Emergency's International staff leaves Afghanistan

[Andrez]

Afghanistan-Update


Press Release – April 11th, 2007 – Emergency, USA
Emergency's International staff leaves Afghanistan

Today, Wednesday the 11th of April, on a special United Nations flight, Emergency's international staff left Kabul for Dubai. The reasons for this decision lie in the fact that Emergency's medical staff found itself no longer able to follow the basic tenets of the Hippocratic oath. Having been the object of disgraceful statements doubting the neutrality of its humanitarian work, Emergency staff felt their personal security had been jeopardized.
“….Aware of the importance and gravity of this oath and of the commitment it entails, I solemnly swear… to treat all my patients with equal scruple and commitment independently from the feelings they inspire in me and irrespective of any difference in race, religion, nationality, social condition and political ideology…”. After more than 2000 years, the Hippocratic oath still sets the moral compass of medicine solidarity within beneficence and justice. But for those that practice the "either with me or against me" division of humanity, even humanitarian neutrality seems culpable.
We are bewildered to see that the neutrality of humanitarian medical care is being impugned as a reason for guilt and used to make groundless accusations. What should be obvious and elementary for any physician is being used as alleged culpability. But more than ideology, the practical realizations of Emergency in Afghanistan speak of its accomplishments: appreciated by all the Afghan citizens who have come to know Emergency's care directly "on their own skin" through the care received at its surgical centers of Anabah, Kabul and Lashkar-Gah, its Maternity center in Panjsheer, the 28 primary health clinics and first aid posts, including 4 clinics inside Afghan jails.
Since 1999, Emergency medical facilities have provided free of charge, high-standard medical and surgical assistance to over 1.4 million Afghan citizens. It is these innocent victims, their families, and all Afghans that will witness to the humanitarian and neutral nature of Emergency's work in Afghanistan, a work aimed at providing medical care to everyone, regardless of their politics, gender, religion or ethnicity. There seems to be interests today that intend to force Emergency out of Afghanistan, using physical intimidation and resorting to defamation: these, we believe, do not represent the interests of the patients and of the civilian population in the country.
While the International staff is temporarily withdrawn, Emergency's medical facilities are, at the moment, working and operational thanks to the devotion and, more importantly, skills of the Afghan staff whom Emergency has trained. We are extremely proud of this level of capacity. Building local health care capacity is in fact a hallmark of Emergency's humanitarian programs around the world. In 8 years Emergency has trained and employed more than 1,000 medical and paramedical Afghan personnel. Emergency will continue to be close to the sufferings of the Afghan people, of those millions of innocent civilians who, for decades, have undergone the atrocities of war, hoping that the conditions for the return of the International medical staff to Afghanistan may be met again very soon.

We, Emergency USA, express our solidarity and support to our colleagues at Emergency in Italy, around the world, to all the Afghan and International medical staff, and in particular, to Rahmatullah Hanefi, still imprisoned, incommunicado, with no charges.
Alberto Colombi MD MPH
President
Emergency USA
412.434.3111
info@emergencyusa.org