One of the more regrettable developments in international relations in recent years has been the intentional targeting of humanitarian relief organizations, and all the complexities that derive from that. Sometimes, aid groups are presented with difficult choices between accepting protection from an army – and, in so doing, losing part of their claim to neutrality – or disengaging from a conflict zone in which they could otherwise do a lot of good.
Edwina Thompson, a friend of mine from Oxford, has written a report on the problem for World Vision International: Principled Pragmatism: NGO engagement with armed actors. To those interested in armed conflict and humanitarian assistance, it is worth taking a look at.
In the concluding section, the report identifies existing gaps in efforts to manage civilian-military relations. It also provides recommendations to the international community, donors, and NGOs.
A working bus! Amazing!
Yeah.. is the bus strike over in Ottawa?
Yes, but service hasn’t fully resumed:
“OC Transpo general manager Alain Mercier told city council on Friday that the first buses would be back on the roads on Feb. 9. At that point, about 460 to 570 buses — up to 60 per cent of the fleet — would be back on the road, mainly on downtown routes. Outside peak hours, OC Transpo would hopefully be able to provide close to full service for those routes, Mercier added.
He didn’t expect local and express service in the suburbs to be back until April. However, he said after boosting maintenance capacity, OC Transpo anticipates a return to full service in nine to 10 weeks rather than the 12 to 14 predicted earlier.”