NFB chronicles Orbanski’s challenges in conflict zones in Africa

Nobel Prize winner tales of genocide in Rwanda and famine and war in Somalia

by GEORGE KAGAME


A documentary movie “Triage: Dr. James Orbinski’s Humanitarian Dilemma” about the experiences of a Canadian medical specialist in war torn, famine stricken Somalia and a genocide in Rwanda in the early 1990s.

The documentary was screened on Saturday 7th March at the National Film Board of Canada’s Mediatheque in downtown Toronto.

The documentary is inspired by the book written by Orbanski with the same title and chronicles the physician’s heroic survival and efforts to help others survive a war and famine in Somalia first and later a genocide in Rwanda.

Orbanski a Canadian physician, writer and humanitarian activist is a widely known and respected figure in international humanitarian circles and was President of the International Council of Médecins Sans Frontières at the time the organization received the 1999 Nobel Peace Prize.
He is currently a senior physician at the University of Toronto and is also the co-founder and Chair of the Board of Directors of Dignitas International, a medical humanitarian organization working with communities to dramatically access to life-saving treatment and prevention in areas overwhelmed by HIV/AIDS.

The 2007 documentary follows Orbinski’s return to Somalia, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo years ion the mid 2000s after he had left the countries while he was working on the field for Medicins Sans Frontiers (MSF) in the early to mid 1990s.

Patrick Reed who produced the movie said the documentary was not just about the life of Orbanski but focused as well on telling the stories of the locals in conflict zones and how noble humanitarian workers also faced the wrath of political conflicts as the victims they were trying to help. He added that movies such as these about issues in other parts of the world are crucial and it is easy to make them from Toronto; “there’s a large presence of people from such areas as Rwanda and Somalia here, many of the people who suffered in such conflicts have moved here.”

But he also added that it was very hard to get any revenue from such movies especially about Africa because nobody was willing to finance their production; “making a story about a topic from Africa is particularly difficult in Canada as the reception of such programs is very low.”

While referring to role of a Canada led United Nations’ peace keeping force that tried and failed to stop the genocide in Rwanda, Reed said Orbinski’s documentary meant to portray a different preceptive from the one internationally held. One which depicts General Romeo Dallaiere as the only “white” face trying to save the people of Rwanda. He also said that the movie was intended to honour other people apart from General Dallaire.

“In fact there are other people that in their different roles contributed largely to trying to find solutions to the genocide in Rwanda.”
Reed also produced the movie from General Dallaire’s book “Shake Hands with the Devil.”

ENDS