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The European Union is not only about an emerging political force in the global order—but nor does a strong, integrated economic power give a complete picture of EU. This conglomerate of 25 member states is also endowed with a human face. EU has had an impressive track record of being continually involved with a number of humanitarian activities, across the length and breadth of the globe, and its praiseworthy role in the aftermath of the devastating tsunami in 2004 was also no exception to this proclivity.
EU was the first donor to assure a financial commitment on the very day of the outbreak of the tsunami disaster. Funds managed by the commission’s humanitarian department—European Commission Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO)—worked in tandem with the United Nations and other assorted donors so as to facilitate the co-ordination of the humanitarian aid effort in affected areas. Besides that, individual European countries of the union also came forward with their respective pledges of support.
However, EU’s humanitarian efforts are not in any way confined to the tsunami relief operations. Its human face is reflected across the globe with a lot of potency. One of them was in the war ravaged region of Serbia. Since the rise of ethnic tension till October 2000, when democracy at last arrived in Serbia, EU had provided the region with continual humanitarian assistance without any strings of political conditionality. Since 1992, ECHO provided humanitarian assistance to refugees from the conflict zones in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and internally displaced persons from Kosovo. Besides generous aid to vulnerable sections of society, medical institutions were also provided.
The humanitarian assistance covered a fairly holistic ambit—it included food, shelter, medicines, water supply and sanitation. In 1999, ECHO provided 75 million euro worth of humanitarian assistance to Serbia, in addition to what was given to the region to help victims of the Kosovo conflict. In the same year, the European Commission provided 378 million euro of humanitarian support for the victims of Kosovo imbroglio. Besides, another 127 million euro was given to finance reconstruction programmes that followed the war. In addition to conventional humanitarian support, EU also provided specific support to the independent media, which helped them to counter the repression of Serbian authorities. Since the beginning of 1998 to the end of 2000, over 6 million euro has been given by EU to support the independent media in Serbia.
The European Union has also facilitated human rights issues in the region, which has been economically, politically and socially torn apart by the long-drawn conflict, by extending support to various NGOs and civil society groups. EU aided projects covered promotion of dialogue between warring ethnic communities in Kosovo, resolution of conflicts, education of electorate, etc.
As far as developmental activities of EU go, the European Commission’s ‘Energy for Democracy’ programme deserves a special mention. The programme, launched by the Commission in the winter of 1999-2000, entailed supplying heating fuel to Serbian towns run by democratic forces. This helped millions of unfortunate people to tackle biting Serbian winters. Over 4 million euro were spent for the pilot project, for the towns of Nis and Pirot. With the success of the pilot project, the programme was extended to Kragujevac, Kraljevo, Sombor, Novi Sad and Subotica. By April 2000 the deliveries were complete.
Besides, ECHO provided emergency shelter to more than 20,000 families in Kosovo, to help them get some relief from the harsh winters. At the same time ECHO distributed firewood to thousands of vulnerable families. Winter/spring seeds and fertilizers were also distributed. ECHO’s commitment to education was also endorsed by the emergency rehabilitation it provided to the schools in Kosovo.
ECHO has also provided substantial assistance to vulnerable groups in Afghanistan, affected by the decade-long civil war and the despotic Taliban. Since the end of US military action, which led to the overthrowing of the Taliban government, Afghanistan has been teeming with returnees from Pakistan and Iran. They left their country during Taliban oppression or US bombings, but have now returned to their homeland. Many are homeless and need assistance to start life afresh. Also, there are thousands of internally displaced people (IDP) who need urgent rehabilitation.
In 2003, that is just after the war when the issue of rehabilitation was at its height, ECHO provided the returnees and IDPs with shelter, emergency healthcare, food, security measures and income generating activities. At the same time, the organisation continued supporting those Afghan refugees who were languishing in Pakistan and Iran. Particularly in southern and western Afghanistan, where an ugly drought reared its head to gnaw the myriad relief efforts, EU’s support was noteworthy. There ECHO allocated funds for drinking water, primary healthcare and nutritional support.
That was not all. In May 2004, the European Commission, whose funds are managed by ECHO, also allocated a sum of about 35 million euro in the way of humanitarian aid to vulnerable people who were affected by the repercussions of the Afghan crisis in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran. The welfare activities included the rehabilitation of water and sanitation systems; the provision of shelter, healthcare and nutrition; the introduction of cash for work activities; and the protection of vulnerable groups. Funding for air transport and security information systems were also provided, which improved the access and security of humanitarian aid workers.
In Afghanistan, characterised by its poor roads, tricky terrain, harsh winters and looming threat of insecurity, improved access greatly facilitates the success of humanitarian assistance. Here it deserves a mention that since 1996, ECHO has been supporting air operations in Afghanistan which include PACTEC (Partners in Aviation and Communications Technologies), an NGO-based air service. The service offers regular flights to 17 destinations as well as a charter service for humanitarian missions. Besides that, ECHO provides funding for ICRC’s flight operations. In fact, due to PACTEC, ECHO was able to provide timely aid to the earthquake victims in Bam, Iran, when the city was struck by a catastrophic earthquake on 26 December 2003.
Besides Afghanistan, Iraq was another vulnerable, war-affected country that received ample assistance from ECHO. During the critical economic period of Iraq when it was under the grip of decade long economic sanctions, ECHO was the largest single external donor of humanitarian assistance in the country. In 2003, ECHO-funded projects restored and improved access to safe water for 1.5 million Iraqis. ECHO aid was also directed towards rehabilitation of schools and clearing of unexplored mines and bombs.
Even after the lifting of economic sanctions in the beginning of 2003, the philanthropic spirit continues. Between March 2003 and December 2004, ECHO sanctioned 100 million euro for humanitarian aid. Besides that, ECHO also supported other aid organisations in Iraq that were operational during the war. The aid’s focus has been on health restoration, and water and sanitation services for civilians. Since the end of 2003, the bulk of EU’s aid focus to Iraq aims at restoring the delivery of crucial public services, giving an impetus to employment opportunities and poverty alleviation, as well as fostering civil society and human rights in the country.
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