Henry Mukasa and Hellen Mukiibi
29 November 2009
Kampala — UGANDA has welcomed the entrance of Rwanda into the Commonwealth, becoming its 54th member. The decision was announced at the end of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Port of Spain, the capital of Trinidad and Tobago.
The Commonwealth Secretary General, Kamalesh Sharma, communicated the decision in a telephone call to Rwandan President Paul Kagame on Saturday.
Foreign affairs minister Sam Kutesa told The New Vision in a telephone interview from Trinidad and Tobago that Uganda did not only support Rwanda but also lobbied for its admission.
"We welcome Rwanda," Kutesa said. "We supported its application and lobbied for it. Our president wrote to the Secretary General of the Commonwealth and also talked to other heads of state to get their approval.
When the case was presented to the summit, everybody supported it."
The minister noted that Rwanda's admission would help harmonise value systems within the region. Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania have been members of the Commonwealth as former British colonies.
Members are subjected to scrutiny over their commitment to democracy, human rights, fairness of electoral processes, rule of law, independence of the judiciary, good governance, freedom of expression, fight against corruption and transparency.
Rwanda's Information minister, Louise Mushikiwabo, said her government was pleased with the decision.
"My government sees this accession as recognition of the tremendous progress this country has made in the last 15 years," she told the Sunday Times.
"Rwandans are ready to seize economic, political, cultural and other opportunities offered by the Commonwealth network."
In Kampala, international relations minister Henry Okello Oryem said Uganda supported Rwanda's bid since its inception in 2007. "We welcome Rwanda's admission just as we welcomed its admission to the East African Community," he said.
"This (admission) would further strengthen the relationship among the EAC countries. The four major countries of the community now don't only share historic background but the vision and ideals of the Commonwealth."
Diplomatic sources said Rwanda's bid to join the group had the support from Britain, Australia, Canada and India, the most influential countries in the group. The writing was on the wall when the Prime Minister of Canada said he would welcome Rwanda.
The bid also reportedly had the backing of Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa and the host country, Trinidad and Tobago.
Rwanda, a former Belgian colony, becomes the second member to be admitted into the Commonwealth without any direct British colonial connection or constitutional link. The other country is Mozambique, which joined in 1995.
A few years ago, Rwanda's cabinet decided that all education will be taught in English instead of French.
Officially, the Rwandan decision was a result of joining the English-speaking East African Community. Rwanda has had frosty relations with France since the 1994 genocide.
The Commonwealth nations have a combined population of more than two billion and annual trade worth $2.8 trillion. Its main focus is on promoting trade, education and good governance among member countries.
President Museveni handed over the chairmanship of the Commonwealth to the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Patrick Manning.
Leaders also agreed that Australia would host CHOGM 2011 while the 2013 and 2015 editions will be held in Sri Lanka and Mauritius respectively.
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