The special envoy must also be empowered to insist that all parties uphold international humanitarian law, guaranteeing access to affected people and respecting the principles of humanitarian assistance. What we are seeing in Zaire and in other conflicts is the tearing up of the Geneva Conventions. The guilty know they can get away with it. The international community must end that culture of impunity. A permanent international tribunal for war criminals is becoming ever more important.
Relief makes ethical sense within the international framework of law and humanitarian rights.
But there should be a separation of powers. The form, duration and targeting of aid must be coherent with the special envoy's overall political strategy, but maintaining the operational independence which is vital for its neutrality. That can only happen with an identified humanitarian leader able to negotiate for local access without being subjected to the political manipulations affecting the special envoy's progress. Humanitarian aid has been partly discredited by the post-Somalia freebooting mentality of a few agencies and the poor standards of others. Co-ordination is crucial to achieve this.