Until 22 June 2006 the joint campaign has raised 873,229 Euro. Letter of the president | Activities in Darfur | Hamidia | Donations | Latest press release | Celebrities for Darfur | |
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On the initiative of the President of the Republic of Slovenia , Dr. Janez Drnovček, the charitable organisations Slovene Caritas, UNICEF Slovenia and Red Cross Slovenia and Foundation Together, with the signature of a special agreement today began a joint campaign WORLD FOR DARFUR , which is intended to help the afflicted in Darfur in Sudan.
We are also starting a joint fund-raising campaign. Funds are being collected in special accounts of Red Cross Slovenia , Slovene Caritas and UNICEF Slovenia. The cooperating organisations thus retain their identity and take full responsibility for the donated funds and, at the same time, we are working together through sister international organisations for people under pressure at the Al Hamidia refugee centre. Our efforts are also supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia and numerous companies, whose contributions have enabled printing, distribution, total image and media activity for the charitable campaign.
RED CROSS IN DARFUR In the past year, the International Committee of the Red Cross carried out the following activities in Darfur : it supplied 7 camps for displaced persons with drinking water, it ensured the maintenance of the water supply system and provided two million litres of water each day for more than a million and a half people. It distributed 32,000 tons of food to 300,000 people. In April it provided thirty mobile medical teams, which have carried out 370 operations for soldiers wounded during fighting and who would not otherwise have received medical care. In addition to the above activities in Darfur , the International Committee of the Red Cross in Sudan also carried out the following activities: it renovated and repaired 5 hospitals and 12 health clinics and provided medical staff and medicines and made possible operations in them. It also trained medical personnel and carried out basic inoculations. It held seminars on international humanitarian law, which were attended by 10,500 people: representatives of the government, military, opposition groups, and religious and local centres. It collected more than 29,300 family messages and sent them to more than 30,200 addresses. It continued negotiations in relation to the security of victims of the armed conflict with all participating parties, on all levels. It carried out a programme of inoculation of livestock, which is an important part of the people's own subsistence economy. A team of surgeons has been present in Zalingei since November, helping local authorities carry out operations on the wounded. More than 3,000 operations have been performed. ACT/CARITAS IN DARFUR ACT/CARITAS has helped more than half a million refugees in Darfur in the last two years. The CARITAS programme of aid among other things is carried out by 350 local personnel from the Sudan . The purpose is support for internally displaced persons in refugee camps, as well as help to people in villages who accept refugees. The aid is in the form of temporary shelters and interior furnishings, household articles, social and health services, preventive and general healthcare, access to drinking water, toilet facilitis and education and developmental training. ACT/CARITAS needs 15 million dollars for this year. One third of the necessary funds is currently guaranteed. All activities are directed at sustainable development and towards the refugees beginning to return to their homes. There is great stress in particular in building peace. More information is available on : www.karitas.si UNICEF IN DARFUR UNICEF is one of the key humanitarian organisations in Darfur . Children represent half the 6 million inhabitants under threat because of the armed conflicts. UNICEF has been present in Darfur since the very beginning. Today, UNICEF provides emergency assistance to more than 1.5 million children in Darfur and neighbouring Chad , who are located in and around refugee settlements. UNICEF is the main coordinator for aid in the areas of provision of water and sanitary facilities, food supply (more than 60 centres for the care of seriously undernourished children monthly), education of children and, together with the World Health Organisation, it coordinates basic health services, coordination of the protection of children at special risk (demobilisation, sexual abuse etc.). Current assistance is effective. Malnutrition among children has been reduced from 21.8% in 2004 to 11.9% today and mortality is also below the average of international humanitarian crises. Donors to UNICEF Slovenia also helped in this in the autumn of 2004, contributing almost 40 million tolars. Ljubljana, April 13, 2006 Dear Sir/Madam, Humanitarian conditions in Darfur are deteriorating dramatically. There are reportedly more than three and a half million refugees and internally displaced people and refugees who urgently need help in and around Darfur. Among them there are half a million children under the age of five who are fighting for their lives on a daily basis. Slovene citizens have organised their share of humanitarian aid. Part of this aid has already been transferred to organisations working under difficult conditions in the field. Slovene humanitarian organisations - Caritas, Red Cross, UNICEF and Foundation »Together« - are set to supply more than 5,000 families in the Hamidia IDP camp in West Darfur. They need water, medicine, medical staff, educational facilities and help for the children. We must send a wake-up call to all of humanity, to awaken their conscience. Let us only remember how that conscience responded a year ago as we watched the tsunami disaster unfold. The extent of the catastrophe in Darfur could be even greater. It is time to act. The international community must no longer stand by in speechless apathy as children and innocent people die, when all they want is to live in peace in this world, just as we do. Please join us in our humanitarian action "World for Darfur". Help people in Darfur today! Donate to the international organisations providing humanitarian aid in Darfur Caritas, International Red Cross, UNICEF and others. Now is the time. Tomorrow will be too late. We believe we can save thousands, perhaps millions of people. Together we will make it happen. Janez Drnovček Albert II, Claudia Cardinale, Pat Cox Valery Giscard D'Estaing, Mia Farrow, Hans-Dietrich Genscher, Jane Goodall, Bianca Jagger, Uffe Ellemann Jensen, Lionel Jospin, Bernard Kouchner, Paavo Lipponen, David Oddsson, Jacques Santer, Louis Schweitzer, Jacques Seguela, Eduardo Serra,
The humanitarian organisations Red Cross Slovenia, Slovene Caritas, UNICEF Slovenia and Foundation TOGETHER will use the humanitarian aid collected in Slovenia within the framework of the initiative »World for Darfur« to support the provision of humanitarian aid in the Al Hamidia camp for internally displaced persons in Western Darfur.
Brief review of the activities of the humanitarian organisations in the Al Hamidia refugee camp The fragile peace in Darfur established at the beginning of 2005 is constantly threatened by growing conflicts, or the unpredictable security environment. The level of protection in El Geneina and a further five regions in Western Darfur was therefore raised at the beginning of January from level 3 to level 4. Security in the Zalengei corridor, in which Hamidia camp is located, is still at level 3. Fighting in the area has restricted the operation of humanitarian organisations in some places. It is not easy, but is urgently necessary to continue providing aid to internally displaced persons, especially the provision of drinking water and adequate sanitary facilities, providing healthcare, food and activities for the protection of children, directed towards organising and providing school classes . The Al Hamidia camp is located in a district between the towns of Wadi and Zalingei. It was created in February 2003, and it holds displaced persons from 70 surrounding villages. It is one of the largest camps in the region of Zalingei, with 25,800 persons or around 8000 families. All are members of the Fur tribe. Temporary shelters (material for shelters and furnishings) Humanitarian organisations help internally resettled persons with temporary accommodation. They make possible the setting up of shelters and tents. They supply families with plastic sheeting, which provides shelter from rain, and with blankets and pillows. They help families with household accessories, cooking pots, cutlery, small stoves, buckets for water etc. Humanitarian organisations supply the most essential needs and try to make people as independent as possible, so that they can look after their own household provision. Health care In the field of health care, the humanitarian organisations provide primary healthcare in health clinics in the camp, including an extensive programme of immunisation. The setting up of anti-mosquito nets for protection against malaria comes under this heading. Preventive healthcare is also important for ensuring the health of the population, which includes providing information to all inhabitants and training health staff. Providing food and self-sufficiency In addition to the distribution of daily food to the population, an intensive programme of encouraging self-sufficiency is taking place (distribution of seed and tools, training in arable farming etc.). A special health-therapeutic centre also operates for the care of severely or medium malnourished persons, most often children. Also in the field of nutrition, the people are informed of the best ways of gaining the necessary nourishment. The nutrition of the population is monitored on a planned basis, and monthly reports on nutrition and the system of sustenance in the camp are prepared. Particular attention is devoted to ensuring micro-elements and vitamins (iodised salt, supplementary vitamin A), above all to children. Water and sanitary facilities Wells in Al Hamidia camp also have constantly to be re-drilled, since they quickly dry up. The camp has about 2,500 latrines, and more are being built. In order to maintain these capacities, five mechanics have been trained for maintaining the pumps and wells and 25 supervisors of sanitary conditions. The inhabitants are also educated in maintaining proper hygiene conditions, through 50 local leaders/representatives. Each inhabitant currently has available 10.5 litres of water a day, but 15 litres is needed. Humanitarian organisations also provide all hygiene accessories. Education For the moment, only two primary schools operate in Al Hamidia, attended by 3,075 children, taught by 54 teachers. Around 5,000 school age children do not go to school, for whom around 100 extra teachers would be needed. The humanitarian organisations are already training them, as well as building additional schools and classrooms and providing school materials. Protection and psycho-social assistance Eight child friendly centres operate in Al Hamidia, attended by 1,376 children monthly, aged from 6 to 14 years. The centres organise recreation and psycho-social help. The humanitarian organisations devote great attention in particular to the protection of women and girls in young adolescence, with psycho-social help and special training for improving their life in the camp. In addition, they train local leaders and representatives of local humanitarian organisations about human rights, about international humanitarian law and about planned monitoring and prevention of violation of these standards. |
