The trial of Paul Rusesabagina, whose story inspired the film “Hotel Rwanda,” which was scheduled to begin Friday has been postponed to 27 November after the accused asked more time to meet his new lawyer.The intermediate court of Nyarugenge in Kigali city  gives the accused a week to finalize the instructions with his new  lawyer, and if the problem cannot be resolved by then, the accused must  apply for legal assistance.

Rusesabagina a Belgian citizen and U.S. permanent resident faces various charges including  terrorism, arson, kidnap and murder.

The  defendant is especially accused of being a leader – along with  Belgium-based former Rwandan Prime Minister FaustinTwagiramungu – of the  MRCD Ubumwe-FLN, a militia group based mainly in the east of  neighbouring DR Congo.

In addition, his foundation – Hotel Rwanda  Rusesabagina Foundation (HRRF) – has been accused of collecting money  from well-wishers it uses to fund terrorist activities of National  Liberation Front (FLN)

The  FLN first raided a Rwandan village  near the border with Burundi in June 2018, before carrying out another  attack in December 2018 when they ambushed three passenger service  vehicles inside Nyungwe forest.

As a result, several people lost  their lives while others lost limbs. The group, which has often attacked  Rwanda from Burundi, has also been blamed for kidnapping civilians.

The  2004 Oscar-nominated film Hotel Rwanda showed Rusesabagina, a Hutu  married to a Tutsi, as using his influence as a manager of the Hotel des  Mille Collines, to allow more than 1,200 Tutsis to shelter in the  hotel’s rooms. In the film, Rusesabagina was played by US actor Don  Cheadle.

However Rusesabagina remains a hugely controversial  figure where his status as a rescue hero in 1994 has been contested by a  range of actors, including genocide survivors at Hotel Mille Collines  located in the outskirtrs of Kigali city.