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Humanitarian Emergencies and Military Help: Some Conceptual Observations
Author(s) -
GORDENKER LEON,
WEISS THOMAS G.
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
disasters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.744
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1467-7717
pISSN - 0361-3666
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-7717.1989.tb00703.x
Subject(s) - humanitarian aid , political science , military medicine , work (physics) , poison control , affect (linguistics) , human factors and ergonomics , international humanitarian law , suicide prevention , public relations , operations research , computer security , engineering ethics , engineering , law , medicine , sociology , medical emergency , computer science , international law , mechanical engineering , communication
In 1988 the International Peace Academy, New York, sponsored a study exploring the interface between security and the delivery of humanitarian aid. The aim was to evaluate the possible use of military help to support humanitarian relief workers during armed conflicts. As part of this pioneering work, the authors of this paper discuss the conceptual questions that must be raised before dealing with the associated practical difficulties. It examines those circumstances in which foreign military organizations might offer help in humanitarian emergencies; the nature of contemporary examples of humanitarian need that result in international responses; and the importance of factors which affect how these are perceived. The paper then analyses the pertinent functions that military units might undertake and finally examines the constraints that would apply if such forces were to become involved.