Paul Rusesabagina, the man who inspired the movie “Hotel Rwanda,” has been reunited with his family in Texas after spending more than 900 days in a Rwandan jail. Rusesabagina was arrested in August 2020, accused of terrorism-related offenses, a charge he denies.
Rusesabagina’s daughter, Carine Kanimba, has been a vocal advocate for her father’s release. Kanimba, who lives in the United States, has been leading a campaign to raise awareness about her father’s case and to pressure the Rwandan government to release him. “Dad has just arrived in San Antonio, Texas. Thank you to everyone who worked so hard to bring him. Our family is finally reunited”, Kanimba said in a tweet.
The Lantos Foundation, a human rights organization that had been advocating for Rusesabagina’s release, also welcomed the news. “We are thrilled to hear that Paul Rusesabagina has been reunited with his family,” Katrina Lantos Swett, the organization’s president, said in a statement. ” We hope that this joyous development for Mr. Rusesabagina will offer hope for those still held unjustly at the hands of authoritarian leaders.
The United States government also welcomed the news. In a statement, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the US “rejoices in the news of Paul Rusesabagina’s release and return to his family.” Blinken added that the US “has been closely monitoring Mr. Rusesabagina’s case, and we continue to call for the release of all those who are being held arbitrarily or unjustly in Rwanda.”
Rwanda’s government, however, has defended Rusesabagina’s detention and trial, saying that he was not a political prisoner but rather someone who had committed crimes. Rwanda’s Foreign Minister, Vincent Biruta, said in a statement that Rusesabagina “received a fair trial, and his guilt was proven beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Mrs. Stephanie Nyombayire, the spokesperson for Rwandan President Paul Kagame, tweeted that the release was “the result of a shared desire to reset the US-Rwanda relationship”.
Rusesabagina, a former hotel manager, gained international fame after he sheltered more than 1,200 people at the Hotel des Mille Collines during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. His story was portrayed in the 2004 film “Hotel Rwanda,” which was nominated for multiple Academy Awards.
In recent years, however, Rusesabagina has been a vocal critic of Rwanda’s government and its president, Paul Kagame, accusing them of human rights abuses and political repression. He has been living in exile in Belgium since 1996.
Rusesabagina’s family and supporters have long argued that his arrest and detention were politically motivated, aimed at silencing a prominent critic of Kagame’s government. They say that Rusesabagina was abducted from Dubai, where he lived, and brought to Rwanda against his will.
Rusesabagina’s release comes after a long legal battle. In December 2020, he was convicted of terrorism-related offenses and sentenced to 25 years in prison. His lawyers argued that he had been denied a fair trial and that his rights had been violated.
In September 2021, however, an appeals court in Rwanda reduced Rusesabagina’s sentence to 20 years and acquitted him of some charges against him. The court also ordered his immediate release, but he was not freed until now.
According to the Lantos Foundation, Rusesabagina’s release is a victory for human rights and justice, but his case has also highlighted the ongoing political repression and human rights abuses in Rwanda. ” The Lantos Foundation commits to continuing our advocacy for many others whose fate still hangs in the balance and who need to know that we stand with them and will not forget them”, the statement said.
The post Hotel Rwanda Hero Rusesabagina Returns to Texas first appeared on The African Gazette.