A completely devastating report in the International Herald Tribune concerning the situation in the Central African Republic, a nation teetering at the bring of war and famine. I ask, how many Americans even know this nation of 4 million exists? Could they find it on a map? Do they care to look in the first place. Conflicts in Sudan and Chad have been getting a lot of press as of late (which is a wonderful thing, the press, that is); however, there are corners that have been forgotten; do we not have the capacity for more suffering? Is one conflict at a time, one humanitarian disaster at a time, all that we can handle or focus a smattering of attention on? What needs to be done? It may seem insurmountable. The suffering, the misery, the human toll. Heres two. What can "normal" people, who simply care on a human level do? Support one of the agencies that is already there, working on the ground, saving lives...heres some with an in-country presence:
International Rescue Committee (www.theirc.org)
MSF, Doctors Without Borders (www.doctorswithoutborders.org)
Caritas (www.caritas.org)
And heres a humanitarian agency blog from the CAR: http://hdptcar.net/blog/
Awareness. When people are aware, people begin to care. Most people, luckily, simply to not have the capacity to see scenes of suffering not want to do something, anything, to help a fellow human being. Actors, often naive and led by self-interest, parading in front of Darfurian refugees....while it makes me squirm a bit to think of the excesses in their daily lives, and a bit of hypocrisy in their actions, IT IS WONDERFUL that they are bringing attention. Its a shame that attention needs to be brought by overpaid actors and actresses, but for the people on the ground, affected and afflicted, it is a godsend. How many times this week did I hear stories about Elliot Spitzer; how many news articles are planned detailing the Presidential race, of which the culmination is still almost a YEAR AWAY....how many articles did I see on the humanitarian crisis in the Central African Republic....one.....awareness is key, awareness needs to be heightened, this is point one.
Following through on commitments.
Millennium Development Goals. By sticking with money already pledged to ending extreme poverty around the world, programs to finance education, health care and infrastructure could be making a real impact on the lives of these people. Instead, there is a trickle; only a handful of agencies actually deployed in the country, most providing humanitarian relief, and not working on root causes of deep social and economic problems. Programs have been proposed by brilliant people who care deeply; money has been pledged; these things have not been followed through.
Looking additionally at the Human Development Report 2007 published by the United Nations Development Program, here are some startling statistics on this country few in America know exists.
Life expectancy at birth: 43.7 years (170 out of 177 countries)
Combined school enrollment ratio: 29.8% (168 out of 177)
GDP Per Capita: $1,224 (156 out of 177)
Here is a copy of the UN Humanitarian Appeal, 2007, for The Central African Republic.
Violence has now displaced a greater proportion of the population in the north of the Central African Republic (CAR) than in any other country of the world. Torching villages, unknown in CAR until November 2005, has become routine, summary executions reign in a climate of impunity, and rape shatters the dignity and health of the country’s women. This is the reality faced by one million people scattered in small villages or seeking refuge in the bush along the borders with
There is an emergency in CAR. The mortality rate of children under five has gone above the emergency threshold. The crisis is based on a menacing web of politics, insecurity and poverty. Humanitarian action can never resolve these problems, but it can alleviate the terrible suffering of hundreds of thousands of people caught in the cross-fire, chased from their villages, or living in areas where war has destroyed economic activity. Providing succour to our fellow man during times of distress is a responsibility shared by all.
The worst violence continues in the northwest, in particular near the borders with
There is hope, and action to translate it into meaningful respite. On the political front, two agreements between the Government and militant groups have calmed tensions and led to a tangible decline in violence. The rate of displacement in some areas (for example around Kaga-Bandoro) has abated and there are clear signs of internally displaced persons (IDPs) returning to their villages. This sign of hope is not the only one: the United Nations has witnessed Government forces and Union of Democratic Forces for Unity (UFDR[2]) militants working hand-in-hand to provide safe haven to almost 3,000 refugees arriving in the north-eastern hamlet of Sam Ouandja. War brings out the worst and best in man, and Central Africans are only too willing to help themselves provided they receive the appropriate support from the international community.
Two types of support are needed: humanitarian action and development cooperation. The Mid-Year Review (MYR) focuses on the former, but cannot ignore the latter. Humanitarian and development agencies strive to integrate the two strands of assistance in CAR. The name of the Humanitarian and Development Partnership Team, and merging of cluster groups with development thematic groups, tell of efforts to ensure a holistic approach to aid, hence the name of this CAP: Coordinated Aid Programme. Sharing information between partners inside and outside the country is a key priority, and the Information Management System has been entirely overhauled during the past six months. The purpose is to increase efficiency, speed, and quality of information sharing. With new NGOs arriving, and the United Nations extending their humanitarian operations, the aid community is approaching its basic objective of keeping people alive and providing urgently needed assistance.
