ESWATINI’S PACT WITH AFRICA’S POWERFUL ARMY

MBABANE – Eswatini signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on defence cooperation agreements with one of the powerful armies in Africa.

It is also one of the effective armies in the world. This is none other than the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF). The RDF is so powerful and highly equipped that it can participate in combat or peacekeeping mission without any assistance from the troops from the Southern African Development Community (SADC). According to a statement published on the Rwandan Government website, Kigali is Africa’s most active troop-contributing country. It is also the fourth most active worldwide. It has nearly 6 000 soldiers and police committed to the United Nations (UN) peacekeeping missions.

It is the third largest police contributor to UN peacekeeping operations. Rwandan peacekeepers are engaged in UN mission in South Sudan and multidimensional integrated stabilisation mission in the Central African Republic (CAR). President Paul Kagame’s State says its peacekeepers only protect civilians, maintain peace and security in CAR, and run a level II hospital. Rwanda is situated in East Africa, but is currently in a peacekeeping mission in Mozambique, where SADC has withdrawn its troops. Recently, Kigali deployed its army independently of the UN or African Union (AU).

Thembinkosi Dlamini, the Executive Director of the Coordinating Assembly of Non-Governmental Organisations (CANGO), said Rwanda is a democracy that is expected to share knowledge with Eswatini on how armies, police and Correctional officers observe human rights. He said CANGO accepted the pact on condition the Rwandan army and other security forces would make it clear during exchange programmes that torture in prisons and during arrests or interrogations were totally unacceptable in terms of international law.
“The MoUs signed must emphasise on human rights,” he said.

Regarding the army, the executive director advised that there is a concept known as conscientious objection which they must observe. Conscientious objection entails a military officer opposing to serve in the armed forces on the grounds of moral or religious principles. Pertaining to the police, Dlamini reminded them of Section 10 of the Police Service Act which reads: “A member of the police service shall at all times serve the community and protect all persons against illegal acts, consistent with the high degree of responsibility required by their occupation or profession.”

The army reserved comment on the Pact until such time it was appropriate to talk about it. It must be said Rwanda, in 2020, sent 1 000 troops to fight anti-government rebels in the Central African Republic (CAR). A year later, it sent soldiers to deal with jihadist militants in northern Mozambique, and now has 2 500 troops there. SADC dispatched about 2 000 troops drawn from eight countries, which included Angola, Botswana, DRC, Lesotho, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia.

Violent extremism

They worked in collaboration with the Forces Armadas de Defesa de Mocambique (FADM) and troops from Rwanda deployed there to combat acts of terrorism and violent extremism.
While SADC has withdrawn its troops from Mozambique on the grounds that there is now calm there, Rwandan troops are still there. On August 20, 2024, Major General Vincent Nyakarundi, the RDF Army Chief of Staff, along with Commissioner of Police Vincent B. Sano, the Deputy Inspector General of Police in charge of Operations bid farewell to the Rwandan Security Forces who have been deployed to Mozambique’s northern province of Cabo Delgado.

The force will relieve their colleagues who have been there for the last one year of duty.Over the past three years, Rwanda security forces, in collaboration with Mozambique armed forces, reportedly achieved remarkable success in dismantling Al Sunna Wa Jama (ASWJ) terrorist group from their strongholds defensive position in Mocimbao da Praia and Palma.
It is said that this enabled a significant number of internally displaced people to safely return to their villages. On March 5, 2024, Rwanda asked the AU not to support troops from Southern African countries deployed to fight armed groups in the restive eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Rwanda claimed SADC force would exacerbate the conflict.Rwandan Foreign Minister Vincent Biruta said in a letter to the Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat made public that Rwanda learned ‘with great concern’ about a scheduled meeting of the AU Peace and Security Council, part of whose objectives are to endorse the deployment of the Southern African Development Community Mission in DRC (SAMIDRC) and assess possible support that the AU and other strategic partners could extend to the mission.”

Biruta accused the regional force of fighting alongside the DRC army and other coalition armed groups, which include Rwandan rebels of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).“SAMIDRC, as an offensive force in coalition with these elements, cannot substitute for a political process that has been blocked by the Government of DRC. Therefore, the African Union is urged not to ‘authorise’ or fund SAMIDRC,” the statement said. It said the SAMIDRC supported the DRC Government’s belligerent posture, focusing on a military solution against the spirit of all regional peace initiatives.

As many as 4 000 Rwandan troops with high-tech weaponry were in Congo to fight designated terrorist groups. However, DRC accused Rwanda of supporting a rebel group known as M23.Western governments – including the United States, France, Belgium and the European Union, have called upon Rwanda to withdraw its troops and stop supporting the M23 rebellion.It is in the public domain that the DRC army and M23 have been fighting for control of Goma and the surrounding area for many years. In November 2012, M23 briefly seized Goma — a strategic city with approximately one million people. M23 later withdrew from Goma after an agreement with the government brokered by Uganda.
The M23 (March 23 Movement) is among over 200 armed rebel groups in the mineral-rich eastern DRC. However, analysts say the M23 is the most significant threat to Congo’s sovereignty due to its alleged ties with Rwanda.

Rwanda’s argument

Kigali rejected calls by the USA to withdraw troops and missile systems, saying the military instalments are in the eastern DRC to defend Rwanda from the  Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, an armed rebel group whose members include perpetrators of the 1994 genocide in which approximately one million Tutsi were killed by Hutu militias. Many of them are said to have fled to Congo to avoid facing justice in Rwanda.

It must be said though that the Rwandan Government has never confirmed the presence of its troops on Congolese territory. Meanwhile, before His Majesty the King and Rwandan President Paul Kagame witnessed the signing of the MoUs on August 13, 2024 - a delegation from Eswatini had visited Kigali last year. Army Commander Mashikilisane Fakudze and Prince Sicalo, the Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Defence and National Security were in Rwanda for a four-day visit from August 16-18, 2023.  In Rwanda, they were received at the RDF headquarters by RDF Chief of Defence Staff, Lieutenant General Mubarakh Muganga.They also paid a courtesy call to the Minister of Defence of Republic of Rwanda, Juvénal Marizamunda. This happened before they received presentations on RDF’s transformation journey and regional security dynamics.

Strengthening relations

According to the Rwandan Ministry of Defence’s website, Prince Sicalo remarked: “We look forward to strengthening relations. We hope to sign a memorandum of understanding on technical cooperation in the military sphere.” His Majesty and President Kagame have since formalised the MoUs on Defence, Police Cooperation, Correctional Services and Visa Exemption for holders. It must be said that the MoUs signed last week also cover the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS) and His Majesty’s Correctional Services (HMCS).
The signing ceremony took place at Urugwiro Village when His Majesty King Mswati III paid a courtesy visit to President  Kagame. The Times SUNDAY has established that Rwanda is among the few if not the only peculiar country in the world that is mandated by its Constitution to take part in peacekeeping around the world and in support of affected communities.
This is enshrined in the design and implementation of Rwandan Defence Force’s strategy.

After the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, Rwanda resolved to contribute to peacekeeping and stability whenever it is required. Kigali is motivated by a strong national belief that real friends and partners are the ones by ‘your side in times of need’. It was against this backdrop that the RDF was the first peacekeeping contingent to deploy in Darfur in 2004 and the Central Africa Republic in 2014. This country, currently led by Kagame, has so far participated in different initiatives designed to bring about peaceful settlement of disputes and resolution of conflicts. It must be said that the peace support initiatives, which Rwanda often undertakes, fall in areas of preventive diplomacy, peacemaking, peace building and peacekeeping.  

It has been learnt that Rwanda considers its involvement in peace support operations is not only limited to the deployment of troops. Kigali’s involvement could also take the form of providing good offices, specialist support or facilities.However, for the Government of Rwanda to participate in peace support operations, especially peacekeeping, it has been established that there must be requisite conditions favouring deployment of the defence force. The Times SUNDAY can mention that Kigali does not jump into peacekeeping initiatives unless the conditions are met.
The conditions include:

• The operation should be authorised by the United Nations (UN) Security Council or regional organisations like the African Union (AU).
• The operation should have a clear mandate and exit criteria.
• There should be a realistic possibility of success.
• Participating troops must undertake pre-deployment training since peacekeeping is a secondary function to the defence force and requires specific competences and skill sets.

In his address during the signing ceremony, President Kagame emphasised the importance of implementing the agreements, saying, “That is what creates tangible results on the ground.”
King Mswati III, on his part, said he was looking forward to the full implementation of the signed MoUs. He also expressed the Eswatini Kingdom’s intention to establish cooperation with Rwanda in areas such as agriculture, where Rwanda is well advanced.

The president said: “Your Majesty, I would like to thank you for joining all Rwandans for the inauguration ceremony. We are very grateful for your presence. From this visit, it is evident that Rwanda and Eswatini are very good friends, and we want to keep it that way and even go further.” He added: “Moving forward, we also want to strengthen our bonds of cooperation. That is the purpose of the agreements signed today. Over the years, several high-level visits have been undertaken in Rwanda and Eswatini by our respective delegations.”
President Kagame said this was a good foundation on which to build the relations.“In Rwanda, we are very eager to share with partners and friends, such as Eswatini, our experience in the transformation journey of our country.” President Kagame said. On the other hand, His Majesty the King said: “Our country could benefit from learning your best practices and technology to improve productivity.”

Benefit

In addition, the King emphasised that Rwanda and Eswatini could benefit from collaborations in the tourism sector. Eswatini is a renowned tourist destination because of its rich traditional culture, while Rwanda boasts various tourism sites such as Lake Kivu, gorilla trekking and various volcanic sites. “Our countries are both renowned tourist destinations globally. There is potential for collaboration in the tourism sector, such as creating packages that could attract tourists from around the world,” the King said.

King Mswati III also noted that his visit to Rwanda was aimed at improving business opportunities for both countries and their people. His delegation reportedly visited Irembo, the company behind the government’s one-stop service portal and the economic zones in Kigali. President Kagame said he would reciprocate the visit by going to Eswatini sometime in the near future.

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