President Cyril Ramaphosa arrives in Kigali, Rwanda, to attend Sunday’s commemoration of genocide against the Tutsis.
Rwanda is marking 30 years since millions of Tutsis were killed in 1994.
Several heads of state and government will be part of the commemoration.
International Relations Minister Naledi Pandor addressing the media in Johannesburg says, “We never asked questions about commemorations when it is holocaust commemoration but when it is genocide in Rwanda we pose the questions. Countries can decide what it is they commemorate. Just as we on March 21 commemorate the events of Sharpeville. I believe that given what the world is experiencing today with the onslaught against the people of Palestine it is important that we mark in very direct terms the question of Genocide.”
Ramaphosa-Kagame meeting
President Ramaphosa also meets his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame.
The meeting between the two leaders will focus on the relationship between South Africa and Rwanda.
They will also discuss the current security instability in the Eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
South Africa is part of the SADC force that is deployed in that region to stop the fighting between DRC government forces and the M23 rebel forces.
The issue of Rwandans who have fled the country and are currently in South Africa will also be discussed.
Bilateral relations between South Africa and Rwanda were established in 1995 and were further strengthened by the signing of a General Cooperation Agreement in 1999.
Since the inauguration of the Joint Cooperation Commission in Pretoria on 22 June 2001, significant progress has been recorded in areas such as institution and capacity building, health, and education.
South African companies have also invested in Rwanda.
