UTV Airs "Hotel Rwanda" And "Sometimes in April" Ahead Election

With just a few days to Ghana�s general elections, the country would be reminded of what could happen in the absence of peace, unity and political stability, as Ghana�s newest television station, United Television (UTV), airs two award winning movies this week, �Hotel Rwanda� and �Sometimes in April.�

�Hotel Rwanda� will be shown today Monday December 3, 2012 at exactly 8pm and repeated on Tuesday afternoon December 4 whiles �Sometimes in April� shows on Wednesday December 5 at 8pm and repeated on Thursday afternoon December 6, 2012.

Both movies are based on true-life stories of how over 800,000 people were killed in Rwanda�s genocide in just 100 days simply because of political and ethnic differences between the Hutus and the Tutsis.

The airing of the two movies would remind Ghanaians of the need to stay united as one country with a common destiny rather than get divided along political and ethnic differences.

In the movie synopsis of �Hotel Rwanda�, Sujit R. Varma explains that tensions between the Hutu and Tutsi peoples led to a civil war, in a country where corruption and bribes are routine. Paul Rusesabagina (Don Cheadle), the manager of Sabena Hotel des Mille Collines, is Hutu but his wife, Tatiana (Sophie Okonedo), is Tutsi. His marriage is a source of friction with Hutu extremists, most prominently George Rutaganda, a friendly supplier to the hotel who also is the local leader of Interahamwe, a brutal anti-Tutsi militia.

As the political situation in Rwanda deteriorates, Paul and his family observe neighbors being dragged from their homes and openly beaten in the streets. Paul finds favor with people of influence, bribing them with money and alcohol, seeking to maintain sufficient influence to keep his family safe.

When civil war erupts and a Rwanda Army officer threatens Paul and his neighbors, Paul barely negotiates their safety, and brings everyone to the hotel. More refugees come to the hotel from the overburdened United Nations camp, the Red Cross, and orphanages. Paul must divert the Hutu soldiers, care for the refuges, be a source of strength to his family, and maintain the appearance of a functioning high-class hotel, as the situation becomes more and more violent, with mobs in the streets just outside the gates.

The UN Peacekeeping forces, led by Colonel Oliver (Nick Nolte), are unable to take assertive action against the Interhamwe since they are forbidden to intervene in the genocide. The foreign nationals are evacuated, but he Rwandans are left behind.

When the UN forces attempt to evacuate a group of refugees, including Pauls�s family, they are ambushed and must turn back. In a last-ditch effort to save the refuges, Paul speaks to the Rwanda Army General, Augustine Bizimungu (Fana Mokoena) and when the bribes no longer work, he blackmails him with threats of being tried as a war criminal.

The family and the hotel refugees finally leave the besieged hotel in a UN convoy, and they travel through retreating masses of refuges and militia to reach safety behind Tutsi rebel lines.

UTV, from the stables of the Despite Group of Companies, proud operators of Peace FM, Okay FM, and Hello FM, recently won the hearts of Ghanaians when the station did an exclusive live telecast on the Melcom disaster that occurred at Achimota.

The station, for three days running, gave a live minute-by-minute account of the rescue mission at the disaster scene and also sent cameras to the hospitals and homes of the disaster victims.

Watch "Hotel Rwanda" trailer below: