Student of the Game
Brrrrr! It’s Cold
500
University of Portland coach
shares his knowledge
of life and sport.
Forecast calls fo r
* possible snow by late
week or weekend.
ffv c a
tz r
Volume XXXV. Number
Aid Plane Crashes
into Herd
The main airport at Indonesia's!
tsunami-battered Sumatra Island
was closed for much of Tuesday
after a relief plane hit a herd ot I
cows, hampering the world’s still-
fragile efforts to get aid to vic­
tims of the disaster.
Aid to Boost U.S. Image
Secretary of State Colin Powell I
said the outpouring o f American
aid and humanitarian help in the
region devastated by the tsu-1
nami may also help Muslim na­
tions see the United States in a |
better light.
Social Security
Cuts Outlined
Future Social Security benefits I
could be cut almost in half for
some younger workers under a
plan President Bush is consider­
ing for overhauling the nation’s
retirement system. Investments
in personal accounts would be
counted on to make up the loss |
in income.
Air Travel Deaths Down
Only 34 people have died in U.S.
commercial airline crashes in the I
past three years, making it one of
the safest periods in aviation
history even as more Americans
than ever travel by air.
Mad Cow in Canada
A new case of mad cow disease I
discovered in Canada poses no
threat to human health or trade,
and the United States has as­
sured Canadian officials it will
not block b eef im ports, the
country’s agriculture minister
said Monday.
www.portlandobserver.com
Wednesday • lanuary 5. 2005
Humble Public Servant
HOTEL
RWANDA
Hotel Manager Stands
Tall Against Rebels
by
While the rest ofthe world looked
R on W eber
T he P ortland O bserver
Behind his quiet manner, gentle
dark eyes, and soft round face I
would not guess this man had stood
face to face with murderous barbar-
ians, negotiating for the lives of
over a thousand people.
Paul Rusesabagina, a dutiful
hotel m anagerin Kigali, the Capitol
city o f Rw anda,
Africa, toid me that
he was merely “do-
ing his jo b ” when
he helped 1 200
worst genocides in
African history.
As manager for
on, tens o f thousands o f men.
women, and children were slaugh-
tered on a daily basis for months,
Paul said much of the world turned
its back on the troubles in Rwanda
because o fa lack of cultural under-
standing, stating that if the geno-
cide "had been in America or west-
em Europe, the world would have
--
while the rest ofthe world
,
looked Oil, teflS OJ thOUSClHOS
,
women, and children
were slaughtered on a daily
,
, r
„1
baSlS far mOflthS.
£
th e
B e lg iu m -
owned Hotel Des Mille Collines, acted much sooner."
Paul went far above and beyond
A lter United Nations security
the call of duty.
p erso n n e l e v a cu a te d all non-
In 1994. Rwanda’s president was Rwandans, Paul’s grand hotel sat
literally blown out of the sky when empty except for Paul, his family,
a missile destroyed his plane. Al- and a small group of employees,
m ost im m ediately, angry T utsi Everyone simply stared at Paul,
rebels declared war and began an­
nihilating their political rivals, the
Hutus.
continued
Don Cheadle (left) greets Paul Rusesabagina, the man he portrays in Hotel Rwanda.
Movie
Shines Light
on Genocide
on page A 5
R on W eber
T he P ortland O bserver
by
Iraqi Governor
Assassinated
In su rg e n ts assa ssin a te d the
highest-ranking Iraqi official,
gunning down the governor of
Baghdad province and six of his I
bodyguards, and a suicide truck
bomber killed 10 people at an
Interior M inistry com m ando
headquarters, the latest in a string
of violence ahead of Jan. 30elec-1
tions.
1
See Metro, page AIO
Established in 1970
Committed to Cultural Diversity
‘City of Roses'
Weekin
TheReview
n r«
r r v v r v v iiv * .
'i W
\
■■■■■-----------
photo by
F rank C onner
Actors Nick Noltle as Col. Oliver (left) and Don Cheadle as Paul
Rusesabagina , the man who fought to save everyone he could
from genocide, discuss the dangerous conditions outside Hotel
Rwanda, a major motion picture opening nationwide Thursday.
photo
m B lip A lsbirk
.Tv?
Red Cross worker Pat Archer (Cara Seymour) and Tatiana
Rusesabagina (Sophie Okonedo) search for nieces and
nephews in a refugee camp in Hotel Rwanda.
In Hotel Rwanda, viewers find them­
selves right in the middle of a genocide
o f epic proportions. The m ovie’s well-
rounded crew includes Don Cheadle,
“ Devil in a Blue D ress,” “Sophie
Okonedo, Dirty Pretty Things,” Joaquin
Phoenix, and Nick Nolte. As always,
Nolte does a stellar job.
Cheadle plays Paul Rusesabagina, a
hotel manager who struggles to keep
1,200 Rwandan civilians alive, while
10,(XX) people a day are being killed
outside the hotel compound. In a three-
month period, almost a million citizens
ofthe African country are gunned down
or slaughtered with machetes.
continued
'y f
on page A S
Troubles Grow for
Krispy Kreme
T ro u b le d
d o u g h n u t m a k erl
Portland’s
Tsunami Response
Krispy Kreme will restate earn­
ings for the last three quarters of
fiscal 2(X)4 in the wake of allega­
tions the company padded ship-1
ments to hide declining sales. Its
shares sank nearly 13 percent.
The com pany also warned it
could be on the brink o f major |
Donations to Charities Urged
The American Red Cross Oregon Trail Chapter and other
credit problems.
local relief agencies are making an urgent appeal for cash
assistance for immediate and long-term recovery for coun­
gs
tries impacted by the devastating tsunamis in countries
s
bordering the Indian Ocean in south Asia.
The sea waves triggered by a9 .0 mega earthquake has lett
millions of people homeless. The death toll is expected to
climb to 150,000 people in the next few days.
Checks made out to the American Red Cross Oregon Trai 1
Chapter must indicate that you want your donation to go to
the International Response Fund for tsunamis victims. C all
503-284-1234 or visit www.redcross-pdx.org to make an
online contribution. Donations can also be mailed to the
American Red Cross. Oregon Trail Chapter, PO Box 4125,
photo by
M ichael R i benstein /T hf P ortland O bserver
Potter Begins Term as Mayor
Portland Mayor Tom Potter takes the oath of office Monday from Circuit Court Judge Sidney A. Galton
during a multi-cultural ceremony at David Douglas High School in southeast Portland. The e^ nt incl^
Native Americans, local African-American leaders and the Jefferson Dancers from Jefferson H,gh School.
Portland. OR 97208.
To donate to Mercy Corps, send checks to P.O. Box 2669,
P o rtla n d , O R 9 7 2 0 8 . ca ll 8 0 0 -8 5 2 -2 1 0 0 o r v isit
www.mercycorps.org.
To donate to Northwest Medical Teams, send checks to
P.O Box 10, Portland, OR 972094X) 10. call 503-624-1 (KM)or
visit www nwmedicalteams.org.