French President Emmanuel Macron，2nd left, and French European and Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, right, arrive at the Kigali Genocide Memorial, where some 250,000 victims of the massacres are buried, in Kigali on May 27, 2021. (PHOTO / AFP)
President Emmanuel Macron acknowledged France’s “responsibilities” in the 1994 Rwanda genocide while denying France was an “accomplice” in the events that left 800,000 people dead, in a bid to end years of strained relations.
“As I stand with you today, with humility and respect, I recognize the magnitude of our responsibilities,” Macron said Thursday in Kigali, where he’s meeting with Rwandan President Paul Kagame. France is recognizing “the suffering it has inflicted on the Rwandan people by allowing silence to prevail for too long.”
Together we will write a new page in our relationship with Rwanda and Africa, Macron said in a tweet on Thursday as he left for Kigali, where he will meet with Rwandan President Paul Kagame. The two are scheduled to hold a joint press briefing
ALSO READ: Rwanda report blames France for its role in 1994 genocide
Macron is the second French President to visit Rwanda after Nicolas Sarkozy in 2010. Last month, law firm Levy Firestone Muse LLP released a report saying France bears significant responsibility for the genocide because it helped facilitate the massacre by arming, advising, and protecting the Rwandan government at the time. A Macron-backed panel earlier absolved France but found the country’s colonial attitude had impeded its judgment in the build up to the killings.
The move to mend relations with Rwanda is part of a broader effort by Macron to address criticism of France’s history in Africa, where it governed countries including Ivory Coast, Senegal, Mali and Algeria. He has supported West African efforts to split from the French-backed regional currency, and the return of African relics and artifacts taken during the colonial era.
READ MORE: Macron calls for probe into French role in Rwanda genocide
Macron has also supported French businesses seeking opportunities beyond French-speaking West Africa. That’s emboldened companies such as Total SE, Vinci SA and Orange SA to increase investment or sign new deals in Uganda, Mozambique, Kenya, Tanzania and Ethiopia.
