Former Child Soldier and Human Rights Activist Ishmael Beah Speaks Out

Ishmael Beah, author of "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier," tours Canada to speak against using children to fight wars, and to tell his harrowing story about fighting a war in Sierra Leone.

Vancouver, Canada (PRWeb) February 22, 2007 -- In the more than fifty conflicts going on worldwide, it is estimated that there are some 300,000 child soldiers. Ishmael Beah used to be one of them. He will be in Canada to promote his new book "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" (Douglas & McIntyre, ISBN 978-1-55365-299-1, publication date March 3, 2007), to talk about his experience of fighting in Sierra Leone, and to speak out against the use of children in warfare.

Beah gives insight into how the militia and government armies alike use horrifying, calculated methods to draw children into violent conflicts. He says, "In such circumstances, everyone is capable of going beyond their own humanity. I wrote this book to shed light on how and why children are recruited into wars, how they are made into killers and how through rehabilitation they can take back their lives."

Beah is a member of the Human Rights Watch Children's Rights Division Advisory Committee and has spoken before the Council on Foreign Relations, the Center for Emerging Threats and Opportunities (CETO) at the Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory, and many other NGO panels on children affected by war. He has also spoken before the United Nations on several occasions.

Thursday, March 29, 7:30 p.m.

Talk of the Town

John Oliver Secondary School

530 East 41st Avenue

Vancouver, BC

Free event, to pre-register phone 604-827-3491.

Saturday, March 31, 2:00 p.m.

Malaspina Bookstore                 

Port Theatre

125 Front Street

Nanaimo, BC

Ticket information: 250-754-8550 or www.porttheatre.com.

Monday, April 16, at 6:30 p.m.

McGill University Bookstore                 

Leacock Auditorium (Rm. 132), McGill University

815 Sherbrooke Street West,

Montreal, QC

Free event, to pre-register contact McGill University Bookstore at 514-398-7444.

Tuesday, April 17, 7:00 p.m.

Octopus Books

Bronson Centre Auditorium

221 Bronson Avenue

Ottawa, ON

For ticket information, contact Octopus Books at 613-233-2589.

Wednesday, April 18, 7:30 p.m.

University of Toronto Bookstore Reading Series                

St. Barnabas Anglican Church

361 Danforth Ave.

Toronto, ON

Ticket information: 416-640-5836.

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