|
Remarks by Deputy Minister Sue Van Der Merwe at the Farewell
Function in Honour of the Departing Ambassador of Rwanda, His Excellency Mr James
Kimonyo, Sheraton Hotel, Pretoria, 12 April 2007 Your Excellency, High Commissioner
Kimonyo
Dean of the Diplomatic Corps, Ambassador Alzubeidi
Excellencies
and Colleagues
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen The diplomatic
life is one characterised by this making of new friends and the inevitable sad
farewells. As representatives of our Presidents, countries and people,
we serve at their wish and it is my belief that Ambassador Kimonyo has performed
his duties with distinction. While we will miss the opportunity to have known
the Ambassador better, the short time our paths have crossed have borne much fruit
and we wish him all the best in his new assignment as Ambassador to the United
States of America. As you depart the continent you will not only represent
the hopes and aspirations of the Rwandan but those of the entire African people
for the creation of a better Africa in a better world. Since the normalisation
of our bilateral relations, the relations between our two countries have been
on an upward growth path. With your arrival in South Africa in 2005, Ambassador
you continued where your predecessor left off in facilitating our growing relations,
which culminated in the 4th session of the South Africa-Rwanda Joint Co-operating
Commission in Kigali last year. The Joint Commission is a key strategic
toll for promoting relations between our countries. The leadership of the Commission
by our Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Her Excellency Dr Dlamini Zuma and Dr Charles
Murigande respectively, underscores high-level engagement as the cornerstones
of our partnership. Furthermore, both Presidents Mbeki and Kagame share
common views to issues that confront our peoples, continent and the globe. They
both share a vision for the renewal of our continent and seek to do this through
influencing and persuading others through dialogue rather than confrontation with
a multilateral and rules-based international system. Through the tireless
efforts of our leaders, Africa is now firmly entrenched on the global agenda and
we are always ready to stand up and be counted. As we strive towards the
renewal of our continent and making this a truly African century, we are presented
with an unprecedented opportunity to contribute towards a change in global thinking
about our people and our continent. We have a lot indeed to share and contribute
as well as a lot of good stories to tell. It is also worth mentioning that
Rwanda was the first African country to submit itself to the African Peer Review
Mechanism and was lauded as having ratified almost all the standards and codes
and in doing so demonstrated a good example of political will to adhere to the
rule of law and good political governance. Ambassador, I hope that
you will not forget us and will continue in your future endeavours to support
joint efforts between our two countries to contribute to the creation of a better
world. You have already left a strong foundation from which you successor can
build from and we look forward to a continuation in the relations between our
two countries. As you prepare to leave, I want you to know that South Africa
regards you as a friend and we look forward to seeing you, hopefully as a tourist
to get the opportunity to explore more of our country which your short stay may
not have afforded you. Excellencies, Colleagues, Ladies and Gentlemen, please
join me in a toast to His Excellency, Ambassador Kimonyo.
| 
