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National Security and Humanitarianism: An Analysis of the operations of USAID's Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance from 1992 to 2002
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Based on Needs Alone? The operations of USAID’s Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance 1998 to 2003 By Robert Kevlihan, American University, Washington DC.
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that conflict related emergencies are, by definition, dangerous to the United States and to global security, as they have destabilized entire regions and proven to be recruiting grounds or safe havens for criminals, extremists and terrorists.
33
As such, some
humanitarian interventions may also be viewed to be in the national security interests of the U.S. The US has intervened in two significant cases post 9/11 – Liberia in 2003 and Haiti in 2004, though US reluctance to send in significant number of troops to intervene militarily in Liberia shows that humanitarian foot dragging has not gone away among US policy makers when no broader strategic interests are at stake. The scale of the US government’s humanitarian response in Iraq in 2003, and the characterization of humanitarian activities as a ‘force multiplier’ by US Secretary of State, Colin Powell, indicate the continued prominence of national security imperatives in how US government humanitarian assistance is allocated.
34
To conclude, it is apparent that a tension exists in the operations of OFDA between a policy commitment to respond to emergencies ‘based on needs alone’ and other military and political concerns. The experience in the post Cold War period is that where US forces are committed to significant combat operations, it is likely that extensive humanitarian aid will be allocated for the same region. However, the US continues to be one of the largest contributors of humanitarian aid worldwide to emergencies of all kinds. Other ambiguities in addition to US military activity exist in how such funds are allocated to particular countries at particular times – public opinion, lobbying from NGOs and other interest groups, levels of media coverage for particular disasters all may influence allocation decisions. Operationalizing objective indicators of need (and projected need in the absence of an appropriate intervention) that can be utilized for cross country comparison, and hence for allocation decisions – or evaluation of allocation decisions, and taking a holistic approach to aid flows going in to such emergencies (i.e. both US and non US assistance) – particularly into longer term emergencies where there is time to run such comparisons, would be a step forward in meeting or further evaluating US commitments to commit resources to humanitarian emergencies based on needs alone.
33
USAID, Foreign Aid in the National Interest, Promoting Freedom, Security and Opportunity, (USAID, 2002), p26.
34
Martin Wollacott, “Humanitarians must avoid becoming tools of power” in The Guardian, 02 April
2004.
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| | Authors: Kevlihan, Robert. |
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Based on Needs Alone? The operations of USAID’s Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance 1998 to 2003
By Robert Kevlihan, American University, Washington DC.
14
that conflict related emergencies are, by definition, dangerous to the United States and to
global security, as they have destabilized entire regions and proven to be recruiting
grounds or safe havens for criminals, extremists and terrorists.
33
As such, some
humanitarian interventions may also be viewed to be in the national security interests of
the U.S. The US has intervened in two significant cases post 9/11 – Liberia in 2003 and
Haiti in 2004, though US reluctance to send in significant number of troops to intervene
militarily in Liberia shows that humanitarian foot dragging has not gone away among US
policy makers when no broader strategic interests are at stake. The scale of the US
government’s humanitarian response in Iraq in 2003, and the characterization of
humanitarian activities as a ‘force multiplier’ by US Secretary of State, Colin Powell,
indicate the continued prominence of national security imperatives in how US
government humanitarian assistance is allocated.
34
To conclude, it is apparent that a tension exists in the operations of OFDA between a
policy commitment to respond to emergencies ‘based on needs alone’ and other military
and political concerns. The experience in the post Cold War period is that where US
forces are committed to significant combat operations, it is likely that extensive
humanitarian aid will be allocated for the same region.
However, the US continues to be one of the largest contributors of humanitarian aid
worldwide to emergencies of all kinds. Other ambiguities in addition to US military
activity exist in how such funds are allocated to particular countries at particular times –
public opinion, lobbying from NGOs and other interest groups, levels of media coverage
for particular disasters all may influence allocation decisions. Operationalizing objective
indicators of need (and projected need in the absence of an appropriate intervention) that
can be utilized for cross country comparison, and hence for allocation decisions – or
evaluation of allocation decisions, and taking a holistic approach to aid flows going in to
such emergencies (i.e. both US and non US assistance) – particularly into longer term
emergencies where there is time to run such comparisons, would be a step forward in
meeting or further evaluating US commitments to commit resources to humanitarian
emergencies based on needs alone.
33
USAID, Foreign Aid in the National Interest, Promoting Freedom, Security and Opportunity, (USAID, 2002), p26.
34
Martin Wollacott, “Humanitarians must avoid becoming tools of power” in The Guardian, 02 April
2004.
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