In 1994, civil unrest broke out in the African country of Rwanda. The plane death of Hutu President Habia Lima sparked Hutu anger and mass murder of Tutsis. At this time, a well-educated Hutu hotel manager, relying on Belgian hotel assets and a little help from the United Nations, rescued and sheltered more than 1,200 Tutsi and moderate Hutu, escaping the horrific massacre.
The film "Hotel Rwanda", based on the experiences of real people, was released on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide in 2004. Although it failed to win an Oscar, it has received numerous praises for its unique subject matter and perspective, and the prototype of the story, Paul Rusesabagina, even received the "Presidential Medal of Freedom" from George W. Bush.
This was originally a story with a "bright" ending, but it was changed by the mixing of Americans. Years later, the "hero of the Rwandan civil war", who became famous for his Hollywood movies, became a prisoner in his home country suspected of participating in and financing terrorism, and Belgium, which issued his passport, ignored this, but the United States made him a new "ideological hero" and used diplomatic means to hype up the "rescue".
Why is a Rwandan-born "hero of the civil war" with Belgian nationality accused of betrayal by his homeland, but treated as a guest by the United States, which originally ignored the Rwandan genocide? It also starts with the personal experience of Paul Rusesabagina, behind the well-known history of the Rwandan genocide.
Paul Rusesabagina was born in 1954, when Rwanda was a Belgian colony. His family was relatively good, and he grew up in a church school and learned fluent English and French. When he grew up, despite Rwanda's declaration of independence, he went to university in his former metropolis of Belgium before returning to Rwanda and being hired as a foreign-related hotel manager.
He was in the "upper" class where he could speak directly to white Westerners. When the civil war and massacre came, he was able to rely on Western political resources to draw a prison in foreign-related hotels and deal with the Hutu government and army.
Some called him "African Schindler". But unlike Schindler, a German who sheltered more than a thousand Jews in World War II, Paul Rusesabagina was not immune to the Rwandan genocide in the first place. He has a complex family spanning two Rwandan ethnic groups, Hutu and Tutsi. When the Hutu massacre of Tutsis took place, he first needed to protect himself and his family, and then to rescue and shelter more victims.
After the end of the civil unrest in Rwanda, Paul's family lived in Rwanda for about two more years. It wasn't until 1996, when he claimed to have been murdered in an attempted attempt, he applied for political asylum in Belgium, his former metropolis, and his family emigrated to Europe.
Similar to some Hong Kong people who moved to Britain after the Hong Kong riots, Paul Rusesabagina's life after his trip to the former suzerainty is not very decent. According to the BBC, little is known about his experiences during the Rwandan genocide when he worked as a taxi driver in Brussels.
Until the release of the Hollywood movie "Hotel Rwanda" based on his real experience, Paul Rusesa became famous overnight. Although the Kagame government in Rwanda accused the film of covering up the fact that "forced refugees to pay for hotels", the UN peacekeeper who witnessed the incident also said that the film was "not worth watching" and could not compete with Hollywood's huge public opinion.
In this way, Paul Rusesabagina, a little man who runs a rental on the streets of Belgium, has become the darling of podiums around the world. In 2005, then-President George W. Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, "officially certifying" his heroic status and nurturing his ambitions.
He began openly criticizing Rwandan President Kagame, claiming that the Tutsi politician, recognized by the international community as ending Rwanda's civil strife, was "behind the Rwandan genocide." He founded a "party in exile", mainly composed of Hutu abroad, openly accusing Rwanda's ruling party, the Patriotic Front, of "committing appalling crimes." He demanded that Kagamela be removed from power and run for president of Rwanda himself.
Belgium, the former metropolis that made a mess of Rwanda, did not value the political influence of Paul Rusesabagina and was no longer able to intervene in the political situation of the former colony. In 2009, Paul Rusesabagina moved to Texas. USCIS opened the door to the "hero" certified by the president himself, but due to subtle considerations, he did not become a U.S. citizen, only a green card.
In 2016, President Kagame, who was re-elected, became a negative example of the "American-style democracy" narrative. Paul Rusesabagina, who should have faded over time, continued his high-profile political activism around the world until he was arrested by the Rwandan government in 2020 on suspicion of involvement in and financing of terrorism, arson, kidnapping, murder and wounding of innocent civilians.
In 2021, the US Biden administration came to power, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken ambitiously tried to encroach on the African continent and counter the so-called "Chinese influence". Rwanda, which has developed quite well in recent years, has become a key target that the United States wants to both woo and suppress. At this time, Paul Rusesabagina, who has permanent residency in the United States, naturally became a "clear card" of US diplomacy.
At one point, the Rwandan government sentenced Paul Rusesabagina to up to 25 years in prison. Under the active operation of the US government, he was actually detained for just over two years, and was released early on March 24, 2023. He was then taken to the Qatari ambassador's residence in Kigali before flying to Qatar and then "returning" to the United States.
The U.S. government claims that White House National Security Advisor Sullivan made a series of phone calls to Kagame's close advisers about Paul Rusesabagina's issue; Kagame's spokeswoman, Stephanie Nionbeyer, also publicly admitted that Paul Rusesabagina's early release was "the result of a common desire by both sides to restart US-Lu relations."
But the release of Paul Rusesabagina to the United States does not mean that he washed his hands in the golden basin and promoted a complete handshake between Meilu and Lu. In the future, how will this "hero" created by Hollywood himself, a "dissident" who meets the appetite of the Democratic Party in the United States, a Rwandan "celebrity" who has dual citizenship in Belgium and permanent residence in the United States and has been entangled with Western colonialists all his life, continue to block President Kagame? Obviously, the Biden administration, which is politically in charge, will be happy to see this.