INTLSTD 101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Kofi Annan, International Humanitarian Law, United Nations General Assembly
20 Nov 2016
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Humanitarian: a person who actively engages in promoting human welfare to alleviate suffering
and save lives
● Assistance based on severity of need, with consent of all
● 3 criteria for judging humanitarian actions
○ Neutrality: not taking sides in a conflict in which they are helping
○ Impartiality: do not discriminate when giving aid
○ Independence: programs are not swayed by state governments
Types of Humanitarianism
● Humanitarian Impulse: when not everyone agrees
● Humanitarian Imperative: when the state must protect innocent people
● Humanitarian Imperialism: uses humanitarianism to achieve political goals
ICRC
● Founded by Henri Dunant in 1863 (oldest)
● Found that there is no system to help those who are suffering
● Mandated under Geneva Conventions
● Granted observer status in the UN General Assembly
International Humanitarian Law
● A set of rules seeking to limit damage of armed conflict
● Major part found in Geneva Conventions
● Used in situations of armed conflict
Kofi Annan (Reading) found that:
● Wars are primarily civil wars
● There has been a rise in civilian casualties
● Killing of citizens by own state
Complex Emergency: efforts to assist are increasingly mediated and militarized
● Mediated: the media has a large impact in what crisis are helped
○ CNN effect: 24 hour news cycle directs policy to the freshest conflict, not the one
that is really needed
● Militarized: humanitarian workers can be confused with the military
○ Risk to aid workers
○ Food packages dropped from planes can look like bombs
Who Gives Aid?
● Coordinated activity between 3 primary actors:
● Governments
○ Answer moral demands of constituents
○ Pursue national and material interests
■ Maintain trade or alliances
○ Save face and the cost of solitary military actions
■ Use UN agency and NGOs instead
● IGOs
○ UN “Family”
■ Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
● Manages the flood of NGOs to a crisis, organizes/controls
■ UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Humanitarian: a person who actively engages in promoting human welfare to alleviate suffering and save lives. Assistance based on severity of need, with consent of all. Neutrality: not taking sides in a conflict in which they are helping. Independence: programs are not swayed by state governments. Humanitarian imperative: when the state must protect innocent people. Humanitarian imperialism: uses humanitarianism to achieve political goals. Founded by henri dunant in 1863 (oldest) Found that there is no system to help those who are suffering. Granted observer status in the un general assembly. A set of rules seeking to limit damage of armed conflict. There has been a rise in civilian casualties. Complex emergency: efforts to assist are increasingly mediated and militarized. Mediated: the media has a large impact in what crisis are helped. Cnn effect: 24 hour news cycle directs policy to the freshest conflict, not the one that is really needed. Militarized: humanitarian workers can be confused with the military.
