Rwanda Official Admits Legal Violations in ‘Hotel Rwanda’ Case
NAIROBI, Kenya – Rwanda’s Attorney General has inadvertently revealed that he intercepted privileged and confidential legal documents in the ongoing terrorism case against Paul Rusesabagina, the prominent dissident whose efforts to save more than 1,200 people during the country’s genocide were portrayed in the Oscar nominated film. “Hotel Rwanda.”
In a video interview released by Al Jazeera English, Johnston Busingye, who is both justice minister and attorney general, dismissed accusations that authorities confiscated Mr. Rusesabagina’s papers or violated legal privilege. lawyer.
Johnston Busingye admits Rwanda did pay for the plane that transported Rusesabagina to the capital and defends the right of prison authorities to monitor the correspondence between the political dissident and his legal counsel. The Rwandan government has charged Rusesabagina with "terrorism-related offences".
Video Source : al jazeera
But in a 1.5-hour prep video his PR team accidentally sent to the media outlet, Mr Busingye contradicted himself, saying prison officials intercepted correspondence between Mr Rusesabagina and his lawyers and children. , some that included escape plans.
Mr Busingye also discussed with the team how to answer questions about whether the Rwandan government paid for the theft that in August took Rusesabagina to Kigali, where he was arrested for murder. , armed robbery and membership of a terrorist organization.
The latest revelations came just hours after a Rwandan court ruled on Friday that it had jurisdiction to try Mr. Rusesabagina – a Belgian citizen and permanent resident of the United States. It also came as the trial faces widespread condemnation by entities such as rights groups, members of the US Congress and the European Parliament.
The latest revelations, according to his lawyers, also obscure the chances that Mr. Rusesabagina will get a fair trial, given that his international lawyers have not been allowed to travel to Kigali to represent him and prison officials continue to prosecute him. confiscate his files. Mr Rusesabagina, a former hotelier, told his lawyers he was afraid of dying of a stroke in prison, and his family members said they remained concerned about his deteriorating health .
During the interview with Al Jazeera, Mr. Busingye denied that Mr. Rusesabagina’s communication with his lawyers was intercepted. But “if that has happened, it will be raised in court and the courts will treat it fairly,” he told Al Jazeera interviewer Marc Lamont Hill on the “UpFront” show.
In another clip released by Al Jazeera, Mr. Busingye is seen receiving advice on how to answer questions about who paid for the private jet that brought Mr. Rusesabagina to Kigali. In the video, the public relations consultant can be heard warning the minister to be “careful” because the interviewer “was looking for something to publish in a press release about the interview – looking for nuggets of difficult things ”.
When asked by Mr. Hill of Al Jazeera who paid for the jet, Mr. Busingye said the Rwandan government did.
Since Mr. Rusesabagina was presented to the press in handcuffs in Kigali on August 31, questions have revolved around how he ended up there.
He left his home in San Antonio, Texas, and arrived in Dubai on an Emirates flight from Chicago on the evening of August 27. He then checked in at the Ibis hotel in Dubai, according to a document from the United Arab Emirates mission in Geneva. , and five hours later, he boarded a private jet that he said was headed for Burundi, where he planned to speak to churches at the invitation of a local pastor.
The next day, the plane, operated by Greece-based charter company GainJet, landed in Kigali, where he was arrested, tied up and questioned.
Rwandan authorities have, notably in interviews with The New York Times, previously confirmed that they hired the charter service for government operations, but never explicitly confirmed that they hired the exact flight that brought Mr. Rusesabagina in Kigali.
In December, Mr. Rusesabagina and his family sued GainJet for his role in the episode.
After his arrest, President Paul Kagame – whose government had been trying to apprehend the 66-year-old Rusesabagina for years – called the operation “perfect” and said it was not an abduction.
As for Mr Rusesabagina’s escape plans, his daughter Carine Kanimba said she had received WhatsApp and Twitter messages since November from someone claiming to be one of her father’s prison guards. The messages, both audio and written and edited by The Times, described Mr. Rusesabagina’s routine and suggested ways to help him escape.
“I never answered,” Ms. Kanimba said in a telephone interview. “I was afraid to answer and that they would use it against my father.”
In December, the family also shared the material with the FBI, the US State Department and the Belgian Foreign Office.
Rwandan authorities doubled their position on Friday, calling the arrest “legal and proper”. In a statement, the Justice Department said that Mr. Busingye
had become aware of a “possible violation” in December with regard to privileged documents, and that he had ordered that they be returned to Mr. Rusesabagina.
Kate Gibson, lead lawyer for Mr. Rusesabagina, disputed this statement, saying his papers “continue to be routinely and systematically confiscated, including his privileged and confidential documents”. Ms. Gibson is one of three lawyers awaiting authorization to represent the former hotelier in Kigali.
As recently as last week, she said, Mr. Rusesabagina was denied the right to go to his cell with his documents.
“We now see in the Al Jazeera preparation video that the content of privileged and confidential legal documents is reaching the highest levels,” she said in an email. “The right to confidential communication is at the heart of legal representation. Without this, it is impossible to consider a fair process. “
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Rwanda Official Admits Legal Violations in ‘Hotel Rwanda’ Case
