Chasing the Flame

 The UN plays an important role in resolving international conflicts and supporting refugees, but I realized I actually knew very little about its real activities. My understanding had mostly come from TV news and newspapers.

This book is the biography of Sergio Vieira de Mello, who was killed in the 2003 Canal Hotel bombing while serving as the UN Secretary?General’s Special Representative in Iraq. The author is Samantha Power, a Pulitzer Prize?winning writer.

Sergio was born in Brazil in 1948, the son of a Brazilian diplomat. He studied philosophy at the Sorbonne in Paris, where he joined the 1968 student protests. I’m from the same generation?slightly younger?and Japan experienced similar student movements at the time.

In 1969, he found a job in Geneva as a French editor at the UNHCR, thanks to his exceptional language skills. From there, he went on to work in some of the world’s most difficult conflict zones?Rwanda, Lebanon, Cambodia, Yugoslavia, Kosovo, East Timor, and others?becoming a key figure in both the UNHCR and the UN. He also worked with Sadako Ogata and Yasushi Akashi, though the author’s evaluation of Mr. Akashi in this book is not very positive.

In August 2003, Sergio was killed along with 14 of his staff in an al?Qaeda suicide bombing at the Canal Hotel in Baghdad. Many believed he was a strong candidate to succeed Kofi Annan as UN Secretary?General.

He learned directly from the field and worked boldly, bravely, creatively, and independently. His charisma made him a powerful negotiator who could win people over.

Through this book, he became one of my heroes. It is not only a biography but also an excellent study of the UN?its significance, its strengths, and its limitations. Chasing the Flame is the most powerful book I’ve read in the past two years. I highly recommend it.