ICRC News 31 / 17-Aug-00

** SHORT MENU....

Iraq: ICRC completes maternity hospital renovation in Mosul
After seven months of renovation work, the Al-Batool Maternity Hospital in
Mosul, a city of 1.2 million inhabitants, can now offer suitable hygienic
and working conditions for patients and medical staff..

Angola: Humanitarian law and human rights on national police curriculum
A major step has just been taken in Angola: from now on, international
humanitarian law and human rights law will be taught to all participants in
the training programme for junior officers of the national police.

Ecuador: Senior officers instructed in humanitarian law
At the beginning of August, 33 senior officers of the Ecuadorian armed
forces and national police attended a two-day course on international
humanitarian law and international law of armed conflict given by the ICRC
regional delegate based in Caracas.


** STORIES IN FULL...

Iraq
ICRC completes maternity hospital
renovation in Mosul

After seven months of renovation work, the Al-Batool Maternity Hospital in
Mosul, a city of 1.2 million inhabitants, can now offer suitable hygienic
and working conditions for patients and medical staff.

This is the first hospital renovation to be completed as part of an ICRC
programme which aims at mitigating hardships currently faced by the Iraqi
population due to the serious deterioration in the country's health-care
facilities.

In addition to renovating all the wards, the ICRC provided the hospital
with equipment that was essential to meeting basic requirements for
ventilation, heating and cooling systems (critical in the summer, when
temperatures can easily reach 50 degC), and carried out repairs on the water
distribution and sewage system. Improvements were also made in operating
theatres that raised standards of hygiene and thus also patient safety.
Finally, a new wing was built for emergency services.

Thanks to the joint efforts of the Iraqi Ministry of Health and ICRC
specialists, nine hospitals, totalling over 3,400 beds, and 26 health
centres throughout the country will be renovated in this programme which
began last summer.

0Further information: Suzanne Berger, ICRC Geneva, tel. ++41 22 730 23 07


Angola
Humanitarian law and human rights
on national police curriculum

A major step has just been taken in Angola: from now on, international
humanitarian law and human rights law will be taught to all participants in
the training programme for junior officers of the national police.
Beginning in 2000-2001, the future majors, lieutenant-colonels and colonels
enrolled in the programme will receive twenty hours of instruction in these
subjects, followed by an examination. The instructors have already been
trained. The ICRC will support their efforts by supplying publications and
other written materials.

The aim is not only to offer the new courses but also to include legal and
humanitarian issues in other parts of the training programme more
specifically related to police work, such as preventing and detecting
crime, arresting and detaining suspects, using force and firearms,
maintaining public order, and police treatment of particularly vulnerable
groups (women, children, adolescents, refugees and displaced persons in
particular).

Until now, cooperation between the ICRC and the Angolan national police has
been limited to awareness-raising days in provincial commands. A similar
project incorporating humanitarian law in the training received by military
personnel, which has been under consideration by the Angolan armed forces,
has just received the go-ahead from the deputy minister of defence.

Further information: Roland Sidler, ICRC Geneva, tel. ++41 22 730 20 45


Ecuador
Senior officers instructed in humanitarian law

At the beginning of August, 33 senior officers of the Ecuadorian armed
forces and national police attended a two-day course on international
humanitarian law and international law of armed conflict given by the ICRC
regional delegate based in Caracas.

The course was part of a three-month programme for senior officers in
national security policy and combat strategy for combined operations of the
army, navy and air force organized at the National War Institute (INAGUE).
The programme is mandatory for promotion to the rank of general. Eleven
colonels and 13 lieutenant-colonels of the army, five captains of naval
vessels, two colonels of the air force, and two lieutenant-colonels of the
national police took part in the most recent session.

Ultimately, as groups of instructors are formed, the armed forces should
themselves become directly involved in teaching humanitarian law, the rules
of which will also be taken into account in decision and command
procedures, and included in instruction guidelines and military handbooks.

Further information: Bruno Doppler, ICRC Caracas, tel. ++58 2 266 40 05


During the weekend of 19 -20 August 2000, for all information please call
the press officer on duty Corinne Adam, on (mobile) 41 79 202 36 80