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June 23, 2010

Erlinder Returns to US After Rwanda Jailing
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The Minnesota-based attorney Peter Erlinder has returned home after
spending nearly three weeks in a Rwandan prison. A lawyer at the
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and a past president of the
National Lawyers Guild, Erlinder was jailed shortly after arriving in
Rwanda last month to help with the legal defense of an opposition
presidential candidate. He was accused of violating laws barring denial
of the Rwanda genocide. Rwandan government critics say the laws have
been used to silence political opposition. Erlinder was freed on health
grounds last week after being hospitalized four times since his arrest
and receiving an outpouring of global support.



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