“President Paul Kagame has made sweeping changes in the upper echelons of the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF), appointing Gen Jean-Bosco Kazura as the RDF Chief of Defence Staff. Kazura, who was also promoted to four-star General from Major General, replaces Gen Patrick Nyamvumba, who was last evening appointed to Cabinet and named Minister for Internal Security. Nyamvumba had served as Chief of Defence Staff since June 2013” (James Munyaneza – ‘Gen Kazura replaces Gen Nyamvumba as Kagame shakes up top military brass ‘ 05.11.2019, The New Times).
President Paul Kagame shows that he appoints people of loyalty around him. The one his appointed as the Chief of Defence Staff yesterday is a fellow officer, which have been involved in military operations all since the 1990s. His been a part of the genocide, as someone whose killed civilians and also later gotten promoted by him, again and again.
Now, the man whose been part of Rwanda’s exploits in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). His also been alleged part of assassination plots. Also for a little while he was in-charge of the football association of Rwanda. But that didn’t last long, but since his a loyal cadre of Kagame. His since then redeemed himself.
To show who he is, by not just my words. Show it from elsewhere.
UN Appointment 2013:
“Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today announced the appointment of Major General Jean Bosco Kazura as Force Commander for the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA). Major General Kazura, of Rwanda, is to assume command on 1 July, when, in accordance with UN Security Council resolution 2100 (2013), and subject to review by the Council, the transfer of authority is to take place from the African-led International Support Mission in Mali (AFISMA) to the UN multidimensional mission” (…) “From October 2010, Mr. Kazura served as Principal Staff Officer (J3) in the Rwandan Defence Force Headquarters in Kigali. He previously held brigade and division-level commands (1998-2003), following which he served as the Deputy Force Commander and Chief Military Observer of the African Union Mission in Sudan. Mr. Kazura has also held staff positions at formation-level headquarters, and also served as Senior Military and Security Adviser to President Paul Kagame of Rwanda (2009-2010)” (United Nations – ‘ Ban appoints Rwandan General as military chief of UN integrated Mali mission’ 17.06.2013).
Armed attack on civilians during the genocide in 1994:
“Another man, Jean Bosco Kazura, allegedly in charge of soldiers who killed civilians east of Kigali at the height of the genocide and at Gabiro, became the peacekeeping chief of the UN’s force in Mali in 2013” (Zahra Moloo – ‘The Crimes of Rwandan Patriotic Front’, April 2019).
“The sources said Kazura and his colleague General Patrick Nyamvumba, the former commander of the UN/African Union peacekeeping force in Darfur, directed highly organized operations during the 1994 genocide in the prefectures of Byumba and Kibungo—areas controlled by Kagame’s Tutsi-led army as early as April 1994, at the beginning of the genocide. During those operations, Rwandan Patriotic Army soldiers under Nyamvumba and Kazura’s command hunted down and slaughtered thousands of unarmed Hutu civilians—men, women and children—according to testimony. These operations, known as “sweeping” or “mopping up,” were conducted in communes that had already been cleared of soldiers loyal to the former government and Hutu extremists known as Interahamwe” (Judi Rever – ‘Rwandan General Accused of Supervising Death Squad Leaves UN’ 13.12.2014, Foreign Policy Journal).
As you see, his been an a high ranking figure for long now. Someone whose been in close association of Kagame. A man Kagame trusts. That might be because he became the translator-interpreter after the “accident” of Lieutenant Rwagasana. Whose was claimed to be murdered by Captain Jimmy Muyango.
I am not shocked seeing him put there, but there is a saying, you are who your friends are or your friends tell who you are. In this regard, the sort of men you appoint, like Gen. Kazuria. Shows what sort of man Kagame really is.
We can see little how he thinks, as he addressed the UN Security Council like this: “As I said before, I think we need to continue to push the movements to be accountable in the areas they control. They claim that they cannot understand how our troops are being killed. Indeed, the movements say that they control an area, but when our people are killed they say that they do not know what happened. I do not think this is acceptable” (United Nations Security Council – 7275th Meeting, 9th October 2014).
We can clearly see, the sort of man he is and this is a man that Kagame keeps close company. If that isn’t message. Nothing is, but also his close associate that he also appointed Gen Patrick Nyamvumba. Seems like brothers-in-arms. That shows by their history too. Peace.
MinBane 