SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
central african republic
Largely Driven by Climate Crisis, 9 Out of 10 Least-Reported Humanitarian Crises of 2019 Were in Africa
"Does a crisis really happen if it is not in the headlines? YES."
Jan 27, 2020
Out of the top 10 most under-reported humanitarian crises in the world last year--many of them climate-related--nine were on the African continent, according to a new report.
Madagascar had the least-reported crisis in the study--entitled "Suffering in Silence" (pdf)--released Tuesday by CARE International, as 2.6 million people in the country are affected by chronic drought which has left more than 900,000 in immediate need of food assistance.
\u201cDoes a crisis really happen if it is not in the headlines? \ud83d\udcf0\n\nYES. In 2019, over 50 million people suffered in silence \ud83c\udf0d\n\nCARE\u2019s new global report on the 10 most underreported #humanitarian crises of 2019 >> https://t.co/Ob8so9i96Y\n\n#SufferingInSilence #ForgottenCrisis\u201d— CARE International (@CARE International) 1580204238
Out of 24 million online media articles examined by CARE International, just 612 reports were about the humanitarian emergency in Madagascar--and the country was just the most extreme example of the international community's neglect of the world's second-most populous continent.
"In 2019, over 51 million people suffered in 10 crises away from the public eye," the report reads. "Although for the average person on earth, life is better today than ever before, around 2% of the global population (160 million people) will require $28.8 billion in humanitarian assistance to survive. This is a fivefold increase of needs since 2007."
With 80% of Madagascar's population engaged in agriculture, the climate crisis and resulting drought has caused damage to many families' livelihoods. The food shortages brought on by chronic drought conditions also led to Madagascar having the fourth-highest rate of malnutrition in the world, making it easier for diseases like measles to infect over 100,000 people in 2019.
\u201cThe hunger crisis in #Madagascar is completely off the media radar. \n\nYet over 916,000 people are in need of food aid. \n\n#SufferingInSilence REPORT >> https://t.co/Ob8so9i96Y\n\n#ForgottenCrisis @CAREMadagascar\u201d— CARE International (@CARE International) 1580207400
CARE International noted that millions of people in Africa are "suffering in silence" even as the climate crisis gains more international attention, thanks to grassroots climate activists like Greta Thunberg, Extinction Rebellion, and students all over the world--including across Africa--who have led climate marches over the past year.
"It is shocking to see how little media reporting there is about human suffering related to global warming in the South, the lack of political action to address this injustice, and solutions applied to ease the burden for communities."
--Sally Austin, CARE International"The increased public attention for the global climate crisis is encouraging, but we must ensure that the conversation is not limited to the Global North and much-needed transformations there," said Sally Austin, head of emergency operations for CARE International. "It is shocking to see how little media reporting there is about human suffering related to global warming in the South, the lack of political action to address this injustice, and solutions applied to ease the burden for communities."
Other crises in Africa that have been intensified by the climate crisis include Zambia's droughts, which left 2.3 million people in need of food assistance, and a mix of extreme drought and flooding in Kenya.
In southern Africa, where Zambia lies, temperatures are rising at two times the global rate. The pattern has contributed to a sharp drop in wheat and maize crops as well as in safe drinking water in much of the country.
\u201cHungry and forgotten: In Zambia, over 40 % of children under the age of five are stunted. \n\nRT to break the silence. \n\n#SufferingInSilence REPORT >> https://t.co/Ob8so9zJYw\n#ForgottenCrisis \n@care_zambia\u201d— CARE International (@CARE International) 1580215500
Daily life for many in Zambia illustrates what climate leaders mean when they warn that people in frontline communities--who have contributed the least to the climate crisis--are suffering the most.
"The drought has placed additional hardships and risks on women as they cope with the changing climate," the report reads. "For example, some women now report waking up as early as 3:00 am in order to be the first to collect the scarce water available and then spend all day searching for food. Many have resorted to collecting whatever wild fruits they can find to feed their families."
In Kenya, rainfall in 2019 was at least 20% below average, and as CARE International says, "When there is not too little rainfall, there is far too much."
"Heavy rains displaced tens of thousands of people during the fall months and destroyed farmland and livestock," the report reads. "This worsened an already dire food situation in the country."
\u201cA paradise for tourists, but also a forgotten crisis. Weather extremes put people on the edge of survival in #Kenya. \n\nOver 500,000 children are suffering from severe malnutrition.\n\n#SufferingInSilence REPORT >> https://t.co/Ob8so9zJYw #ForgottenCrisis\u201d— CARE International (@CARE International) 1580225400
North Korea is the only country on CARE's list that isn't in Africa; other under-reported emergencies are taking place in Eritrea, Central African Republic, Burundi, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, and the countries of the Lake Chad Basin--made up of Nigeria, Chad, and Cameroon.
None of the countries on the list were covered in more than about 9,000 media articles all over the world throughout 2019.
Armed conflicts are major drivers of humanitarian crises in several African countries. CARE's report notes that the climate crisis is worsening political and economic instability across the continent.
"We're seeing increasing linkages between the effects of man-made climate change and the longevity and complexity of humanitarian crises," said Austin. "From Madagascar to Lake Chad to North Korea, the majority of crises ranked in our report are partly a consequence of declining natural resources, increasing extreme weather events and global warming more broadly."
The report notes that three of the least-reported crises in the world are also on the United Nations' list of the least-funded international emergencies.
With this in mind, CARE says, media outlets and humanitarian groups can help to close the gaps by considering "reporting as a form of aid."
"Crises that are neglected are also often the most underfunded and protracted," the report reads. "With close links between public awareness and funding, it needs to be acknowledged that generating attention is a form of aid in itself. As such, humanitarian funding should include budget lines to raise public awareness, particularly in low-profile countries."
Keep ReadingShow Less
House and Senate to Each Hold Hearings on Allegations of Abuse and Absence of Accountability at the UN
GAP Clients Aicha Elbasri and Miranda Brown to Testify at House and Senate Hearings Respectively
Apr 12, 2016
WHY: In the wake of serious child sex abuse scandals in the Central African Republic and Haiti, and the deliberate and systematic cover-ups of crimes against humanity that occurred under the UN's watch in Darfur, top UN officials have seemingly engaged in both a process to cover up abuses and retaliate against the brave whistleblowers who risked their careers to put an end to such atrocities.
GAP clients Aicha Elbasri and Miranda Brown will testify before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs' Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee respectively. They will share their experiences with U.S. legislators in the hope that action will be taken to protect victims and help implement necessary changes that ensure whistleblowers have a viable path to report on and put an end to wrongdoing without facing reprisals.
WHO:
- Dr. Aicha Elbasri - Former Spokesperson for the United Nations - African Union Mission in Darfur, United Nations.
- Dr. Miranda Brown - Former Chief of Africa I Section, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland.
WHERE:
- 2200 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20510 - (Dr. Elbasri)
- Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room 419, Washington, DC 20510 - (Dr. Brown)
WHEN: Wednesday, April 13 at 2:00 p.m. ET
Keep ReadingShow Less
Central African Republic: Create Court to Combat Impunity
19 Groups Support Proposal for Specialized Tribunal
Feb 20, 2015
The Central African Republic's transitional parliament should adopt a draft law establishing a Special Criminal Court, 19 Central African and International groups said today. Such a court would speed up justice for victims of atrocities in the country.
The country's National Transition Council is set to discuss a draft law in the next few days that was prepared by the government and negotiated with the United Nations. The law calls for establishing a Special Criminal Court - a mixed jurisdiction consisting of Central African judges and prosecutors and an international contingent of judges and prosecutors - with a mandate to investigate and prosecute the most serious crimes in the Central African Republic since January 1, 2012, when the country's current armed conflict began.
"The National Transition Council's adoption of the draft law establishing a Special Criminal Court would be a landmark step in the fight against impunity in the Central African Republic," the organizations said. "Impunity has contributed to the conflicts that ravage the country for the last 20 years."
The proposed special jurisdiction would consist of 27 judges, 14 national and 13 international, integrated into the Central African Republic's judicial system for a renewable period of five years. The Council of Ministers adopted the draft law on February 5, 2015, following preliminary work by a drafting committee with national and international members and completed by the justice minister in consultation with the United Nations mission in the Central African Republic, known as MINUSCA.
The draft law foresees the presence of international judges and experts to bring the necessary expertise to a complex legal field and to assist national judges in difficult and dangerous investigations. A Central African judge would preside over the court, and the special prosecutor would be an international prosecutor. All of the court's chambers would also include international members, in some cases in the majority and in others in the minority.
The organizations said that, "The proposed draft law on the Special Criminal Court constitutes a balanced and innovative initiative to support the Central African judicial system, which is ravaged by the conflict triggered in 2012 by the armed groups in the northern part of the country. The Special Criminal Court will strengthen the national judiciary's capacity to investigate and prosecute those responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in efficient, independent and fair trials."
The draft law on the Special Criminal Court follows the creation, in April 2014, of a Special Investigation Cell mandated to investigate serious human rights violations. In August, the United Nations and the Central African transition authorities concluded a Memorandum of Understanding on the major principles for establishing a Special Criminal Court that would integrate the Special Cell and be responsible for prosecuting those allegedly responsible for these crimes.
The court's maximum sentence would be life in prison, in compliance with the provisions of the Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), to which the Central African Republic acceded in 2002. It would not allow the death penalty, which the country has not applied since 1981.
The Special Criminal Court would complement the work of the ICC. The Central African authorities referred the situation to the ICC on May 30, 2014 and, on September 24, 2014, the ICC prosecutor announced the opening of an investigation in the Central African Republic on crimes under its jurisdiction since September 1, 2012. As the ICC gives priority to prosecuting those bearing the most responsibility for serious international crimes, the Special Criminal Court would be responsible for investigating and prosecuting dozens of other people for serious human rights violations since 2012.
"International organizations and other partner countries of the Central African Republic should ensure that the future Special Criminal Court benefits from the support and necessary funding to allow it to operate efficiently, and to ensure the security of its staff, victims and witnesses, particularly during investigations," the groups said.
The signatory organizations detailed 10 arguments in favor of establishing the Special criminal court in a short advocacy document that will be distributed to members of the National transitional council.
The groups are:
Action des Chretiens pour l'Abolition de la Torture et la Peine de Mort (ACAT/RCA)
Association des Femmes Juristes de Centrafrique (AFJC)
Avocats Sans Frontieres Centrafrique (ASF/RCA)
Bureau Information des Droits de l'Homme (BIDH)
Civisme et Democratie (CIDEM)
Commission Episcopale Justice et Paix (CEJP)
Enfants Sans Frontieres (ESF)
Federation internationale des ligues des droits de l'Homme (FIDH)
Femme Action et Developpement en Centrafrique (FADEC
Human Rights Watch (HRW)
Initiative pour le Developpement de Centrafrique (IDC)
Lead Centrafrique (Lead)
Ligue Centrafricaine des Droits de l'Homme (LCDH)
Mouvement des Droits de l'Homme et Action Humanitaire (MDDH)
Observatoire Centrafricain des Droits de l'Homme (OCDH)
Observatoire pour la Promotion de l'Etat de Droit (OPED)
Observatoire Centrafricain pour les Elections et la Democratie (OCED)
Reseau centrafricain des organisations pour la promotion et la defense des droits de l'Homme (RONGDH)
Reseau national de la Jeunesse pour les Droits de l'Homme (RNJDH)
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular