Paul Rusesabagina facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Paul Rusesabagina
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Rusesabagina in 2006
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| Born | 15 June 1954 Murama, Kigali, Ruanda-Urundi
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| Nationality | Rwandan |
| Citizenship | Belgium |
| Alma mater | Kenya Utalii College |
| Political party | PDR-Ihumure, Movement for Democratic Change |
| Spouse(s) |
Tatiana Rusesabagina
(m. 1989) |
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Paul Rusesabagina (born 15 June 1954) is a person from Rwanda who works to protect human rights. He used to manage hotels. He became famous for helping many people during the terrible events of the Rwandan genocide in 1994.
During the genocide, he was the manager of the Hôtel des Mille Collines in Kigali. He sheltered 1,268 people, including both Hutu and Tutsi individuals, who were trying to escape from a dangerous group called the Interahamwe militia. None of these people were harmed or killed while they were at the hotel.
His brave actions during the genocide were shown in the 2004 movie Hotel Rwanda. In the film, Paul Rusesabagina was played by the American actor Don Cheadle. After the movie, Rusesabagina became well-known around the world. He started giving speeches, especially at universities in the United States. He also created the Hotel Rwanda Rusesabagina Foundation in 2006.
Paul Rusesabagina has Belgian citizenship and lives in Brussels, Belgium. He has also lived in San Antonio, Texas. After leaving Rwanda in 1996, he became a strong critic of the Rwandan government and its leader, Paul Kagame. He started a political party called PDR-Ihumure in 2006.
In August 2020, Paul Rusesabagina was arrested in Kigali. He believed he was flying to Burundi from Dubai, but the plane took him to Rwanda instead. He was charged with several crimes, including terrorism. These charges were linked to a group called the FLN, which claimed responsibility for attacks in 2018 that killed at least nine people.
In September 2021, he was found guilty of terrorism-related charges and sentenced to 25 years in prison. However, in 2023, after being in prison for two years, the Rwandan president changed his sentence, and he was released.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Paul Rusesabagina was born in 1954. He was one of nine children. His father was Hutu and his mother was Tutsi. He grew up in Murama, Rwanda. Even though his family was not rich, he described his childhood as "solidly middle class" for Africa in the 1950s.
His parents sent him to a school run by the Seventh-day Adventist Church near Gitwe. By the time he was 13, he could speak English and French very well, in addition to his native language, Kinyarwanda.
Paul Rusesabagina married Esther Bamurage, and they had three children: Diane, Lys, and Roger. They later separated in 1981, and he took care of their children. In 1987, he met Tatiana, a nurse, and they married two years later. Tatiana adopted his children. They had a son named Trésor.
Career in Hotels
Becoming a Hotel Manager
Paul Rusesabagina first thought about becoming a minister. He studied theology in Yaoundé, Cameroon. But he soon decided that he wanted to live an "urban life" instead of being a clergyman.
In December 1978, he moved to Kigali. There, he was encouraged to apply for a job at the Hôtel des Mille Collines. He got the job and was sent to Nairobi, then to Switzerland and Brussels, to learn about hotel management.
As he became more successful at the Hôtel des Mille Collines, some of his Rwandan co-workers became jealous. They sometimes called him 'muzungu', which is a Kinyarwandan word for 'white man'. In 1992, Paul Rusesabagina was promoted to assistant general manager of the Diplomates Hotel, which was connected to the Hôtel des Mille Collines.
Rwandan Genocide
How the Genocide Started
While Rusesabagina was training and working in hotels, the Hutu-led government in Rwanda was fighting against a Tutsi-led group called the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF). A ceasefire agreement was signed in 1993, which was supposed to end the Rwandan Civil War. However, there were reports that militias were gathering weapons and making lists of Tutsi people.
At the same time, radio stations like the famous Radio Télévision Libre des Milles Collines (RTLM) were broadcasting messages that spread hate. They claimed that Tutsi people were planning to kill Hutus and encouraged violence against Tutsis.
On April 6, 1994, a plane carrying the Rwandan President, Juvénal Habyarimana, was shot down as it was landing in Kigali Airport. Everyone on board died. Extreme Hutu groups in the government and local militias blamed the Tutsi people for this event. This led to the start of the Rwandan genocide on April 6, 1994. The Interahamwe militias used their lists to find and kill Tutsi people and those who supported them. Even though Paul Rusesabagina's father was Hutu, his wife Tatiana was Tutsi, and his children were considered mixed. This meant his family was in great danger.
Offering Safety at the Hotel
When the violence began, soldiers came to Rusesabagina's house. They wanted him to open the Hôtel Diplomates, which the temporary Hutu government was using as its headquarters. Rusesabagina gave money from the hotel safe to the soldiers. This helped his family get to safety. When the government left the Diplomates Hotel because of fighting, Rusesabagina went to the Hôtel des Mille Collines.
Once there, Rusesabagina quickly called the hotel's owners, Sabena. He asked them to put him in charge as the acting general manager of the Mille Collines. They sent a fax, and he took control of the hotel from the staff who had been running it since the killings started.
During the Rwandan Genocide in 1994, Rusesabagina provided shelter to about 1,200 people. A radio reporter who was there said that no one was killed, injured, or taken from the hotel while they were refugees. He said that Paul Rusesabagina "managed to do the impossible to save our lives."
Impact on His Family
On May 3, Rusesabagina made sure his wife and children left safely in a truck. They tried to go to Kigali airport to fly to Belgium. However, Tatiana and her children were specifically targeted by messages on the RTLM radio. They were attacked and had to return to the hotel.
Tatiana's family suffered greatly. Her mother, brother, sister-in-law, and four nieces and nephews died in the genocide. Her father paid Hutu militia members to shoot him so he would not suffer a more painful death.
By the end of the terrible events, only four of Rusesabagina's eight brothers and sisters were still alive. He wrote in his book that for a Rwandan family, this was "a comparatively lucky outcome."
After the Genocide and His Political Views
After staying in Rwanda for two more years, Paul Rusesabagina moved to Brussels, Belgium, with his wife, children, and two nieces in 1996. He feared for his life and asked for protection there. He worked as a taxi driver. Later, they lived in San Antonio, Texas.
The Movie Hotel Rwanda
In 1999, an American screenwriter named Keir Pearson called Rusesabagina. Pearson and his colleague Terry George wrote the script for Hotel Rwanda after talking with Rusesabagina. The movie was released in 2004 and was highly praised. It received three Academy Award nominations, including for Best Original Screenplay and Best Actor for Don Cheadle's acting.
Movie Criticism
Some people have criticized the movie and Rusesabagina's portrayal in it. In 2008, a book called Hotel Rwanda or the Tutsi Genocide as seen by Hollywood was published. The authors interviewed 74 people who stayed at the hotel during the genocide. Many of these survivors had different views about Rusesabagina's actions than what was shown in the film.
Another book, Inside the Hotel Rwanda: The Surprising True Story ... And Why it Matters Today, was published in 2011. Both books are critical of Rusesabagina. They claim he made refugees pay for their rooms and food. They also say he was involved in Hutu Power politics and gave a list of refugees to the Interahamwe and RTLM radio.
UN Peacekeepers who were at the hotel during the genocide have also criticized the film. General Romeo Dallaire, who led the UN mission, said in 2014 that the film was "not worth looking at." However, Odette Nyiramilimo, a survivor who became a senator, defended Rusesabagina. She said, "I never saw him threaten to expel people from the hotel if they didn't pay up — never."
Awards and Speaking
Paul Rusesabagina received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President George W. Bush in 2005. This is the highest award a civilian can receive in the United States. He was honored for his "remarkable courage and compassion" during the genocide.
After the success of Hotel Rwanda, Rusesabagina became famous worldwide. He used this fame to start a career as a public speaker. He gave talks at schools, universities, churches, and businesses. He said he would speak to "whoever wants to invite me" about his experiences in 1994.
Political Views
Starting a Political Party
In June 2006, in Washington D.C., Paul Rusesabagina started a political party for Rwandans living outside the country. It was called The Party for Democracy in Rwanda: PDR-Ihumure. He said the party's goal was to "liberate Rwanda from the current RPF dictatorship." Most of the party's members are Hutu and live abroad, especially in Belgium and the United States. In January 2016, Rusesabagina announced that he wanted to run for President of Rwanda.
Criticizing the Government
Rusesabagina has often criticized Rwandan President Paul Kagame. He has called him a dictator and accused him of ordering illegal killings.
In 2007, Rusesabagina claimed that the 1994 genocide was caused by the RPF. He also said that the RPF shot down President Habyarimana's plane. However, a ballistics report has ruled out this theory. He also claimed that the killings by RPF rebels were also genocide. Historian Gérard Prunier agrees that the RPF committed "horrendous crimes," but he does not agree with the idea of a "double genocide."
In 2012, Rusesabagina said he was disappointed with the RPF. He doubted their ability to create a democratic system and called for people to unite to remove the RPF from power.
Government's Response
Rusesabagina's comments have been strongly criticized in Rwanda. In April 2006, President Kagame suggested that Rusesabagina should "try his talents elsewhere and not climb on the falsehood of being a hero." Francois Xavier Ngarambe, who leads a group of genocide survivors, said Rusesabagina "has hijacked heroism. He is trading with the genocide. He should be charged." The director of Hotel Rwanda, Terry George, said these comments were part of a campaign to damage Rusesabagina's reputation. The Rwandan government has accused Rusesabagina of denying the genocide.
FLN Group
The FLN was the armed part of Paul Rusesabagina's political parties. This group was accused of terror attacks in southwest Rwanda in 2018. In an interview in 2018, Rusesabagina was asked if FLN rebels were in the Nyungwe forest where the attacks happened. He replied, "We are angry. We did not enter it to abandon it, we are there to demand our rights as Rwandan natives."
After his arrest, he admitted that he had started the FLN "as an armed wing, not as a terrorist group." He also said, "I do not deny that the FLN committed crimes but my role was diplomacy." He has denied doing anything wrong himself. In a video, Rusesabagina said he gave his "unreserved support" for the FLN. He stated, "The time has come for us to use any means possible to bring about change in Rwanda, as all political means have been tried and failed. It is time to attempt our last resort."
Arrest and Trial
Arrest
Paul Rusesabagina, who is a permanent resident of the United States, had not lived in Rwanda since 1996. He went on a trip to Dubai shortly before his arrest. In an interview from jail, Rusesabagina said that in Dubai, he got on a private jet that he thought was going to Burundi. He planned to give a speech there. Instead, the plane took him to Kigali, Rwanda. In February 2021, Rwanda's Minister of Justice admitted that the Rwandan government had paid for the private jet that brought Rusesabagina to Kigali.
On August 31, 2020, Rusesabagina was taken to Kigali and arrested. He was charged with crimes like terrorism, arson, kidnapping, and murder of Rwandan civilians. These charges were related to terror attacks that happened in southern Rwanda in 2018. At least nine people, including two children, were killed in these attacks.
Trial Proceedings
In October 2020, Rwandan prosecutors announced that Rusesabagina would be tried along with 16 other people. His trial began on February 17, 2021. Rusesabagina told the court that he was not a Rwandan citizen, so he should not be tried in Rwanda. Another person on trial, Callixte Nsabimana, seemed surprised by this. He said that Rusesabagina "had ambitions to become the president of Rwanda. Now how do you have such ambitions when you're not Rwandan?"
After a hearing on March 12, 2021, Rusesabagina said he would no longer take part in the court process. He believed that he would not get a fair trial and accused the court of not respecting his rights. Rusesabagina did not attend later hearings, but the judge ruled that the trial would continue. In July 2021, the court announced that the verdict would be given on August 20, 2021.
On September 20, 2021, he was found guilty of terrorism-related charges. During the court hearing, he spoke against President Paul Kagame and said he had been taken from exile to be tried in Rwanda. After being found guilty, Rusesabagina was sentenced to 25 years in prison. People who support human rights said they believed the charges were politically motivated because Rusesabagina had criticized Kagame.
Criticisms of the Trial
Rusesabagina's lawyers argued that his arrest was because he spoke out against the Rwandan government. They also said that his flight to Rwanda was illegal under international law.
Human Rights Watch said Rusesabagina's trial was "flawed." They called it an example of Rwanda's government misusing its justice system. Human Rights Watch also said that Rwandan authorities repeatedly violated Rusesabagina's rights during the trial and interfered with his right to have a lawyer.
Awards Received
- 2000 – Immortal Chaplains Prize for Humanity
- 2005 – Wallenberg Medal of the University of Michigan
- 2005 – National Civil Rights Museum Freedom Award
- 2005 – Presidential Medal of Freedom
- 2005 – Conrad N. Hilton Foundation Humanitarian Award
- 2007 – Honorary Doctorate of Law from the University of Guelph
- 2008 – Honorary Degree from Gustavus Adolphus College
- 2009 – Honorary Degree from Loyola University Chicago
- 2011 – Tom Lantos Human Rights Prize from the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice
Media
Books
Paul Rusesabagina's story was first told in Philip Gourevitch's book We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families, published in 1998.
His own book, An Ordinary Man (written with Tom Zoellner), was published in April 2006.
In 2008, Alfred Ndahiro and Privat Rutazibwa wrote Hotel Rwanda: Or the Tutsi Genocide as Seen by Hollywood. In 2014, Edouard Kayihura, who hid in the Hotel during the genocide, wrote Inside the Hotel Rwanda: The Surprising True Story ... and Why It Matters Today. Both of these books have been critical of Rusesabagina.
In October 2023, Yvonne Uwera, a Rwandan human rights activist, published the book "RESCUING THE HERO: A Daughter's Quest to Free The Hotel Rwanda Legend" about Carine Kanimba's efforts to free her adoptive father, Paul Rusesabagina.
Film
Rusesabagina's actions during the genocide are shown in the 2004 movie Hotel Rwanda. He is played by Don Cheadle. Cheadle's acting was highly praised, and he was nominated for several awards, including the Academy Award for Best Actor.
See also
In Spanish: Paul Rusesabagina para niños
- Hotel Rwanda
- Rwandan genocide
- Mbaye Diagne
- Roméo Dallaire
