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Following 15 months in Pakistan as head of mission for Médecins Sans Frontières, Fabien Schneider describes some of the main issues faced when providing medical care to the conflict affected population in Pakistan.
Since August 2008, millions of people have been displaced by fighting in the North West Frontier Province and Tribal agencies of Pakistan. While fighting and bomb attacks have augmented over the country, and the number of civilian victims of the war continues to rise, insecurity and travel restrictions are limiting the provision of medical services to many of the communities hit hardest by the fighting.
Following the current offensive in South Waziristan, a team of two Médecins Sans Frontières staff has finally been able to conduct an independent assessment in Dera Ismael Khan. The team identified acute needs in the hospitals’ emergency rooms and emergency needs for basic sterilisation and hygiene inside the women’s hospital operating theatre. Médecins Sans Frontières is in contact with all authorities to obtain authorisation to implement medical activities in Dera Ismael Khan.
In a region where Western powers involved in counter-insurgency strategies are also major donors, the provision of humanitarian aid has largely been linked with political objectives. Médecins Sans Frontières completely disassociates itself from these policies, and our teams strive to clarify that Médecins Sans Frontières is a private medical organisation, independent of political, religious and economic objectives. In Pakistan, Médecins Sans Frontières does not accept funding from any government and relies solely on private donations from the general public to carry out its work.
Despite the difficulties, today our teams have been able to provide free emergency medical and relief services in over a dozen sites in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Balochistan, and remain prepared to respond to emergencies with 750 national and international staff.