By Clement Uwiringiyimana, KIGALI Rwanda
Paul
Rusesabagina, portrayed as a hero in a Hollywood movie about Rwanda’s 1994
genocide, declined to plead on Monday to all the 13 charges facing him,
demanding he be allowed to plead to each separate count in a case that has also
thrust a spotlight on to President Paul Kagame’s government.Paul Rusesabagina, portrayed as a hero in a Hollywood movie about Rwanda's 1994 genocide, stands with his lawyer Rugaza David inside the Kicyikuri primarily court in Kigali, Rwanda September 14, 2020.
Rusesabagina, who once called for
armed resistance to the government in a YouTube video, appeared in a Kigali
court accused of terrorism, complicity in murder and forming or joining an
irregular armed group, among other charges.
His trial promises to be the most
high-profile yet in a string of cases against Kagame’s opponents.
Brought to court handcuffed in a
van inscribed “RIB” for Rwanda Investigation Bureau, the 66-year-old
Rusesabagina wore a tan suit and an anti-coronavirus mask. He sat pensively
before responding.
He told the court that he had
contributed 20,000 euros ($24,000) to the National Liberation Front (FLN), the
military wing of the Mouvement Rwandais pour le Changement Démocratique, which
he co-chairs.
“FLN killed people,” he
acknowledged. “If there are bad acts that were done against the people, I
regret that and I ask forgiveness to the families of victims.”
Rusesabagina refused to enter a
plea for any of the charges. He was due to appear again on Thursday to apply
for bail.
The Oscar-nominated film “Hotel
Rwanda” portrayed Rusesabagina, a former hotel manager, using his connections
with the Hutu elite to protect Tutsis fleeing the slaughter.
After the genocide, Rusesabagina
acquired Belgian citizenship and became resident of the United States. He
became a vocal critic of Kagame, whom he accused of stifling opposition, an
accusation the government denies.
Rusesabagina has not been allowed
to meet lawyers appointed by his family, they said in a statement. But one of
his government-appointed lawyers, David Rugaza, argued he was on trial for
exercising freedom of speech.
“He got a Belgian citizenship in
1999,” Rugaza told the one-judge hearing. “Rwanda is trying a foreign citizen
(for) freedom of expression that he enjoyed while abroad.”
Some in Rwanda, including Kagame,
have accused Rusesabagina of exaggerating his heroism, which he denies.
It is still unclear how
Rusesabagina came to be in Rwanda. His family say he was disappeared from
Dubai.
The court struck out a defence
objection that the arrest was irregular, ruling that it had jurisdiction
because Rusesabagina was arrested in Rwandan territory, without providing
further details.
Kagame has ruled Rwanda since the
end of the genocide and won the last elections - in 2017 - with nearly 99% of
the vote.
He has enjoyed widespread credit
and support from Western donors for restoring Rwanda to stability, cracking
down on corruption and boosting economic growth in the East African nation of
12 million.
But international rights groups
and political opponents say his rule is increasingly tainted by repression.
“Kagame and other government officials
regularly threaten those who criticize the government,” Human Rights Watch
(HRW) said in a briefing note, adding that the judiciary lacked independence
and torture of prisoners was common.
The government denies accusations
of torture of detainees.
Tibor Nagy, the U.S. Assistant
Secretary of State for Africa, tweeted earlier this month that the United
States wanted to see Rusesabagina receive a “fair trial”.
Michaela Wrong, a British author
researching a book about Rwandan politics, said the trial was already putting
the Kagame government under greater scrutiny.
“The Rwandan government’s
traditional supporters may well start asking themselves why so many opposition
activists disappear and meet violent ends in Rwanda, why so many human rights
activists and journalists flee abroad,” she said.
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