Résumé
By soliciting African leaders' views on the crisis in
Rwanda I was able to establish areas of consensus on policy and
express our support for their efforts. There was broad
agreement that Rwanda is a human rights catastrophe of the
first magnitude; that there is a need for an enhanced UN
presence with a new mission, centered on assuring unimpeded
access to humanitarian assistance and civilian protection; that
there should be a UN human rights inquiry as a means, in part,
of halting the spiral of retribution; and that a ceasefire is
critically important although it is unlikely to end all the
killings. My stop in Burundi allowed me to encourage the
interim leadership in their efforts to maintain calm. I
believe Rwanda is a test of our commitment to universal
principles of human rights.
Citation
UNCLASSIFIED
417
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Washington, D. C. 20520
May 9, 1994
INFORMATION MEMORANCO
CONFIDENTIAL
TO:
The Acting Secretary
THROUGH: C - Mr. Wirth
FROM:
HA - John Shattuckj5T
SUBJECT: My Trip to East and Central Africa
SUMMARY
By soliciting African leaders' views on the crisis in
Rwanda I was able to establish areas of consensus on policy and
express our support for their efforts. There was broad
agreement that Rwanda is a human rights catastrophe of the
first magnitude; that there is a need for an enhanced UN
presence with a new mission, centered on assuring unimpeded
access to humanitarian assistance and civilian protection; that
there should be a UN human rights inquiry as a means, in part,
of halting the spiral of retribution; and that a ceasefire is
critically important although it is unlikely to end all the
killings. My stop in Burundi allowed me to encourage the
interim leadership in their efforts to maintain calm. I
believe Rwanda is a test of our commitment to universal
principles of human rights.
DISCUSSION
My trip to East and Central Africa was an opportunity to
outline privately and publicly our major goals in addressing
the human rights catastrophe in Rwanda, and to convey U.S.
support to Rwanda's neighbors. The African leaders with whom I
consulted were feeling somewhat abandoned by the UN and the
West in the wake of the UNAMIR drawdown. By soliciting their
views on the crisis in Rwanda on a trip designated as a
presidential mission, I was able to establish broad areas of
consensus on policy and prepare the way for the steps we are
now considering taking.
There are important areas of agreement among those with
whom I met:
CONFIDENTIAL
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE
REVIEW AUTHORITY: PAUL W HILBURN
DATE/CASE ID: 26 JUL 2006 200103014
UNCLASSIFIED
UNCLASSIFIED
CONFIDENTIAL
- 2 • Human Riahts Catastrophe: Rwanda is a human rights
crisis of the greatest magnitude. OAU Secretary General Salim
Salim spoke of how agonizing Rwanda has been to him personally,
adding that the government shows no remorse. Tanzanian PM
Malacela described the, massacres as shameful to Africa and said
the government cannot deny responsibility. President Museveni
of Uganda simply described the killings as genocide. A recent
ICRC document said of Rwanda, "Never before in its 131-year
history...has the ICRC seen at first hand such unmitigated
hatred leading to the extermination of a significant part of
the civilian population."
• Expansion and New Mission for UNAMIR: There is a need
for an enhanced UN presence and a new mission for UNAMIR to
provide unimpeded access to humanitarian assistance and
protection and/or evacuation to affected civilians. Other
possible objectives for such a presence could include human
rights monitoring (as in Cambodia or El Salvador), ceasefire
monitoring, and encouragement of dialogue between the warring
parties.
. 0 Human Rights Inquiry: An international' human rights
inquiry into the responsibility for the massacres must be
initiated. President Museveni saw such an investigation as a
way of breaking the spiral of retaliation by providing a legal
and impartial mechanism to evaluate the facts. At minimum, he
said, those guilty should be denied public office. OAU
Secretary General Salim described such an effort as a way to
"assuage the feelings" of the victims by showing international
concern. He stressed the universality of human rights when he
said Rwanda is not just an African problem but a universal
one. Human Rights High Commissioner Ayala-Lasso's trip to
Rwanda this week, while not meant to launch an investigation as
such, will send a strong international message. I have spoken
with Ayala Lasso multiple times over the last weeks; I think
the USG can take quiet satisfaction for having encouraged his
decision to travel to Rwanda, despite his own and
Boutros-Ghali's initial reservations. In addition to
stimulating the Ayala-Lasso mission, we are working closely
with other governments to ensure an emergency session on Rwanda
of the UN Human Rights Commission by the middle of this month.
• Ceasefire: While a ceasefire between Rwandan government
forces and the Rwandan Patriotic Front is of critical
importance, it is still unlikely to end all the killings. It
would, however, change the dynamic so that further steps Might
be taken to curtail the dimensions of the human rights
catastrophe. Both sides have agreed, in principle, to a
CONFIDENTIAL
UNCLASSIFIED
UNCLASSIFIED
CONFIDENTIAL
- 3 ceasefire. The best hope of achieving it in the next few days
lies with General Dallaire who can convene high-ranking
military leaders of both sides to discuss details. I spoke
with Dallaire's staff by phone to encourage such a role and
also talked to both RPF and government figures to encourage
compliance.
• Burundi. My brief stop in Burundi was meant to
encourage the interim leadership to continue their efforts to
promote calm. All expressed their appreciation for American
support, both in the democratization process and during the
crisis of the last several months. The interim President and
Prime Minister agreed that an expanded UN humanitarian and.,
refugee-protection mission for Rwanda is essential, but
cautioned against the destabilizing effect in Burundi of an
"intervention force" in Rwanda.
I have come back persuaded that Rwanda is a test of our
commitment to universal principles of human rights. I strongly
believe the international community must demonstrate the same
concern for Rwanda as we show in Bosnia lest we weaken
universal standards.
CONFIDENTIAL
UNCLASSIFIED
