INTRODUCTION

The present crisis in the Great Lakes Region has brought the world to a watershed as far as the humanitarian challenge on the African continent is concerned. The stage has been reached where the world needs to take a fresh look at methods of preventing humanitarian disasters from taking place and, where these cannot be avoided, to deal effectively with situations like the present one, where vast regions have become inaccessible to humanitarian relief workers.

Conflict prevention is inextricably bound to concepts such as peacekeeping, democracy, human rights, good governance and development, fundamental determinants of South African foreign policy making. If the nations of the world could succeed in fostering these qualities, they would reduce the potential for conflict and, by the same token, limit the need for humanitarian assistance. This is fully in line with the growing international realisation that it is far better to anticipate and prevent humanitarian disasters, than to try and deal with them after they have occurred.

In practice, humanitarian assistance must often be provided regardless of whether or not there is an immediate political solution to the conflict at hand. Such assistance, if seen to be delivered impartially, can have a positive impact on the peacemaking process. It can open new avenues for negotiation. Corridors of peace to neutral humanitarian zones can reinforce peacemaking initiatives. The humanitarian and political dimensions of conflict situations are thus two sides of the same coin and must be addressed simultaneously.

It has also become crucial to establish closer linkages between conflict prevention and rapid response systems.

The rapid response systems themselves should be multifaceted, focusing on every aspect of the crisis.

Unfortunately disaster relief, which should form a major portion of the rapid response system, is still seen as a form of charity. Even now the assistance granted is often seen by both the donor and the recipient as a charitable exercise. Bilateral aid is obviously at the discretion of the granting government, which may open and close the tap of assistance according to domestic pressures, with public opinion typically pulling one way, and budgetary constraints the other. Even multilateral assistance, for instance by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is largely funded by voluntary contributions, which the wealthy states may grant or withhold.

There is a growing feeling that relief operations should be removed from the vagaries of international charity, so that critical time and supply gaps between the launching of appeals and the delivery of relief assistance can be avoided. The Centre for International Health and Co-operation has suggested that emergency relief operations should be funded from assessed levies on UN members states, as in the case of peacekeeping operations. Another possibility is that countries could earmark relief teams for deployment at short notice in emergency situations.

A number of questions should be addressed before any firm position can be developed on the UN levies proposal. Obviously it would also have to be viewed in relation to the strengthening of the proposed so-called 'right to humanitarian assistance'. One development that could strengthen the right is the creation of an international treaty or declaration that would make the right to humanitarian assistance an entrenched international norm.

International experience, however, has taught that it is easier to create a new international right than to find the funds to make it a reality. For the foreseeable future we will live in a world in which government funding for both bilateral and multilateral humanitarian assistance remains essentially discretionary.

Bilateral disaster relief aid remains important to this day, both in the cases of man-made and natural disasters. It has been said that humanitarian assistance is one of the most altruistic forms of help, much more so than military or financial aid. It is not, however, always entirely free of considerations of self-interest. Governments may be generous with political allies, but grant little or nothing to countries which have governments or social systems of which they disapprove, even when the objective needs of the suffering population is greater.

The role of the non-government sector should not be overlooked. At present, a large number of humanitarian non-government organisations (NGOs) are emerging. The overwhelming majority of these engage in activities which are beyond praise. Unrestricted by political constraints, they are often the first to arrive in disaster areas. The conduct of their personnel in the field is frequently truly heroic, and they are often the last to leave when the situation becomes untenable.

SOUTH AFRICAN PARTICIPATION IN HUMANITARIAN RELIEF

The Department of Foreign Affairs is much in favour of private aid to disaster areas, and has assisted NGOs in the past. Where we do not have appropriate resources and facilities ourselves, we have been able to obtain the assistance of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF). The SA Air Force transported donations to Rwanda while the SA Navy did the same in the case of Bosnia.

The Department of Foreign Affairs remains committed to close co-operation with both local and international humanitarian NGOs, and will continue with this policy in future.

When the UN was established in 1945, its main purpose was the preservation of international peace. However, there have been numerous international conflicts, mercifully usually of fairly short duration, and even more civil conflicts, some of which last for decades. The number is, if anything, still escalating.

In 1983, 39 armed conflicts were being waged. Ten years later, in 1993, this had increased to 55. In the same period natural disasters climbed from 50 to 130. The number of refugees and displaced persons rose from 20 million in 1983 to 40 million in 1995. The budget of the UNHCR has tripled in only five years, from US$500 million in 1990 to one-and-a-half billion in 1995.

A major man-made humanitarian disaster was the Biafran War of the late 1960s. This was the first case of mass-starvation to be brought, via television, into homes around the globe. Many countries and some governments, not all without political agendas, rushed aid to Biafra, resulting in chaos, confusion and political exploitation of relief efforts. The reaction of the United Nations to this kind of problem was to establish the UN Office of the Co-ordinator for Disaster Relief (UNDRO).

This was, however, the age of the Cold War, and UNDRO was so hedged with restrictions, and so hermetically isolated from the political decision-making organs of the UN, that it was not always effective. The Sahel drought was the major natural disaster of this period, and by 1974 a report entitled Disaster in the Desert pointed to serious problems of rivalries between UN offices and agencies, inefficiency and inertia, all overlaid with an institutional reluctance to admit any failings to the public.

Let us agree, however, that the task of the relief agencies is never an easy one. In the case of the very worst disasters, such as Somalia, there may be a combination of man-made and natural causes, combined with the collapse of civil authority. Under these circumstances, the ideal of purely neutral and politically non-interventionist humanitarian assistance may simply not be practically possible. Only those who have been involved in unravelling some of these confused political situations would know quite how 'challenging' humanitarian assistance can sometimes be.

Indeed, the end of the Cold War has led to an unfreezing of attitudes in this field. The 19th century term 'humanitarian intervention' was revived, and the possibility of combined military and humanitarian operations, mandated by the UN Security Council, became practical politics. The General Assembly has also given this matter attention. By Resolution 42/169 it proclaimed the years 1992-2002 the 'International Decade for Natural Disaster Relief'. In Resolution 46/182, adopted by consensus on 19 December 1991, it put aside all distinctions between natural and man-made disasters as far as the UN is concerned. This was aimed at facilitating the co-ordination, and even combination of humanitarian assistance and peacekeeping activities. The UN resolution also established the United Nations Department of Humanitarian Assistance for this purpose.

South Africa has become a modest donor to UN multilateral humanitarian assistance projects. By making these contributions multilaterally, we are able to assist the populations who are in need of it, without choosing sides between contending factions.

While South Africa is a modest donor, it is important to recognise that many of our own people are in urgent need of assistance and upliftment, and this must be the first priority of a democratic government. The country, however, cannot entirely ignore calls for international solidarity in the face of humanitarian disasters. South Africa can especially not isolate itself from developments on the African continent.

In so far as the Great Lakes region is concerned, the South African President has stated that South Africa will do everything legally possible, and within the constraints of its financial and material resources. Developments in the Great Lakes region will certainly impact directly and indirectly upon the country. South Africa would thus like to be part of the solution.

At the same time, South Africa is playing a full part in the global effort to combat and even prevent natural disasters. This has involved both domestic and international activities.

An interdepartmental working group on international disaster relief has been established and it is expected to be more fully developed as a tool for co-ordinating South Africa's humanitarian assistance efforts.

Humanitarian assistance by South Africa is currently focused on the following areas:

Mine-clearance is a critical issue for South Africa. The available South African technology has a vital role to play in humanitarian mine-clearance.



South Africa will focus on the monitoring of early warning information. This dovetails with the country's involvement in conflict prevention and resolution through the OAU.



South Africa will participate actively in the UN project to promote the use of military and civil defence assets (MCDA) in disaster relief. This is a key element of our humanitarian assistance policy. South Africa became a participant in the MCDA project in November 1995.

South Africa's participation in the MCDA project is focused on the following proposals presently under discussion:

the possible creation of an emergency warehouse or stockpiling facility in South Africa;



the possible establishment of a Regional Military and Civil Defence Assets Co-ordination Unit (MCDU) and Regional Disaster Management Centre;



the possible involvement in field co-ordination during humanitarian relief assistance operations; and



the possible creation of an emergency assistance and relief fund for Southern Africa by the UN.

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE OSLO GUIDELINES

When a sudden disaster or emergency occurs, military and civil defence assets will be utilised, in accordance with procedures agreed to in Oslo in May 1994, to provide free of charge to the affected country, expertise and relief capacities to cope with the disaster or emergency.

One of the features of the Oslo Guidelines is that assisting and receiving states should, before a disaster occurs, sign customs agreements to speed up the movement of relief personnel, equipment and material. These treaties would include special arrangements to provide immunities for relief teams, permission for overflight and landing, exemption from customs and duties, waiver of visa requirements and recognition of certificates, and security of military and civil defence assets.

During the transfer of relief personnel and material from an assisting to a receiving state, the practical implication would be that a single document containing the names and particulars (vaccination certificates, driver's licences, etc.) of all personnel involved in a relief operation (as Experts on Mission) would be sufficient at border and customs posts to allow relief teams to enter any country accepting the Oslo Guidelines. A similar single document would list all relief material and equipment.

The Draft Customs Agreement embodying the Oslo Guidelines is presently under consideration by the UN Legal Advisers and the International Customs Organisation. Once approved by them, it will be forwarded to all participating states for further evaluation, approval and possible improvement.

SOUTH AFRICAN FOREIGN POLICY

South Africa benefited from the support of the organised international community during its own struggle for democracy and human rights, and it is only reasonable that, within the limits of its resources, the country should now give something back.

Respect for humanitarian values is reflected in the South African Constitution. It is our duty to ensure that these ideals become an integral part of our foreign policy.

In the first place, South Africa's foreign policy is oriented towards Africa. This is justified from a humanitarian point of view, as half of all the refugees on the planet are, tragically, to be found on the African continent.

South Africa became a member of the Central Organ of the OAU Mechanism for Conflict Prevention and Resolution when it was founded in 1994. The Central Organ gives practical expression to the international expectation that regional organisations should play an increasing role in the preservation of peace, and prevention of conflicts, in their respective areas.

Within the greater African context, it is a cardinal aspect of South Africa's foreign policy to accord priority to its own region. Regional co-operation in Southern Africa has proved its worth in foreseeing and preventing domestic conflict, as in the case of Lesotho.

South Africa has long played a crucial role in the field of humanitarian assistance in the Southern African region. In the early 1990s, the UN Drought Relief Operation in Southern Africa would have been completely impossible without South Africa's railways and harbours, which the government of the day discreetly but unreservedly made available for the transport of emergency food relief. In the future, the country's role will change from that of a silent partner to an active participant in the field of policy formation.

President Mandela is currently the Chairman of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and the country is constantly looking to add new dimensions to this organisation. In the long run, the economic aspect will be one of the most significant. South Africa's own Reconstruction and Development Programme was of course conceived as an integral part of a regional approach to economic problems. This, once again, is fully consistent with the current international conviction that development is an essential aspect of humanitarian relief. If the economies of the country's neighbours can be rendered less fragile, then humanitarian disasters will be less likely to occur, and less severe if they do. Indeed, the achievement of development constitutes the only lasting solution to the complicated, multi-dimensional humanitarian disasters which are characteristic of Africa.

Human rights are relevant in that better observance of human rights norms would reduce the flows of refugees, as well as physical casualties, and also reduce the destruction of basic infrastructure. South Africa became a full party to the African Charter on Human and People's Rights in July 1996 and is already actively working for the improvement of the system of human rights promotion and protection, which it established. In fact, it is becoming abundantly clear that the causes of both man-made and natural disasters are complex and interrelated. Political, economic, administrative and even military factors typically all play a role. The solutions must thus be multifaceted. Viable long term solutions require that due attention be paid to human rights and development aspects. It is for this reason that South Africa has made contributions to the UN for the promotion of human rights in Rwanda and Burundi.

The ultimate aim of all disaster relief assistance must be to make such assistance unnecessary in the future.

CONCLUSION

The field is vast, and the needs are enormous. The task is too great for any one department, or even any one government, to handle alone. There is therefore a clear need for continuing close co-operation with government departments, NGOs, international organisations, other donor states and recipient states.