entered into bilateral arrangements with neighboring countries including Uganda.  It had also successfully lobbied the UN to invoke its Secession Clause and remove refugee status from all Rwandese refugees anywhere in the world.  This development came at a time Museveni had adopted the policy of using refugees to attract donor funding and to divert international community's attention from his military dictatorship.  He couldn't entertain Kagame's 'nonsense' of depleting his newly found forex earning venture.  While the rest of the world recognized the UNHCR Cessation Clause that took effect on 31/12/2017, for sinister motives Museveni just looked the other side.

For Kagame, the continued flocking of Rwandese refugees to Uganda was a breeding ground for RNC dissidents.  In order to monitor and curtail their activities, he enlisted the services of Museveni's Police under his former blue eyed Tutsi police chief, Gen. Kalekyezi.  While the police under Gen. Kalekyezi monitored these refugees, Museveni's CMI was accused of aiding the dissident RNC.  CMI succeeded in convincing Museveni that Rwanda was propelling Gen. Kalekyezi for some mischief.  Kalekyezi and his top lieutenants in police were sacked, detained and charged over forcefully returning refugees to Rwanda.

The now desparate Rwanda is in a blackout about what its refugees are doing in Uganda.  It is against this background that early last week Rwanda's Minister of Foreign Affairs described the relations between the two countries as "complicated".  He went further to assert that;
        "We have cases of Rwandans travelling to Uganda who have been facing violence while suspected criminals have been finding refuge there.”
He emphasized: “We look forward to untangling the situation.”

Uganda's foreign affairs ministry was quick to respond thus;
     "If people come running here as refugees, there are screening processes that have to be undertaken.  If Rwanda has information about these people’s criminal records, let them share it with us.”

During the previous week, the uninformed Minister of Refugees, Hilary Onek crossed the redline when he publicly declared that Rwandese refugees in Uganda were to be stripped of their refugee status.
He explained that government is considering cancelling their refugee status and instead issuing them with temporary permits.
     "We are going to turn them over to the immigration department so that their long stay in Uganda will be subjected to immigration laws because immigration laws in Uganda say that you are given a visa to stay for three months. Thereafter you have to justify your further stay in the country,”

However, his junior line Minister, Musa Echweru contradicted him thus;
             “These ones came when the RPF government took power. They are not running away from the genocide but the current system of the Kigali government,”

Obviously, Onek's statement must have provoked serious reprimand and consequently he has been forced to swallow his earlier statement thus;
             “It is not correct to report that Uganda is set to eject or close refugee status of all Rwandan Refugees.  Uganda is cognizant of International Refugee Law, more so, the provisions of article 33 of the 1951 UN Refugee Convention that prohibits expulsion or return of a refugee in any manner whatsoever, to the frontiers of territories where their life or freedom would be threatened.”

It is not yet over and Hillary Onek may pay the heavy price the same way the former Minister of Internal Affairs, Rose Akol did when she questioned the issuing of national IDs to Rwandese.

Therefore the figure of 14,000 Rwandese refugees in Uganda represents the honest and unlucky ones who declared their true identity - which is a very small fraction of what would legally amount to Rwandese refugees in Uganda.  Even if compelled to return to Rwanda, they can just disappear overnight within Uganda or turn up again this time round as Congolese or Burundians and the game will be over.  Moreover, going by the 1995 Constitution, Museveni granted citizenship to all Rwandese by recognizing Banyarwanda as one of the indigenous communities of Uganda.  What about the EAC protocol that allows free movement and settlement of all citizens of the regional block!!!

INFORMATION IS POWER AND THE PROBLEM OF UGANDA IS MUSEVENISM