ICRC News 24 / 21-Jun-01

** SHORT MENU....

Bosnia-Herzegovina: Mountain crews learn mine avoidance
"Mines everywhere!" was the message from Bosnia-Herzegovina's
government-run Mine Action Centre during recent mine-awareness training
for guides and rescue teams on Jahorina mountain above Sarajevo.

Burundi: End of food aid operation
Some 100,000 families, both local and displaced, received more than 5,300
tonnes of food aid during an emergency operation conducted by the ICRC in
two provinces in northern Burundi in mid-April. The operation was intended
to supplement the assistance provided by the World Food Programme (WFP)
elsewhere in the north. The emergency rations - consisting of beans,
maize, oil and salt - enabled vulnerable communities to survive until the
harvest began in June. The distributions, carried out in Ngozi and Kayanza
provinces, have now ended.

Sri Lanka: Seminar on war surgery
A two-day seminar on war surgery was held in Colombo last week, enabling
over 150 participants to upgrade their skills in the care of war wounded
and improve their knowledge of the subject. It marked the first time that
the ICRC, the Sri Lankan army medical services and the College of
Surgeons of Sri Lanka came together to share their respective experience
in this field.



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Bosnia-Herzegovina: Mountain crews learn mine avoidance

"Mines everywhere!" was the message from Bosnia-Herzegovina's
government-run Mine Action Centre during recent mine-awareness training
for guides and rescue teams on Jahorina mountain above Sarajevo.

Co-financed by the ICRC, the five-day course had 25 participants, who at
the end of their training, and a gruelling exam, received certificates.
The newly-qualified instructors will now teach mine awareness to others
in order to ensure that hikers and climbers are aware of the dangers and
know how to avoid these deadly devices.

Mine-clearance is a slow process and an extremely costly one. In
Bosnia-Herzegovina, clearing mountains and forests is a low priority
because of the need to focus on more densely populated areas such as
refugee-return sites, former front-line villages and farms. Only when
those places have been made safe will work start on clearing some of the
countryside.

This does not mean that the problem is being ignored, however. "Of course
we are concerned", said one participant. "Imagine the responsibility we
bear as guides and mountaineers when we have a group of boys and girls 10
to 15 years old and we bring them to the peaks. Imagine what it would be
like if those children stepped on mines."

Jahorina, site of the women's ski slalom during the 1984 Winter Olympics,
was on the front line during the war; its south face is heavily mined.
"This was probably the best place to organize the training," remarked
Lejla Susic, the ICRC's mine-awareness coordinator for
Bosnia-Herzegovina. "The people in this group come here day-in day-out,
guiding ramblers and mountaineers."

The recent course is part of a broad programme of mine awareness that the
ICRC is running with Red Cross branches throughout the country. It
involves some 128 instructors and 19 local coordinators. Activities
include mine-awareness presentations in schools, community-based work,
gathering of data, liaison with local authorities, and media campaigns.


Burundi: End of food aid operation

Some 100,000 families, both local and displaced, received more than 5,300
tonnes of food aid during an emergency operation conducted by the ICRC in
two provinces in northern Burundi in mid-April. The operation was
intended to supplement the assistance provided by the World Food
Programme (WFP) elsewhere in the north. The emergency rations –
consisting of beans, maize, oil and salt – enabled vulnerable
communities to survive until the harvest began in June. The
distributions, carried out in Ngozi and Kayanza provinces, have now
ended.

Set up in record time, the emergency operation was designed to mitigate
the consequences of a severe food shortage in these provinces and the
areas receiving WFP assistance. Considerable manpower and logistic
resources were required to carry out the operation, which was generally
effective, although some distributions had to be cancelled in Kayanza
province owing to poor security conditions. The successful harvest, the
decrease in theft in the fields, the phasing out by several
non-governmental organizations of emergency therapeutic nutrition
programmes and the fact that food aid did not turn up for resale at local
markets all point to an improved food situation in the two provinces.

To help farmers achieve basic self-sufficiency and increase their crop
yields, the ICRC is considering the launch of another programme in the
near future aimed at providing food aid and agricultural assistance. The
idea is currently being discussed with the Burundi authorities and the
specialized international agencies concerned.


Sri Lanka: Seminar on war surgery

A two-day seminar on war surgery was held in Colombo last week, enabling
over 150 participants to upgrade their skills in the care of war wounded
and improve their knowledge of the subject. It marked the first time that
the ICRC, the Sri Lankan army medical services and the College of
Surgeons of Sri Lanka came together to share their respective experience
in this field.

The topics discussed included first aid, resuscitation, triage,
amputation, prostheses and the treatment of various types of war wounds.
ICRC medical staff and experienced surgeons from the Military Hospital,
the National Hospital, the Sri Jayawardenepura Hospital, the
Ophthalmological Hospital and the Jaffna Teaching Hospital served as
resource persons for the seminar.

During his address, the Commander of the Sri Lankan Army, Lt-Gen. Lionel
P. Balagalle, who was guest of honour, said: "Ever since its inception,
the ICRC has endeavoured to assist the victims of armed conflict. All
warring parties throughout the world should be grateful for such
assistance."

The ICRC has been present in Sri Lanka since 1989. It currently has 392
staff members at its delegation in Colombo and its 12 offices in the
north and east of the country, who are striving to bring relief and
protection to those affected by the armed conflict.