French president Emmanuel Macron who began a visit to Rwanda on Thursday has personally apologised over his country’s role in the 1994 genocide.
The French leader arrived in the Rwandan capital on Thursday in what diplomatic sources say is part of both countries’ effort to improve relations which had been strained in the years following the genocide in which some 800, 000, Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed in a 100-day pogrom 27 years ago.
However, Macron’s apology while personal may not necessarily reflect the official position of the French state which had repeatedly denied a damning role in the genocide.
Sources say this may not change.
Rwandan president Paul Kagame had always insisted on France acknowledging its role in Africa’s last genocide of the twentieth century.
With the exception of Macron, successive French presidents had stopped short of apologising over France’s role which ostensibly involved backing the genocidaires.
Macron’s apology comes a week after Kagame’s participation at a Paris summit on managing Africa’s debt.
During the event, Mr Macron had revealed that he had agreed with his Rwandan counterpart to rejig relations between Kigali and Paris, soured over the decades since the genocide.
One of the highlights of Mr Macron’s visit to Kigali is to visit the genocide memorial and deliver a speech whose theme will be taking relations between the two countries to the next level.
CU/as/APA