Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to urge my colleagues to support H. Res. 892, calling on the Government of the Republic of Rwanda to release Paul Rusesabagina on humanitarian grounds. Paul is a hero of the Rwandan genocide and a permanent resident of San Antonio, Texas, my hometown where his family also lives today. Last year, a Rwandan court sentenced Paul to 25 years in prison on politically motivated charges. Paul is 68 years old, and for him that is a life sentence. Congresswoman Young Kim and I have been closely following his case for several years, and we were proud to introduce H. Res. 892 in February of this year. Paul's story begins in Rwanda, the country of his birth. Nearly three decades ago, he was serving as assistant general manager of a luxury hotel in Kigali, Rwanda, when the Rwandan genocide began. The genocide, which led to the deaths of an estimated 800,000 people over a 3-month period, targeted mostly members of the ethnic Tutsi minority. Paul is a member of the Hutu majority, but he was determined not to see his Tutsi countrymen die on his watch. As genocidal killing squads roamed through Rwanda, Paul sheltered more than 1,200 people in his hotel, saving their lives. In the aftermath of the genocide, Paul and his family received asylum in Belgium and later moved to San Antonio with the help of the late Texas Senator Bob Krueger, an international leader in the fight against genocide. In 2005, President George W.…”