Always angels??

Structure of our course so far tempts us to focus on NGOs working (from outside) in conflict situations. But:
• Many NGOs work for humanitarian, humanrights or ‘single-issue’ causes in ‘peacetime’, inc in our own countries
• Local NGOs also vital for outcomes
• Even wider range of ‘civil society’ actors, crucial i.a. for Security Sector Reform

• Not governmental (or institutional, like
UN agencies)
• ‘Self-motivated’, free choice of action
• But not always ‘self-financed’ - agents of aid delivery, recipients of aid
• Can be quite ‘institutionalized’ and in weak states could be filling power gap

• Work against, with or ‘for’ govts/insts
• Work against, with or ‘for’ business actors
(how to classify things like the Gates
Foundation??)
• Take resources from private citizens to private citizens

More than ‘the ladle in the global soup kitchen’:
• Humanitarian vs. development or ‘caring’ vs.
‘solving’/’reforming’ goals
• Caring for human bodies or human rights
• ‘Neutrality’ in conflict, posn. on violence?
• If transmitting standards, which standards?
• Top-down, North-South vs. empowering and facilitating models
• Fire-fighting, or longer engagement?

• General codes + norms; self-policing??
• Answerability for impact/efficiency
• Fund-raising techniques, competition
• Status when delivering others’ funds
• Administrative expenses
• Staff qualifications, motivation
• Staff safety, ‘NGOs as targets’

• NGOs’ fear of subjection/manipulation as govts do more complex conflict management but also like using agents
• Classic NGO funding/work methods
(govt, private giving) overtaken by
Soros, Gates, single-issue drives?
• Various factors weakening ‘Northern’ leadership + control

• Will look in more detail at challenges for NGO impacts + principles in a rather chaotic conflict situation
• Not that this is the only setting for ambiguity: consider diversion of charity payments to terrorists (and Hamas humanitarian work); rights and wrongs of single issue campaigns eg on fur, whaling; misuse of ‘civil society’ organizational forms eg in Communist states

• Direct humanitarian delivery: food, drugs, medical assistance
• Running a large refugee camp on the state border
• Working with a local charity for aid distribution in an ethnic minority area
• Working under protection of a NATO team in unstable Province Y
• WHAT ISSUES CAN ARISE??

• Clues: - By what routes? To whom?

• Clues: who and what is in the camp?
What comings and goings?

• Clues: what will this do for the group’s and the charity’s post-conflict status?

• Clues: Independence? Impact? Image?
Pros + cons for safety?

Look within the range:
• Prohibition/avoidance
• Regulation (is the ‘contract’ relevant??)
• Self-regulation