Read full text in French (pdf)Abstract

Emergency humanitarian assistance is at a turning point in its history. A critical examination has begun within many non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to overcome the contradictions and mission-drift that are inseparable from their war-time operations: collateral damage affecting civilians, misappropriation of aid or the use of humanitarian assistance by the belligerents or foreign powers to achieve strategic goals. Furthermore, humanitarian assistance is becoming more and more selective, even discriminatory, to take into account political preferences of governments, which have their own agendas on where and how to assist. Media preferences have also become a factor, with not always positive results. Finally, many NGOs have become agents of Western diplomacy, which is contributing to an abuse of the humanitarian 'brand name'. This critical examination, which is becoming ever urgent, could usefully result in a redefinition of the political, economic, and ethical content of humanitarian intervention.

Béatrice Pouligny is a Researcher at the Centre d'études et de recherches internationales (CERI) and a Professor at the Institut d'études politiques (Paris). She is the Vice-président of the Academic Council on the United Nations System (ACUNS).