EuropaWorld 2/2/2001 Who Is Caring For The Carers?

The job of helping others in conflict situations has always been inherently dangerous. But for years, the great majority of humanitarian workers were protected from the dangers around them by an invisible shield. Effectively, aggressors from all sides, in conflicts around the world, somehow reached a tacit agreement that, while they might continue to wage war, relief workers struggling to assist their hapless civilian casualties, would remain neutral and unharmed.

That world began to disappear in the 1990s as the nature of war itself began to change. State-to-state conflicts increasingly gave way to a series of bitter ethnic, religious and other wars. The rules began to change. Conflicts were no longer characterised by state troops or professional armies using sophisticated equipment to attack isolated military targets. Rebels, militias and child soldiers wielding illicit AK-47s and machetes became increasingly familiar figures. Attacks started taking place not just against military targets but against previously peaceful communities as well. Civilians became deliberate targets of terror and, with them, aid officials and relief workers came increasingly under fire.

Aiding the wounded or needy in the face of imminent danger may sound romantic. It isn't. Any such notions are quickly dispelled by the latest reports from the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) highlighting the dangers faced by the world's humanitarian staff. Christoph Hamm was a UNHCR repatriation officer in Burundi in 1999. He describes how he and 5 UN colleagues were caught in an unprovoked, surprise attack: his words suggest nothing of romance. The brutal attack left 3 of his colleagues dead; he himself was wounded. Catching up with villagers trailing in exile through fields and sugar plantations to reach safety, his words recall nothing but the acute ache of misery and disbelief. "Nobody talked to us. The men looked at us with empty eyes. Women stared at my blood-soaked clothes with fear and pity. I will never forget that walk across the fields-among people fleeing their homes, having lost families or left behind, like us, dead friends."

This horrific story is no isolated incident. Since January, 1992, almost 200 UN civilian employees have been killed on humanitarian missions. A further 240 have been kidnapped or taken hostage. The number from other agencies and NGOs is unknown.

The fact is that the 'invisible shield' that previously sheltered humanitarian staff is disappearing. Their neutrality is increasingly questioned - especially if allied to peacekeeping forces. Their supplies and equipment are no longer seen as assets for the common good, but as lucrative prizes for the lucky pillager. Security risks have become an everyday nightmare for humanitarian staff, whether from large, international organisations like the UN or small, private agencies like religious charities.

The outside world hears about the worst of these incidents, the high profile killings or kidnappings, but rarely about the more numerous 'run of the mill' problems which can include beatings, death threats, robberies. As aid worker Kilian Kleinschmidt explained, what is on your mind, as you drive through a mined stretch of contested territory is not how best to carry out your job but instead the terrifying thought of your own helplessness in the face of attack ."No time to write a last letter; no time to cry and scream."

Could the international community do more to help? The UN admits that security for aid workers was designed for the more tolerant conditions of two decades ago. The UN security office is also crucially under-funded and under-staffed. A staff of eight manage 70,000 employees and their dependents in more than 150 locations, half of which are considered high-risk zones. Despite pleas for funds to increase security measures, few donations have been forthcoming. A trust fund to help train UN personnel in security issues received only four donations. Japan gave $1 million, Finland $102,000, Norway $100,000 and tiny Monaco $8,500.

One recent attempt at improving security was the 1994 Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel. This offers a limited degree of protection to those engaged in operations specifically authorised by the UN but ignores the numerous other relief operations mounted outside these parameters. This can lead to situations where military personnel are protected but not civilians engaged in humanitarian activities. As humanitarian staff sometimes feel compelled to remain in conflict areas long after military personnel have been forced to withdraw, this is not a great deal of help. But what highlights the world's ambivalent attitude towards the security of its humanitarian personnel most strongly is the fact that only 31 of the UN's 173 member nations have actually acceded to the Convention at all.

Only 3 of the perpetrators of the recent 438 murders and kidnappings of UN personnel have been brought to justice. This gives a message that humanitarian personnel are somehow legitimate targets of war. If the international community expects humanitarian work to be done, then it must also accept an international code that guarantees the safety of humanitarian staff and brings redress when this is violated.

The current vulnerability of humanitarian workers is well illustrated by the situation in Guinea, documented in the pages of EuropaWorld. Attacks on UNHCR staff - including murder and kidnapping - have forced the Geneva based agency repeatedly to suspend or reduce operations in certain critical areas. They know that this puts at risk the lives of large numbers of refugees. The question of the safety of relief staff is therefore an urgent and vital one for world leaders.