Erlinder was arrested on May 28, 2010, in the Rwandan capital. He defended opposition leader
Victoire Ingabire against the same charge he faced, a law prohibiting "Genocide Ideology" – speech refuting that the 1994
Rwandan genocide occurred exactly as the Rwandan government claims. The Republic of Rwanda issued a statement claiming that Erlinder "continually engaged in conspiracy theories and denial surrounding the circumstances of the genocide [and] has promulgated this dangerous and distorted fiction over many years." This statement claimed that he was arrested for allegedly
denying the
Rwandan genocide, and accused him of links to
FDLR. Police spokesman Eric Kayiranga claimed that Erlinder said that "no Tutsis were killed by Hutus." As a result of Kayiranga's claim, some media reported that Erlinder's defense of clients accused of genocide included the argument "that the Tutsis were not the primary victims but the instigators and that the massacres were actually part of a civil war." Although "Conspiracy to commit genocide" is just one of six possible genocidal crimes enumerated in the "Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide," the crime of genocide still requires proof of "
intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group." Erlinder sued Kagame for ordering the
Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) to commit war crimes, including murder, and he accused the United States of turning a blind eye to Kagame's wrongdoing.
Amnesty International has confirmed that the RPF committed war crimes and crimes against humanity, but the crimes have largely escaped international notice. The
National Lawyers Guild called for his immediate release.
William Mitchell College of Law stated that it stands in solidarity with Erlinder. The International Criminal Defence Attorneys Association condemned Erlinder's arrest as "an attack on the right to counsel and the independence of counsel," and demanded that he be freed.
Paul Rusesabagina, the subject of the film
Hotel Rwanda, argued that Erlinder was a
political prisoner who should be immediately released, as President Kagame frequently silences his political opponents by charging them with the crime of genocide denial. Despite the American State Department's call for Erlinder's release, a Rwandan judge denied Erlinder's request for bail on June 7, 2010, and Erlinder stayed imprisoned in Kigali. In the wake of Erlinder's detention, the work at the United Nation's
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda ground to a halt. Defense attorneys refused to proceed with their casework, for fear that they too could be arrested and held by the Kagame regime. Recognizing the effect of Erlinder's arrest, the
American Bar Association called on Rwanda to respect the U.N.
Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, and to "refrain from harassment of lawyers practicing law consistent with their professional obligations." Other groups, including Advocates for Human Rights and the Society of American Law Teachers, joined in calling for Erlinder's immediate release. U.S. congressional representatives
Betty McCollum and
Keith Ellison introduced a resolution calling on Rwanda to immediately release Erlinder, pointing out that the U.S. gives Rwanda hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign aid every year; Senator
Amy Klobuchar has also called for Erlinder's release, and has asked Rwandan authorities to grant him an expedited appeal. Writing in the
Harvard Law Record, an independent
student-edited newspaper based at
Harvard Law School, Patrick Karuretwa said that Rwanda was right to prosecute Erlinder, stating the country's anti-genocide denial laws helped ensure its stability and progress, and that no exemptions should be made for an individual's privileged position. Erlinder was released on bail on June 18, 2010. ==Activities==