The University of Georgia has recognized a Canadian senator and former army lieutenant-general for his humanitarian work, including his ongoing effort to eliminate the use of child soldiers in Africa.
Romeo Dallaire became the 11th recipient of the Delta Prize for Global Understanding on March 16, joining other well-known figures such as Nelson Mandela and Jimmy Carter.
The award is funded by an endowment of the Delta Air Lines Foundation and administered by UGA. The winner gets a sculpture, $10,000 in cash and a $50,000 travel credit for the aid group of his choice.
Mr. Dallaire authored the book “They Fight Like Soldiers; They Die Like Children” to draw attention to the use of child soldiers in African conflicts, which persists despite growing awareness of the problem. He founded theChild Soldiers Initiative in an effort to solve it.
Acquainted with African conflict, Mr. Dallaire was force commander of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Rwanda before and during the 1994 genocide. He details the experience in his book, “Shake Hands With the Devil: The Failure of Humanity in Rwanda.”
For more information on the prize, visit www.uga.edu/news/deltaprize.
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