Introduction Pope Benedict XVI, Russian President Vladimir Putin and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres have at least one thing in common: they each, at different times and in reference to different contexts, called for or ordered the opening of so-called ‘humanitarian corridors’. Whether it was to evacuate wounded civilians in South Ossetia in 2008, to implement a daily ceasefire in Syria’s Eastern Ghouta in 2018, or to assist populations in Ethiopia’s Tigray region in 2021, respectively, the notion is now so frequently invoked that it goes
Introduction ‘ I remember [years ago] being in a refugee camp in Syria, and when there were demonstrations and people picked up sticks and were throwing stones, and we were like, ‘Alright, that’s it, we’re withdrawing until they settle down.’ We withdrew for two days until they came and apologised and then we went back in again. Sticks and stones are a piece of cake compared to what we face now. ’ 1 Relayed by a humanitarian worker interviewed for this article, the quote paints a vivid portrait of the way that many humanitarians view the shifting nature
This roundtable was convened on 5 July 2022 and built on five years of collaborative work in Cambodia and ongoing collaborations within the Centre de Reflexion sur l’Action et les Savoirs Humanitaires (CRASH) at Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) between Bertrand Taithe, Mickaël le Paih and Fabrice Weissman. The central question raised in this discussion relates to two profoundly intermeshed issues for humanitarian practitioners and organisations: the use of history for
Introduction The international community contributed nearly US$31 billion to humanitarian assistance in 2020, a figure that has steadily risen over the last half decade ( DI, 2021 ). Within bilateral and multilateral funding circles, there has been a strong and growing emphasis on the importance of understanding and responding to gender inequalities in emergency settings. For instance, recognising that conflicts and disasters affect people across various genders, ages and backgrounds differently, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of
Introduction Humanitarian advocacy shot to prominence in the 1990s. Frustrated by treating symptoms of crises, several humanitarian organisations were turning to a rights-based approach, and advocacy provided the toolbox for a closer engagement with the politics of crises ( Bridges, 2010 ). What was until then largely a moral act to bear witness and speak out against suffering ( Redfield, 2006 ) was in the process subsumed within a
Introduction This essay discusses Red Cross museums as a medium of humanitarian communication. A long-neglected theme in public history and the historiography of humanitarianism, Red Cross museums today are vital agents in the movement’s work to communicate the values, missions, and historical achievements of Red Cross societies around the world. Local publics find those museums in the United States, the UK, or Germany – which has more than a
Introduction Citing the celebrated opening sentence of the Communist Manifesto may seem an odd way to begin these modest reflections on the challenges the relief world is confronting, and the graver ones it is likely to confront over the course of the next decade. But just as the spectre of communism was haunting Europe in 1848, a spectre haunts the humanitarian international in 2018 – the spectre of illegitimacy. A disclaimer is immediately necessary: if you believe that the importance of the changes that are taxing the
. There was just one problem: the video wasn’t real. It was the creation of 34-year-old director Lars Klevberg, and it was filmed in Malta with child actors, using a set from the movie Gladiator . Klevberg said he wanted the video to start a conversation about the impact of war on children. Critics said he had gone too far: that the video created confusion and cynicism, which undermined attempts to address conflict in Syria ( Salyer, 2014 ). ‘Syrian hero boy’ was not an isolated incident. When audiences look online for information about humanitarian
settings, and access to early childhood development (ECD) services becomes more challenging where family and social networks have been weakened and social service delivery interrupted. Despite being vulnerable, young children are also tremendously adaptable and resilient. Appropriate support for children’s physical, mental and socio-emotional needs can mitigate the destabilising effects of trauma and allow them not only to survive but also thrive, even in the most hostile circumstances. However, to address the needs of young children, we must strengthen humanitarian
Introduction The 2010 Haiti earthquake has been described as a ‘game changer’ for the implementation of technologies in humanitarian response ( Sandvik, 2014 : 26). Established and emergent information and communication technology (ICT) applications were employed in the earthquake’s aftermath and ‘relief efforts quickly became a living laboratory for new applications of SMS texting, interactive online maps and radio-cell phone hybrids’ ( Nelson