Frank Chalk honoured
Frank Chalk, director of the Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies, last week was granted the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.
Chalk was one of eight distinguished individuals awarded the medal during a ceremony at Montreal’s Delta Hotel on November 9. The commemorative medal was created to mark the 2012 celebrations of the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s accession to the throne. It is a way for Canada to honour the queen for her service to this country while honouring significant Canadians.
Chalk was nominated and given the award by Sen. and LtGen Roméo Dallaire (ret), who served as Force Commander of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Rwanda during the 1994 genocide. In September 2006, he was named a distinguished Senior Fellow at MIGS.
At the ceremony, the dedicated humanitarian congratulated and thanked Chalk for his contribution to the prevention of genocide, and for advising him on crucial issues. He described MIGS’ director as an inspiration, a humanist, and an excellent academic with a great sense of humour. Dallaire emphasized that Chalk not only inspires researchers but also the work of the UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, which works to raise awareness of genocide.
After Dallaire read the words of Gov. Gen. David Johnson, the medals were presented to the recipients from a tray, given to the senator by AFRICOM, one of nine Unified Combatant Commands, which works to eradicate the use of child soldiers.
All the medal recipients were linked to Dallaire’s career as a general, or to his work on conflict resolution and the prevention of mass atrocities.
Since its founding in 1986 by Chalk and the late Kurt Jonassohn, MIGS has sought to uncover the underlying reasons for genocide and other crimes against humanity, and to create policy recommendations to resolve conflicts before they spiral out of control.
At the end of the ceremony, Dallaire expressed his gratitude, thanking the recipients for their work and future contributions.
Related link:
• MIGS: The Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies