Paul Rusesabagina

Lantos Foundation Supports "Man of the Year" Documentary

Media contact:

Chelsea Hedquist

+1 603.229.2017

chelsea@lantosfoundation.org 

Lantos Foundation Supports Man of the Year Documentary, Exposing Dark Truth Behind Rwandan President Paul Kagame’s Propaganda 

October 4, 2021 – The Lantos Foundation for Human Rights & Justice today announced its financial support for a forthcoming documentary in the early stages of production – Man of the Year, a first-of-its-kind film that will take a deep and unfiltered look at the truth behind the lies of Rwanda’s brutal dictatorship.

For more than two decades since Rwanda’s tragic genocide, President Paul Kagame has manipulated and bent the world’s most powerful people and organizations to his will, successfully getting them to adopt his false narrative and simultaneously turn a blind eye to his ruthless repression. Man of the Year follows survivors of the genocide and activists who courageously risk their lives to expose the deadly workings of the Rwandan regime and the disinformation campaign orchestrated by Kagame and his Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF). 

“Paul Kagame is a complex figure who has had some notable achievements, but his descent into brutal dictatorship has been ignored for too long,” said Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett, President of the Lantos Foundation. “The time has come to expose the dark side of the ‘darling dictator’, and Man of the Year promises to do just that. I am so pleased that the Lantos Foundation can play a part in supporting this worthy project, as I truly believe it has the potential to break through Kagame’s propaganda machine and make it impossible for the world to continue to ignore his regime’s human rights abuses.”

Man of the Year is poised to be a tour-de-force, combining the best elements of investigative journalism and documentary filmmaking. With never-before-seen footage from inside Rwanda, including of Rwandan human rights activists shortly before their arrests, and exclusive access to former ruling RPF officials and United Nations documents, the filmmakers expose the machine that turned a one-sided narrative into official dogma. They demonstrate how journalists, academics, and well-meaning global philanthropists became accidental propagandists for Kagame’s regime, and they show the devastating consequences for those who dared to speak out – and have been silenced. 

Man of the Year is directed by Benedict Moran, an award-winning filmmaker who has directed, reported and produced for major global broadcasters and publications in dozens of countries.

As part of the Lantos Foundation’s support, Man of the Year received financial assistance through the Front Line Fund grant program, which was created to assist brave individuals and organizations in their fight against injustices around the world. The Foundation’s Front Line Fund has made more than 150 small grants to individuals and organizations located across the globe, from the United States to Canada, Germany, India, China, Bangladesh, the Middle East and more. In keeping with the Foundation’s focus on “Activist Artists”, the Foundation supports select film and book projects through the Front Line Fund, as well as other human rights-related art initiatives that aim to shine a spotlight on major human rights challenges and expose human rights abusers. 

For more information about Man of the Year, please visit: manoftheyear.film

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About the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights & Justice: The Lantos Foundation was established in 2008 to carry forward the legacy of Congressman Tom Lantos, the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to the U.S. Congress and a leading human rights champion. The Foundation works with a range of partners and often in cooperation with the U.S. Government on issues that span the globe. The Foundation’s key areas of focus include human rights issues related to religious freedom, rule of law, internet freedom and activist art. The Foundation also administers the Lantos Congressional Fellows Program, supports human rights advocates, activists and artists through its Front Line Fund grant program, and awards the annual Lantos Human Rights Prize to honor and bring attention to heroes of the human rights movement. Past recipients of the Prize include His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Professor Elie Wiesel, the real-life hero of Hotel Rwanda Paul Rusesabagina, Israeli President Shimon Peres, Iraqi Parliamentarian Vian Dakhil, Hong Kong Democracy activist Joshua Wong, Bill Browder, the driving force behind the global Magnitsky movement, among others.

Lantos Foundation Calls on U.K. Foreign Ministry to Reject Credentials of Newly Appointed Rwandan Ambassador

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media contact:

Chelsea Hedquist

+1 603.229.2017

chelsea@lantosfoundation.org

 

Lantos Foundation Calls on U.K. Foreign Ministry to Reject Credentials of Newly Appointed Rwandan Ambassador

U.K. Government instead urged to investigate appointee’s human rights violations and impose Magnitsky-style sanctions

September 9, 2021 – The Lantos Foundation for Human Rights & Justice today called upon the U.K. Foreign Ministry to reject the credentials of the newly appointed Rwandan Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Johnston Busingye, and to instead carefully investigate human rights violations committed by him, which could result in the imposition of Magnitsky-style sanctions.

Lantos Foundation President Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett has written directly to British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, encouraging him to reject the credentials of Mr. Busingye based on the evidence that he played a key role in the extraordinary rendition and kidnapping of Paul Rusesabagina, the real-life hero depicted in the film Hotel Rwanda, in late August 2020. At the time of Mr. Rusesabagina’s kidnapping and subsequent arrest, Mr. Busingye served as Rwanda’s Minister of Justice, the agency which has overseen Rusesabagina’s capture, imprisonment and subsequent sham trial. Then-Minister Busingye admitted during a televised interview on Al Jazeera in February 2021 that the Rwandan government had paid for the plane that transported Mr. Rusesabagina, against his will and without his knowledge, to Kigali. Mr. Busingye’s own statements make his complicity in the kidnapping of Mr. Rusesabagina crystal clear.

In light of the clear evidence of Mr. Busingye’s involvement in the kidnapping, the Lantos Foundation filed a formal submission to the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Department of Treasury in May 2021, recommending Global Magnitsky sanctions against Mr. Busingye and another high-ranking official from the Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB). The submission made the case that these men played a significant role in grave human rights violations for which they should be held accountable. This submission was simultaneously transmitted to authorities in the U.K. for consideration. Neither country has taken action to impose sanctions, to date.

On September 1, 2021, Rwandan President Paul Kagame unceremoniously dismissed Mr. Busingye from his role as Minister of Justice. He gave no reason and has not announced a replacement to lead the Ministry of Justice. He did, however, appoint Mr. Busingye as Rwanda’s Ambassador to the United Kingdom – effectively removing him from the country just weeks before a verdict is expected in the sham trial against Mr. Rusesabagina, which has been underway for nearly seven months.

“President Paul Kagame may believe that by sending Johnston Busingye to London, he can divert the focus from the former Justice Minister’s shameful actions and the way he brazenly violated the basic human rights of a humanitarian hero,” said Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett. “But nations who respect human rights cannot allow Kagame to try and sweep these violations under the rug by simply assigning Mr. Busingye elsewhere. We call upon Foreign Secretary Raab and the British Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office to refuse to legitimize Mr. Busingye by accepting his credentials as the Rwandan Ambassador to the Court of St. James. Furthermore, the British Government should seriously and thoroughly investigate the circumstances of Mr. Rusesabagina’s kidnapping and Mr. Busingye’s involvement in these events. If they find the case that we have submitted compelling, and I truly believe they will, it is imperative that they immediately consider Magnitsky-style sanctions against Mr. Busingye and his accomplices.”

Mr. Rusesabagina, a Belgian citizen and U.S. Permanent Resident, has been an outspoken critic of Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who human rights organizations, journalists and policymakers around the world have increasingly characterized as a brutal dictator. Mr. Rusesabagina had stated publicly on several occasions that he could not return to his native country for fear of retribution, and last August he believed he was traveling from his home in Texas to a speaking engagement in Burundi. The private jet he boarded after a layover in Dubai in fact transported him to Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, whereupon he was disappeared for three full days before reappearing in the custody of the RIB. Tragically, Mr. Rusesabagina is not the first critic of the Rwandan government to find himself in this situation – or one that is even worse. Over the past several years under President Paul Kagame, the Rwandan government has demonstrated an alarming pattern of subjecting its critics to a range of gross human rights violations, including enforced disappearances, unlawful imprisonments and extrajudicial killings.

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About the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights & Justice: The Lantos Foundation was established in 2008 to carry forward the legacy of Congressman Tom Lantos, the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to the U.S. Congress and a leading human rights champion. The Foundation works with a range of partners and often in cooperation with the U.S. Government on issues that span the globe. The Foundation’s key areas of focus include human rights issues related to religious freedom, rule of law, internet freedom and activist art. The Foundation also administers the Lantos Congressional Fellows Program, supports human rights advocates, activists and artists through its Front Line Fund grant program, and awards the annual Lantos Human Rights Prize to honor and bring attention to heroes of the human rights movement. Past recipients of the Prize include His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Professor Elie Wiesel, Israeli President Shimon Peres, Iraqi Parliamentarian Vian Dakhil, Hong Kong Democracy activist Joshua Wong, Bill Browder, the driving force behind the global Magnitsky movement, among others.

Lantos Foundation Calls for Magnitsky Sanctions in Paul Rusesabagina Case

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media contact:
Chelsea Hedquist
+1 603.229.2017
chelsea@lantosfoundation.org

 

 

Lantos Foundation Calls for Magnitsky Sanctions in Paul Rusesabagina Case

Formal petition filed for U.S. action against Rwandan officials complicit in his kidnapping

 

June 7, 2021 – The Lantos Foundation for Human Rights & Justice today announced that it has filed a formal submission to the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Department of Treasury recommending Global Magnitsky sanctions against Rwandan Justice Minister Johnston Busingye and head of the Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB) Colonel Jeannot Ruhunga for their role in human rights violations committed against Paul Rusesabagina – namely his extraordinary rendition and kidnapping in August 2020.

Paul Rusesabagina, the real-life hero of the Oscar-nominated film Hotel Rwanda and a Presidential Medal of Freedom awardee, was lured to Rwanda last August by an associate secretly working with the Rwandan government. Rusesabagina, a Belgian citizen and U.S. Permanent Resident, has been an outspoken critic of Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who human rights organizations, journalists and policymakers have increasingly characterized as a brutal dictator. Rusesabagina had stated publicly on several occasions that he could not return to his native country for fear of retribution, and last August he believed he was traveling from his home in Texas to a speaking engagement in Burundi. The private jet he boarded after a layover in Dubai in fact transported him to Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, whereupon he was disappeared for three full days before reappearing in the custody of the RIB.

It can sometimes prove difficult to build a case that establishes government officials’ direct involvement in and responsibility for human rights abuses. However, in the case of Paul Rusesabagina’s kidnapping, the complicity and responsibility of both Busingye and Ruhunga is crystal clear. Minister Busingye admitted during a televised interview on Al Jazeera in February 2021 that the Rwandan government had paid for the plane that transported Rusesabagina, without his knowledge, to Kigali. Likewise, Colonel Ruhunga, as head of the RIB, not only oversaw the operation to kidnap Rusesabagina but was also named in a recent jailhouse transcript as one of two people who visited Rusesabagina when he was held incommunicado in an unknown location during the three days between the time he was kidnapped and when he was presented in handcuffs in Kigali.

“For too long, the appalling actions of the Rwandan government under the leadership of Paul Kagame have gone without consequence,” said Lantos Foundation President Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett. “In this instance, there is unequivocal evidence that Minister Busingye and Colonel Ruhunga violated the basic human rights of a humanitarian hero. A strong response by the United States is fully warranted and anything less would only embolden the Rwandan government to continue its abuse.”

The Lantos Foundation’s submission to State and Treasury presents the overwhelming evidence that these two individuals can and should be held responsible for Rusesabagina’s kidnapping – a clear violation of the United Nations’ International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. The submission calls for the United States to hold Busingye and Ruhunga to account for this violation by imposing Magnitsky sanctions on them. The submission was simultaneously transmitted to officials in the United Kingdom and the European Union for consideration of their own respective sanctions.

Tragically, Paul Rusesabagina is not the first critic of the Rwandan government to find himself in this situation – or one that is even worse. Over the past several years under President Paul Kagame, the Rwandan government has demonstrated an alarming pattern of subjecting its critics to a range of gross human rights violations, including enforced disappearance, imprisonment and extrajudicial killings. Indeed, the Lantos Foundation’s submission includes an attachment that details numerous chilling examples of what has happened to a long string of Kagame’s opponents, among them Patrick Karegeya (assassinated in South Africa), Boniface Twagirimana (disappeared from Rwandan prison), Kizito Mihigo (died in Rwandan prison) and many others. Rwanda bills itself as a vibrant democracy and an inspiring success story, but its repeated and increasingly bold-faced efforts to stifle any form of dissent tell the story of a country that has descended deep into authoritarian rule.

Dr. Lantos Swett said, “The United States was quick to announce its intention to sanction Belarusian officials involved in diverting a commercial airline for the purpose of arresting a prominent Belarusian dissident. Yet, there has been shockingly little action from the U.S. in terms of censuring, let alone holding accountable, the individuals responsible for the unlawful kidnapping of this courageous man: a U.S. Permanent Resident who received our nation’s highest civilian honor and whose story has inspired millions of people around the world. The U.S. government has an important opportunity to right this wrong by moving to impose Magnitsky sanctions on Minister Busingye and Colonel Ruhunga. We must take action now – failure to do so may send the message that the Rwandan government has carte blanche to trample on the rights of Paul Rusesabagina. The consequences of such a message could be tragic and fatal.”

The Lantos Foundation filed its formal submission on May 18, 2021.

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About the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights & Justice: The Lantos Foundation was established in 2008 to carry forward the legacy of Congressman Tom Lantos, the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to the U.S. Congress and a leading human rights champion. The Foundation works with a range of partners and often in cooperation with the U.S. Government on issues that span the globe. The Foundation’s key areas of focus include human rights issues related to religious freedom, rule of law, internet freedom and activist art. The Foundation also administers the Lantos Congressional Fellows Program, supports human rights advocates, activists and artists through its Front Line Fund grant program, and awards the annual Lantos Human Rights Prize to honor and bring attention to heroes of the human rights movement. Past recipients of the Prize include His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Professor Elie Wiesel, Israeli President Shimon Peres, Iraqi Parliamentarian Vian Dakhil, “Hotel Rwanda” hero Paul Rusesabagina, and Hong Kong Democracy activist Joshua Wong, among others.

Remarks by Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett; Lantos Prize Event 2011

Good Morning, I am Katrina Lantos Swett and along with my sister Annette and my mother Annette, it is my pleasure to welcome you to the 2011 Lantos Human Rights Prize award ceremony. Many years ago when I was a very young, newly minted lawyer working on Capitol Hill for then Senator Joe Biden, I was being romantically pursued by another Hill staffer. This young man, who shall remain nameless, had the most thought provoking pick-up line that I was ever on the receiving end of. And although I never actually went out on a date with him, I also never forgot his question. It was the following:

“If tonight as you prepare to go to bed, the light in your room grows brighter and brighter and you find yourself miraculously in the presence of God and He tells you, I will answer any single question for you; what would you ask? I thought long and hard about how I would use such a precious opportunity. I didn’t want to ask a question that I probably already knew the answer to such as what is the greatest thing in life? Love! Or how can we achieve peace and reconciliation? Forgiveness and mutual understanding.

In the end I decided I would ask God a very personal question because I believe that to the extent he works in this world, it is most often through us. And so the question I determined I would ask was: “What will be the greatest moral challenge I will face in my life and will I be equal to it? Will I meet it in a way that makes you proud?” Our honoree this year, Mr. Paul Rusesabagina, has answered that question and has done so resoundingly in the affirmative.

World renowned author, Nobel Laureate and last year’s recipient of the Lantos Prize, Professor Elie Wiesel has written that “Wherever men or women are persecuted because of their race, religion or political views, that place must, at that moment, become the center of the universe” Seventeen years ago when Rwanda desperately needed to be the center of the universe the world instead turned away. As a genocidal assault was unleashed on the Tutsi people, the community of nations, to their everlasting shame, stood by and did nothing and as a consequence nearly a million Rwandans were massacred in just 100 days. But while the mighty and powerful found reasons and excuses to turn away, Paul Rusesabagina, a self-described “ordinary man” did not turn away. Paul’s brave and profoundly decent actions as the manager of the Hotel Des Milles Collines, helped save the lives of over 1,200 hundred Tutsis and moderate Hutus who had taken refuge in his hotel.

What is remarkable about Paul Rusesabagina’s achievement is that it was not the result of a grandiose plan to thwart the evil that was raging outside the gates of his hotel. No not at all. Paul would be the first to say that minute to minute – day to day- making it up as he went along, he was simply determined to do one more thing to try and save lives for one more day. Where did he find the strength and humanity to do this-to live out the idea that he was indeed his brothers’ and sisters’ keepers? I don’t know, but I do know that we can perhaps hope to find similar strength and humanity from following his example.

Paul’s story is one that particularly resonates with my family because it reminds us of the heroic rescue mission of the Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, who saved tens of thousands of Hungarian Jews during the Holocaust, including my father Tom Lantos. In 2012 we will celebrate the centennial of Raoul Wallenberg’s birth and it is fitting indeed that Paul has previously been awarded the Wallenberg medal for his outstanding humanitarian actions on behalf of the defenseless.

I spoke earlier of wanting to inquire of God what might be the great moral test of my life. Paul met his great test and he would have been more than justified in seeking a life of quiet and peace in which he could be recognized for his good works but also left alone to enjoy the simple ordinary pleasures of his family and friends. Perhaps it is not surprising that Paul instead chose the path less travelled and more fraught with risk. While recognizing the significant progress that has been made in Rwanda under President Kagame, Paul has nonetheless dared to speak out against the serious challenges to democracy and human rights that exist in Rwanda today. His call for a peace and reconciliation process is the right prescription for a country that still faces deep rooted tensions that, if not addressed could pose a serious risk to the people of this region who have already suffered so much. Sadly, Paul’s willingness to publicly confront these issues has made him the target of bitter attacks on his character and motives. Unfortunately these attacks appear to be consistent with a disturbing pattern of censorship, intimidation and even violence that has been directed against those who have dared voice concerns about the government of Rwanda. This pattern is not unique to Rwanda. As Mark Twain observed, history may not repeat itself but it often rhymes. Raoul Wallenberg was arrested and sent to the Soviet Gulag for his heroic deeds during the Holocaust, Martin Luther King Jr. who was hailed in America when he became the youngest Nobel Laureate, became the subject of bitter denunciation when he spoke out against our involvement in the Viet Nam war, and last year’s recipient of the Nobel prize, the Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, languishes in a Chinese prison for daring to write about a democratic future for his country. I suppose we could say that Paul is in good company and as he told me just a few weeks ago, “I am not threatened and I will not be silent” As Charlie Clements, the director of the Harvard Carr Center for human rights said recently: “It has never been Paul Rusesabagina’s nature to stay in his place. He would not have saved lives in the hotel had he stayed in his role as hotel manager”

We are so proud at the Lantos Foundation to be adding our recognition to the many others that Paul has rightly received. This “extra” ordinary man never wielded a gun, never swung a machete, but he used his words and his humanity to find a small path in the darkness and helped hundreds of his fellow human beings follow that path to safety. Paul Rusesabagina has set a path for us to follow as well.

Thank you very much.

Lantos Foundation Responds to Protests

CONCORD, NH – Katrina Lantos Swett, President of The Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice, responded today to a protest staged in opposition to the upcoming award of the 2011 Tom Lantos Human Rights Prize to Rwandan humanitarian Paul Rusesabagina:

“The protest staged today is only the latest attempt to smear the good name of this year’s Lantos Prize recipient, Paul Rusesabagina.  These protests were not staged when the Oscar-nominated film “Hotel Rwanda” was released, nor were they staged when Paul received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Bush.  It was only once he started to speak out about the need for more freedom and democracy in Rwanda, including a Truth and Reconciliation process, that these attacks were suddenly manufactured. Unfortunately these attacks appear to be consistent with a disturbing pattern of censorship, intimidation and even violence that has been directed at those who have dared voice concerns about the government of Rwanda. This pattern is not unique to Rwanda. Other authoritarian regimes have responded in a similar fashion.  

The most recent high profile example happened in 2010, when the Chinese government vehemently protested the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to imprisoned Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo and tried to bully governments into boycotting the Prize ceremony.  The irony of such manufactured protests is that, in the end, they only serve to provide a brighter spotlight to the intended target. 

As the child of Holocaust survivors, I, along with the Lantos Foundation staff, have made particular efforts to listen to the concerns of Rwandan genocide survivors who have contacted us. While many have thanked us for our decision to honor Paul Rusesabagina, there are others who have expressed contrary views.   We have spent hours talking to these individuals by phone and email, and even meeting with some in person.  The bottom-line is that the more we speak to them, the more it becomes painfully obvious that there is a “script” in place.  This script is at times absurd and at other times petty. They accuse Paul of denying the genocide when in fact he has devoted his life to telling the awful story of Rwanda’s genocide and working to achieve genuine peace and reconciliation. They complain that Paul charged the guests who found refuge in the hotela fact that Paul readily shares in his book, in person and in the movie Hotel Rwanda- money was needed to feed the 1200 people living in the hotel and to bribe the ever murderous gangs that prowled outside the hotel gates. At the end of the day, it seems that his real offense in their eyes, is that he has been outspoken in defense of democracy in Rwanda even in the face of determined efforts to silence him.

 We did not intend to cause controversy with this year’s Lantos Prize, but it seems the controversy has found us anyway.  We did not intend to step into the political disagreements that are currently swirling in and around Rwanda, but it seems we are not able to avoid that either.  We originally chose Paul Rusesabagina as the Lantos Prize recipient purely based on his heroic actions during the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, not for his work since then through the Hotel Rwanda Rusesabagina Foundation.   But we now find ourselves quite in awe of Paul’s willingness to stand up and speak out for freedoms in his home country, despite the backlash that work has caused.

In the end, the most poignant take away from today’s events is that the very freedom to take part in these protests is something that wouldn’t be allowed in Rwanda under the current government.  Paul Rusesabagina is simply asking for his native country to experience the same of freedom and openness that we deeply value here in America.”     

The Lantos Foundation established the Lantos Human Rights Prize in 2009 to honor and bring attention to heroes of the human rights movement. It is awarded annually to an individual or organization that best exemplifies the Foundation’s mission, namely to be a vital voice standing up for the values of decency, dignity, freedom, and justice in every corner of the world. The prize also serves to commemorate the late Congressman Tom Lantos, the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to the U.S. Congress and a prominent advocate for human rights during his nearly three decades as a U.S. Representative.  Former recipients of the Lantos Prize include His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel.  This year’s award will be presented to Paul Rusesabagina in Washington, DC on November 16th.