Source: Calgary Herald
From the horrific violence of the 1994 genocide to international recognition for its work in tackling social problems, from political pariah to democratically elected republic, it's been a heady trajectory for the central African nation of Rwanda.

In May, its president, Paul Kagame, was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters at Iowa's William Penn University.

A few days before that, Kagame's government received a UN award for its progress in addressing gender-based violence, in particular, its innovative one-stop centres for women - single facilities that combine medical, reproductive, child and social services with shelters and legal counselling, all under one roof.

Rwanda's parliament is the only one in the world where women outnumber men. By law, one-third of all representatives in Rwanda must be female; in actuality, the number elected was 56 per cent.

Rwanda has a bigger commitment to international peacekeeping than does Canada, with more than 500 Rwandan police officers serving on missions in Darfur, Sudan, Haiti, Ivory Coast and Sierra Leone and thousands more serving under UN auspices.

Which raises the question: Why has the Canadian government cut off aid to Rwanda?

Earlier this year, Rwanda was removed from the list of nations eligible for direct, bilateral assistance. This was particularly surprising considering Canada's connections to the country.

It was under Canadian General Romeo Dallaire that the UN sent a token force to oversee peace talks in the lead up to the 1994 genocide. Under the racially charged ideology of Hutu Power, upwards of a million Tutsis, along with moderate Hutus, were systematically butchered over the course of 100 horrific days.

The UN peacekeepers were never given the mandate - or the manpower - to intervene, and Dallaire remains haunted by the failure of the international community to prevent the tragedy. The killings only stopped when the armed forces of the Rwandan Patriotic Front captured the capital and toppled the country's genocidal government.

In the aftermath of the genocide, an elected parliament was established.

War crimes were tried. The death penalty was suspended. (To have executed everyone who took part would have required another genocide, and Rwanda had seen enough killing.)

In much the same way that Germany banned Nazi ideology and Nazi symbols in the wake of the Holocaust, Hutu Power and its related ethnically based ideologies were outlawed.

July 4 was Rwanda's national Liberation Day, marking the overthrow of the genocidal regime.

It is a common - and all too accurate - lament that international aid to Africa doesn't work. In fact, it may even make things worse, propping up criminal re-gimes and undercutting local business initiatives. In Rwanda, however, we see a different story unfolding.

Calgary teacher Christine Magill specializes in genocide history and has been to Rwanda on several occasions. The transformation she's seen is remarkable: "Rwanda is a country that has taken control of its own destiny. The government directs the use of aid money very effectively, and most well-functioning and organized projects in Rwanda are grassroots, and founded by Rwandans themselves - where they decide what issues and projects need to be addressed."

Canadian taxpayers have every right to be cynical about having their money flushed away in ineffective, or even counterproductive, aid programs. In Rwanda, the money is invested in long-term social programs, infrastructure and education.

Although tiny and landlocked, Rwanda lies in the crossroads of the continent, and is rapidly positioning itself to become "the Singapore of Africa."

If history tells us anything, it is this: the western model doesn't work in Africa. And Rwanda, very consciously, has turned to Asia instead, and has looked at how countries like South Korea and Japan have recovered after crippling disasters and conflicts.

Social mobilization, a strong work ethic, a sense of shared responsibilities, an emphasis on group unity over personal entitlements: the Rwandan miracle, as it is known, is very much in the Asian tradition.

The Economist magazine ranks Rwanda as one of the most business friendly countries in the world, one "blessedly free of red tape," noting as well that "no African country has done more to curb corruption. Ministers have been jailed for it. Transparency International, a watchdog, reckons Rwanda is less graft-ridden than Greece or Italy."

Which you'd think would play well to the Conservative's pro-business, progrowth agenda. But no.

The Canadian government has cut off its bilateral aid to Rwanda at the very moment that such aid was having its biggest return on investment.

Canada has emerged from the current global recession as one of the most stable, sound economies in the world. We should take pride in that. We should also note that it comes with certain responsibilities. It is our turn to lead, our turn to make a real and lasting impact on the world. If anyone can afford it, we can.

In his commencement speech at William Penn University, Kagame noted how Rwanda's social and economic progress is often described as a "miracle."

But he also stressed there is "no magic formula . . . The key to our transformation lies with the individual Rwandan citizen and in their interactions with each other. In their capacity to find common ground and a common cause and purpose, to come together in pursuit of peace and national prosperity. There has not been a Rwandan miracle as such, but millions of them."

It would be nice if, this time around, Canada put itself on the right side of history. 

• Rwanda