New York, NY 15 Nov 2004 -

The International Rescue Committee has given its Distinguished Humanitarian Award to Lieutenant-General Romeo Dallaire, the former commander of the UN Assistance Mission for Rwanda, for his extraordinary bravery during the 1994 genocide and for his humanitarian efforts since then. 

The award was announced at the IRC's annual benefit dinner November 10, 2004 in New York, following opening remarks by United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan. Annan described the IRC as a “model partner” for the UN and praised Dallaire. “While the genocide showed us the very worst of humankind, Romeo showed us some of the very best,” he said.

IRC board member and journalist Samantha Power, who introduced Dallaire, drew a parallel between the outmatched UN units in Rwanda in 1994 and the force being applied to stop ethnic cleansing in Darfur, Sudan, today. She said of Dallaire: “He is doing all he can to ensure that lessons are not merely learned but – at very long last – applied.”

Accepting the award from IRC president George Rupp, Dallaire said he did so in the names of the hundreds of thousands of Rwandans who died in the genocide, the millions who were displaced, and the UN peacekeepers who died or were injured trying to protect them. He highlighted the critical role of the UN, and suggested opportunities for greater participation by the international community to avert similar humanitarian disaster in Darfur and elsewhere.

In closing, Dallaire said that he was optimistic that there is a “bright future” for the advancement of human rights and democracy. “It comes from the fact that I do believe that many advance the creed that I have, which is: All humans are human. There isn’t one human that is more human than the other.”

NBA all-star Dikembe Mutombo was honored with a public service award for the outstanding contributions he and his foundation have made to eradicate disease in his native Democratic Republic of Congo. Tom Brokaw, managing editor and anchor of the NBC Nightly News and the event’s master of ceremonies, accepted the award on his behalf.

The IRC gave its Corporate Responsibility Award to American Express chairman and chief executive officer Kenneth Chenault for the philanthropic leadership that he and his company provide, including the funding of financial literacy programs designed to help newly arrived refugees achieve economic success in their new home.

Brokaw noted that American Express and the American Express Foundation have supported the IRC for more than a decade and that Chenault, “knows that the work of his company and as a citizen of this country is an extension of all our ideals.”

Additional speakers at the event included Rosa Weet and Abraham Reech, refugees from Sudan who have resettled in the United States with assistance from the IRC.

Maurice Greenberg, CEO of American International Group, Inc., was the event’s chairman.

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