ICRC News 32 / 16-Aug-01


** SHORT MENU....

Afghanistan: ICRC opens new physical rehabilitation centre
The ICRC has opened its sixth physical rehabilitation centre in
Afghanistan. The new facility, which began operation on 14 August in
Faizabad, capital of the northern province of Badakhshan, will help
landmine victims and other disabled people by providing physiotherapy,
rehabilitation, artificial limbs and orthopaedic appliances free of charge.

Indonesia: Red Cross assists victims of violence in Aceh
Over the weekend the Indonesian Red Cross Society and the ICRC finished
distributing 843 hygiene kits - including soap, shampoo and towels - to
818 displaced families living in temporary shelters in the province of
Aceh.

Peru: Agreement between National Police and ICRC
The Peruvian National Police (PNP) and the ICRC have signed a cooperation
agreement with the primary aim of increasing knowledge of the basic
principles of international humanitarian law and human rights among members
of the PNP.


** STORIES IN FULL...

Afghanistan
ICRC opens new physical rehabilitation centre

The ICRC has opened its sixth physical rehabilitation centre in
Afghanistan. The new facility, which began operation on 14 August in
Faizabad, capital of the northern province of Badakhshan, will help
landmine victims and other disabled people by providing physiotherapy,
rehabilitation, artificial limbs and orthopaedic appliances free of
charge.

"The idea of setting up a rehabilitation centre in Faizabad is not a new
one", said Alberto Cairo, who has been running the ICRC's rehabilitation
programme in Afghanistan since 1988. "Patients from the Faizabad area used
to travel to the ICRC centre in Mazar-i-Sharif, but when the front lines
shifted north they could no longer get there and were left without
treatment." The ICRC started flying patients from Faizabad to Kabul in
1995. Over the past six years, more than 1,000 people have received
treatment in this way.

There are currently some 2,000 potential patients in and around Faizabad,
but the ICRC centre expects to receive additional wounded civilians and
soldiers coming from front-line areas, where there is a constant risk of
injury from landmines and unexploded ordnance. Patients are also expected
from border areas of neighbouring Tajikistan, where rehabilitation
services are unavailable.

Twenty-two people from the region, including three women, have been hired
to staff the facility. In accordance with ICRC policy, all are former
patients of the organization's rehabilitation centres. Nine experienced
local staff from other ICRC centres will train them at the Faizabad centre
during the first few months of operation.

Since the ICRC began its rehabilitation programme in Afghanistan in 1988,
over 43,000 people, including 25,000 amputees, have been treated at its
centres in Kabul, Mazar-i-Sharif, Herat, Jalalabad and Gulbahar. Among the
amputees registered, 77% were landmine victims and 70% civilians. The
programme currently employs six expatriates and 260 local staff, 80% of
whom are themselves disabled.

Further information: Mario Musa or Tomoko Niino, ICRC Kabul, tel. ++873
761 242 260 Macarena Aguilar, ICRC Geneva, tel. ++4122 730 2102


Indonesia
Red Cross assists victims of violence in Aceh

Over the weekend the Indonesian Red Cross Society and the ICRC finished
distributing 843 hygiene kits - including soap, shampoo and towels - to
818 displaced families living in temporary shelters in the province of
Aceh.

In several places the Red Cross also provided sleeping mats, blankets,
water tanks and tarpaulins. Plastic sheeting was supplied where needed to
improve shelters and help build additional latrines.

The two-week operation followed a survey carried out last month in the
region with the consent of the authorities. It is part of a joint effort
by the ICRC and the National Society to respond to the humanitarian needs
of the victims of violence in Indonesia.

Further information: Macarena Aguilar, ICRC Geneva, tel.: ++4122 730 2101
Arista Idris, ICRC Jakarta, tel.: ++ 6221 720 7252


Peru
Agreement between National Police and ICRC

The Peruvian National Police (PNP) and the ICRC have signed a cooperation
agreement with the primary aim of increasing knowledge of the basic
principles of international humanitarian law and human rights among
members of the PNP.

Under the agreement, internal training courses will be held for PNP
instructors and officers over the coming months. The knowledge gained by
the instructors will eventually be passed on to all members of the police
by a multiplier effect.

The PNP and the ICRC also undertook to share their experiences, to set up
a structured training programme and to coordinate the human and logistic
resources necessary for the development of this major project.

The document was signed by General Armando Santisteban de la Flor,
Director-General of the PNP, and Karl Mattli, head of the ICRC delegation
in Peru, at the Ministry of the Interior on 26 July. Several senior PNP
officers and ICRC staff were present at the signing ceremony.

This agreement reflects the firm commitment made by the two institutions
to work together to achieve greater respect for and protection of the
individual.

Further information: Macarena Aguilar, ICRC Geneva, tel. ++4122 730 2101


During the weekend of 18 - 19 August 2001, for all information please call
the press officer on duty Juan Martinez, on (mobile) 41 79 217 32 17