Rusesabagina gets food, medicine like other inmates: RCS

The Rwanda Correctional Service (RCS) has clarified that it serves all inmates equally and works to accommodate inmates with specialized needs.

It was not a surprise to see yet another unfounded claim leveled against the Rwandan government on the alleged mistreatment of detained terror mastermind and former hotelier, Paul Rusesabagina, recently published in the New York Times.

The alarming headline “Hotel Rwanda’ Dissident Denied Food and Medicine in Prison, Family Says” by Abdi Latif Dahir, is a continuation of a campaign of lies and deceit orchestrated by Rusesabagina’s family. It is coordinated by his PR machine led by Kitty Kurth, spokesperson of the Paul Rusesabagina Hotel Rwanda Foundation (PRHRF), based in Chicago, Illinois, as well as a web of international lawyers.

It should be made clear that Rusesabagina is not a “dissident”. He is a man accused of serious crimes of sponsoring acts of terrorism that claimed many lives in Rwanda and caused property damage. Being a Hollywood hero does not wash away those crimes. Why does his family and his PR machine keep telling such baseless lies? Their goal is to raise alarm to claim that their man is risking death to evoke sympathy from the international community. By doing so, they hope that pressure can be put on the Rwandan government to free him. I doubt this strategy is going to work.

Not long ago, Rusesabagina’s  family claimed, without  any evidence, that he was held incommunicado, bound hand and foot, unable to breathe, and held in what was described as a "slaughterhouse”. These fabrications were rejected by the Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB). Nevertheless, Rusesabagina’s family and their PR machine used this blatant fabricated lie to send letters to the US Congress and to the UN Special Rapporteur on torture in Geneva.

It was not a surprise to see that such an outrageous allegation received attention and published by the NewYork Times straight from Kurth’s press release without any simple investigation.  What is evident is that there is apparent coordination between Rusesabagina’s PR machine and the global north media which labels Rusesabagina as “a dissident” instead of what he is: “a sponsor of terrorism” against Rwanda, as proven by ongoing trial of him and 20 co-accused. Regarding the allegations in The New York Times, the Rwanda Correctional Service (RCS) clarified that it "serves all inmates equally" and works to accommodate inmates with specialized needs.

The RCS noted that: "In the case of Rusesabagina, a private room and separate menu were availed when he was transferred to Nyarugenge Prison.” As noted, Rusesabagina was recently placed in a shared room with several inmates when he complained of being kept in “solitary confinement”, which does not exist in Rwanda’s prisons.

The RCS further clarified that Rusesabagina is currently provided with the same meals as the other inmates and he has access to a medical doctor whenever required, as has always been the case.  In Fact, Rusesabagina had been given a single room which he refused and preferred to live in a shared one.

In the article by The New York Times, Ms Gibson, Rusesabagina’s lawyer claims that he was denied access to “lawyers of his choosing, to the file against him, to time and resources to prepare a defense.” It is surprising that a person who is a lawyer by profession can peddle such a lie.

Rusesabagina was given access to lawyers in accordance with the provisions of the Rwanda Bar Association. He was given ample time to read his file and his demand for more time was respected. As for his international lawyers to be accepted to come to Rwanda, the rules cannot be one sided when Rwanda lawyers too are not allowed to practice in other countries without agreement with the Bar Associations. Rusesabagina under his own will withdrew from the case on March 12, 2021, after his demand for extension for another six months for him to prepare was rejected by the court because it would have delayed the trial of the other 20 co-accused who had to bear with his repeated objections.

But this was a tactical move because he foresaw the damning evidence from a key witness, Dr Michelle Martin, a US citizen, a social work professor who worked with Rusesabagina’s foundation for a decade. During her testimony in the Court, she revealed that she had been privy to email correspondences “about financing rebel activities.” She detailed, at length, everything she knew about how Rusesabagina and his associates planned to overthrow the Rwandan government.

The New York Times is quick to tell lies on behalf of a criminal but it will not tell the American public how Rusesabagina fleeced them to fund terror activities in Rwanda. By withdrawing from the case, Rusesabagina tactically avoided more troubling first hand evidence from rebel commanders of his political and armed outfit, the Rwandan Movement for Democratic Change (MRCD) – FLN (National Liberation Front), who told the Court how he transmitted money to them.  More incriminating evidence had also been obtained from the Belgian Prosecution Authority and the FBI which was shared with Rwandan prosecution.

It is quite common that a defendant can withdraw from a court hearing. It was the same case with Rwandan genocidaire Jean Bosco Barayagwiza who, in 1999, boycotted his trial at the International Criminal Court for Rwanda (ICTR). Trial proceedings went on and he was handed 32 years’ imprisonment.  In the case of Rusesabagina, since his withdrawal, the trial dubbed “FLN Trial” has been going on without him. The fact that Rusesabagina withdrew from the case does not prevent the court from sentencing him if found guilty.

Some analysts suggest that all the persons and organisations in the US, like Kurth and her organisation, Kurth Lampe International Worldwide, and PRHRF should be investigated by the FBI.  How can they justify that the money raised for his foundation registered as a charity ended up being used to finance terrorist activities on Rwandan soil?