In an important speech during a visit to Rwanda, Kigali-Rwanda, French President Emmanuel Macron said he acknowledged that France had a heavy responsibility for the 1994 massacre in Central African countries. ..
Macron solemnly detailed how France failed 800,000 genocide victims, but did not apologize.
France’s leader was Thursday at the Genocide Memorial in Kigali, where France was “not an accomplice” to Genocide, but supported Rwanda’s “genocide regime” and took “overwhelming responsibility” on the slide to the slaughter. He said he was owed. ..
“France has a role, history, and political responsibility in Rwanda. It has a duty. Looking at history head-on, the suffering it has caused to the people of Rwanda has been more than a true investigation for too long. Is also to recognize by supporting silence, “Macron said.
When genocide began, “the international community took nearly three months to react, an immeasurable three months, and we all abandoned hundreds of thousands of victims.”
He said France’s failure contributed to the “27-year bitter distance” between the two countries.
“I have to become aware of our responsibilities,” Macron said.
Macron did not apologize, but was praised by Rwandan President Paul Kagame for his “powerful speech.”
“His words were more valuable than an apology, they were true,” Kagame said. “This was a tremendous amount of courage.”
Both Kagame and Macron showed that the page was turned in relation to France and Rwanda.
“This visit is about the future, not the past,” said Kagame, adding that Macron and Macron discussed a variety of issues, including investment and support for businesses.
Macron said they were opening a “new page” and rebuilding a “strong and irreversible” relationship. He said he asked Rwanda to appoint a French ambassador six years after France was empty in Rwanda.
Macron seemed to explain the lack of apology, saying, “Genocide is unacceptable. People live with it.”
Instead, he explained that he decided to apply the “white light of truth” to France’s role in the genocide and to acknowledge its responsibility.
“This perception is something I can give. Amnesty is not something I give,” Macron said, promising an enhanced effort to bring genocide to justice.
Macron also said it would come with 100,000 coronavirus vaccines for Rwanda.
The Rwandans, who wanted to apologize, said they were disappointed with Macron’s speech.
“I don’t want to hear him talk about responsibility for France’s role in genocide,” genocide survivor Dan Kalenji told The Associated Press. “We survivors wanted to hear Macron officially apologize to us. I was really disappointed.”
The opposition Democratic Party of Rwanda platform tweeted that it wanted to “honestly apologize” and “promise to pay reparations” to slaughter the victims prior to Macron’s speech.
Macron arrived in Kigali early Thursday and met Kagame at the presidential residence. Macron then visited the monument to the enthusiastic 1994 massacre, where Hutu militants killed primarily the minority Tutsi and the moderate Hutu who tried to protect them.
Macron’s trip is based on a series of French efforts to restore relations between the two countries since the 2017 election.
Two reports, completed in March and April, investigating France’s role in genocide helped clarify the path to Macron’s visit. This is due to the French President for the first time in 11 years.
The last visit by Nicolas Sarkozy in 2010 was the first visit by a French leader after the 1994 massacre hunted down the relationship. The Rwandan government and genocide survivors often accused France of training and arming the militias and former government forces that led the genocide.
Kagame, the de facto leader of Rwanda since 1994 and president since 2000, has been praised abroad for restoring order, advancing economic development and medical care. However, rights watchers, opponents, and others have accused Kagame of strict control.