Rwandan court finds 'Hotel Rwanda' film hero guilty in terrorism case
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[September 20, 2021]
By Clement Uwiringiyimana
KIGALI (Reuters) -A Rwandan court on Monday
found Paul Rusesabagina, a one-time hotel manager portrayed as a hero in
a Hollywood film about the 1994 genocide, guilty of being part of a
group responsible for terrorist attacks.
"They should be found guilty for being part of this terror group -
MRCD-FLN," judge Beatrice Mukamurenzi said of 20 defendants including
Rusesabagina. "They attacked people in their homes, or even in their
cars on the road traveling."
The case has had a high profile since Rusesabagina, 67, was arrested
last year on arrival from Dubai after what he described as a kidnapping
by Rwandan authorities.
Since being portrayed by actor Don Cheadle as the hero of the 2004 film
"Hotel Rwanda", Rusesabagina emerged as a prominent critic of President
Paul Kagame, based in the United States. He had denied all the charges
against him, while his supporters called the trial a sham and proof of
Kagame's ruthless treatment of political opponents.
Prosecutors had sought a life sentence on nine charges, including
terrorism, arson, taking hostages and forming an armed rebel group which
he directed from abroad. After the announcement of the initial verdict,
one of the defendants became ill, causing a short recess which delayed
verdicts on other charges and sentencing.
Rusesabagina became a global celebrity after the film, which depicted
him risking his life to shelter hundreds as the boss of a luxury hotel
in the Rwandan capital Kigali during the 100-day genocide when Hutu
ethnic extremists killed more than 800,000 people, mostly from the Tutsi
minority.
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Paul Rusesabagina, the man who was hailed a hero in a Hollywood
movie about the country's 1994 genocide is detained and paraded in
front of media in handcuffs at the headquarters of Rwanda
Investigation Bureau in Kigali, Rwanda August 31, 2020.
REUTERS/Clement Uwiringiyimana
Cheadle was nominated for an Oscar for the role.
Rusesabagina used his fame to highlight what he described as rights
violations by the government of Kagame, a Tutsi rebel commander who
took power after his forces captured Kigali and halted the genocide.
Rusesabagina's trial began in February, six months after he arrived
in Kigali on a flight from Dubai. His supporters say he was
kidnapped; the Rwandan government suggested he was tricked into
boarding a private plane. Human Rights Watch said at the time that
his arrest amounted to an enforced disappearance, which it called a
serious violation of international law.
(Editing by Katharine Houreld and Peter Graff)
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