Editorial

Disaster Prevention and Management

ISSN: 0965-3562

Article publication date: 1 March 2002

194

Citation

Wilson, H.C. (2002), "Editorial", Disaster Prevention and Management, Vol. 11 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/dpm.2002.07311aaa.001

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2002, MCB UP Limited


Editorial

This journal has always remained neutral about wars and uprisings. It has been the editorial judgment that wars and uprisings, albeit the effects of which are frequently horrendous, were beyond the scope of the aims of the journal. But the time has come for the editor to express a personal opinion with regard to the current situation in Afghanistan.

The problems in Afghanistan roll on and on. Meanwhile the aid that is so badly needed by the people of that beleaguered country is still just trickling through. This is not the fault of the aid agencies but is firmly related to the fact that Afghanistan is still a dangerous place to enter. Bands of Taliban fighters still roam the area, some of the Northern Alliance groups have to be treated with a deal of caution, and whatever happens, the aid agencies' staff must not be put in danger. The world relies on recruiting these aid workers and if potential recruits see that their lives are to be put in danger, they will look elsewhere.

At the time of writing, winter is rapidly approaching which will close the majority of the mountain routes into Afghanistan and the aid agencies will then have to rely on airlifts to get the supplies in. Aircraft may be quick but the load they can carry is small compared to a convoy of lorries. Each lorry can carry just as much as one aircraft and lorries can be turned around in less time. But lorry convoys are vulnerable.

The problem, though, is not just about how much aid can we deliver, it is also about can the aid be delivered to the people who need that aid. Video footage from the few supply centres that have been established are extremely disturbing, with whips and sticks being used to drive the crowds back and to maintain order. Has nothing changed in that country? Are the ordinary people still regarded as chattels? It would appear that nothing has changed.

The western world has an overriding responsibility to act in a decisive manner. We have liberated the people from the Taliban but have failed to establish a system of order and personal respect. There is talk of a UN force being established in Kabul to allow for a peaceful transition in government. Meanwhile, the problems of drought andsub-standard living conditions remain. The people of Afghanistan must be frustrated to have freedom but no food, to be allowed to play music but have to live in tents with the approach of winter, to have the ability to educate the womenfolk but have to watch their children suffer from malnutrition.

We need to get aid supplies in to this country in large quantities and if it requires a UN military presence to achieve this, then so be it.

When the coalition began its attacks on Afghanistan in the name of freedom and democracy it immediately assumed a moral responsibility for those liberated. It is failing them. Perhaps the coalition countries can learn from this mistake.

Henry C. Wilson

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