Rwanda's top UK diplomat oversaw the use of Interpol to target exiles

Rwanda's top diplomat in the UK oversaw the use of the international justice system to target opponents of the country's rulers around the world, the Guardian can reveal.

- Tom Burgis

New details of the Rwandan government's suppression of opposition beyond its borders add to concerns about the regime at the heart of Rishi Sunak's asylum policy.

During nine years as Rwanda's justice minister and attorney general, Johnston Busingye, now the high commissioner to the UK, presided over at least three cases in which Rwandan exiles who had defied the authorities were detained, deported or declared wanted on dubious grounds.

It is not the first time Busingye has been linked to acts of repression by the Rwandan government. While he was justice minister, he admitted the regime took part in an operation in Dubai to seize Paul Rusesabagina, who inspired the film Hotel Rwanda.

The Lantos Foundation, a US human rights organisation, asked the UK to impose sanctions on Busingye after his nomination. The Labour MP Chris Bryant said at the time that Busingye "should be on our list of sanctioned individuals, not people being escorted to Buckingham Palace to have their credentials agreed by his majesty".

For seven months, Busingye's nomination as the ambassador in London went unconfirmed. Then, in April 2022, the Rwanda asylum deal was agreed with the authoritarian president, Paul Kagame. Days later, Busingye was invited to the palace to be formally appointed.

A Lantos Foundation spokesperson told the Guardian the timing "raises the question of whether there was, in fact, a connection between the asylum deal and the UK's decision to ultimately accept Busingye's credentials".

A Foreign Office spokesperson said: "Nominations for ambassadors or high commissioners are considered on a case-by-case basis in the usual way and a range of factors are taken into account."

The Rwanda policy appeared to have been suspended last week. Sunak had wanted the first flights taking asylum seekers to the east African country to go in July, but this seems unlikely in the lead-up to the general election.