KIGALI, Rwanda, Nov. 18 (UPI) -- A Rwandan genocide survivors' group says the Rwandan hotelier awarded a human rights prize exaggerated his part in helping shelter people during the slaughter.
The U.S. Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice awarded the prize to Paul Rusesabagina, the inspiration behind the 2004 movie "Hotel Rwanda."
Ibuka, a non-profit umbrella organization representing all survivors of the 1994 100-day genocide, contends Rusesabagina inflated his role during the crisis, the BBC reported Friday.
The film, starring Don Cheadle, told how Rusesabagina, a middle-class Hutu married to a Tutsi, used influence, bribes and cleverness to secure sanctuary for an estimated 1,200 people at the Mille Collines Hotel in Kigali.
"Our problem is what they're doing, it's because of that film Hotel Rwanda -- that is not a true story," said Janvier Forongo, the executive secretary of Ibuka. "He was charging them money for those who survived in that hotel."
The president of the Lantos Foundation, Katrina Lantos Swett said Rusesabagina also was awarded the prize for his "continued courage" in speaking out against Rwandan political oppression.
"The lack of democracy, the squelching of the free press, imprisonment of political opponents, these are causes of concern and it takes courage to speak out when there is a government in Rwanda that really does not brook criticism well," Swett said.
"When you have someone who emerges as a compelling voice that is an irritant to a regime, very often the regime or their supporters or proxies will go to great lengths to discredit that individual," Swett said.
Previous winners of the Lantos prize include Ellie Wiesel and the Dalai Lama.
Rusesabagina now lives in exile but continues to speak out against the government, the BBC said.
