"Shake hands With the Devil"
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Well I finished LGen Dallaire‘s book a week ago, and it just makes me sick how the world ignored Rwanda‘s plight, until after the genocide -
Its interesting to note that the current president of Rwanda is Paul Kagame, the former head of the RPF during the war, and Dallaire actually voiced speculation in his book about if he had actually been involved in some way, considering how he ended up...
Its interesting to note that the current president of Rwanda is Paul Kagame, the former head of the RPF during the war, and Dallaire actually voiced speculation in his book about if he had actually been involved in some way, considering how he ended up...
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Well...You never can tell about what goes on behind the scenes. From what I have so far read it sounds like the RPF were much better organized, trained and ready to "forge ahead and break ground" than the RGF or any other of the organizations present on the ground.
As far as the U.N. goes. It sounds to me like it was a case of simply no one being willing to take responsability for sorting the country out...and so hunderds of thousands were murdered. Its happened before and very likely will happen again.
Just goes to show that, in the end, we don‘t really care unless there‘s money or oil involved.
Cheers
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Is LGen Dallaire (hope that's the right name title) doing a book tour? I saw an advertisement for a speech he is going to do at Nipissing University. If so has anyone gone to see him?
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Wife got this book for me as a Christmas present. Looks like I need to get into soon.
Now 10 yrs after the fact we (the public, not mbrs of the CF) will see what the events were 10 yrs ago in Rwanda. I also look forward to the movie "Hotel Rwanda".
We (the public again) should feel shame.
Now 10 yrs after the fact we (the public, not mbrs of the CF) will see what the events were 10 yrs ago in Rwanda. I also look forward to the movie "Hotel Rwanda".
We (the public again) should feel shame.
Does anyone knows the title of the movie LGen Dallaire made for the International film festival? He returned to Rwanda and a camera crew followed him I believe... I would like to see that...
BTW, if someone has ANY information about when and where LGen Dallaire will be a speaker, please post it..
Frank
Edit: I found the movie title: "Shake Hands with the Devil: The Journey of Roméo Dallaire" Any one knows when it will be available to rent?
2nd Edit: Nevermind, I found it again... The movie will be in theater Feb 18th and available on DVD March 1st 2005.
More information on Microfilms's web page: http://www.microfilmsinc.com/
BTW, if someone has ANY information about when and where LGen Dallaire will be a speaker, please post it..
Frank
Edit: I found the movie title: "Shake Hands with the Devil: The Journey of Roméo Dallaire" Any one knows when it will be available to rent?
2nd Edit: Nevermind, I found it again... The movie will be in theater Feb 18th and available on DVD March 1st 2005.
More information on Microfilms's web page: http://www.microfilmsinc.com/
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"Shake Hands with the Devil: The Journey of Roméo Dallaire" - The movie will be in theater Feb 18th
For those on here from Calgary... i know there are a few - You can catch it at The Uptown theatre right now. Hope to get down there this weekend to take it in.
I'm assuming it's already out playing elsewhere too, i'd check out the local indy theatres as unfortunately i doubt it'll make the big screens.
cheers.
For those on here from Calgary... i know there are a few - You can catch it at The Uptown theatre right now. Hope to get down there this weekend to take it in.
I'm assuming it's already out playing elsewhere too, i'd check out the local indy theatres as unfortunately i doubt it'll make the big screens.
cheers.
P
P Kaye
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There's also a relatively new book called "The Ghosts of Medak Pocket", which might be good. There's a seperate discussion thread about this book.
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In Rwanda? IIRC..... 2 ......with UNAMIR - General Dallaire and his aide. And a CF herc was involved somewhere - but more Canadians werent there until later.
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Well IIRC there was a comms unit (as well as others) involved in 1994, after the genocide had come into effect.
M
Military mind
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very good book... i recommend it strongly... althought I got lost from time to time with all the Africans names; I always had to refer at the end of the book to know who is who ???
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O.K I literally just finished reading this book about 5 minutes ago and decided that I had to write something about this book in this forum.
To start off with, I'm forcing at least 3 of my friends to read this book. It is truly amazing the amount of patience that Lt.Gen Romeo Dallaire had to edure on this most disaterous U.N. tour. He (and his fellow officers & his MILOBS) truly had the patience to match and beat that of Job ten fold. I kept on imagining what I would've done if put in the same position as he; and to be true to myself, I probably would've been kiiled while weilding my own weapon, trying to shoot the Genocidaires.
For anyone thinking about joining the army or reserves and who would like to join onto Canadian/U.N. missions this book is a must and will help you to understand the strains that the first world belligerent countries (as I've come to think of them) put on the beaurocratic mess that is now the U.N.
Romeo Dallaire and co author (Mjr. Brent Breadsley) acurately described their experiences in the Rwandian Genocide so much so that you can actually feal yourself getting stressed out reading it. To even try to describe my own emotion whilst reading this book makes me want to go down to the pub and grab a beer. So all I can say is that if you are going to read one book about army and peace keeping life this year READ THIS BOOK!!!.
If you want to dissillussion yourself with military farces and fairyland filth, go back to reading Tom Clancy's visual trash (going in my recycling bin as I speak) I truly believe that if you are going to join the army, or if you already are in it, you have to read the real accounts, you have to force yourself to digest the real tales of people who have been in these REAL LIFE scenario's. I've read every single Tom Clancy novel (with the exception of "Executive Orders") and can safely say that I will never read another page of his dribble again.
For those of us living in the first world, books like this are a must for us to read. We must never forget the decisions that we make, simply by our public opinion and the effects that this has on the nature of these vital U.N. third-world peace keeping missions.
I myself am now attempting at this moment to join the Reserves, origionally for life experience and to help me through school. So when I told my dad about my plans few months back, he said I should read "Shake Hands With the Devil". He thought that after reading this book and reading about the effects this had on the soldiers that had to sit by and endure those attrocities, that this would disuade my ambition to join the Seaforth Highlanders.
So now it's been ten minutes since I've read this book, and now I'm even more determined to join the reserves. Not only am I now determined to join up, but am now convinced that I'd like to sign up for a U.N. peace keeping mission or two and as the bard put it "suffer the slings and arrows of outragous fortune" and at least try to do my small part in trying to fix this global mess that we all contribute every time we turn our back on a potential Rwanda.
-Vercingetorix
To start off with, I'm forcing at least 3 of my friends to read this book. It is truly amazing the amount of patience that Lt.Gen Romeo Dallaire had to edure on this most disaterous U.N. tour. He (and his fellow officers & his MILOBS) truly had the patience to match and beat that of Job ten fold. I kept on imagining what I would've done if put in the same position as he; and to be true to myself, I probably would've been kiiled while weilding my own weapon, trying to shoot the Genocidaires.
For anyone thinking about joining the army or reserves and who would like to join onto Canadian/U.N. missions this book is a must and will help you to understand the strains that the first world belligerent countries (as I've come to think of them) put on the beaurocratic mess that is now the U.N.
Romeo Dallaire and co author (Mjr. Brent Breadsley) acurately described their experiences in the Rwandian Genocide so much so that you can actually feal yourself getting stressed out reading it. To even try to describe my own emotion whilst reading this book makes me want to go down to the pub and grab a beer. So all I can say is that if you are going to read one book about army and peace keeping life this year READ THIS BOOK!!!.
If you want to dissillussion yourself with military farces and fairyland filth, go back to reading Tom Clancy's visual trash (going in my recycling bin as I speak) I truly believe that if you are going to join the army, or if you already are in it, you have to read the real accounts, you have to force yourself to digest the real tales of people who have been in these REAL LIFE scenario's. I've read every single Tom Clancy novel (with the exception of "Executive Orders") and can safely say that I will never read another page of his dribble again.
For those of us living in the first world, books like this are a must for us to read. We must never forget the decisions that we make, simply by our public opinion and the effects that this has on the nature of these vital U.N. third-world peace keeping missions.
I myself am now attempting at this moment to join the Reserves, origionally for life experience and to help me through school. So when I told my dad about my plans few months back, he said I should read "Shake Hands With the Devil". He thought that after reading this book and reading about the effects this had on the soldiers that had to sit by and endure those attrocities, that this would disuade my ambition to join the Seaforth Highlanders.
So now it's been ten minutes since I've read this book, and now I'm even more determined to join the reserves. Not only am I now determined to join up, but am now convinced that I'd like to sign up for a U.N. peace keeping mission or two and as the bard put it "suffer the slings and arrows of outragous fortune" and at least try to do my small part in trying to fix this global mess that we all contribute every time we turn our back on a potential Rwanda.
-Vercingetorix
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Agreed it's a great book. Gen Dallaire is a great author. I enjoyed his style much more than Carol Off's Ghosts of the Medak (still reading). Shake hands gave me nightmares and was one of those books I couldn't leave at home I wanted to read it at every oportunity. For a non-fiction that's quite the feat.
To the people I recommend it to the only thing I mention is to make a list of people that are introduced and some basic stats also the acronyms. By 2/3 through I no longer could remember if such and such was on this side or that etc and in typical military fashion theres a lot of acronyms which are only written in full once.
To the people I recommend it to the only thing I mention is to make a list of people that are introduced and some basic stats also the acronyms. By 2/3 through I no longer could remember if such and such was on this side or that etc and in typical military fashion theres a lot of acronyms which are only written in full once.
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Currently reading the book for the second time (as to keep up with the names and specifics). It's truly a wonder how much the book covers: politics, ethnic hatred, media manipulation, the UN (and it's bungling of the situation), and it also provides a strategic and tactical analysis of the Rwandan disaster.
Personally, heavy reading or not, I think it should a be a mandatory grade 11 book (or grade 12 outside of Quebec). Senator Dallaire'swriting style is very inviting while at the same time haunting to the bone.
After reading this book, you feel like beating any critics of Dallaire's handling of the situation with a cast-iron pole...it is an amazing story of dedication to humanity despite being low on international co-operation, vehicles, troops, ammunition, fuel and other shortfalls. It also shows how a soldier is valuable for what he (or she, however, there were no female soldiers mentionned directly by Senator Dallaire) has inside them not neccesarily how much advanced equipment or wealth their nation has. After all, the Tunisians and the Ghanians, in my opinion, are the best portrayed contingents throughout the book. For the Belgians and the Bangladeshis, there seems to be a love-hate relationship between the Force Commander and the contingents. I found it quite shocking that a modern country such as Belgium could still have formally racist policies (ie, the Belgians not being allowed to sleep in tents in font of Africans).
It also gives a new point of view on rebel armies, which seem to be generally portyed in a negative light. The RPF are shown as a rebel army, but a brilliantly-led and well diciplined army at that, a rebel army that genuinely tried stop the genocide. Perhaps it was for this reason that rebels are more positively portrayed by the media about the Darfur crisis...
Definately a good read, I reccomend that anyone who hasn't read it reads it, and anyone who has read it long enough ago for it to not get repetitive should read it again.
Personally, heavy reading or not, I think it should a be a mandatory grade 11 book (or grade 12 outside of Quebec). Senator Dallaire'swriting style is very inviting while at the same time haunting to the bone.
After reading this book, you feel like beating any critics of Dallaire's handling of the situation with a cast-iron pole...it is an amazing story of dedication to humanity despite being low on international co-operation, vehicles, troops, ammunition, fuel and other shortfalls. It also shows how a soldier is valuable for what he (or she, however, there were no female soldiers mentionned directly by Senator Dallaire) has inside them not neccesarily how much advanced equipment or wealth their nation has. After all, the Tunisians and the Ghanians, in my opinion, are the best portrayed contingents throughout the book. For the Belgians and the Bangladeshis, there seems to be a love-hate relationship between the Force Commander and the contingents. I found it quite shocking that a modern country such as Belgium could still have formally racist policies (ie, the Belgians not being allowed to sleep in tents in font of Africans).
It also gives a new point of view on rebel armies, which seem to be generally portyed in a negative light. The RPF are shown as a rebel army, but a brilliantly-led and well diciplined army at that, a rebel army that genuinely tried stop the genocide. Perhaps it was for this reason that rebels are more positively portrayed by the media about the Darfur crisis...
Definately a good read, I reccomend that anyone who hasn't read it reads it, and anyone who has read it long enough ago for it to not get repetitive should read it again.
TheCheez said:
He used a ghostwriter, Sian Cansfield, who took her own life shortly before the book was finished. It is generally assumed that the subject matter of the book and being so deeply involved with writing it for about a year was the primary influence. If you care to know more just google it.
