Somali Region, Ethiopia: Thousands of IDPs in Search of Food and Water

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is currently witnessing a deteriorating humanitarian situation around the town of Wardher, in the Somali Region of Ethiopia. Internally displaced people (IDPs) are gathering in the thousands on the town’s outskirts, purportedly in search of food and water. An estimated 8,000 to 10,000 people are currently living in squalid conditions; under makeshift shelters, with limited access to water, no sanitation, and the carcasses of dead animals around them.

In response, MSF is providing medical care to both IDPs and town inhabitants from our easily accessible clinic, located in Wardher town. These services are extended to the wider communities within the Wardher and Danood districts through mobile clinics. Activities include a nutritional program to treat malnourished children under five years, incorporating ambulatory therapeutic feeding and inpatient care for complicated severe cases. MSF is further working closely with all relevant actors, including other nongovernmental organizations and government bodies, to assess the situation in order to respond to the growing needs of people in the area. Preparations are under way for improving access to drinking water and sanitation, along with vaccinations against measles and raising health awareness through community health workers recruited from within the camps.

Many of the IDPs, traditionally nomadic people, are saying that in the areas they usually inhabit there is currently not enough food or water to survive. Further, many report the death of large numbers of livestock, on which they depend for food and livelihood. This year’s drought seems to have pushed these already vulnerable people, suffering from protracted conflict and minimal resources, even further into despair.

MSF in the Somali Region
MSF provides primary healthcare in two locations in the Somali Region of Ethiopia: Degahbur and Wardher town. In recent months, the team in Degahbur have admitted an increasing number of children under five into their program—although recently the number has stabilized. The situation there is of concern, but is not comparable to what we now see in Wardher. Working in just two locations in Ogaden, it is impossible for MSF to comment on the nutritional situation regionally. We continue to run emergency nutritional interventions and ongoing healthcare projects throughout the south and north of the country.

NGOs’ Increasing Obstacles in the Ogaden and The Silence of the International Community.

Ethiopia’s TPLF regime –better known for slaying, starving, oppressing, and sabotaging its civilians – receives the largest international aid in the whole continent of Africa and therefore is dependent on foreign aid in the form of bilateral as well as multilateral agreements. A great portion of this aid is channeled by donor nations through Non-Governmental Organizations. The Distribution of NGO presence in Ethiopia’s different regions is very asymmetrical. Throughout the country there are millions suffering as a result of recurrent droughts followed by famine. However while the government does not care about its people the International NGOs who operate in Ethiopia seem to favor (or are forced by TPLF’s Relief Society Tigray -REST- to operate in Tigray) some regions over the others. Those who are willing to help people in remote areas like the Ogaden are forced to work in regions they would not choose otherwise. The few who dare to insist help the needy face obstructions and their staff is intimidated daily. The Ogaden whose people are self sufficient pastoralists were previously known to have been less aid-dependent compared to the rest of Ethiopia. However, government default, ongoing war against unarmed civilians, lack of international pressure, Harassing the few NGOs on the ground complicated the livelihoods of these civilians.

If the current government boasts of achieving an 11% annual growth and claim sustained development of the main sectors of the country, they know they are not talking about Ogaden because for them Ogaden is only a war zone where they do not bother investing in schools, clinics, veterinary health posts, roads etc. The only significant symbol of the government presence in the Ogaden is huge military personnel (some sources estimate almost half of Ethiopia’s military to be stationed in the Ogaden despite the many war frontiers Ethiopia has!!). This military is used to inflict the most imaginable harm on the people. They continue their daily mass killings of unarmed civilians (my maternal uncle was the last victim I heard. They killed him while he was milking his camel for his children!!!), they torture, arbitrarily arrest, blockade and destroy towns etc.

While they kill people meaninglessly, they are determined to obstruct anyone trying to lend the people a hand. All local NGOs are ordered to make food and other necessary items distributions through the so called Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Agency (DPPA) which is controlled by the army leaders. Eventually, food is used as a weapon and never reaches the intended beneficiaries. The local NGOs have no choice and they are well aware of the whereabouts of those who questioned such acts. They know the fate of Sulub and his fellow men from Ogaden Welfare and Development Organization (OWDA). Some local charity organizations have reported that their vehicles are forcefully used by the army against the law. Some government stooges even demand bribes otherwise will declare NGOs as Nabadiid which mean anti-peace!!!

The international NGOs are not spared by the obstacles of the Ethiopian government and the last victim is MSF-Switzerland who pulled out of their last operational post –Fiiq. Apparently, MSF endured a prolonged and repeated Ethiopian harassment but reached their limit when they feared for their staffs’ lives as was clearly stated by the organization’s and AFP reported:

Repeated administrative hurdles and intimidations towards MSF staff in the Fiiq area have prevented the organization from bringing urgently needed medical care to vulnerable populations. Despite agreements signed with federal authorities, MSF international staff members have not received necessary work permits and could only be on site for short periods.
“Over the six months of our intervention, our medical teams could only work for ten weeks in Fiiq town and five in the periphery of the town where the most important needs are,” said Hugues Robert, in charge of the MSF Ethiopia program in Geneva. “It significantly reduces the medical impact of our action.”

MSF is not the first to terminate operations in the Ogaden. MSF Belgium and International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) have also been accused of supporting rebel groups and their permission revoked against the international law –Ethiopia is a signatory to the International Humanitarian Law which gives ICRC among others unlimited access to war zones. This comes a time when Meles has waged war against Somalis in the Ogaden and the need for Independent NGOs is eminent more than ever. Meles and his fellow men such as Bereket Simon has openly boasted to have accumulated experience during their struggle against the Derg and will never allow NGOs to help people in need. Parallel to all these difficulties is the law drafted by the order of Meles to restrict NGO freedom. The controversial draft law enables the Government to fully control the activities of NGOs.

In addition to the genocide and economic blockade of this hapless region, Ethiopia has left no stone unturned to cover its atrocities in front of the international community. They clearly deny access to international media even those who are pro-TPLF. Despite this, the world were able to see as the chain of tragedies has been unfolding in Ogaden through the brave reporters of New York Times, The Daily Telegraph (both of whose reporters were illegally arrested by TPLF in Degah Bur and Godey respectively), Aljazeera, Los Angels Times, etc. The latest Amnesty International Report on Ogaden was supported by undeniable Sattellite Images of destroyed villages and towns whose population were also killed in the masses.

While all this is taking place the world is watching and doing nothing. The United Nations who in 2007 sent emergency assessment team who later that year came up with recommendations including the need for broader investigation by the UN has done nothing. We know how they were being silenced.The international community led by USA pursues the policy of look and see even though they all know that Ogaden is far worse than Darfur they won’t annoy their leaders who consider Meles as an important ally in what they call ‘war against terror.’ Instead of holding the TPLF thugs of their crimes, it is sad to see famous lobbyists DLA-Piper earning their salaries by sabotaging the highly awaited Ethiopia Democracy and Accountability Act of 2007 –a bill supporting human rights and democracy in Ethiopia that was put forward by responsible individuals and passed by the United States House of Representatives. But USA cannot claim to be the police of the World while they are defending such atrocities in the name of ‘war on terror’. I wonder how USA can voice against Robert Mugabe and Omar Al-Bashir while letting criminal Meles attend G8 summit. The world will witness the suffering of humanity if the policy of double standardness is not re-evaluated. We are all human beings and we deserve the same rights!!!