What has happened to Paul Rusesabagina?

Paul Rusesabagina will be released from prison, following the commuting of his sentence by Rwanda President Paul Kagame after a request for clemency.

Paul had been detained in 2020, over charges bordering on terrorism.

He was sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2021.

The charges had been linked to the attacks launched by the armed wing of the Rwanda Movement for Democratic Change (MRCD).

Who Is Paul Rusesabagina?

Paul Rusesabagina is a well known human rights activist, and a former manager of the Hôtel des Mille Collines in Kigali.

Born on June 15, 1954, in Murama, Kigali, Ruanda-Urundi, Paul had played a notable role during the Rwandan genocide by accommodating 1,268 Hutu and Tutsi fleeing refugees in his hotel.

His humane gesture which led to no loss of life during the genocide, led to the making of the historical war film Hotel Rwanda in 2004.

Paul later gained international recognition and became a public speaker and activist.

In 2006, Paul founded the Hotel Rwanda Rusesabagina Foundation. He now holds both Belgian and American citizenship, with properties in Brussels, Belgium and San Antonio, Texas.

Paul was a critic of the RPF government, and later founded the PDR-Ihumure political party in 2006.

In 2020, he was arrested in Kigali, over terrorism clsims and charged with 29 others. He was later sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2021.

The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention rendered had termed the arrest as illegal kidnapping, stating that “Paul had been targeted by the Government on account of his criticisms of the government.”

In 2023, it was announced that Paul will be released from prison.

Paul has received many awards for his human rights activities, and wrote many books including his autobiography An Ordinary Man.