What the arrest of a hero of the genocide says about Paul Kagame’s rule
Paul Rusesabagina, whose story inspired “Hotel Rwanda”, faces charges of terrorism
TOURISTS WHO gawp at gorillas and foreign businessfolk who meet in Kigali’s convention centre sometimes call Rwanda the Switzerland of Africa. It has beautiful mountains, clean streets, a functional bureaucracy and low levels of petty corruption and crime. But it differs from Switzerland in ways that casual visitors often miss. Rwandans are terrified of their government. They are constantly watched for hints of dissent, which is ruthlessly suppressed. History is rewritten to suit the present. Heroes can become “unheroes” overnight.
This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline “Nowhere to hide”
From the September 5th 2020 edition
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