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The EU & Humanitarian Action: Breaking Down Boundaries?

The EU & Humanitarian Action: Breaking Down Boundaries?. Dr Gerry O’Reilly. Geography Department, St. Patrick’s College Drumcondra - Dublin City University. Framework. Defining Humanitarian Action / Crises HA Responses: Governments, agencies & citizens: EU/ECHO

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The EU & Humanitarian Action: Breaking Down Boundaries?

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  1. The EU & Humanitarian Action: Breaking Down Boundaries? Dr Gerry O’Reilly Geography Department, St. Patrick’s College Drumcondra - Dublin City University

  2. Framework • Defining Humanitarian Action / Crises • HA Responses: Governments, agencies & citizens: EU/ECHO • EU processes: Centripertal / Centrifugal - integrating humanitarian institutions, organizations & actors • Case studies: Ireland. Haiti. • Geographical & map networks

  3. What are the main categories of humanitarian disasters? (a) Natural e.g. earthquakes (in Pacific Rim & Himalayas, Haiti), droughts (Sahel states), floods (Burma, Indonesia, Angola), tsunami (Sri Lanka). => Physical Geography (b) Human-made e.g. political including war: inter-state & civil, & combinations thereof; corrupt regimes & human rights abuses e.g. Burma, DRC, Sudan, Chechnya & so forth. => PoliticalGeography & Geopolitics

  4. (c) Technological e.g. nuclear accidents – Fukushima, Japan 2011, Chernobyl, Ukraine 1986; chemical explosions Bophal, India 1984 - Union Carbide Plant. • Economic Geography • (d) Complex / Mixture: (a+b) natural & human-made disasters e.g. Aceh / Indonesia – tsunami & rebels; Burma – flooding & dictatorial regime refusing international aid in 2008; (a+c) mixture of natural & technological e.g. Japan tsunami, earthquake & Fukushima nuclear power plant , 2011. (a+b +c) Nuclear weapons, LDCs, non-democratic, location e.g. N. Korea, Iran & Pakistan.

  5. HUMANITARIAN CRISES • Impact of humanitarian disaster is directly proportional to level of vulnerability of population concerned e.g. contrastive HDI: USA, Japan, Italy, Turkey, Chile, Bangladesh, Burma, Somalia => LDCs • Hurricane Sandy: NY/USA Vs. Haiti • 80% in LDCs, former European colonies • 1975 = 78 recorded disasters in world. • 2012 = 385 • Pop. Threatened: 70-80 M/year

  6. UN HDI (Human Dev. Index) • HDI = life expectancy, education & income indices - levels of human development. 192 countries. • Norway: 1 • USA: 3 • RoI: 7. France: 20. UK: 26. • Mali: 182. • Niger:186.

  7. Democracy Index (EIU compiled) • 60 indicators in 5 categories. • N. America = 8.6 • E/U - W. Europe = 8.4. • Latin Am./Carib. = 6.4. • Lowest: • Sub-Saharan Africa = 4.3 • MENA = 3.7 (2012)

  8. Corruption Perception Index (re: Transparency International) • Index: 176 countries. Rank:1-100 • Cleanest: Denmark, Finland, New Zealand. • RoI = 25th place (2012) • Lowest: Afghanistan, N. Korea & Somalia.

  9. Humanitarian Aid & Action • Principles: humanitarianism, impartiality, neutrality & independence. • Action: protection of civilians, & provision of vital services by agencies. • Sphere Coalition Charter (NGOs): • Assistance: funding & in-kind services via humanitarian agencies or host government.

  10. HA: Governments, agencies & citizens • Government: e.g. RoI - Dept. Foreign Affairs - Irish Aid, UK – DIFD, USAID. • Intergovernmental organizations: e.g., OCHA - UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. ECHO - EC Humanitarian Office. • NGOs: e.g. ICRC (Red Cross/Crescent), MSF, CONCERN, Trocaire, Goal.

  11. ECHO - EC Humanitarian Office • EU as a whole = world's biggest donor. • Member states & institutions: > 50% official global humanitarian aid. • ECHO founded in 1992 - has provided €14 billion to victims of conflict & disasters in 140 countries. • 2010: first dedicated EU Commissioner for international cooperation, humanitarian aid & crisis response appointed.

  12. ECHO Activities • ECHO > 300 people working in its HQ in Brussels & > 400 in 44 field offices in 38 countries. • Needs-based approach. • ECHO cooperates with > 200 partners (14 UN agencies, 191 NGOs & international organisations: ICRC & International Organisation for Migration). => Rapid response.

  13. Eurobarometer: HA – 2012 Report • (1) Awareness of HA • (2) Importance of EU HA • (3) Support for EU funding HA despite economic crisis • (4) Common or national approach to HA • (5) Knowledge & information on EU HA • (6) Attitude towards a European voluntary aid corps

  14. Eurobarometer: Main Results • 88% consider it important for EU to fund HA (79% in 2010). • 84% agree that EU should continue to fund HA in spite of economic crisis. • 71% believe HA provided by EU is more efficient than when provided by each Member State separately (58% in 2010).

  15. ECHO: HA & Civil Protection DG • http://ec.europa.eu/echo/index_en.htm • Integrated Rapid Response • List of experts • Education: e.g. NOHA Network / Faculty listed by ECHO as model for European research, joint Masters & Doctorates. • Remaining challenge for ECHO is education in a digital age: 1st - LLP

  16. ECHO/UN - R2P • UN Charter: • Ch1. non-interference in internal affairs of sovereign states. • Ch7. Risk of destabilization of other countries. Vs • Increasing globalization: concepts of global governance & International Humanitarian Law. • EU Common Foreign Policy?

  17. UN: GA Resolutions & Security Council • Collective security principle has often failed. • People-centred approach now emerging. • UN SC (& P5 veto n.b. France, UK) Vs UN GA (all other states). • 115 states Non-Aligned / Former colonies. • Failed states (e.g. Somalia): increasing trend for regional state interventions as in Africa. N.B. EU • UN & EU experiences: Libya Vs. Syria. • Geoploitics. Media. Digital revolution

  18. R2P: UN Secretary General: "every sovereign government … 'responsibility to protect' its citizens & those within its jurisdiction from genocide, mass killing, & massive & sustained human rights violations." – UNSG Report (2005).

  19. “… if national authorities are unable or unwilling to protect their citizens, then the responsibility shifts to the international community to use diplomatic, humanitarian & other methods to help protect the human rights & well being of civilian populations. … the UNSC may out of necessity decide to take action under the Charter of the UN, including enforcement action...”

  20. Education - NOHA • 1993: Master´s in HA - 7 EU HEIs - NL, Sp, Sw, Ger, Irl, Belg & Fr. • Sem1: all 7 HEIs - Geopolitics, Anthropology, Public Health, Management, Law, Geography. • Sem2: Specialisms. • Mundus: 6 partner HEIs & >100 NGOs. • EU cites as model

  21. HOW DOES IRELAND RESPOND TO HA? • State: bilateral/multilateral programs, & NGOs – Irish Aid / EU – ECHO / UN. • Irish Aid: > 40 countries. • Partner countries e.g. Ethiopia, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Timor Leste, Vietnam; & others • Neutral state: with defense forces: UN R2P • 1958 on: UN > 51 Peacekeeping missions. • 1993: UNTSI (UN Training School RoI). • 1997: EU: Treaty of Amsterdam / CFSP • 1999: NATO PfP / Petersberg Tasks

  22. DF & HA • 2000: Defence White Paper: “HA tasks go hand-in-hand with military tasks in many crisis situations.” • 2006: EU battle groups: “to stop … unrest in many locations … deteriorating into … crises… Irish soldiers may be ordered to participate in HA missions.” • DF: Officers seconded to UN Relief & Works Agency & GOAL, CONCERN & ICRC.

  23. DF / HA Merging Roles? • Most DF policies now contain reference to HA. • DF ‘cooperating’ with military organizations; legitimating actions by HA. • DF/NGO synergy enhancing HA delivery. • Irish HA in: Afghanistan & Iraq. • Triple lock system: DF involvement abroad requires authorization of Gov., Oireachtas & UNSC at present.

  24. NGOs Dóchas (umbrella for 35 Irish NGOs) • Trócaire: R2P -UN/multilateral mandate only. • CONCERN: Mandate to respond, “to extreme poverty … due to disaster or long-term economic & social factors.” • GOAL: 150 GOALies alongside 2,000 local staff in HA in 14 countries. “Programs aimed at poor & those suffering effects of war &/or natural disaster.”

  25. Haiti • 2010: Earthquake, flooding & cholera. • Pop: 10.1 M. Area: 27,750 sq. km. • Vulnerability: UN HDI: 161st / 187. • 2010: 50% deaths = HIV/AIDS (infect = 2.2% adult pop) (WHO 2012). • 200-year history: 32 coups. • Indexes: Corrupt - High. Democ - low. • Literacy = 49%.

  26. EU/ECHO Responses • Haiti: http://www.urd.org/Evaluation-of-DG-ECHO-s-response • Evaluation of DG ECHO’s global response to situation in Haiti Dec. 2010– April 2011 • = T/D-B/U plethora HA networks • ECHO/EU: linked to all scales, NGOs (e.g. Haitian & Irish), & UN institutions (e.g. WHO, FAO)

  27. Conclusions • Post Cold War responses to geopolitical contexts & humanitarian spaces within EU & outside Europe • 1992: EU/ECHO created • 2010: 1st dedicated EU Commissioner for international cooperation, humanitarian aid & crisis response appointed • Centripertal / Centrifugal - integrating humanitarian institutions, organizations & actors e.g. Ireland & Haiti narratives • Future research: ECHO time/space processes & humanitarian space & networks

  28. Thank You! Dr Gerry O’Reilly, gerry.oreilly@spd.dcu.ie Geography Department, St. Patrick’s College Drumcondra – Dublin City University

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