2008 Humanitarian Crises #2

Civilians Killed and Forced to Flee as Fighting Intensifies in Northwestern Pakistan

The fighting between government forces and anti-government militants in the North West Frontier Province and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan has intensified throughout 2008. Air strikes by United States military in the area have also increased insecurity. In August, thousands of Pakistanis were displaced within the country or fled to neighboring Afghanistan for safety. At the same time, the Pakistani army also began expelling Afghan refugees, specifically in Bajaur Agency, for alleged connections to militant groups.

Throughout the course of the year, hundreds of people in the Bajaur Agency and Swat and Mohmand regions were killed or injured in suicide bombings, air attacks, and shootings, with thousands more repeatedly uprooted from their homes. MSF provided thousands of people with the basic materials they needed to survive: blankets, floor mats, shelter items, hygiene kits and food. MSF adapted its primary health-care programs to respond to the sharp increase in victims of violence by providing medical supplies to treat war wounded, assisting in referrals, and providing care for the treatment of watery diarrhea caused by the poor quality of water initially provided for the displaced.

More on Pakistan here.

Health Crisis Sweeps Zimbabwe as Violence and Economic Collapse Spread

The first months of 2008 marked a period of further economic meltdown and political violence throughout Zimbabwe. While the country has been in crisis for years, the situation deteriorated to ever more alarming levels, with inflation of 231 million percent, shortages of essential goods, repression of opposition supporters, and additional restrictions on humanitarian organizations in the lead up to contested elections in June.

The crisis was especially troubling for the country’s estimated two million people living with HIV/AIDS. According to the United Nations, life expectancy in Zimbabwe has plummeted to just 34 years of age because of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. As a result of the crisis, many people undergoing treatment were forced to skip meals, unable to afford bus fares to clinics, or were simply too afraid to leave their homes. MSF has 40,000 people with HIV/AIDS under its care in Zimbabwe, half of them on antiretroviral therapy. As patients missed appointments, some were feared to have fled the country. Unplanned treatment interruptions can have severe health consequences, including treatment failure due to the development of drug resistance.

More on Zimbabwe here.

No End in Sight to Violence and Suffering in Sudan

Sudan continued to be wracked by two major humanitarian emergencies in 2008—the crisis in Darfur and the consequences of decades of civil war in the south.

Darfur remained the site of the largest humanitarian aid operation in the world, with more than 80 organizations and 15,000 aid workers—including 2,000 MSF staff—providing assistance in a region where one-third of the population has been displaced by conflict. But despite international efforts, five years into the Darfur crisis, hundreds of thousands of people remain cut off from aid. Thousands more are at risk of losing assistance as a result of unstable frontlines, shifting alliances among armed factions, targeted attacks on aid workers, and increasing government restrictions on the provision of humanitarian assistance. Eleven aid workers were killed in Darfur this year and 189 abducted, according to the UN. MSF was also the victim of attacks and lootings in the region.

More on Sudan here.

More on all the Humanitarian Crises noted by Doctors Without Borders here. Kinda makes you a little more grateful to be living in America, no?