Fight Like Soldiers, Die Like Children

Fight Like Soldiers, Die Like Children is the newest book by Romeo Dallaire, author of Shake Hands with the Devil, about his experiences working with the UN's peacekeeping mission to Rwanda during the genocide. His new book, Fight Like Soldiers, Die Like Children, focuses on child soldiers.

"Roméo Dallaire was first confronted with child soldiers in unnamed villages on the tops of the thousand hills of Rwanda during the genocide of 1994. The dilemma of the adult soldier who faced them is beautifully expressed in his book's title: when children are shooting at you, they are soldiers, but as soon as they are wounded or killed they are children once again. Believing that not one of us should tolerate a child being used in this fashion, Dallaire has made it his mission to end the use of child soldiers. In this book, he provides an intellectually daring and enlightening introduction to the child soldier phenomenon, as well as inspiring and concrete solutions to eradicate it."

I was able to hear Romeo Dallaire speak last week at the University of Toronto, where he was accompanied by Stephen Lewis, Emmanuel Jal (former child soldier- Sudan), and Michel Chikwanine (former child soldier- DRC). I have heard Stephen Lewis speak before and think he is wonderful, but I have been wanting to hear Romeo Dallaire for many years, and was thrilled to be able to attend.

The wonderful thing about Romeo Dallaire is that he offers tangible solutions. He is very knowledgable about child soldiers and his book also offers an extensive list of further reading, which I am going to have to look more into. When he was speaking, one idea he brought up really resonated with me.

In Canada, it should be a rite of passage for every young man and woman to volunteer in a developing country before graduating from school.

I couldn't help but wonder what our world would be like if this were the case. If every single person in my generation had seen some of the things that I have seen while volunteering and had a passion and heart to eradicate these humanitarian issues, like the use of child soldiers. Romeo Dallaire said that the worst people are not those that are implementing the use of child soldiers, but it is those people who stand by and let it happen.

We have the resources to eradicate poverty, child labour, child soldiers, trafficing, and forced prostitution. I wonder if any of these would still exist if Romeo Dallaire's wish came true, and if it became mandatory for all Canadian youth to "get their boots dirty" (as he put it) in a poverty-stricken country.