Emmanuel Ukudolo l Saturday, March 25, 2023
LAGOS, Nigeria – The United States has welcomed the decision of the government of Rwanda to release Paul Rusesabagina, who is acclaimed to be the hero of the film, Hotel Rwanda, which documented atrocities committed during the genocide and ethnic cleansing between the Hutus and the Tutsis.
Paul Rusesabagina was a human rights activist that worked as Manager at Hotel Des Mille Collines in Kigali and he used his position to accommodate about 1, 268 Hutus and Tutsi refugees fleeing from the Interahamwe militia during the Rwanda genocide and none of these refugees were killed.
In a statement, Secretary State, Antony Blinken said government of the United States is happy that Paul Rusesabagina will be able to rejoin his family in the United States.
“I welcome today’s release of Paul Rusesabagina by the Government of Rwanda. It is a relief to know that Paul is rejoining his family, and the U.S. Government is grateful to the Rwandan Government for making this reunion possible.
“ We also thank the Government of Qatar for their valuable assistance that will enable Paul’s return to the United States”, the statement noted.
According to Blinken, the United States believes in a Rwanda that is peaceful and prosperous.
“We reaffirm the principle of seeking political change in Rwanda and globally through peaceful means. There is simply no place for political violence. I thank those across the U.S. Government who have worked with the Rwandan Government to enable this outcome”, he said.
Paul Rusesabagina was an outspoken critic of the Rwanda Government during the 1994 genocide between the Hutus and the Tutsi upon which the film Hotel Rwanda was anchored.
He was released on Friday. He was lured to Rwanda by government from his base in the United States only for him to land in detention. Shortly after his release, he made his way to the Qatari Ambassador’s residence in Kigali on his way to Qatar to thank the government for the role it played in securing his release before heading to the US to join his family.
Paul Rusesabagina, 68, was convicted in 2021 on charges of terrorism upon his return and was to spend 25 years in prison. His supporters however described his conviction as nothing but a sham.
However, following pressure from the United States and the government of Qatar, his sentence was commuted. He had spent 939 days in detention with allegation of torture leading to his poor state of health.
