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Time for aid community to start pulling together on Sri Lanka
Written by: Amjad Mohamed-Saleem
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Displaced Sri Lankans cook at a camp in the north.
Muslim Aid
Muslim Aid
It's a pity the Channel 4 News team that was forced to leave Sri Lanka last week after the government revoked their visas - citing "fabricated stories tarnishing the image of the country" - was not able to get more feedback from humanitarian agencies working on the ground. The three journalists who secretly filmed inside a camp for civilians who have fled the conflict possibly didn't realise their actions would just make things difficult for us who have to remain and work here. As news broke of their expulsion, the clampdown took place, as expected. Cameras are now prohibited in the camps and security has been tightened, which means the circle of influence we initially enjoyed has now shrunk and we have to regain that trust and acceptance from the government and the authorities running the camps. The world has seemed so concerned about what is happening inside the "no fire zone". I am not here to explain or criticise what has happened there, nor who is shelling whom. This is beyond the remit of most humanitarian agencies. But, according to our mandate, what we can and must do is respond to the growing emergency needs of those who have been displaced. This is the reason I can't understand why some agencies are not responding to the crisis, nor why some of my colleagues seem willing to gamble with the lives of the displaced for political gain. They have consistently chosen to delay action on the growing humanitarian crisis, blaming the numerous bureaucratic hurdles placed in their way by the government. Many seem to interpret "non-governmental" as meaning "anti-government", objecting to whatever the government says rather than simply responding to fill the gaps in humanitarian need. Sure, there are difficulties in gaining access and clearance, but this is the system. It's easy to stay outside and criticise, but I would argue you have a greater chance of instigate change from the inside. Unfortunately, many of my colleagues are dragging their feet at the expense of the lives of those who've been uprooted by the war. One associate seemed to hit the nail on the head when he remarked: "Most of these NGOs have become inflated with a sense of their own self importance and would like to posture on their little stage instead of doing what they are supposed to be doing." More than once I've heard people say, "We will have to do an assessment and see what the requirements are." I don't really understand that! What is there to check? You have at least 170,000 people who've been displaced and who need the basics: water, shelter, food, sanitation. It's common sense. POLITICS OR AID? The government obviously has the responsibility to do something and should be accountable. But so do we as humanitarian agencies, because that is what we are there for. The sad thing is that we were expecting this situation for a long time. How many times have we assured the government we are ready for this crisis? We were supposed to have prepared stockpiles of aid and set aside funds. Yet there continues to be a shortfall. What happened? It seems hard for some aid workers and humanitarian agencies not to adopt a political position. "We want to pressurise the government to return these people as soon as possible," one head of mission told me as he politely refused my request for funding. "So do we," I thought, "But this doesn't mean I shouldn't do anything now." Many take the line that the government created this mess and should clean it up. But the argument falls apart when you consider the impact on civilians who have no means of helping themselves. I believe there is something fundamentally wrong with the way that we, as the humanitarian community, are approaching this emergency - and others around the world for that matter. We seem to have forgotten that this is not a job but a calling to serve those most in need. At no other time does this calling become more apparent than during a crisis, when we have to be at our most efficient and effective to help those in need. The sad thing is that there are few aid agencies that are genuinely trying to work to deliver relief despite all the constraints. Most of those who are consist of local and smaller international groups that have restricted financing and depend on bigger organisations for funding. Delay or hesitation in providing that support means agencies like ours are now having to consider pulling out after three months because we don't have the money to carry on. Given what's happening on the ground in Sri Lanka, what's really needed now is for the aid community to pull together in a concerted effort to address the humanitarian crisis. For more information on the Channel 4 News report and how Colombo dealt with the team, read Channel 4 Asia correspondent Nick Paton Walsh's blog on what happened.
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Amjad Mohamed-Saleem classifies himself as a 'global citizen' - born in Nigeria, educated in Ethiopia and Britain, and now based in Sri Lanka. Following careers in engineering and management consultancy, he joined British relief and development agency Muslim Aid in April 2005. He was posted to Sri Lanka to work on reconstruction after the Indian Ocean tsunami and is now country director. He also oversees Muslim Aid's Bangladesh operation and coordinates its international disaster response unit. On the rare occasions when he's not globetrotting or on the road in Sri Lanka, Amjad enjoys books, music, socialising and going to the gym.
19 May 2009 08:03:33 GMT
It is undoubtedly the responsibility of the host government to look after the interest and the well being of their own population, which includes the internally displaced. At the same time it is humanitarian responsibility of international agencies, UN, Red Cross and non-governmental organizations to assist the government in doing so. At the same time it is the responsibility of a government to allow these organizations access to provide the humanitarian aid. The fact that this access has been impossible to the conflict zone and has been hampered do not speak well of the intentions of the GoSL. In addition the non availability of independent observers and reporters to access the conflict zone and the government controlled camps have only added to the seclusion of the country, leaving the displaced in the camps without the much needed support. This was further exacerbated by the restrictions placed by the GoSL on the efficiency of a! gencies. There was the restriction of international staff, limiting the number of years that foreign workers are allowed to work in the country; there were the restrictions on bringing materials into the north, passed the de-facto border post of Meddawachchia. It is therefore no surprise that so called non governmental organizations are reluctant to take the blame for many of the shortcomings the GoSL is accusing them of. It must also be noted that the GoSL does not have a record of openness and transparency of recent. This came to light in the aftermath of the Tsunami, when the then prime minister (and now president) was accused of using millions of US Dollars for his own constituency and even for his own personal (and family) gains. Investigations into the abuses were never followed up. This has set the way for a pattern of corruption and cronyism that has become norm in the country. Not only have family members of ministers been placed in influential positions by their protectors, but there are also numerous instances where dissenters have been silenced, with the oppressors going scot-free. At the moment there are well over 100 ministers in the government while the country is going through an economical crisis that can not be b! lamed on the conflict alone. Many of the ministers have enriched themselves or given their family members the possibility to do so. There are currently several companies, owned and managed by high ranking officials and their direct and indirect family members, that are vying for +//3//f/9-humanitarian projects+//3//f/9 and reconstruction works that are ongoing or planned by their family members in politics. As there have been in the past. It is in this light that agencies have signed up to a commitment to assist the government, on the humanitarian response, and it is in this light that the donors have been able and willing to support these agencies, rather than bilaterally supporting the GoSL. Even though there may be rumors of extravaganza lifestyles of these agencies and journalists that are reporting on the conflict. It is very easy for the GoSL to blacklist and ridicule these events or people, but it will not take away the aura of non accountability and non transparency that shrouds the activities of the government itself. Had the funds raised by the non governmental agencies after the Tsunami had not been available, the rebuilding of the disaster stricken coastline had not been as advanced as it is today. And the same can be said for the humanitarian support and post conflict reconstruction that is ongoing and planned today. The humanitarian imperative prevails as was agreed with the UN and its +//3//f/9-aide m+//3//Q-moire+//3//f/9. It is up to the GoSL to convince the international world that their intentions to provide adequate support to the displaced, based on international accepted minimum standards, while upholding the fundamental human rights are sincere. It is only then that the majority of the agencies are willing to commit themselves and only then that the majority of the donors are willing to commit funds to the further (post humanitarian) phase of this crisis. Any development of long term +//3//f/9-welfare villages+//3//f/9 does not fit into the humanitarian minimum standards that themselves have not even been met, and that is why agencies have reservations, and rightfully so. The only way for humanitarian actors to improve the standards and to convince the GoSL to improve is by remaining actively involved and remain open for justified criticism that aims to establish a long lasting! solution for the displaced and ! eventually for all minorities in the country, hence supporting the government to look after the interests of its population, especially the weaker / more vulnerable groups of its population. Independent reporting is an integral part of it and negative press should be met by dialog and not by closing off the camps for humanitarian agencies as is happening now. The Head of UNHCR in Sri Lanka, Amin Awad stated on BBC world-news of Monday that the UN has now limited (curtailed) access, following the expulsion of the Chanel 4 news team), see also http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/UNHCR/98eaa0dcb295e74f509ffb51f62a9114.htm .
The baseless, biased and sometimes xenophobic comments from certain politicians should stop and the governments must enter into a dialog with the agencies which will allow for a transparent framework of collaboration based on mutual trust and keeping ONLY the interest of the displaced in mind. Otherwise there is a serious risk of Sri Lanka becoming a pariah state, following the likes of Zimbabwe under the regime of Mugabe, as the former minister of foreign affairs of Sri Lanka, Mangala Samaraweera writes in the Sunday Leader: +//3//f/9-The Rajapakse siblings and their xenophobic allies with their rabble rousing rhetoric against the +//3//f/9-sudhas+//3//f/9 seems determined to drive this country towards a Mugabesque Utopia of international isolation+//3//f/9 (http://www.thesundayleader.lk/20090517/viewpoint.htm ).