Will Uhuru solve Rwanda-Uganda border row

President Uhuru is said to have gone to Rwanda on a short notice where he met president Kagame and later came back to to Kenya with a stop over to Uganda where he met president Museveni.

Rwanda, a small landlocked country, is served by two major transport corridors — the Central Corridor that runs from Dar es Salaam through Tanzania’s heartland, and the Northern Corridor that runs from Mombasa through Kenya and Uganda.

About 80 percent of Rwanda’s import cargo is handled through the Dar port, but its major exports — minerals, tea and coffee — go through Uganda to the port of Mombasa.

However just recently the Rwandan President Paul Kagame was in Tanzania on a two-day visit, seen as a quest to firm up relations with Dar in the wake of escalating tensions with Uganda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Rwanda-Uganda border

President Kagame, who arrived in Dar es Salaam on Thursday, held private talks with President John Magufuli, in what is perceived as a quest to have the Tanzanian leader mediate in the security and commercial dispute between Kampala and Kigali.

It was his visit t hat made President Kenyatta travel to Rwanda on a what was termed as a short visit and held private talks with his host, H.E. Paul Kagame.

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A diplomatic feud between Rwanda and Uganda has stopped most cross-border movements between the two countries, a situation that has had a huge effect on daily life for families in both countries.

A row between the two neighbouring countries has been simmering for the past two years but seems to have escalated when Rwanda closed its borders on Wednesday.

Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame are intrinsically linked.

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They helped each other come to power through rebellions.

But they have fallen out over the years, including facing off in military clashes during the 1990s war in the Democratic Republic of Congo when the two countries supported rival rebel groups trying to oust the then President Laurent Kabila.

When the first cargo trucks were prevented from crossing into Rwanda last week, the Rwandan government released a statement saying this was because of construction work at the busy border post of Katuna, or Gatuna as it is called in Rwanda.

Trucks parked at the border

But that did not explain why other crossings were affected.

It soon emerged that there were deeper grievances.

Rwanda says it warned its nationals not to enter Uganda because some of its citizens had been detained and in some cases tortured, and then deported without consular support or due process.

It says more than 900 Rwandans have been deported since January 2018 and that 106 are in detention.Mr Sezibera has accused Uganda of supporting rebel groups trying to oust the government in Kigali.

Uganda has dismissed the allegations from Rwanda as false.

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The government has not spelt out any specific grievances against Rwanda, although there is speculation in the Ugandan press that Rwanda has tried to infiltrate Uganda’s security apparatus.

A prominent case being pointed to is that of Gen Kale Kayihura, who served as Uganda’s police chief for more than a decade.

He was arrested in June last year and later charged alongside nine others, including senior police officers, a Rwandan army officer, and a Congolese national, with aiding and abetting the kidnap and repatriation of Rwandan nationals.

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All the individuals deny the allegations.

For the moment trucks from other countries can pass through the border but they are facing delays and possibly extra costs in order to reach their final destination.

On the main highway leading to Rwanda there were visibly fewer trucks and trailers – this could be a sign that exporters are waiting for things to get back to normal before sending in more cargo towards the border.

The biggest impact for the moment will be on Ugandan businesses which have not been able to sell goods to Rwandans, and Rwandans who cannot access food, education and healthcare in Uganda.

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