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IRISH RED CROSS NURSE REPORTS FROM RWANDA CONGO VOLCANO

IRISH RED Cross nurse, Margaret Conway has delivered an eye-witness account of the chaos and despair surrounding the spate of natural disasters near Goma, on the Rwanda/Congo border.

In an email to Irish Red Cross Headquarters in Dublin, Margaret said that people in the towns of Goma and Gisenyi, which are just 500m on either side of the Congo/Rwanda border respectively, were on the move constantly over the past week. And local International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) officials had also been forced to evacuate immediately after the volcano.

"A plan was established to assist Goma, Goma residents were crossing the border in their thousands. By Sunday Goma was a ghost town," Margaret wrote.

However, in her email from the disaster zone, Margaret went on to note that the Red Cross is moving quickly to supply badly needed aid to the area.

"ICRC supplied five emergency kits for the health centres in Goma to be delivered today and one Burns kit. 180 app. orphans from Goma were located in the refugee camp in Ruhengeri and by the request of their responsible priest, were transferred by ICRC to Don Bosco orphanage in Kigali. ICRC Rwanda ex-pat engineer sent a water truck to Gisenyi within 24 hours of the explosion and the main players are working hard to supply needs," Margaret wrote. She went on to point out that getting aid to the starving and homeless was increasingly difficult because many of those in need returned back across the border to what was left of their homes.

"All players are playing huge roles and despite comments from the press are giving required aid fast, tents, food baskets, medical units, water have all been set up, the food distribution was held up due to the mass population who suddenly decided that they did not want to be Congolese refugees in Rwanda. They were just about to be fed by the World Food Programme (WFP) and by the thousands did an about turn to go home, they sat on their former houses and waited to be fed. The food was waiting in Rwanda, it took another day for WFP to get authorisation to distribute in Congo."

Margaret Conway formerly worked in St Vincent's Hospital in Dublin.

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THE HOLY LAND CRISIS

Red Cross calls on Israel to respect humanitarian law

MEDICAL ACCESS FOR SICK AND WOUNDED NEEDED IN WEST BANK

By Aoife MacEoin

PALESTINE -
ACCESS to people who have been wounded in the current conflict and to those with preexisting medical conditions such as pregnant women and the seriously ill, is urgently being sought by both the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the local Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) in the VVest Bank.

Reports from the field indicate that hundreds of emergency calls for medical help cannot be met because of roadblocks, damage to streets and infrastructure, and delays to ambulances.

The reports say that the result is an absence of emergency medical aid for hundreds of people, this has resulted in unnecessary deaths (notably of still-born children where women were forced to deliver at checkpoints). This for the International Committee of the Red Cross is unacceptable.

This follows yesterday's call by the David Andrews TD, Chairman of the Irish Red Cross for security of access to help these groups and particularly expectant mothers and young children. Today, he reiterated this call, appealing to armed forces and operating civil administrations to respect International Humanitarian Law which requires that civilians not be harmed, that the sick and injured receive treatment and that access to detainees is granted to the Red Cross.

Apart from the delays, ambulances belonging to the Palestinian Red Crescent Society and a Land Cruiser belonging to the International Committee of the Red Cross have been unnecessarily destroyed by Israeli Defence Forces tanks, according to these reports. The worst affected areas were Tulkarem, where the ambulances were destroyed, and Jenin.

In Bethlehem, ambulance crews were only allowed to work between 16.30 and 21.30 when an ambulance crew from the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) was arrested. Resumption of ambulance work was only permitted after midnight after intensive negotiations.

Updates locally state that the PRCS ambulance service is only able to operate at 10 - 20% capacity and although fatality figures are difficult to assess at this stage it is understood that dozens of people have died over the last couple of days. Apart from the shooting and bombing injuries, serious public health hazards are feared, particularly in Ramailah where there is an estimated 65% water shortage and a 50% electricity shortage as well as widespread waste as garbage collections have ceased.

In Anabta the Red Crescent Branch was raided by the Israeli tanks this morning and transfered into a military base, according to reports and in Tulkarem schools and institutions have been taken over for use by the military.

3 April, 2002

IRISH RED CROSS BACKS CALL TO RESPECT INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW IN THE PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES

By Aoife MacEoin

THE IRISH Red Cross is backing the International Red Cross in calling for respect for International Humanitarian Law in the Palestinian Territories, including the Geneva Conventions, especially the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian persons in Time of War.

David Andrews TD, Chairman of the Irish Red Cross calls on all parties to respect the Geneva Conventions and voiced his concern at the delays suffered in providing vitally needed medical and humanitarian assistance to civilians, especially those in hospital.

"it is very important that the role of the International Red Cross and its sister organisations on the ground are respected by military forces, particularly as the Red Cross is recognised by the Geneva Conventions and its neutral and impartial work must be allowed to continue at this time," said Mr Andrews.

"I am aware that the International Committee of the Red Cross is the only international organisation present in Ramailah and that it is assisting the Palestinian Red Crescent in transporting medical supplies and in its medical activities," he added.

"I would be very concerned if those who were already hospitalised or at home before these hostilities broke out such as pregnant women, asthmatics and other people needing medical attention, together with those who have been injured as a result of current hostilities," the Irish Red Cross Chairman concluded.

In a joint statement issued by the International Committee of the Red Cross and its sister organisation the International Federation of Red Cross/Red Crescent societies (including the Palestinian Red Crescent), concern has been expressed about the difficulties faced by the organisation in its attempts to do its work.

Over the past few days and in response to the worsening situation, International Red Cross delegates and Palestine Red Crescent Society volunteers attempted to cater for the most pressing humanitarian needs in the West Bank.

However, the International Red Cross have cause to regret the frequent and often serious instances in which medical personnel were prevented from performing their life saving duties. The most basic humanitarian precondition in a situation of violence is that all medical staff and volunteers be allowed to function unmolested.

Much remains to be done in virtually all humanitarian domains - medical, well-being of the civilian populations, protection of non-combatants and of arrested persons - yet International Committee of the Red Cross delegates were regrettably prevented from working because of a sudden degradation of the usual lines of communication between themselves and the Israeli authorities.

Currently, the International Committee of the Red Cross is urgently seeking access to all those who have been arrested.

The International Red Cross expect to see a rapid improvement in communications, and a subsequent improvement in working relationships, so that vital humanitarian assistance can reach the Palestinian population.

In this context, the International Committee of the Red Cross urgently and solemnly appeals to all those employing armed force to respect international humanitarian law, and in particular the Fourth Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian persons in Time of War of 1949 and the rules governing the conduct of hostilities.

Notably: forces and persons involved in the conduct of hostilities must take all necessary precautions to spare civilians and civilian property, to treat detained persons humanely at all times, to ensure that the wounded and sick have access to adequate medical facilities, that medical staff and means of transport may function unhampered.

Also, the sanctity of all places of worship has to be respected by all forces. Terrorist acts, Such as suicide bombings,are absolutely and unconditionally prohibited as are acts of reprisals, indiscriminate attacks and attacks directed against the civilian population.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies have also welcomed the release from detention by the Israeli Defence Forces of Mr. Younis AI-Khatib, President of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS), together with eight of his colleagues.

The President of the PRCS, Mr. AI-Khatib, was detained yesterday morning in Ramailah while travelling with three PRCS ambulances responding to urgent medical calls. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies called on the Israeli authorities to ensure that the PRCS emergency medical services are allowed to carry out their humanitarian mission to all those in need without undue constraints and free from fear of arrest and detention.

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