Opinions

Un bateau transporte une aide médicale d'urgence Jochen Ganter Opinion

Gaza Flotilla : humanitarian or political ?

06/04/2010 Rony Brauman

In May 2010, a convoy of six boats loaded with medical equipment, building materials, school supplies and prefabricated shelters, as well as numerous volunteers, headed for Gaza. This "freedom flotilla" aimed to "break the siege of Gaza". It was stormed by an Israeli commando. Nine activists lost their lives. In this article, Rony Brauman questions the terms used to legitimize or disqualify this initiative and the tragedy that followed. Was the flotilla "humanitarian" or "political"? Is there a "humanitarian crisis" in Gaza or not?

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Une équipe de MSF est contrôlée par les militaires en Colombie Juan Carlos Tomasi Opinion

NATO and the NGOs: honeymoon over

04/09/2010 Fabrice Weissman

On March 3, NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen sent a direct appeal to the humanitarian community. Acknowledging the limits of military force in the stabilization and reconstruction effort in Afghanistan, he wants to create a closer partnership with the NGOs.

 

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Des hommes en prison Aleksandr Glyadyelov Opinion

The return of the titans

12/18/2009 Jean-Hervé Bradol

The public arena is once again the stage for discourse and undertakings of Titanic proportions. Some endeavour to adjust our planet's thermostat while others devote themselves to wiping out the scourge of disease.

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A group of refugees move on as they are told they can cross the border. Borja Ruiz Rodriguez Opinion

Codes of conduct: whose interests do they serve?

01/01/2003 Fiona Terry

As the USA announces its decision to suspend food aid to North Korea - one of the largest beneficiaries of global food aid - Fiona Terry reveals the true political issues behind the decision, and reminds us of how "humanitarian" assistance is used to bolster one of the planet's most oppressive regimes. 

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MSF doctor in a west Kabul maternity Amador Gullar Opinion

Humanitarian action victim of its own success

01/01/2003 Fiona Terry

The international aid regime tends to exaggerate changes over the last decade in the nature of so-called humanitarian crises. Neither violence perpetrated against civilian populations nor the dilemmas posed to aid organisations attempting to assist them have worsened since the end of the Cold War. 

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