however, were more concerned about humanitarian principles and developed
poor or distant relations with the military as the weeks and months passed.
In summary, the 2010 Pakistan flood relief was hampered by the absence of
agreed-upon guidance for civil-military relations. Had the "Draft Guidelines for
Civil-military Coordination in Pakistan" been approved by the government of
Pakistan, relief operations would probably have gone much smoother. However,
the relief operation also showed that even approved guidelines/documents are
insufficient for ensuring consistency and unity of effort among actors. International humanitarian agencies could not agree on how they characterized the
crisis, how they interpreted "last resort", how they responded to geopolitical
pressures to use the NATO air bridge, or how they reacted to Pakistani pressure
to use armed escorts.
Recommendation.
1. For nations having a recent history of natural disasters, the UN should work
with their governments to develop and gain approval of county-specific civilmilitary guidelines. Such guidelines should address disaster relief operations for
(a) times of peace and (b) complex emergencies (conflict situations).
2. The UN OCHA (in collaboration with humanitarian agencies) should update
the brochure on "last resort" to more clearly define the thresholds at which
humanitarian agencies may resort to the use of military assets.
3. Throughout disaster relief operations, the UN should encourage host nation
authorities to promulgate consistent guidance across all levels of the government
and military with regard to the use of armed escorts on humanitarian relief
missions.
4. In planning for disaster relief operations, U.S. military planners should identify
the various humanitarian agencies involved, as well as attempt to discern their
positions regarding the use of military transportation and armed escorts.
Implications.
If the UN OCHA does not clearly articulate and gain consensus on civil-military
guidelines for countries prone to disasters (e.g., Pakistan, Philippines, Haiti, etc.),
then relief operations in those countries will be hindered by different approaches
among humanitarian agencies with regard to working with the military.
Event Description.
This lesson is based on the article "Civil-Military Relations in Natural Disasters: A
Case Study of the 2010 Pakistan Floods," by Ajay Madiwale and Kudrat Virk,
International Review of the Red Cross, vol. 93, no. 884, December 2011.
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