Emergency (NGO)
Encyclopedia
Emergency is a humanitarian NGO
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
that provides emergency medical treatment to civilian
Civilian
A civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation...
victims of war
War
War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
, especially in relation to landmines
Land mine
A land mine is usually a weight-triggered explosive device which is intended to damage a target—either human or inanimate—by means of a blast and/or fragment impact....
. It was founded by war surgeon
Surgery
Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
Gino Strada
Gino Strada
Gino Strada is an Italian war surgeon and founder of the UN-recognized Italian NGO Emergency. Emergency has operated in thirteen war-torn countries, including Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Cambodia, and the Central African Republic.- Biography :Dr...
in 1994 in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
(Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
).
Gino Strada and the other founders of Emergency aimed to bring free, high-quality medical and surgical assistance to war
War
War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
victims. Over time, their humanitarian projects assumed a broader view, including giving human rights to those who suffer the social consequences from wars. Emergency promotes a culture of peace and solidarity.
Emergency strives for neutrality in every war; its aim is to guarantee the right of free medical assistance to the population affected by a war. Today Emergency is active in Afghanistan, Cambodia, Iraq, Sierra Leone, Sudan and Sri Lanka. Emergency’s humanitarian projects usually involve construction, support, and operation of permanent hospitals. However, Emergency has also given short-term emergency assistance to existing hospitals in areas with a critical need for temporary care by providing specialized personnel, drugs or instruments. These short-term projects have included Algeria, Angola, Eritrea, Nicaragua, Palestine and Serbia. To date, more than 2.3 million people have received care from Emergency health centers.
How Emergency operates
Emergency begins operations in a specific region or country based on two major factors: the real need of specialized medical assistance from the local population, and the absence of similar humanitarian projects in that given country. Once a project starts, specialized international personnel construct and operate high-quality surgical centers for war and landmines victims, as well as physical and social rehabilitation centers, first aid posts, and health centers for basic medical assistance. Emergency also deals with crippling and endemic diseases like polio and malaria and provides basic health care, not only for war-torn areas, but also for high poverty regions; it also helps the set up of social development projects. Emergency strives to foster cooperation with and provide professional training to the local personnel, so that eventually the facilities run independently.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
, Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
and Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
. The organization has a policy to build hospitals on both sides of a conflict rather than supporting one or the other; for example, during the Afghan war between the Talibans and the various mujahideen
Mujahideen
Mujahideen are Muslims who struggle in the path of God. The word is from the same Arabic triliteral as jihad .Mujahideen is also transliterated from Arabic as mujahedin, mujahedeen, mudžahedin, mudžahidin, mujahidīn, mujaheddīn and more.-Origin of the concept:The beginnings of Jihad are traced...
factions of the Afghan Northern Alliance, hospital were built in Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
and in Anabah, in the Pansheer valley.
In view of the high incidence of heart disease in African countries and the lack of health care facilities of adequate standards, Emergency built a specialized heart surgery center in Khartoum, Sudan. The aim of this project is to establish a regional center for cardiac surgery, serving the people of Sudan and the nine bordering countries: Egypt, Libya, Chad, the Central African Republic, Congo, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia and Eritrea.
Promoting a culture of peace
In today's wars more than 90% of the victims are civilians, thus Emergency is promoting a new culture of peace. Its vision is to eradicate war from the modern world. Towards this aim, thousands of volunteers in Europe and in the United States promote and organize conferences, meetings, debates and events on the topics of peace, solidarity and civil rights.External links
Books
- Gino Strada, Green Parrots: A War Surgeon's Diary, Charta, 2005, ISBN 978-8881585243
- Howard Zinn, Just War, Charta, 2006, ISBN 978-8881585724
In ItalianItalian languageItalian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
- Gino Strada, Pappagalli verdi - Cronache di un chirurgo di guerra, Feltrinelli, 1999, ISBN 88-07-17032-9
- Gino Strada, Buskashì - Viaggio dentro la guerra, Feltrinelli, 2002, ISBN 88-07-17069-8
- Giulietto ChiesaGiulietto ChiesaGiulietto Chiesa is an Italian journalist and politician, and was a Member of the European Parliament for North-West with the Independent - Di Pietro-Occhetto List Civil Society. Originally he represented Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe, since 2006 - Party of European Socialists...
, Vauro, Afghanistan anno zero, Guerini e Associati, 2001, ISBN 88-8335-242-4 - Emergency, Medici di guerra - Inviati di pace, Guerini e Associati, 2002, ISBN 88-8335-319-6
- VauroVauro SenesiVauro Senesi is an Italian journalist and satirical cartoonist.Vauro was born in Pistoia. He was Pino Zac's apprentice, and, together with Giancarlo Fusco, Cinzia Leone and others, in September 1978 they founded Il Male, a satirical weekly newspaper...
, Principessa di Baghdad, Guerini e Associati, 2003, ISBN 88-8335-432-X