Report on Citizenship Law: Rwanda 4.5. The fate of foreigners with Rwandan origin: time for a backdoor? The history of Rwandans as people on the move has caused them to settle everywhere in the region. This has made them one of the language-based tribes in the eastern Africa region. Unfortunately, not all host countries give them the acceptance they deserve, partly because of the openness of the Rwandan nationality law of 2004, which opened room for recovery if people return to settle. In 2008, this window was closed in recognition of the problem faced by persons with Rwandan origin. This was further reinforced in the revised constitution of 2015, which adopted one form of nationality recovery: by application. Illustrative of this is the case of Congolese Banyarwanda, comprising de facto Congolese citizens whose land was demarcated as part of the Congo Free State in 1885 and immigrants who originate from Rwanda. Among them is a group of Tutsi nomads, also known as Banyamulenge, who left Rwanda in the 17th Century.102 Since they settled, recognition of them as Congolese has been on and off, putting them in regular confrontations with other indigenous communities who never accepted them as Congolese. With the change of government in Rwanda in 1994, those who decided to return to Rwanda automatically recovered their Rwandan nationality without further ado. When the Rwandan nationality law of 2004 opened room for nationality recovery for people with Rwandan origin, the Congolese officials used this provision to further sideline those who had decided to remain in the Congo.103 A similar case is that of the Banyarwanda of Uganda, who migrated and settled in Uganda a long time before independence in 1962. Of this population of close to 2 million people, about half are descendants of migrants who came to Uganda in search of a better life between 1920 and 1960. Slightly more than a third became Ugandan as a result of land demarcation in 1910, while the smallest group, which accounts for less than 15%, is composed of refugees and their descendants who arrived after 1959.104 Despite being a recognised tribe under the Ugandan Constitution and listed as the sixth largest ethnic group, the Banyarwanda are still looked on as illegitimate and associated with Rwanda.105 During the regime of Obote,106 the Banyarwanda were continually reminded that they were not Ugandans. In 1982, thousands of them were expelled and their properties were looted. After 1994, many returned to Rwanda to settle while others decided to stay permanently in Uganda, enduring a life of non-acceptance and fear of being expelled at any time.107 Those who returned to Rwanda to settle before the adoption of dual citizenship in Uganda automatically lost their Ugandan citizenship. Similarly, very few of those who returned to Rwanda to settle after the enactment of the 2009 Citizenship and Immigration Control Act fulfilled the notification requirement to maintain their Ugandan Citizenship. Dual nationality has been allowed in Uganda since the amendment of its constitution in 2005, and the Citizenship and Immigration Control Act of 1999 was amended to reflect this feature in 2009. It enables Ugandans who have acquired foreign nationalities to retain their 102 See Ruhimbika, M. (2001: 45). See also Manby (2018: 223). See Vlassenroot, K. (2002: 505). 104 Watson, C. (1991: 6). 105 Winter, R. (1983: 54). 106 Milton Obote served as Prime Minister of Uganda from 1962 to 1966 and as President of the Republic of Uganda from 1966 to 1971 and from 1980 to 1985. He was replaced by Yoweri Museveni following a 5-year struggle which ended in 1986. 107 See Adisa, J. (1996: 17). See also Jason C (1984: 29). 103 RSCAS/GLOBALCIT-CR 2020/10 - © 2020 Author(s) 21