First, some superquick background

Between April and June 1994, an estimated 800,000 Rwandans were killed in the space of 100 days. The movie ‘Hotel Rwanda’ is set in the midst of this genocide. Here’s a brief history of what happened:

• Rwandan history is characterised by ongoing ethnic hostility between Hutus and Tutsis.
• It all began when the Belgians arrived in 1916 and divided the population based on ethnic identities—and proceeded to heavily favour the Tutsis. 
• This sparked great resentment among the Hutus—which culminated in a series of riots in which 20,000 Tutsis were killed.
• When the Belgians left in 1962, Hutus took their place—and proceeded to reverse decades of discrimination… with a vengeance.
• Flash forward to 1994. The country was in the midst of an armed conflict between the government run by a Hutu president Juvénal Habyarimana and the current president Paul Kagame—who at the time was the Tutsi leader of a rebel group.
• President Habyarimana signed a peace accord to end the bloodshed—but his plane was shot down soon after. Tutsis were blamed, and months of gory violence ensued as Hutu soldiers and civilians went on a rampage.

The aftermath: In the end, the Kagame-led Tutsi forces prevailed, and he eventually became President—and has remained so to this day. But ethnic violence continues, especially on the borders with Democratic Republic of Congo—where Hutu militias still operate.

Hotel Rwanda: The original story

This is the first version of Paul Rusesabagina’s story that was turned into an Oscar-nominated film. Here’s how it goes.

Paul, the hotel manager: Rusesabagina is Hutu, but his mother is Tutsi—and so is his wife. At the time of the genocide, he was running luxury hotel called Hotel des Diplomates. After President Habyarimana’s assassination, the Dutch manager of its sister property Mille Collines fled the country—and asked Rusesabagina to take over. Mille Collines is now known to most of us as ‘Hotel Rwanda’.  

Paul, the hero: As the massacre unfolded, hundreds of desperate Tutsis sought refuge in the hotel. Armed militias—carrying spears, machetes and clubs—swarmed outside, trying to enter the hotel. For 76 days, Rusesabagina kept them at bay—using his considerable contacts in the Tutsi government and military. And he faxed the United Nations, Peace Corps, even the White House asking for help. His main tools: flattery, bribery and diplomatic pressure. Eventually, residents of the hotel were evacuated by the Rwandan military, the United Nations and Tutsi rebel forces. Total number of people saved: 1,248. One of the residents later said:

“Nobody had been killed, injured, beaten, tortured, expelled or retrieved from the hotel during the whole time we were refugees. Paul Rusesabagina managed to do the impossible to save our lives at the moment when others were massacring their own children, their own wives.”

Paul the global icon: Rusesabagina’s story first made an international appearance in Philip Gourevitch's 1998 book titled ‘We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families’. But he became an international figure after the wildly popular movie ‘Hotel Rwanda’ was released in 2005. Until then, he was working as a taxi driver in Belgium—having fled Rwanda after the genocide. Soon paid speeches at universities, think tanks and corporate gatherings followed. And in 2005, he was awarded the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Hotel Rwanda: Revised edition

During his decades in exile, Rusesabagina’s life would take a trajectory that raised questions about his public persona—and the defining story of what happened during those 76 days at Mille Collines. That path has now ended with him in jail—facing life imprisonment.

Paul the politician: As his brief moment of celebrity faded, Rusesabagina became a fierce critic of President Kagame—and founded the Rwanda Movement for Democratic Change. He claimed that proxy groups operating on behalf of the Rwandan government had killed hundreds of thousands of Hutu refugees in the Democratic Republic of Congo. And its armed wing—the National Liberation Front (FLN)—has been accused of carrying out several killings in Rwanda. And in a 2018 video, Rusesabagina said that “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.” 

Point to note: Rusesabagina has acknowledged his links to the FLN: “We formed [it] as an armed wing, not as a terrorist group as the prosecution keeps saying. I do not deny that the FLN committed crimes but my role was diplomacy.”

Paul the prisoner: In 2020, Rusesabagina took a chartered flight from Dubai with someone he thought was a friend—a prominent pastor who was supposedly taking him to speak to his congregations in Burundi. The plane, however, landed in Rwanda instead, and Rusesabagina was greeted by law enforcement who took him into custody. Human Rights Watch called the arrest “an enforced disappearance, a serious violation of international law.” But President Kagame has compared it to dialing the wrong number, saying: “There was no kidnap…. He got here on the basis of what he believed and wanted to do … it was actually flawless.”

Point to note: While Kagame has brought prosperity and development to Rwanda, he has also turned into a ruthless dictator—determined to squelch any sign of dissent, anywhere in the world:

“It is very important to Paul Kagame to demonstrate to his own citizens that he will reach out and find you wherever you are. It doesn’t matter where you go. … If you stand up to him, denounce him, challenge him, you will pay the price.”

Paul the “manufactured hero”: While Rusesabagina’s arrest has triggered international outrage, Rwandans have mixed feelings. Over the years, the state-controlled media has continually attacked Rusesabagina—with Kagame calling him a “manufactured hero.” More damningly, survivors of the hotel siege challenged the popular account of his role:

• One former manager told the New York Times that he could not “think of a single incident” in which Rusesabagina saved lives. 
• Another accused him of extorting money from desperate residents: “Paul made them pay. And Paul threatened those who couldn’t pay with being thrown out of the hotel.” 
• The head of a genocide victims group told France24: “Hollywood created a myth; it wasn’t real. Rusesabagina saw the hotel in 1994 and decided to take it over to serve his own interests—then he sold his story.”

Point to note: While international experts agree that Rusesabagina’s trial has been a sham—which blatantly flouted basic procedural law—not all are protesting his innocence: “It is not as clear-cut as the hero of ‘Hotel Rwanda’ has been unfairly arrested and prosecuted by this government that’s perceived as rapacious.”

The bottomline: One narrative paints Rusesabagina as a fearless hero, while the other damns him as a self-manufactured lie. The truth lies lost in between.

Reading list

A must read: The New York Times long read by Joshua Hammer who revisits Rwanda and his memories of the hotel siege. BBC News has the most details on Rusesabagina’s rise and fall from grace. Washington Post has the best reporting on his trial. Human Rights Watch offers a damning report on how Rusesabagina was abducted. Also in the BBC News: A good explainer on the genocide. The Conversation has an interesting piece on how dictators like Kagame manage their global image.