Vice-President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Christine Beerli, arrived on Tajikistan on 25 May for her first visit. During her trip, she met with high-ranking Tajik officials, as well as with the Red Crescent Society of Tajikistan leadership. ICRC’s current activities and further humanitarian prospects were discussed during the meetings.
Christine Beerli also met with families benefiting from ICRC economic assistance program, started in 2012, which is supposed to provide stable support to mine victims’ families in order to start or continue a family business by providing them with small grants. In 2013, the program was further expanded for those, who have lost a family-member, often a breadwinner, during Rasht and Kharough events.
Christine Beerli gave her first interview in Tajikistan to Asia-Plus.
– Could you please explain what sort of aid was provided by the ICRC to the population of Kharough, when a military operation was held in there in 2012, and what kind of aid can the Committee provide now to the population in restless Kharough?
– As you know, the ICRC has been working for quite some time in Tajikistan. And, surely, we knew about the situation in Kharough in 2012, and accordingly we did some things in order to provide humanitarian support. We provided essential needs to those affected in Kharough, as well as sanitary and first aid kits to provide first aid. Since we did not and do not have access to the location, aid was provided to those in need through the Red Crescent Society of Tajikistan. And we will continue to work in this regard, since it is a typical situation related to the ICRC mandate, and we should have direct access in such situations.
– As you know, residents of foothill and mountainous locations of Tajikistan are mostly prone to natural disasters. Could you please tell how much aid was provided by the ICRC in the past year
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natural disaster victims, and exactly, what kind of work was done in Rudaki District and Khatlan Province, including Shourabad District, where many houses were destroyed and human losses were also recorded?
– In cases related to natural disasters, the ICRC cooperates with the Red Crescent Society of Tajikistan, since our organization, based on its mandate, mostly provides humanitarian support and aid to victimҷ of armed conflicts and other situations of violence. In all three regions, which you mentioned, especially in Rudaki District, the RCST provided humanitarian support to the local population, and the ICRC supports the National Society in this regard. It is worth to note that the ICRC provides not only short-term aid, but also long-term through investments in training and informing the National Society staff in order to prepare them to react during such natural disasters, and thereby reduce the number of human casualties.
– As we know, the ICRC, whose mandate allows it to visit places of detention in order to provide medical and other humanitarian aid, already for a few years does not have access to Tajikistan’s places of detention. Negotiations continue between the ICRC and the Tajik government since 2011, but according to our information, the ICRC to date has not been able to gain permission. What do you think this is connected to, and is the process of signing the agreement, to the lack of which the government refers to, so difficult?
– We work in more than 50 countries around the world on detention issues. And it should be noted that the ICRC adapts its work based on the situation in each country. In some countries, immediate and regular visit of detainees is very important, as it is seen as a security concern. While in some countries, the ICRC works closely with the governments of those countries, since both we and they want to improve the detention system. We work on improving conditions, infrastructure, and management, and also work on healthcare, especially in tuberculosis reduction. We have much expertise in this area. And, of course, after listening to President Emamali Rahman’s speech, when he talked about judicial reform, we believe that the experience we have acquired through all these years will be quite helpful. Now we are in the stage of discussing these issues with the Tajik government. We will see where these discussions, which are going quite well now, will take us. We had an opportunity to visit prisons in Tajikistan in 2004, but what we are proposing to Tajik authorities now is a package with a wide range of possibilities – not only or necessarily regular detention visits. We offer improvement of detention system with concentration on health. In Central Asia we have access to detention facilities in Kyrgyzstan. Our main concentration there is to eradicate tuberculosis in places of detention.
– As we know, any activity carried out by the ICRC in places of detention is not announced in any way, and all the information collected while visiting penitentiary institutions is completely confidential. Why do you think even under such circumstances, Tajikistan’s government has still not given you free access to Tajik prisons?
– I think this question should be asked from the authorities of Tajikistan. However, our experience shows that sometimes time and patience is needed to reach a decision. I am positive about it.
