Geneva (August 18, 2015) - On August 19, the international humanitarian community celebrates World Humanitarian Day to honor aid workers dedicated to providing life-saving assistance and to remember those who have tragically lost their lives fulfilling this humanitarian imperative.
The international aid organization CARE warns that the rise in numbers of armed conflict and the increasing number of fragile states, along with the increased numbers of attacks on aid workers, will create even larger numbers of people suffering without access to vital support.
“For the foreseeable future, armed conflicts will continue to be a main cause of forced displacement and urgent humanitarian need. At the same time the legitimacy, acceptance and safety of humanitarian actors in conflict zones is under threat. These trends need to be addressed at a global as well as a local level” says Wolfgang Jamann, Secretary General and CEO of CARE International.
2014 saw a record number of attacks on aid workers: In 2014, there were 190 significant attacks on aid workers recorded worldwide, compared to 41 in 2000. In the last 15 years, over 3,000 aid workers have been killed, injured or kidnapped, according to data collected by the Aid Worker Security Database.
“Risk is part of our job, but blurring the boundaries between humanitarian aid provided solely on the basis of need, and aid provided as part of a counter-terror or counter-extremism effort reduces the effectiveness of the special protections granted to humanitarians. Governments in both the global north and south need to ensure that humanitarian action remains an aim in itself, not a means to promote political or military agendas. For their part, other armed actors need to ensure that their actions do not deny affected people access to life-saving assistance.” says CARE’s Jamann.
Media Contact:
Anders Nordstoga, Media and Communications Coordinator.
E-mail: [email protected] | Phone: +47 90 84 24 58