Il Coordinamento europeo Ong sull'Iraq

L'Associazione delle ONG Italiane piattaforma italiana di Concorde, coordinamento europeo di 1200 ONG appartenenti all'Unione Europea (compresi i paesi membri da poco entrati a far parte della UE) e attive nella cooperazione allo sviluppo rende noto il Comunicato stampa di Concorde e di Voice, un cartello di ONG che opera in situazioni di emergenza, relativo alla condizione degli operatori umanitari in Iraq e nelle zone di guerra. Nel documento dati e notizie sui volontari delle ONG operanti nelle zone di guerra.

European NGOs Condemn Baghdad Kidnappings

The European NGO community condemns the kidnapping of two Italian humanitarian aid workers from the NGO "Un Ponte per⅀" and two Iraqi staff members. Ms Pari and Ms Toretta were in Iraq working on humanitarian aid programmes. Because of the humanitarian character of their mission, they should in no case be targets. We therefore urge their immediate release.

"Un Ponte per⅀" has been supporting vulnerable populations in Baghdad since 1991 without conventional security measures, defended mainly by the respect of the local population. All over the world, humanitarian workers - both local and international - use their attention to the most urgent needs of vulnerable populations to gain the respect of local people, rather than relying on military or armed protection which could compromise the humanitarian principle of neutrality. Humanitarian NGOs rely on building these relationships of respect in order to operate.

The security situation for humanitarian aid workers has deteriorated in recent years, hampering access to populations in need. For NGOs, the crises in Afghanistan and Iraq represent a new kind of security environment, and security incidents in these two countries are on the increase. As of August a total of 25 aid workers have already been killed this year in Afghanistan. In Iraq, the attacks on the UN and Red Cross offices in Baghdad in 2003 resulted in UN Security Council Resolution 1502, which affirmed that killing a humanitarian aid worker is a war crime.

Humanitarian actors are committed to helping the most vulnerable people based on needs, regardless of political considerations. In recent years, loose applications of the term "humanitarian" have led to a decline in respect for international humanitarian principles. Blurring the lines between military actors and their activities on the one hand, and civilian humanitarian actors on the other, is another factor. This kidnapping may be linked to a perception that individual aid workers represent the positions of their national governments, instead of being seen as impartial providers of humanitarian assistance. Even local humanitarian staff is at risk because of their perceived international connections, but receive much less attention.

Kathrin Schick, Director of VOICE, comments: "Because of their humanitarian principles, NGOs seek to avoid protection from the military or conventional security services. As a result, they become soft targets. The lack of security for aid workers is becoming an ever greater obstacle to helping populations through crises."

CONCORD (the European NGO Confederation for Relief and Development), representing over 1200 European NGOs, also supports these concerns about aid worker security. VOICE is a network of over 90 European humanitarian NGOs that promotes humanitarian principles and quality in aid delivery.