Memorandum submitted by Save the Children
UK
"Our childhood is passing. There has
been war and drought in our country for so long now. Many of us
have had to leave our homes and many have died. Each year there
is more sickness and poverty. Though you may have come and heard
our stories many times, we do not see anything changing for us
. . ." Message from Afghan children[3]
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Almost half of Afghanistan's population consists
of children aged under eighteen. The combination of endemic poverty,
on-going drought, years of civil unrest and the recent military
action now threatens a major crisis for the children of Afghanistan.
Before October 2001, Afghanistan was already one of the worst
places in the world to be a child. UNICEF has now warned that
100,000 Afghan children could die this winter unless food reaches
them in sufficient quantities before winter sets in.
After nearly four weeks of bombing of Afghanistan,
it is a fact that military action has set back relief efforts
aimed at ensuring adequate food and other essential shelter and
non food items reached Afghanistan before the onset of winter.
The operating environment—and the narrow window of opportunity
before the winter—for all humanitarian agencies is shrinking
by the day.
This crisis, compounded by the onset of winter,
poses severe threats to child survival, protection and development.
Malnutrition, acute respiratory infections and vaccine-preventable
diseases will claim many more child lives in the coming months.
As families flee their homes, children's access to education and
basic health services becomes even more limited than before the
current crisis. In these mass population movements children run
the risk of being separated from their families or of losing family
members who are recruited to fight. Landmines and cluster bombs
pose serious risks of death or disability to children.
Save the Children is deeply concerned that whilst
there appears to be little evidence of the military campaign reaching
its objectives, the humanitarian situation, which was at crisis
point prior to September 11, has further deteriorated. It is important
to consider the implications of statements made recently by Geoff
Hoon and others on the possible length of the military operation
in Afghanistan, suggesting it could drag on for up to four years
or "as long as it takes". It is very difficult
to conceive of an effective humanitarian relief operation that
could compensate for the lack of infrastructure, services and
disrupted agricultural production over such a period.
It is a dangerous illusion to think that political,
military and humanitarian objectives can be easily aligned in
the current situation. For its part, Save the Children believes
there is a humanitarian imperative to intensify relief efforts
and to increase significantly the volume of aid reaching the people
of Afghanistan while there is still time. It is the role of the
UN to manage the interface between all aspects of complex interventions
and ensure that space is negotiated for humanitarian organisations
to operate and meet the current needs of the people of Afghanistan.
The UN must be fully resourced and empowered to fulfil its complex
role in an impartial manner.
RECOMMENDATIONS TO
THE UK GOVERNMENT
Save the Children believes that the UK government
must act now to prioritise children during the current crisis
and is calling on the government to:
— Recognise the separation of humanitarian
objectives from military and political objectives to ensure that
humanitarian assistance remains impartial—a precondition
for humanitarian organisations to be able to carry out their work
effectively in conditions of violence and insecurity.
— Take the lead in helping to ensure
the immediate creation of an environment in which humanitarian
aid providers can act impartially to ensure that humanitarian
assistance can be effectively distributed to those in urgent need.
— Ensure that the UN has overall responsibility
for effectively co-ordinating the humanitarian operation and is
empowered to create conditions for an impartial response the UN
should be responsible for negotiating humanitarian access with
parties on the ground in Afghanistan.
— Provide the political support that
is necessary to guarantee the provision of a humanitarian space
within which humanitarian organisations can operate over the longer
term in an impartial way.
— Declare a moratorium on the use of
cluster bombs and seek urgent assurances from other members of
the military alliance that they will cease using cluster munitions,
and take responsibility for the complete clearance of any unexploded
ordnance bomblets that remain.
— Ensure sustained political commitment
and financial and technical support to rebuild Afghanistan and
bring about the fulfilment of children's right within that country.
— Ensure that child protection and
the monitoring of children's rights is integrated into all aspects
of the political and humanitarian response led by the UN.
— Call on all parties to the conflict
to respect provisions of international humanitarian law and human
rights law.
RECOMMENDATIONS TO
THE UNITED
NATIONS
The UN and all participants in the hostilities
should ensure that child protection is integrated into all aspects
of their actions and at every stage—from the relief effort
through to post-conflict attempts to re-establish institutions:
— The team assembled by Ambassador
Brahimi should include an adviser on child protection in order
to ensure that issues concerning, and of concern to, Afghan children
are integrated into any political and humanitarian response led
by the UN.
— Human rights, and child rights in
particular, must be fully incorporated into any UN initiative,
not only on paper but also in practice.
— The participation of children in
the design and implementation of any programmes intended to advance
their rights is essential.
— In the establishment of any UN peacekeeping
operation in Afghanistan, training of peacekeepers in child protection
is essential.
— There should be effective monitoring
of human rights, including children rights during any peacekeeping
operation.
— Given the involvement of child combatants
in the conflict, the UN should ensure that specific planning and
resource allocation for child combatants is included in disarmament,
demobilisation and rehabilitation programmes.
— As children are often the victims
of unexploded ordnance's such as landmines and cluster bombs,
there should be a considerable increase in the resources for their
removal and disposal.
— The UN should initiate and support
the establishment of viable local, regional and national institutions
in Afghanistan for the protection of human rights generally, and
child rights in particular.
— Education must be the cornerstone
of the rebuilding of Afghanistan and its future stability. It
is fundamental that all agencies working in Afghanistan come together
under UN co-ordination to develop a comprehensive plan for assistance
to education that builds on the achievements of agencies working
in the education sector in Afghanistan.
THE HUMANITARIAN
CRISIS IN
AFGHANISTAN BEFORE
11 SEPTEMBER
Baseline conditions before 11 September
1. Before the 11 September terrorist attacks
on the United States, Afghanistan's 22.7 million population were
already suffering from the effects of a three-year drought exacerbated
by two decades of war. About 1.7 million people had died as a
result of years of conflict and another two million have been
permanently disabled.[4]
2. The drought: The drought in Afghanistan
is the worst the country has experienced in 30 years. According
to OXFAM data, the 2001 harvest—in the third year of severe
drought—has been about 50 per cent of a normal year's (and
much lower in some regions). Before recent events, this was already
leaving five million people, around 20 per cent of the population,
at risk of severe food shortages and depleted coping mechanisms.
3. The economy: Afghanistan was the
poorest country in Asia. The war has had a severe impact on the
economy, disrupting infrastructure throughout the country, particularly
in the interior. Many skilled and highly educated people have
left, leaving the country with staffing problems in many sectors
such as health and education. Although the primary occupation
is agriculture, only an estimated 10 per cent of land is currently
cultivated as a large portion of the country's arable land has
been damaged by war and neglect. According to the World Food Programme
(WFP), an estimated five to six million people—almost a
quarter of the population were dependent on food aid.
4. Population Movements: By September
2001, civil war, drought and extreme poverty had forced a staggering
total of over 4.6 million Afghans to flee their homes.[5]
Almost one million are internally displaced and around 3.7 million
currently live in exile as refugees in neighbouring Pakistan,
Iran and other countries.[6]
The situation of children before 11 September
5. Afghanistan's total population is estimated
at 22.7 million,[7]
with approximately 49 per cent of these children under eighteen.[8]
Children's health and nutritional status before 11 September was
already deeply unsatisfactory. Government capacity to deliver
other basic services such as education and social services was
virtually non-existent.
6. Health: Afghanistan has one of
the worst child health care records in the world. Diarrhoea, acute
respiratory infections (ARIs) and vaccine-preventable diseases
account for approximately 60 per cent of child deaths in Afghanistan.[9]
Of deep concern are the following statistics:
— A quarter of the country's children
die before they reach their fifth birthday. This is the fourth
highest child mortality rate in the world.
— Almost half of children under five
are underweight, with global acute malnutrition in rural areas
typically at five per cent.[10]
— Poor facilities and a lack of properly
trained staff in hospitals contribute to a high number of women
dying during or after childbirth.
— The overall life expectancy—46
years—is one of the lowest in the world.
7. Education: Afghanistan has one
of the lowest literacy rates in the world—less than one
third of the population over 15 can read or write. It is estimated
that only 39 per cent of boys and 3 per cent of girls had access
to education. An estimated 90 per cent of all women are illiterate.
Most schools in Afghanistan were destroyed during the Soviet war
after 1979 and about 85 per cent of the country's teachers have
fled. Girls continue to be excluded from formal education with
only 3 per cent of girls enrolled in school.
8. Landmines: Afghanistan is the
second most heavily mined country in the world, with an estimated
10 million live mines throughout the country. One third of Afghanistan's
100,000 mine victims have been children—an average of four
children are injured every day across the country. Children are
particularly vulnerable to becoming landmine casualties as they
fetch water, collect firewood, herd animals or even walk to school.
The poorest Afghans are the most affected as it is the desperate
and destitute who risk entering minefields to seek food and fuel.
9. Divided Families and the impact on
Children: Conflict and economic desperation have separated
families as increasing numbers of younger men leave Afghanistan
either out of fear of recruitment by the Taliban or in search
of work in Pakistan or Iran. In addition, there are an estimated
700,000 war widows in Afghanistan. As a result, high numbers of
female-headed households are surviving with extremely fragile
livelihoods.[11]
As women are not allowed to work outside the home under the Taliban
regime, their primary source of income is begging. Children of
such households are often the primary wage earner. There were
an estimated 50,000 children working on the streets of Kabul alone
before the start of hostilities.[12]
10. Child soldiers: According to
the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers, warring parties
in Afghanistan have used children as soldiers.[13]
Forced and compulsory recruitment by the Taliban and Northern
Alliance continues to be reported, despite international commitments
to the contrary. Young recruits are drawn from within Afghanistan,
the Afghan refugee diaspora and religious schools in Pakistan.
However, many young and adolescent boys join up voluntarily because
it is in accordance with their upbringing, or because it is a
way of surviving.
THE CRISIS
FOR CHILDREN
TODAY
11. Although detailed statistical evidence
is difficult to assemble, we know that since 11 September there
has been further displacement, flight and deterioration in law
and order, with the inevitable negative consequences for children.
UNICEF has warmed that 100,000 Afghan children could die this
winter unless food reaches them in sufficient quantities before
winter sets in.
12. Internal displacement: Up to
one million children and adults in Afghanistan were already internally
displaced from their homes before the most recent crisis. According
to UNHCR, they were located in five main regions—Badakshan
(94,000), the Northern region (387,000), Hazarajat region (75,000),
Herat (200,000) and the Southern provinces (200,000).[14]
The UN forecasts that this figure—with large numbers of
children included in it—will double to 2.2 million during
the winter. With the start of the bombing campaign most of the
cities were deserted. Between 50 and 70 per cent of the population
of cities like Herat, Kabul, Jalalabad or Kandahar have reportedly
fled to surrounding areas to avoid the ongoing bombing.[15]
13. Refugees: Since 11 September,
an estimated 100,000 to 110,000 refugees have crossed the Pakistan
border with most of them blending into existing refugee camps
or being accommodated with the local population.[16]
Others have been less fortunate and are massing along a closed
border in the hope that they will be able to apply for asylum.
A few thousand IDPs are sheltered in camps created by the Taliban
near the borders of Iran and Pakistan. For those fleeing the bombings
to reach the borders the trek is tedious and dangerous. Some of
the IDPs now reaching camps close to the Iranian border have travelled
2,000 kms during 15 days and the flow of people registering is
likely to increase in the following days and weeks.[17]
14. Local populations: As the Office
for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) points out,
in the midst of potentially massive population movements, perhaps
of deepest concern will be those Afghans who remain behind, who
are "often the poorest, unable to afford transportation and
depending on the aid community for life saving assistance".[18]
15. Health: The combination of poor
health, extreme susceptibility to acute respiratory infections
(ARIs) which will be largely left untreated and increased food
insecurity resulting from decreased flows of aid will very likely
lead to a substantial increase in children's malnutrition levels
and mortality rates.
16. Food, Supply and Famine Risk:
Military operations have disrupted the delivery of food supplies
and are making it more and more difficult to reach areas outside
the main urban centres. In addition, there appears to be increased
lawlessness throughout the country. Looting and attacks on aid
agencies by unidentified persons have further disrupted aid efforts.
The WFP is continuing to deliver food to Afghanistan, but at a
reduced level. The WFP estimates that 52,000 tonnes of food needs
to be moved into Afghanistan each month, but that a further 70,000
tonnes must be stockpiled in Afghanistan before winter. During
October, approximately 700 tonnes of food was moved in each day,
which is less than half of WFPs target figure. Certain parts of
the country will be at highest risk of food shortages as they
are usually inaccessible during the winter, in particular the
Ghor, Bagdhis and Faryab regions where local insecurity, winter
and drought have made this region one of the worst hit and hardest
to serve. Although precise estimates remain impossible recent
work done by NGOs and WFP, within the last two weeks, building
on the last survey of nutritional needs done by WFP in July-August
estimates that the number of people in need of food support and
who will be extremely difficult to access during the winter is
approximately 1,668,000.[19]
Further food shortages, exacerbated by the lack of basic health
services, is likely to have a devastating impact on young, vulnerable
children throughout the country—who were already suffering
from extremely high child mortality rates before the most recent
crisis.
17. Winter: Winter is now setting
in; the first snowfall in the North-East was on 31 October leaving
many of the roads in Afghanistan impassable until March or April
and making the delivery of humanitarian aid extremely difficult.
Night-time temperatures in the winter months range from minus
10 to minus 50 (more exceptional) throughout Ghor, Parwan, Badakshan
and Kapisa, with average temperatures of minus 10 to minus 15.
Some of these areas are already experiencing night-time lows of
minus three or lower.
18. Landmines: As population movements
increase and as people flee their homes in fear of retaliation
and in search of food, there is an increased risk of mine-related
deaths and accidents. A quarter of last year's landmine victims
were people on the move either because they were fleeing or because
of their nomadic lifestyle.[20]
With health services cut-off throughout the country, it is more
likely that mine victims will not have access to potentially life-saving
medical assistance.
19. Cluster bombs: Cluster bombs
have been used against targets around the cities of Kabul, Kandahar,
Herat and Mazar-I-Sharif. Cluster bombs present a similar hazard
to civilians as landmines. Cluster bombs have a wide dispersal
pattern and cannot be targeted precisely, making them especially
dangerous when used near civilian areas. Cluster bombs have a
high initial failure rate which results in numerous explosive
"duds" that pose the same post-conflict problems as
antipersonnel mines.[21]
In the current context, there is the potential for children to
mistake the colourful yellow bomblets released by cluster bombs
for either air dropped food packets—which are also yellow—or
for toys. De-miners are now scrambling to deal with the problem
of training their staff to deal with this new threat under very
difficult conditions.
20. Separated children: In addition
to the existing separated children among the "old caseload"
of displaced, current and expected population movements are likely
to result. In other comparable emergencies 2-5 per cent of children
have been separated from their families. Although there are no
firm statistics, a recent UNHCR situation report stated that,
many Afghan families arriving in the Peshawar area had become
separated during their escape. Some had to leave behind weak or
disabled family members who could not manage the long walk to
Pakistan. Others were left behind because they could not afford
to pay for the journey and entry into Pakistan.[22]
In addition, reports that the Taliban are preventing men from
crossing the Pakistan border raises particular concerns that boys
under 18 may be included in this group. Particularly disturbing
is the continued lack of attention around child protection and
child separation issues.
SAVE THE
CHILDREN RESPONSE
21. Save the Children UK is working
in Afghanistan and Pakistan with its sister agencies of the International
Save the Children Alliance. Three of these agencies—Save
the Children UK (SC-UK), Save the Children Sweden (SC-S) and Save
the Children USA (SC-US)—have well established Pakistan/Afghanistan
offices and have run programmes for Afghans within Afghanistan
and as refugees for over 25 years. SC-UK and SC-US have teams
of expatriate and local staff in Peshawar and Islamabad and 210
local staff in Afghanistan. SC-UK also has programmes in Tajikistan
and Uzbekistan. Much of the current Save the Children emergency
response programme was on going before the terrible events of
11 September and the current military campaign. These activities
are now being further developed building on existing strengths,
experience and priorities, Save the Children's response focuses
on health; immediate shelter; provision of essential non food
items and child protection.[23]
- To continue and strengthen Save
the Children's existing food assistance/security and drought relief
interventions for drought-affected regions of Northern Afghanistan.
- To protect internally displaced
and stranded children and their families from the impact of displacement
and/or exposure to winter conditions by distributing essential
shelter and non-food items.
- To promote health and prevent illness
and mortality among Afghan children and childbearing age women
in rural, urban, and displaced/stranded communities in Kabul and
northern Afghanistan.
- To respond to the protection needs
of Afghan children and ensure that the consequences of the humanitarian
crisis for children and their families in all areas where SC has
a presence is monitored, analysed and information disseminated,
and to provide structure and stability in children's lives, and
opportunities for development, through the provision of structured
play and education activities.
Immediate Needs in Pakistan:
- To protect refugee children and
their families from the impact of displacement and exposure to
winter conditions by distributing essential shelter and non-food
items.
- To promote health and prevent illness
and mortality among Afghan refugee children and childbearing age
women.
- To respond to the protection needs
of Afghan children and ensure that the consequences of the humanitarian
crisis for children and their families in all areas where SC has
a presence is monitored, analysed and information disseminated
and used as the basis for advocacy, and to provide structure and
stability in children's lives, and opportunities for development,
through the provision of structured play and education activities.
- To facilitate a protective environment
for newly arrived Afghan refugee children by making sure that
camps are designed with the specific needs of children in mind
and that procedures are in place to ensure the proper protection
of children.
Ongoing and Longer-Term Response—Afghanistan's
Children are Afghanistan's Future:
In addition to addressing the immediate survival
needs of Afghans, Save the Children Alliance members are committed
to co-ordination around the common aim of promoting sustainable
environments ensuring the survival, protection, development and
participation of Afghan children.
HUMANITARIAN OBJECTIVES
SHOULD TAKE
PRECEDENCE
22. Concerned that the commencement of military
action would undoubtedly disrupt relief activities and exacerbate
the existing crisis in Afghanistan, Mike Aaronson, Director General
of Save the Children UK wrote to the Prime Minister on 11 October
urging him to take a lead internationally to ensure that the humanitarian
dimensions of the crisis were properly addressed. He also pointed
out to the Prime Minister the difficulties faced by humanitarian
agencies when attempts are made to pursue military and humanitarian
objectives in parallel.
"It is a dangerous illusion to think
that political, military and humanitarian objectives can be perfectly
aligned in the current situation: right now there is a humanitarian
imperative to stop the bombing and resume food deliveries on a
massive scale which clearly conflicts with the political and military
objectives that have been set. It is far more honest to accept
that political and military goals must be kept separate from humanitarian
action, and that the complementary roles of the different players
must be respected".[24]
As of 6 November, no substantive reply has been
received to this letter.
23. Save the Children shares the concerns
of the other agencies which have given evidence to the International
Development Committee that whilst there appears to be little evidence
of the military campaign reaching its objectives the humanitarian
situation is reaching crisis proportions. Like others we stress
the urgency of the situation because of the approaching onset
of winter. It is important to consider the implications of statements
made recently by Geoff Hoon and others on the possible length
of the military operation in Afghanistan, suggesting it could
drag on for up to four years or "as long as it takes".
It is very difficult to conceive of an effective humanitarian
relief operation compensating for the lack of infrastructure,
services and disrupted agricultural production over such a period.
24. Save the Children's observation is that
the attempt to bring political, military and humanitarian objectives
within the same framework there is now a real danger of humanitarian
objectives and principles becoming compromised. The Strategic
Framework for Afghanistan (SFA) which was formerly set up by the
UN in September 1998 attached certain conditions and ground rules,
(such as those covering progress towards peace) to the continuation
or resumption of humanitarian activity. When conditions were not
met, humanitarian aid was reduced to a trickle. The humanitarian
agencies were in effect prevented from carrying out their mandate
because political objectives remained out of reach. The lack of
progress towards peace restricted humanitarian assistance and
protection at the very time it is needed most.
25. This recent example from Afghanistan
and experience in other recent complex emergencies suggests that
"impartially" is coming to mean different things
to different organisations. Lakhdar Brahimi, recently re-appointed
as the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan,
took the drive for the integration of UN activities a significant
step forward in the Report of the Panel on United Nations Peace
Operations (2000). Whilst NGOs regard the report as an important
development in strengthening the peace making, peace keeping and
peace building work of the UN, and welcome many of its recommendations
on doctrine, strategy, planning, decision-making, staffing levels,
logistics, rapid deployment and public information, they have
a fundamental concern. The report invokes impartially as a "bedrock
principle" of any peace operation but the impartiality
referred to in the report relates quite specifically to enforcement
of the United Nations Charter in the context of a Security Council
directive. "Impartiality for United Nations operations
must therefore mean adherence to the principles of the Charter:
where one party to a peace agreement clearly and incontrovertibly
is violating its terms, continued equal treatment of all parties
by the United Nations can in the best case result in ineffectiveness
and in the worst may amount to complicity with evil".
26. "Impartiality" as it
is understood by humanitarian organisations is something different,
and is based on a stated obligation to deliver aid on the basis
of need, "regardless of race, creed or nationality of
the recipients and without adverse distinction of any kind.[25]
This is the language of the NGO Code of Conduct—the bedrock
principles of humanitarian action.
NEED FOR
EFFECTIVE INTERNATIONAL
CO-ORDINATION
27. In both our initial briefing[26]
and in the letter to the Prime Minister, Save the Children stressed
the importance of working within an international framework. Like
many others we welcomed the re-appointment of Lakhdar Brahimi
as the Secretary General's Special Representative for Afghanistan,
and the fact that Mr Brahimi is charged with ensuring that the
humanitarian and human rights dimensions of the evolving crisis
are central to political and military discussions. The concern
at the moment is that there are declining expectations of what
Mr Brahimi can achieve. Whilst we believe it is correct that coherent
response and lasting solutions must be managed and sought through
the UN there is a danger, in this case, that the UN is being set
up to fail.
28. On occasions in the past the impression
has been created that powerful states, principally the USA and
her allies can chose to resort to the UN or ignore it, depending
on whether they can obtain a favourable Security Council Resolution.
On this occasion the US and the coalition is basing its action
on Security Council Resolution 1368 (2001) and article 51 of the
UN Charter, which permits military action in self-defence. UN
member states, especially permanent members of the Security Council
should act within an international legal framework and provide
the necessary political, financial and technical support to strengthen
a fully co-ordinated UN response in Afghanistan.
29. Both short-term humanitarian action
and longer-term reconstruction are, in theory, to be undertaken
with a UN framework. However, brokering a peace in Afghanistan
and taking on the complex mission of reconstructing the state
will be made even more difficult by an inconclusive and long-drawn
out war. The UN must be fully resourced and empowered to fulfil
its complex role. Currently, there are shortfalls in every component
of the consolidated appeal. Mr Blair and others must keep to the
verbal commitments they have made to provide support over a long
time frame.
30. It is also essential that Mr Brahimi
is able to co-ordinate at the regional level and that his relationship
with other top-level UN personnel in the region, particularly
the Humanitarian Regional Co-ordinator and the UNHCR Regional
Representative is clear and that a coherent regional approach
is adopted; this needs to go beyond information sharing to joint
policy making.
31. Difficulties in the effective co-ordination
of UN agencies with different mandates in Afghanistan before 11
September were described in a recent Review of the Strategic
Framework for Afghanistan, commissioned by the Strategic Monitoring
Unit of Afghanistan.[27]
The Strategic Framework for Afghanistan (SFA) was set up with
the objective of promoting greater coherence between the assistance
and political wings of the UN and its partner organisations in
the interests of more effectively promoting peace and stability.
The review concludes that "whilst the SFA is a bold and
imaginative initiative it has not yet achieved the objective of
coherence between political, human rights and assistance objectives".
It is important the lessons of this experience are fully incorporated
into current planning.
32. It is the role of the UN to manage the
interface between all aspects of complex interventions and ensure
that space is negotiated for impartial humanitarian organisations
to operate and meet the current urgent needs of the people of
Afghanistan.
Save the Children UK
6 November 2001
3 "Afghanistan's Children-Speak to the UN Special
Session 19-21 September 2001." The report is the outcome
of a series of consultations organised by Save the Children to
solicit the views and messages of Afghan children in preparation
for the UN General Assembly Special Session on Children. The Special
Session on Children, which was due to take place on 19-21 September,
was postponed following the attacks of 11 September. Back
4
Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers estimate (www.child-solidiers.org). Back
5
UNHCR Afghan Refugees Statistics, 10 September 2001. Back
6
UNHCR's statistics indicate that 1,500,000 are refugees in Iran;
2,000,000 in Pakistan and 195,000 are in other regions including
Russia, Central Asian republics, Europe, North America, Australia
and India. "UNHCR Afghan Refugee Statistics", 10 September
2001. Back
7
UNFPA estimate. Back
8
Coalition to Stop Use of Child Soldiers estimate. Back
9
Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict report on Afghanistan,
October 2001. Back
10
A recent Save the Children survey in northern Afghanistan found
slightly higher rates of 7 per cent GAM. Nutritional Survey Report,
Kohistan District, Faryab Province, Northern Afghanistan; Save
the Children, April 4-10 2001, p11. Back
11
Save the Children US estimates that between 1 per cent and 5
per cent of all households appear to have no adult male above
the age of 15. Back
12
Save the Children US statistics. Back
13
To date, there has been no accurate estimate of the number of
child soldiers in either Afghanistan or Pakistan. Back
14
UNHCR Afghan Refugee Statistics, 10 September 2001. Back
15
IRIN 24 October 2001; Amnesty International 9 October 2001; USAID
2 October 2001. Back
16
UNHCR, 29 October 2001. Back
17
IFRC, 30 October 2001. Back
18
Afghanistan OCHA Situation Report No 2, UN Office for the Co-ordination
of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), 19 September 2001. Back
19
British Overseas Aid Group letter to Clare Short, Secretary of
State for Development 2 November 2001. Back
20
ICRC, 4 October 2001. Back
21
Cluster bombs in Afghanistan, A Human Rights Watch backgrounder,
31 October 2001. Back
22
UNHCR Humanitarian Update No 25, 25 October 2001. Back
23
Immediate Needs in Afghanistan: Back
24
Letter from Mike Aaronson to Rt Hon Tony Blair MP, 11.10.2001. Back
25
The Code of Conduct-Principles of Conduct for the International
red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and NGOs in Disaster Response
Programmes. Back
26
Save the Children briefing on the terrorist attacks on the United
States of America and their potential short- and long-term implications,
27 September 2001. Back
27
Review of the Strategic Framework for Afghanistan, Mark Duffield,
Patricia Gossman, Nicholas Leader, Commissioned by the Strategic
Monitoring Unit, Afghanistan, October 2001. Back
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