** SHORT MENU....
YUGOSLAVIA: ICRC SENDS AID TO ALEKSINAC: Following the NATO air strike on Aleksinac last Monday, the ICRC and the Yugoslav Red Cross jointly carried out a survey of the humanitarian situation in the town.
LIBERIA: SPREADING KNOWLEDGE OF INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW: "It is essential for combatants to observe the fundamental rules of international humanitarian law during military operations carried out in situations of unrest or violence", said an officer who had just completed a course on humanitarian law for future instructors of the Liberian military, police and security forces.
UGANDA: SEED FOR THE DISPLACED: Adelaide is the head of one of the 62,000 displaced families living in 26 protected villages in Acholiland who received relief supplies from the ICRC during the last week of February and the first week of March.
** STORIES IN FULL...
YUGOSLAVIA ICRC SENDS AID TO ALEKSINAC
Following the NATO air strike on Aleksinac last Monday, the ICRC and the Yugoslav Red Cross jointly carried out a survey of the humanitarian situation in the town. Today the ICRC dispatched 5,000 blankets for people whose homes were destroyed in the attack and who have found shelter with family and friends. A further consignment comprising 2,000 square metres of plastic sheeting to cover broken windows and 500 mattresses will be sent on Saturday 10April.
In addition, the ICRC is looking into ways of helping the medical centre in Aleksinac, which was serving some 65,000 people in the region but is now badly damaged, to resume its work. A team will also visit Nis, Vranje and other areas of southern Serbia to determine the needs of civilians affected by the air strikes. Another team is going to Novi Sad on 13 April to assess the situation there, particularly in view of the disruption of the city's water supply.
The ICRC is working in close cooperation and coordination with the Yugoslav Red Cross. Since the beginning of the air strikes, it has provided the National Society with about 125 tonnes of food, 19,000 blankets, 22,000 jerrycans and some medical assistance. More medical supplies for treating the wounded (blood bags, blood testing kits, etc.) are currently being purchased by the ICRC at the request of the Yugoslav Red Cross.
Further information: Amanda Williamson, ICRC Geneva, tel. ++4122 730 2678 Doris Pfister, ICRC Geneva, tel. ++4122 730 2307
LIBERIA SPREADING KNOWLEDGE OF INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW
"It is essential for combatants to observe the fundamental rules of international humanitarian law during military operations carried out in situations of unrest or violence", said an officer who had just completed a course on humanitarian law for future instructors of the Liberian military, police and security forces. "I learned a lot about humanitarian law and principles today and now I feel confident enough to teach my colleagues the basics. Such courses should be held for all senior staff, who must set an example."
The ICRC and the Liberian Red Cross have just launched a large-scale programme in Monrovia which comes at a crucial time, since the army and police are currently undergoing a major reorganization.
In late March two days were devoted to presentations on humanitarian law, the first for senior officers of the police and security forces and the second for the military. The forces concerned then selected 25 participants to take an instructors' course given by Liberian teachers, education specialists and jurists and a joint ICRC-National Red Cross team. The practical exercises and case studies aroused particular interest, prompting lively debates. The course also provided members of various units of the Liberian armed and security forces with an opportunity to meet officially for the first time.
In order to familiarize the population with humanitarian principles, the ICRC has also organized a series of weekly concerts given by local musicians and singers. The performers stress the importance of humanitarian law, seeking to make it understandable both to young people and to adults whose schooling was interrupted by the events that devastated the country.
Further information: Roland Sidler, ICRC Monrovia, tel. ++231 226 306
UGANDA SEED FOR THE DISPLACED
Adelaide is the head of one of the 62,000 displaced families living in 26 protected villages in Acholiland who received relief supplies from the ICRC during the last week of February and the first week of March. The assistance comprised 750 tonnes of maize, sorghum and bean seed, 62,000 vegetable kits, 66,000 hoes and 185,000 kg of soap.
In early March there were already signs of the rains that announce the beginning of the first planting season in Acholiland. The displaced people in the protected village of Pabbo, in the Gulu district of northern Uganda, could be seen sitting on open ground, holding containers of all sorts. Adelaide was tense with anticipation, as this was the first time she was to receive a distribution of this kind since she had been displaced from her home some two kilometres away.
Several months previously Adelaide and her family of six had had to take refuge in the protected village, leaving all their belongings behind, because of armed clashes between rebels and Ugandan government forces. She had no hope of finding any of their possessions if they ever went back to the family house. So the prospect of being able to plant and harvest her own crops in her small plot of land close by was like a dream come true.
Each family received the same amount of seed, delivered by the ICRC with the assistance of Uganda Red Cross volunteers directly into the hands of the beneficiaries, with no intermediaries. After what seemed like an eternity, Adelaide carried away her share which, to her surprise, included not only seed but also a hoe and soap.
Further information: Georges Comninos, ICRC Kampala, tel. ++256 41 232 088/232 450
During the weekend of 10 - 11 April 1999, for all information please call the press officer on duty Corinne Adam, on (mobile) 41 79 202 36 80