French president condemned for declining invitation despite what has been seen as a fresh start in relations between the two nations
French President Emmanuel Macron visits the village of Cozzano on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica, April 4 2019. Picture: LUDOVIC MARIN/AFPWhen a smattering of leaders gather this weekend in Kigali to mark the 25th anniversary of Rwanda’s genocide there will be one conspicuous absence: French President Emmanuel Macron.
Forty-one-year-old Macron has presented himself as the face of a new generation of French politician unburdened by the country’s murky past in Africa. But he turned down the invitation from President Paul Kagame, disappointing those hoping for a grand gesture of reconciliation on the French side. Then French president Francois Mitterrand had backed the Hutu-led government in Francophone Rwanda — a former Belgian colony — to counter the influence of neighbouring Anglophone Uganda, home of exiled Rwandan Tutsi rebels.
The relationship hit turbulence again, however, under Socialist president Francois Hollande, but Macron’s election set the stage for a new chapter. During a visit to Paris in 2018 Kagame appeared impressed by the young Frenchman, later praising him for taking a “fresher”, less paternalistic approach to Africa than his predecessors.More ‘pragmatic’ approach
Analysts attributed his decision not to travel to Kigali to ongoing divisions in France over whether Paris really has a case to answer over the genocide.
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