The Rusesabagina saga is finally over, perhaps not the way he and his supporters would have liked. No dramatic release - prison gates flung open, blazing guns and our man making a triumphant exit. How he would have loved that! A wonderful addition to the Hotel Rwanda hero fame. It was the opposite. He left quietly - no flashing cameras, accompanied only by terse official statements. He served part of his sentence and was freed, not by an invading force, but by a presidential pardon upon his own request for clemency. Rusesabagina is now a free man. We are also free from the din of calls for his release, reminders of his star status, his citizenship of a European country and domicile in a powerful one, and threats and intimidation and grandstanding. In the end, none of these worked. It was humility that actually did it. He and his noisy and arrogant supporters had to come down from their lofty heights, admit wrongdoing, and ask for pardon. It should have happened earlier and saved everyone the bother, pain and anguish. One can also assume that there was an element of contrition. The few years he has been in detention must have been a sobering period. So too the prospect of spending another twenty plus years, probably the remainder of his life, in prison. That must have been frightening. The realisation that assumed fame was not; after all, strong enough to shield him from facing justice for his crimes must have brought home the reality of his situation. Fame of this nature is only a tag, a label, that can be torn off and thrown away, or a veneer that can come off. When that happens, the real person remains – a simple, ordinary, and brittle individual, pitiful even, incapable of climbing to such dizzy heights on his own and staying there. Prison must have offered him time and space for reflection and perhaps self-examination. He could have realised that he had been on an ill-advised and costly adventure, and regretted it all. That may have led to contrition and finally asking for clemency. It is quite possible. Solitude and reflection sometimes work wonders. Deceitful nature can turn into honest disposition, self-importance into meekness. He now promises (in the letter asking for pardon) he will put any ambitions in Rwanda’s politics behind him and live in quiet reflection. Presumably, he will not dabble in acts of terrorism again. Perhaps he will write books on this period of his life and fill us in on things we can only speculate about, the role of different players in creating the person of the last thirty years, for instance. In the immediate post-release period, however, we can expect to hear many people claiming credit for Rusesabagina’s pardon; others trying to explain it. Some chest thumping, even. They can have their say. It does not change the truth, nor wipe away the crime. He was tried on terrorism charges, convicted and sentenced. He was pardoned, not exonerated. Of course, all this we are saying only applies to normal people with a conscience, a normal ego, and a good sense of perspective, not those with oversized ambitions or handlers relentlessly driving them to recklessness. Still, no one should underestimate the value of experience and reflection. That is at the individual level. On a global plane, there are useful lessons to learn from this saga. One, terrorism is terrorism regardless of who commits it or where it is committed. It is not dependent on the definition by some powerful people. It is the same for small countries as for the big ones, for ordinary people as for the famous. There is only one standard for all, not differentiated according to status. Two, states, regardless of size, have rights and interests, and duty towards their citizens. Even the small ones will defend these with all they have. The big ones must reckon with this fact and will do well to listen and respect their positions. Three, belligerence or bullying do not always yield the results you want, especially if you do not have right and truth on your side. You might have might, but it can only take you so far and then it becomes necessary to try other means. None should ever underestimate the resolve of even the smallest nation when defending their right and national interest. Those who commit crimes against their people and country eventually have to account for their deeds. The law will catch up with them. Even if they hide, they will live in fear and discomfort, and will be haunted all their life. Rusesabagina now knows better than to attack his own people and country again. He has promised to be of good behaviour and must be taken at his word. If he keeps to his promise, remains humble and contrite, he may yet be rehabilitated and live the remainder of his years in quiet and peace. Occasionally, perhaps, he will think about what might have been. Reminiscence is quite usual for a person of his age. This may be difficult to believe for a man who loved the limelight, craved greatness, and was prepared to do anything to achieve that. Such unlikely transformation has happened before.
