Former Canadian Senator and UN Advisor Roméo Dallaire is a celebrated human rights advocate and founder of the Roméo Dallaire Child Soldiers Initiative. Dallaire is also a highly respected government advisor who has also worked for the prevention of mass atrocities and supported veterans. Dallaire’s distinguished military career spanned nearly four decades and saw him rise through the ranks from Army Cadet to Lieutenant-General. He is the author of number one bestseller Shake Hands With The Devil: The Failure of Humanity in Rwanda, his personal account of the Rwandan genocide where he served as force commander of the UN intervention. The critically acclaimed book won the Governor General’s award. Dallaire received the inaugural Aegis Award for Genocide Prevention in London in 2002.
After joining the Canadian Army in 1964, Dallaire rose through the ranks to serve as Deputy Commander of the Canadian Army and later served in the Ministry of Defence. He was sent on a United Nations peace-helping mission to Rwanda in 1994 and attempted to warn the UN about the planned massacre, however they denied permission to intervene and withdrew peace keeping forces. Dallaire disobeyed the UN’s command to withdraw and stayed in Rwanda with a small group of soldiers to bravely protect those who sought refuge with the UN forces.
After being abandoned by the wealthiest countries of the world and witnessing the horrific atrocities in Rwanda, Dallaire returned home a broken man and left the armed forces with post-traumatic stress disorder. Since then, he has spoken on the behalf of other veterans struggling with the disorder and published the bestselling memoir Waiting for First Light: My Ongoing Battle with PTSD. Dallaire has also dedicated the rest of his life to the eradication of child soldiers in war through the Roméo Dallaire Child Soldiers Initiative.