(no subject)

May 25, 2005 13:09

I've just finished reading one of, if not the harshest books I've ever read. Shake Hands With The Devil is the story of LGen. Roméo Dallaire, Canadian General and UN Force Commander during the 1994 UNAMIR mission in Rwanda. During his time as FC of this mission, Dallaire was faced with some very tough situations, ones which would make the average citizen have an absolute mental breakdown. Faced with the Rwandan Genocide of Hutus killing the Tutsis, LGen. Dallaire had to sit by helplessly as 800,000 civilians were slaughtered at the hands of their fellow Rwandans. Why was he there if he could do nothing? I would say it was good intentions, amounting to too few to make a difference. The governments of Belgium, France, and the United States could be awarded quite the amount of blame in this situation, I believe it is they who have ultimately failed the Rwandans, and humanity as a whole. This catastrophe of humanity is an absolutely atrocious testament to the filth that plagues our First World nation society. The Rwandan people were abandoned in their greatest time of need, when the ability to solve their situation was easily at hand, but this hand was never appropriately given. The massive amount of failure in this disaster is astounding, from a lack of material resources to a lack of administration-- people simply did not care about what was happening in this small, over-populated African nation. On the political level, as well as the economic, the world's views were focused on Yugoslavia and the turmoil in Europe. Socially, OJ Simpson's gloves and Tonya Harding's skates were on the minds of the people. Rwanda simply didn't garner enough public interest to spark the level of aid the UNAMIR missions required.

This event will go down as a great tragedy in the humanity of the world, it is disappointing to know how poorly the world acted in the unfolding of this event. The situation in Rwanda may have been resolved, but it does not just end when nations throw money and peacekeepers in a general direction. Even today, a similar situation is raging in Darfur, Sudan. While I am fully shamed at the low involvement the Canadian Forces held in the UNAMIR and UNAMIR 2 missions, I am both proud and honoured that the man in charge was a Canadian. In the face of extreme danger and unknown peril, Dallaire did not back down. He could not simply turn a blind eye and abandon the people of Rwanda, it was simply not an option for him. I could only wish that there were more men and women in our world like Romeo Dallaire-- it would be very sad if he were the last humane human.

Roméo Dallaire, one of the reasons I salute the flag as a proud Canadian.


"Peux ce que veux. Allons-y."
Previous post Next post
Up
[]