Poor security frustrating aid and development work

The international and national aid community in Afghanistan is concerned over the phenomenon of increasing incidents, in the context of the bombing of the United Nations office in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad. Such incidents had included security breaches affecting aid workers, several of whom had been killed in a recent upsurge in violence in Afghanistan, an official said on Friday. "We have all been shocked by the Baghdad bombing of the UN headquarters and the tragic loss of so many innocent and dedicated staff," Paul Barker, the country director for CARE International’s Afghanistan operations, told IRIN from the capital, Kabul. A truck, laden with explosives, on Tuesday blasted the Baghdad hotel where the UN offices were housed, killing UN Special Representative Sergio Vieira de Mello along with atleast 20 other people, and wounding many more. "We have also been concerned to track the increased number of security incidents in Afghanistan targeting humanitarian agencies and staff," Barker said. CARE International is one of more than 60 NGOs belonging to the Agency Coordinating Body for Afghan Relief, with about 700 staff in Afghanistan working with communities on education, health, water and sanitation, agriculture, natural resources and small economic activity development. Over the past two weeks, a driver for the US aid agency, Mercy Corps, and two workers belonging to the Afghan Red Crescent Society were killed in Afghanistan’s troubled southern region, forcing the UN to suspend road missions in that area. "We are particularly alarmed by the increasing number of robberies of the homes of national staff of aid agencies in Kabul," Barker said, noting that some of the robberies had been carried out by people wearing police or military uniforms. "Some were in broad daylight. This does not necessarily mean that police or soldiers are behind the thefts, but it does mean that the thieves think they can act with impunity if they wear official uniforms." he observed. The use of new vehicles painted white had been restricted by his organisation when travelling south of Kabul, he said. "We rely increasingly on rented vehicles, and we are reviewing and strengthening the protocols for our guards in office and residential properties rented by CARE in Kabul," he added. Meanwhile, a United Nations spokesman said the UN would act very responsibly in matters concerning security, following the devastating attack in Baghdad and the recent upsurge in violence in Afghanistan. "We are once again reviewing what we have here. I think I mentioned this before, that when incidents have occurred here in Afghanistan, we, as the UN, are very security conscious. We have been, we are and we will continue to be," Manoel de Almeida e Silva, the spokesman of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Afghanistan, told reporters at a press conference in Kabul on Thursday. But even before the carnage in the Iraqi capital, aid workers in war-ravaged Afghanistan have been increasingly bearing the brunt of attacks by insurgents determined to prevent, or stop, humanitarian assistance and reconstruction work from proceeding smoothly. The UN was dealing with the situation on a case-by-case basis, de Almeida e Silva said, pointing out that a road previously barred to UN road missions had been given the all clear, even as the UN continued to monitor the scenario elsewhere. "While we move around most of the country, there are, however, certain roads, particularly in the south and southeast, where there are restrictions," he noted. The UN considered it had no enemies in Afghanistan and the overriding majority of comments received indicated that the UN was welcome in the country, de Almeida e Silva said. "We have work to do and we will continue to do this work. We are here to help the Afghans re-establish peace and to reconstruct the country," he added. Barker agreed, saying that he did not believe the threat level in Kabul matched the level in Baghdad. "We do not believe that the threat level in Kabul approaches that of Baghdad by a long margin," he said. "But we do believe that increased vigilance is a prudent step."