Shake Hands With The Devil

Shake Hands with the Devil is the story of Romeo Dallaire and his sufferings in Rwanda. Posted as head of the UN force, the Canadian Dallaire warned his superiors, including Boutros Boutros-Ghali, of the impending massacre. His appeals for help were not heeded, and he was present throughout the killing of an estimated 800,000 people in 100 days.

In this film he returns 10 years later to the scene of the atrocity. This is an extraordinary document, both extremely hard to watch and, once you have made the effort, impossible to leave for many days.

Dallaire suffered a breakdown of sorts, and became an alcoholic as a consequence of his experience, but his manner in telling the story is wholly stoic, and he finds it hard to allocate blame among the many people who let him down.

There are many unforgettable scenes. Dallaire now still believes that things might have turned out differently had a better set of people been in charge at the UN. One can appreciate his point of view, without wholly sharing it.

Of course the alternative conclusion to be drawn from this film is even worse - that what is called the International Community invariably sits on its hands during a genocidal attack, and that it would be foolish to expect anything else.

But the most enduring conclusion to be drawn from the film is that Dallaire is an extremely nice and wholly remarkable person - a hero for our tarnished times.
…bbc.co.uk