This essay discusses the work of MSF (Doctors without Borders) in giving humanitarian aid during emergencies. It sheds light on how MSF goes about offering humanitarian aid to people stricken by disasters in war-torn areas. It also reveals the difficulties that MSF staff members have to face in delivering aid to such people. Three articles are examined to achieve the objectives of this essay.
Bigot, Antoine, et al. Refugee Health: An approach to emergency situations. London: Macmillan, 2000. Print.
This book outlines how MSF staff members go about attending to refugees in war-torn areas. The bulk of the book is in parts II and III which are dedicated to showing how MSF works in the field in delivering humanitarian aid. Part II lists the top ten priorities of MSF when confronted with an emergency requiring their rapid response (Bigot 313). Part III examines the kind of activities that MSF staff members engage in during the post-emergency phase of a humanitarian crisis.
The details in this book will form the backbone of my paper. This is because the details directly address the objectives of my paper especially parts II and III. These parts will be significant for my paper as they outline how MSF staff members go about doing their work from the very initial stage called the Initial Assessment to the final activity of repatriation and resettlement of the people affected by the crisis. My paper will thoroughly discuss the ten priorities outlined in the book.
Parts III and IV contain details on what MSF does in the post-emergency situation. These parts will be of significance in showing how MSF staff members help people to start normal lives with a healthy psycho-social and mental state. I will also use some of the diagrams and graphs from the appendices to make my paper more comprehensive and easy to understand. Generally, this book is a rich source of information and will assist me in achieving the objectives of my paper.
Le Pape, Marc. “Emergency Operations in Brazzaville: Medecins Sans Frontieres and Violence Against Civilians.” Civilians Under Fire: Humanitarian Practices in the Congo Republic 1998-2000. Ed. Barbara Kancelbaun. Peterborough: Broadview, 2003. 46-79. Print.
In chapter four of the book Civilians under Fire, Le Pape gives an account of MSF’s operations in a post-war period. This chapter examines specific periods, situations, and issues during that time and narrates primary testimonies by MSF workers of what they encountered in the course of offering humanitarian aid. The general period covered by the chapter was when residents were returning to the southern districts of Brazzaville which had been abandoned. This was during the 1998 war in the Congo Republic.
This chapter will help me in writing a comprehensive paper as I will quote specific incidents from the chapter in discussing MSF’s activities in humanitarian emergencies. This chapter helps to recreate the post-war period in a manner that shows the “context in which MSF teams were working (the uncertainty, insecurity, horrific acts of brutality and nutritional needs)” (Le Pape 47). By showing this image of the post-war period in my paper, it will be possible for the readers of my paper to appreciate and understand the work and significance of MSF in humanitarian emergencies. I will use this chapter to show the challenges that MSF staff members face in their work; some of the challenges even threatened their lives. In some cases, the MSF staff members were distressed by the brutality they witnessed. The interviews narrated in this chapter will greatly benefit my paper as they recreate the period in a very clear manner. With such a clear picture in mind, it will be very easy to make logical arguments in my paper concerning the actions of MSF.
Arnold, Nenna, et al. Doctors Without Borders at work: Responding to the Crisis in Somalia. Medecins Sans Frontieres, 2011. Web.
This is a 44-page pictorial presentation file on MSF workers at work in the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya and other refugee camps in Somalia. Each page in this file has one picture with a line or two at the bottom giving details about the picture. Some of the pictures showcase malnutrition and the living standards in refugee camps. The file has a map showing the location of the refugee camps. It was compiled by MSF staff members working in these refugee camps. Going through the file, one gets an understanding of how refugees lead their lives in the refugee camps (Arnold 1).
This file will enrich my paper and let the readers have a comprehensive view of MSF workers at work. I plan to use some of the pictures from this file in the appendices of my paper. In the course of making arguments in the paper, I will refer to some of the pictures in the file. For instance, when talking about the challenges that MSF staff undergo in the field, I will refer to some of the pictures which show the challenges. Some of the challenges which the pictures showed are the hostile physical environment, difficulties in managing people as in some cases the refugees are too numerous to handle, the unavailability of modern basic social amenities, and dealing with distressed people and malnourished children which at times is likely to be distressful to the MSF staff. Generally, the pictures from this file will make my paper memorable to the readers.