Is There a Right to Humanitarian Access in Darfur?

Published December 07, 2008 @ 08:18AM PT

[Interview with Claude Bruderlein on the "right of humanitarian access" in Darfur]

NGOs and others will sometimes refer to a "right to humanitarian access" in sweeping terms, without a full understanding of what rights are actually granted to humanitarian agencies under International Humanitarian Law, including the Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols.

To that end, the video above is an interview with Professor Claude Bruderlein at the Harvard Program on Humanitarian Policy and Conflict Research (HPCR), looking at the question of whether there is in fact a right to humanitarian access under International Humanitarian Law, and what this means in places like Darfur, where humanitarian agencies struggle to reach those most in need.

Claude is uniquely qualified to answer this question. He is not only the Director of HPCR, but also the Jeremiah Smith, Jr., Lecturer on Law at the Harvard Law School, as well as a Lecturer at the Harvard School of Public Health.

He also has extensive experience in the field, dating back to 1985 - he has served with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as a delegate in Iran, Israel and the Occupied Territories, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Yemen; he also previously worked for the United Nations as a Special Advisor on Humanitarian Affairs.

HPCR itself is based at the Harvard School of Public Health, and offers a multidisciplinary approach to new challenges in the field of humanitarian affairs. Key sectors of activity include issues around human security, conflict management, and international humanitarian law.

For more information on issues related to humanitarian access please visit the discussion section at the HPCR Humanitarian Law and Policy Forum at ihlforum.ning.com (free registration required). Additional information may be found at the HPCR International Humanitarian Law Portal ihl.ihlresearch.org and at www.hpcr.org.

Finally, in the interests of full disclosure - I worked at HCPR in 2003-2004. Interview conducted by yours truly.

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Author

Michael has worked for NGOs in Afghanistan, across east and central Africa, and Iraq. Prior to going overseas, he worked on a project providing assistance to the United Nations on the application of International Humanitarian Law to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.