“At
      certain
      moments
     
     
      in
      your
      life,
      you
      have
     
     
      to
      make
      this
      decision
      |
     
     
      or
      that,
      and
      it
     
     
      changes
      the
      course
     
     
      [of
      your
      life].”
     
    
   
   
    
     
      “My
      life
      can
      be
      described
      like
     
     
      this:
      I
      have
      300,000
      points
      [air
      miles]
     
     
      on
      Air
      Canada
      .
      .
      .
      a
      hundred
      thousand
     
     
      on
      British
      Airways,
      on
      African
      and
     
     
      Asian
      airlines,
      and
      more
      on
      American
     
     
      Airlines
      .
      .
      .
      which
      I
      never
      have
      time
     
     
      to
      use.”
     
    

    
     
      Dr.
      Ralph
      Hazelton
      was,
      how-
     
     
      ever,
      taking
      some
      time
      from
      his
      trav-
     
     
      els
      to
      visit
      Prince
      Edward
      Island,
     
     
      spending
      a
      full
      week
      around
      campus.
     
     
      He
      was
      the
      keynote
      speaker
      for
      the
     
     
      CUSO’s
      40th
      anniversary
      celebra-
     
     
      tions.
      Last
      Thursday,
      he
      gave
      a
      talk
      on
     
     
      the
      diamond
      trade
      and
      its
      impact
      on
     
     
      Sierra
      Leone
      to
      a
      packed
      audience
      at
     
     
      the
      AVC.
      Friday
      afternoon,
      he
      gave
      a
     
     
      talk
      to
      a
      fourth-year
      Anthropology
     
     
      class,
      one
      of
      six
      courses
      in
      which
      he
     
     
      has
      been
      a
      guest
      that
      week.
      It
      was
      then
     
     
      that
      I
      caught
      up
      with
      Dr.
      Hazelton,
     
     
      relaxed
      on
      a
      bench
      in
      the
      local
      gazebo,
     
     
      enjoying
      a
      smoke
      and
      telling
      stories
     
     
      about
      his
      life
      both
      here
      and
      away.
     
    

    
     
      Hazelton
      was
      once
      a
      professor
     
     
      with
      the
      Faculty
      of
      Economics.
      at
     
     
      UPEI,
      teaching
      development
      econom-
     
     
      ics
      from
      1973
      to
      1985.
      Since
      then,
     
     
      however,
      he
      has
      been
      working
      in
     
     
      countries
      throughout
      Africa
      as
      well
      as
     
     
      on
      the
      Myanmar-Thailand
      border,
     
     
      managing
      volunteer
      programs
      and
     
     
      working
      in
      refugee
      camps
      in
      some
      of
     
     
      the
      most
      conflicted
      regions
      of
      the
     
     
      world.
     
    

    
     
      “I
      don’t
      make
      any
      plans
      for
     
     
      the
      future...things
      just
      sort
      of
     
     
      evolved,”
      he
      says
      when
      I
      ask
      him
      how
     
     
      he
      started
      his
      overseas
      work.
      He
      uses
     
     
      two
      popular
      films,
      Sliding
      Doors
      and
     
     
      Run
      Lola
      Run,
      to
      further
      explain
      the
     
     
      idea.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      THE
      CADRE
     
    
   
   
    
     
      eft
      23
      ff".
      %
     
    
   
   
    
     
      AS
      IS
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Featuring
      Dr.
      Ralph
      Hazelton
     
     
      :
      by
      Erin
      FAGAN
     
    
   
   
    
     
      “At
      certain
      moments
      in
      your
     
     
      life,
      you
      have
      to
      make
      this
      decision
      or
     
     
      that,
      and
      it
      changes
      the
      course
      [of
      your
     
     
      life].”
     
    

    
     
      In
      1980,
      History
      professor
      Dr.
     
     
      Andrew
      Robb
      invited
      Hazelton
      to
     
     
      lunch.
      A
      graduate
      recruiter
      had
      visited
     
     
      the
      campus
      and
      was
      trying
      to
      recruit
     
     
      interested
      students
      into
      volunteering
     
     
      overseas.
      Hazelton
      asked
      if
      there
      was
     
     
      anything
      for
      him.
     
    

    
     
      .
      “As
      a
      matter
      of
      fact,
      there
     
     
      was,”
      he
      says.
      “Within
      a
      day,
      I
      had
     
     
      made
      a
      decision
      to
      go.”
      Over
      his
      two
     
     
      year
      absence,
      Hazelton
      taught
      at
      a
     
     
      polytechnic
      institute
      in
      Lesotho,
     
     
      Africa.
      When
      he
      came
      back
      to
      UPEI,
     
     
      he
      discovered
      that,
      like
      many
      others
     
     
      with
      the
      similar
      experience,
      “I
      left
      my
     
     
      heart
      and
      mind
      in
      Africa.”
     
    

    
     
      “It
      was
      a
      heavy
      decision
      [to
     
     
      return
      to
      Lesotho],”
      he
      recalls,
      “I
      had
     
     
      a
      career
      and
      tenure
      .
      .
      .
      but
      in
      1985
      I
     
     
      had
      made
      up
      my
      mind,
      resigned,
      threw
     
     
      away
      my
      tenure.”
     
    

    
     
      “T
      just
      never
      stopped.
      It’s
      been
     
     
      a
      mind-blower
      for
      me,”
      Hazelton
     
     
      laughs.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      “It
      was
      a
      heavy
     
     
      decision
      [to
      return
     
     
      to
      Lesotho].
      I
      had
      a
     
     
      career
      and
      tenure
     
    

    
     
      .
      ..
      but
      in
      1985
      I
      had
     
     
      made
      up
      my
      mind,
     
     
      resigned,
      threw
      away
     
     
      my
      tenure.”
     
    
   
   
    
     
      He
      spent
      six
      years
      in
      Lesotho
     
     
      as
      the
      country
      director,
      where
      he
      man-
     
     
      aged
      programs
      for
      an
      organization
      that
     
     
      had
      placed
      30
      Canadian
      volunteers
      in
     
     
      the
      South
      African
      country.
      There
      was
     
     
      also
      an
      exchange
      of
      professors
     
     
      between
      the
      two
      countries
      in
      which
      he
     
     
      was
      involved.
     
    

    
     
      ““What
      I
      was
      most
      interested
      in
     
     
      was
      working
      with
      refugees,”
      he
      adds,
     
    
   
   
    
     
      underlining
      this
      as
      the
      theme
      of
      most
     
     
      of
      his
      work
      abroad.
     
    

    
     
      “This
      was
      the
      time
      of
      the
     
     
      growing
      hype
      on
      the
      Apartheid
      issue.
     
     
      ..there
      were
      thousands
      of
      refugees
     
     
      flowing
      over
      the
      border.”
      In
     
     
      Botswana,
      he
      began
      interviewing
     
     
      refugees
      for
      the
      World
      University
     
     
      Service
      of
      Canada
      (WUSC
      )
      program.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      “The
      biggest
      thing
     
     
      that
      has
      astonished
     
     
      me
      is
      the
      inhumanity
     
    

    
     
      of
      man
      to
      man.”
     
    
   
   
    
     
      “It
      was
      a
      dangerous
      time...
     
     
      there
      would
      be
      attacks
      on
      houses
     
     
      where
      they
      thought
      that
      refugees
     
     
      lived.
      ..some
      of
      my
      friends
      were
     
     
      killed.”
     
    

    
     
      Dr.
      Hazelton
      recalls
      one
      inci-
     
     
      dent,
      in
      particular,
      in
      which
      25
      people
     
     
      were
      having
      a
      pre-Christmas
      party
      in
     
     
      1985,
      when
      armed
      forces
      entered
      and
     
     
      fired
      upon
      everyone
      with
      machine
     
     
      guns.
     
    

    
     
      He
      also
      worked
      for
      CARE,
     
     
      which
      took
      him
      to
      Zambia,
      where
      he
     
     
      worked
      on
      traditional
      development
     
     
      projects,
      such
      as
      digging
      wells
      and
     
     
      improving
      sanitation
      services.
      He
      also
     
     
      worked
      in
      refugee
      camps
      for
      a
      “con-
     
     
      stant
      string”
      of
      25,000
      Angolans.
      In
     
     
      Kenya,
      he
      was
      once
      again
      the
      director
     
     
      of
      a
      development
      program,
      but
      of
     
     
      course
      he
      was
      also
      heavily
      involved
      in
     
     
      three
      refugee
      camps
      for
      Somalis.
     
    

    
     
      By
      1994,
      he
      was
      working
      full
     
     
      time
      with
      refugees
      as
      what
      he
      calls
      an
     
     
      “emergency
      cowboy”:
      he
      would
      be
     
     
      placed
      on
      planes
      and
      sent
      to
      locations
     
     
      according
      to
      the
      needs
      of
      new
      refugee
     
     
      situations.
      This
      placed
      him
      for
      a
      time
     
     
      in
      Goma,
      Zaire,
      at
      the
      time
      of
      the
      cri-
     
     
      sis
      in
      Rwanda.
      In
      that
      country,
      one
     
     
      million
      people
      were
      killed,
      and
      three
     
     
      million
      people
      became
      refugees.
     
    

    
     
      “There
      were
      one
      million
      in
      a
     
     
      three
      day
      period
      at
      one
      border
      post,”
     
    
   
   
    
     
      [4]
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Dr.
      Hazelton
      describes.
      “A
      friend
      from
     
     
      Halifax
      said
      he
      had
      never
      seen
      so
     
     
      many
      goddamn
      people
      in
      one
      place
      in
     
     
      his
      life.”
      Unfortunately,
      there
      was
      also
     
     
      a
      cholera
      outbreak
      at
      Goma,
      which
     
     
      resulted
      in
      counts
      of
      5,000
      bodies
      a
     
     
      day.
     
    

    
     
      In
      1995,
      Dr.
      Hazelton
      had
      a
     
     
      heart
      attack
      and
      was
      returned
      to
     
     
      Canada
      for
      emergency
      surgery.
      Eight
     
     
      weeks
      later
      he
      was
      back
      in
      Liberia
      in
     
     
      the
      middle
      of
      a
      civil
      war.
     
    

    
     
      He
      has
      also
      worked
      at
      the
      bor-
     
     
      der
      region
      of
      Burma
      and
      Thailand,
     
     
      which
      was
      a
      completely
      different
      cul-
     
     
      tural
      environment
      from
      Africa
      and
     
     
      also
      involved
      fewer
      refugees.
     
    

    
     
      In
      the
      last
      few
      years,
      his
      work
     
     
      evolved
      into
      research
      on
      the
      relation-
     
     
      ships
      between
      conflicts
      and
      resources.
     
     
      He
      and
      colleagues
      published
      a
      90
      page
     
     
      report
      entitled,
      At
      The
      Heart
      of
      the
     
     
      Matter:
      Diamonds
      and
      Human
     
     
      Security
      in
      Sierra
      Leone.
      This
      report
     
     
      set
      off
      a
      large
      international
      campaign
     
     
      by
      Amnesty
      International
      in
      the
      U.S.
     
     
      to
      picket
      jewellery
      stores
      this
      past
     
     
      Valentine’s
      Day
      in
      New
      York
      (as
      a
     
     
      side
      note,
      all
      three
      diamond
      compa-
     
     
      nies
      in
      Sierra
      Leone
      are
      Canadian
      reg-
     
     
      istered).
      As
      a
      result,
      the
      team
      has
      been
     
     
      granted
      funding
      for
      a
      four-year
      period
     
     
      and
      six
      separate
      studies,
      as
      well
      as
      one
     
     
      on
      the
      conflict
      in
      Sudan
      and
      its
      rela-
     
     
      tionship
      to
      oil.
     
    

    
     
      “The
      biggest
      thing
      that
      has
     
     
      astonished
      me,”
      Hazelton
      adds,
      “is
      the
     
     
      inhumanity
      of
      man
      to
      man.”
      He
      has
     
     
      noted
      grimly
      that,
      characteristically,
     
     
      90%
      of
      those
      killed
      are
      civilians,
      and
     
     
      the
      majority
      of
      these
      women
      and
      chil-
     
     
      dren.
     
    

    
     
      “Civilians
      are
      targeted
      as
      a
     
     
      strategy.
      It
      is
      also
      disheartening
      to
     
     
      have
      witnessed
      a
      rise
      in
      child
      sol-
     
     
      diers.”
      He
      related
      a
      story
      of
      being
      held
     
     
      up
      at
      a
      checkpoint
      in
      Sierra
      Leone,
     
     
      with
      a
      muzzle
      in
      his
      face,
      by
      a
     
     
      drugged
      11-year-old
      boy.