UN mulls allegations against Rwandan general of Darfur force
August 18, 2007 (UNITED NATIONS) — The United Nations is seriously considering allegations of human rights violations against a Rwandan general, nominated as deputy commander for the new U.N.-African Union force in Darfur, a U.N. official said on Saturday.
The African Union has approved Rwandan Maj. Gen. Karenzi Karake for the post but the United Nations has not yet confirmed it, despite pressure from Rwanda, which fields some 2,000 of the 7,000 AU troops now in Darfur.
“We are aware of these allegations and we take them seriously,” the U.N. official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “We are consulting with the African Union and the government of Rwanda on the matter.”
The joint U.N.-African Union operation aims to protect civilians in Sudan’s western Darfur region, where more than 2.5 million people have lost their homes and an estimated 200,000 have died in the past four years.
The Brussels-based United Democratic Forces, an opposition group, has accused Karake of supervising extra judicial killings of civilians before and after the Tutsi-led Rwanda Patriotic Front rebels took power in Kigali following the genocide. In 1994 militant Hutus killed some 800,000 Rwandans, mainly Tutsis.
Rwanda’s U.N. ambassador, Joseph Nsengimana, was quoted on the allAfrica.com Web site as saying that those raising the allegations had simply run out of ideas to complain about.
“The whole world and the diplomats at the U.N., the Sudanese government and people of Darfur have appreciated the role that our troops in Darfur have played,” Nsengimana said.
“Why can’t these people develop in their thinking because they seem to be out of touch with the way Rwanda is changing?” he was quoted as telling the BBC’s Great Lakes service.
No immediate comment from Kigali was available.
The U.N. official stressed that rules and regulations require that all U.N. personnel, especially those in leadership roles, “must embody the highest levels of professionalism, integrity, respect for diversity and accountability.”
“The United Nations depends on member states to vet all candidates, presumably including with regard to allegations of human rights abuses,” he said.
The official said the United Nations also welcomed “any information that organizations or individuals may have regarding such allegations against candidates for U.N. appointments.”
The U.N. Security Council last month authorized up to 19,555 military personnel and 6,432 civilian police, in addition to the 10,000 peacekeepers are currently in southern Sudan to monitor a peace agreement between Khartoum and former rebels.
Karake, 46, has been Chairman of the Military Tribunal of Rwanda since January 2006. Before that, he held several senior positions in the Rwandan Army.
(Reuters)