Kigali is in discussions with Washington to host migrants expelled from the United States who have a criminal record and have served their time.
This information from several American media outlets has been confirmed by the Rwandan Minister of Foreign Affairs Olivier Nduhungirehe.
“Discussions with the United States are still in their initial phase ” explains Minister Nduhungirehe
According to him, there is still time before reaching an agreement with Washington.
For Rwandan human rights activist Rene Claudel Mugenzi, if such an agreement is reached, the primary goal is to restore Rwanda’s image that has been tarnished due to the war in eastern DR Congo.
“Many countries have stopped their aid to Rwanda because of its support for the M23 rebels, and Rwanda therefore needs another source of income to try to replace what it has lost due to these sanctions,” explains Rene Claudel Mugenzi.
Another example of this image cleansing campaign, is the recent signing of new partnerships with football teams that display “Visit Rwanda” on their jerseys, which aim would equally also be economic.
“Rwanda therefore needs another source of income” says Rene Claudel Mugenzi
Rwanda’s foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe points out that this kind of agreement “is not something new for us.” Kigali has indeed already signed another such agreement with the United Kingdom to host thousands of asylum seekers.
London had even paid hundreds of millions of euros to Rwanda before the new British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, abandoned the agreement.
The Inteternational federation for Human Rights (FIDH) express concerns
Julia Doublait, deputy head of the Africa office of the FIDH, says, “Already because we have the impression that this is a deal that allows for the commodification of the lives of people who are generally in difficulty. In the case of the United Kingdom, this was really regarding asylum seekers, people who have fled persecution. We continue to question, or even more so with the situation in eastern DR Congo, about the sufficient guarantees that Rwanda can provide.”
A report by CNN says, Washington could deport migrants with a criminal record who have served their prison time in the United States to Rwanda, and According to CBS, another American media outlet, Africans could be on the list and Rwanda would provide them with social support and assistance in finding local employment.
CBS further reports that discussions are underway, in the coming days regarding financial compensation.
The United Nations Refugee agency warns.
The UN refugee agenc y has warned that there is a risk that some migrants sent to Rwanda may be returned to the countries they fled from, but Kigali denies these allegations and accuses the UNHCR of lying.
A first Iraqi national has already been deported to Rwanda. According to CNN, a federal judge temporarily prevented the Trump administration last month from deporting individuals to countries other than their own without prior notification and the opportunity to contest the decision.
The announcement of these discussions comes as Kinshasa and Kigali look forward to reaching a peace agreement in eastern DR Congo as the United States launched their first strategic bilateral dialogue on Monday April 28th
