Hôtel des Mille Collines in Kigali, Rwanda

In 1973, the Belgian airline Sabena built the first grand luxury hotel in Rwanda’s capital city, Kigali.  The 4-floor hotel has 112 guest rooms and three restaurants.  It was named the “Hôtel des Mille Collines” in recognition of Rwanda’s nickname, “Land of a Thousand Hills.”  The hotel gained worldwide recognition during the Rwandan Genocide of 1994 and the resultant events that transpired there.

Over a period of 100 days from April 7 to July 19, 1994, an estimated 800,000 people, mostly members of the Tutsi ethnic group, were violently and horrifically killed by armed Hutu militias.  Also killed were moderate Hutus and Twa.  The genocide was sparked by the April 6 assassination of Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana, a Hutu.  Habyarimana’s plane was shot down by a surface-to-air missile as it prepared to land in Kigali.  All on board were killed, including Cyprien Ntaryamira, the president of Burundi.  

Habyarimana’s death caused Hutu extremists to target Tutsi and moderate Hutu leaders as retaliation.  The ensuing conflict was one of unimaginable violence that pitted neighbors against neighbors and even family members.  Dead bodies piled up in the streets as Rwandan militias and military forces carried out the systematic slaughter.  The genocide ended in July 1994, when a Tutsi rebel group defeated the Rwandan government forces.

During the conflict, the Hôtel des Mille Collines became a sanctuary for 1,248 people seeking refuge from the violence.  The refugees were both Hutus and Tutsis.  The hotel’s temporary manager, Paul Rusesabagina, is credited with keeping the hotel open as a shelter, although debate continues over whether his motivation was altruism or greed.  There were allegations that he required payment from the refugees for food and accommodation.    

Rusesabagina, who is of both Hutu and Tutsi descent, allegedly used bribery (using hotel money) and his connections with Hutu elites to protect the refugees and hotel staff from massacre.  None of those sheltered at the hotel were injured or killed in the violence.  The events were subsequently portrayed in the award-nominated movie, “Hotel Rwanda,” although genocide survivors question the verisimilitude of the film’s plot.  In the movie, American actor Don Cheadle plays Rusesabagina.

Today, the Hôtel des Mille Collines still operates as a luxury hotel.  It is an independent hotel property, and the government of Rwanda holds a 2.5% stake as a minority owner.  Rusesabagina now resides in San Antonio, Texas, and is a permanent U.S. resident.