title: Blurring the Lines? International Humanitarian Non-Governmental Organisations and the Military use of Aid and Development in Afghanistan

authors: Jagger, Stanley Jeremy

subjects: Non-governmental organisations (NGOs)

abstract: This thesis explores the theory that International Humanitarian Non-governmental Organisations (IHNGOs) have increasingly become part of the world-ordering security agenda of developed western states since the end of the Cold War. It argues that the adoption of humanitarian aid and development activities by intervening military forces in Afghanistan, criticised by IHNGOs for blurring the boundaries between humanitarian and military actors, is a symptom of, rather than the central reason for, reduced humanitarian space in Afghanistan. This study contends that the central issue is the wider integration of political, military and humanitarian action into the process of state-building as a way to pacify areas of conflict and instability that otherwise present potential security threats to the developed world. This has become even more pronounced with the aims of the Global War on Terror (GWOT) since 2001.

The merging of humanitarian aid and development with security in the pursuit of stable states has occurred as an international response to the humanitarian crises and intra-state wars since the end of the Cold War. Military involvement of this kind is typified in Afghanistan by Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) that combine security and development action. During the 1990s humanitarianism also underwent a metamorphosis as concern about the role aid could have in fuelling conflict and a desire to ameliorate the underlying causes of poverty and conflict led many aid agencies to adopt a new vision of humanitarianism that had political and social goals beyond those of just meeting the immediate needs of populations in crisis. Another feature of humanitarian interventions of the 1990s was the ambitious expectations placed upon IHNGOs and intervening military forces from the international community to manage or resolve these crises without a corresponding level of long-term political, economic and military commitment. These issues are also present in post-2001 Afghanistan where IHNGOs initially supported an international intervention and a new government which has since been faced with a growing insurgency. Consequently, involvement with state-building, governance, rights and development have placed IHNGOs at odds with the insurgents.

A case study approach is used to examine five major IHNGOs and how they fit into the context of the international state-building project in post-2001 Afghanistan. The central finding of this study is that the integration of humanitarian aid and development into state-building as a means to enhance international security has seriously compromised the claims to the principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence central to the concept of humanitarian space and consequently the security of the IHNGOs in the ongoing Afghanistan conflict.

To overcome these problems this study suggests that IHNGOs should place their humanitarian aid activity under a separate umbrella organisation that operates under the neutral, impartial and independent principles adhered to by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the organisation in this study that has managed to maintain some acceptance and dialogue with all parties to conflict.

text: Blurring the Lines? International Humanitarian Non-Governmental Organisations and the Military use of Aid and Development in Afghanistan This thesis explores the theory that International Humanitarian Non-governmental Organisations (IHNGOs) have increasingly become part of the world-ordering security agenda of developed western states since the end of the Cold War. It argues that the adoption of humanitarian aid and development activities by intervening military forces in Afghanistan, criticised by IHNGOs for blurring the boundaries between humanitarian and military actors, is a symptom of, rather than the central reason for, reduced humanitarian space in Afghanistan. This study contends that the central issue is the wider integration of political, military and humanitarian action into the process of state-building as a way to pacify areas of conflict and instability that otherwise present potential security threats to the developed world. This has become even more pronounced with the aims of the Global War on Terror (GWOT) since 2001.

The merging of humanitarian aid and development with security in the pursuit of stable states has occurred as an international response to the humanitarian crises and intra-state wars since the end of the Cold War. Military involvement of this kind is typified in Afghanistan by Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) that combine security and development action. During the 1990s humanitarianism also underwent a metamorphosis as concern about the role aid could have in fuelling conflict and a desire to ameliorate the underlying causes of poverty and conflict led many aid agencies to adopt a new vision of humanitarianism that had political and social goals beyond those of just meeting the immediate needs of populations in crisis. Another feature of humanitarian interventions of the 1990s was the ambitious expectations placed upon IHNGOs and intervening military forces from the international community to manage or resolve these crises without a corresponding level of long-term political, economic and military commitment. These issues are also present in post-2001 Afghanistan where IHNGOs initially supported an international intervention and a new government which has since been faced with a growing insurgency. Consequently, involvement with state-building, governance, rights and development have placed IHNGOs at odds with the insurgents.

A case study approach is used to examine five major IHNGOs and how they fit into the context of the international state-building project in post-2001 Afghanistan. The central finding of this study is that the integration of humanitarian aid and development into state-building as a means to enhance international security has seriously compromised the claims to the principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence central to the concept of humanitarian space and consequently the security of the IHNGOs in the ongoing Afghanistan conflict.

To overcome these problems this study suggests that IHNGOs should place their humanitarian aid activity under a separate umbrella organisation that operates under the neutral, impartial and independent principles adhered to by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the organisation in this study that has managed to maintain some acceptance and dialogue with all parties to conflict.

year: 2010

title: Ecology of the invertebrate predatory fauna across Centre Bank, Tauranga Harbour

authors: Putt, Fiona Gloria

subjects: Centre Bank

abstract: The distribution, abundance, population size structure and behaviour of three common invertebrate predators were studied on Centre Bank, the flood-tidal delta of Tauranga Harbour. The study assessed the role of the predators in controlling the distribution and abundance of bivalve shellfish and provided information concerning the biology of Centre Bank for Port of Tauranga Ltd.
Two broad-scale surveys were conducted to describe the broad-scale spatial patterns of Patiriella regularis, Coscinasterias calamaria and Cominella adspersa. Results found P. regularis was the numerically dominant species across Centre Bank and it maintained a widespread distribution over the sampling period. C. calamaria was of low abundance and typically exhibited a patchy distribution. C. adspersa was also found to be of low abundance and similarly distributed as C. calamaria. Size structures of all 3 species comprised mostly adults in both surveys.
Temporal monitoring at finer scales was undertaken, two-monthly, to describe small-scale spatial patterns. P. regularis was found at similar densities to that of the large-scale surveys and it was the most prevalent species across the grid; C. calamaria was present at higher abundances within a small patch of the grid and appeared stable over time. C. adspersa was initially absent from the grid, but became more abundant and widespead over the 9 month sampling period.
Investigations included monitoring the natural movement behaviour of C. adspersa in relation to tidal currents and the body condition. Results showed the directions moved and distances displaced by C. adspersa may be influenced by the rate and direction of current movement and therefore potentially influencing the dispersal ability of C. adspersa, in relation to available prey. An experiment to determine the body condition of C. adspersa in the field suggested that food deprivation may be less detrimental than first realised, or that C. adspersa is able to feed on a greater variety of food types than known of.
Little evidence was found that indicated predation was an important mechanism controlling bivalve populations across Centre Bank. However, predators may be potentially important as scavengers of decaying or dead organisms. Their predatory activities may also provide shell substrate for macroalgae, and this, in combination with dense aggregations of C. calamaria, appeared to provide habitat for small fishes.

text: Ecology of the invertebrate predatory fauna across Centre Bank, Tauranga Harbour The distribution, abundance, population size structure and behaviour of three common invertebrate predators were studied on Centre Bank, the flood-tidal delta of Tauranga Harbour. The study assessed the role of the predators in controlling the distribution and abundance of bivalve shellfish and provided information concerning the biology of Centre Bank for Port of Tauranga Ltd.
Two broad-scale surveys were conducted to describe the broad-scale spatial patterns of Patiriella regularis, Coscinasterias calamaria and Cominella adspersa. Results found P. regularis was the numerically dominant species across Centre Bank and it maintained a widespread distribution over the sampling period. C. calamaria was of low abundance and typically exhibited a patchy distribution. C. adspersa was also found to be of low abundance and similarly distributed as C. calamaria. Size structures of all 3 species comprised mostly adults in both surveys.
Temporal monitoring at finer scales was undertaken, two-monthly, to describe small-scale spatial patterns. P. regularis was found at similar densities to that of the large-scale surveys and it was the most prevalent species across the grid; C. calamaria was present at higher abundances within a small patch of the grid and appeared stable over time. C. adspersa was initially absent from the grid, but became more abundant and widespead over the 9 month sampling period.
Investigations included monitoring the natural movement behaviour of C. adspersa in relation to tidal currents and the body condition. Results showed the directions moved and distances displaced by C. adspersa may be influenced by the rate and direction of current movement and therefore potentially influencing the dispersal ability of C. adspersa, in relation to available prey. An experiment to determine the body condition of C. adspersa in the field suggested that food deprivation may be less detrimental than first realised, or that C. adspersa is able to feed on a greater variety of food types than known of.
Little evidence was found that indicated predation was an important mechanism controlling bivalve populations across Centre Bank. However, predators may be potentially important as scavengers of decaying or dead organisms. Their predatory activities may also provide shell substrate for macroalgae, and this, in combination with dense aggregations of C. calamaria, appeared to provide habitat for small fishes.

year: 1996

title: Te kaumoana Poronīhia: Ngā terenga onamata

authors: Tuaupiki, Jackie Whetumarama

subjects: Kōrero nehe

abstract: Tā tēnei tuhinga e whai ake nei, he wānanga i ngā pūtake o te whanaketanga mai o ngā iwi, nāna ngā motu o Poronīhia i whakakāinga, ka utaina te karangatanga ki runga ki a rātou, he iwi Poronīhia. Ko te pātai matua, i ahu mai ngā iwi Poronīhia i whea? Tēnei, ka hahaina ngā whakaaro Māori me ngā whakaaro Tauiwi e pā ana ki te pūtakenga mai o te iwi tāngata ki te ao. I konei, ka kitea te rerekē o te titiro ā-ao a ēnei iwi tāngata.

Ka ū te titiro ki Hawaiki, e tau ana ngā kōrero tuku iho a te ao Māori, ki te ao Poronīhia hoki. E mea ana te Māori, he tūrangawaewae taurikura a Hawaiki, he pā whakawairua hoki. Ka riariakina e au ngā whakapae mō tēnei karangatanga kāinga i mau roa ai i ōna iwi kōrero.

Ka huri rā ki te āta whakatewhatewha i ngā rangahau mō te horanga haeretanga o te iwi tāngata mai i whirika, ki  hia ki te tonga mā rāwhiti, ā, tau atu rā ki roto i ngā whaitua moana o Poronīhia. I konei, kua āta wānangahia e au ngā whakapae huhua mō ngā take i horapa haere ai ēnei iwi ki roto o Poronīhia, ka tahi. Ka rua, ka tirohia ngā tohe e pā ana ki tō rātou āheinga ki te whakatere i ō rātou waka. Ko ēnei kōrero, he whakatuwhera i te pūtea mātauranga mō runga i ngā mahi whakatere waka a ngā tūpuna Poronīhia.

text: Te kaumoana Poronīhia: Ngā terenga onamata Tā tēnei tuhinga e whai ake nei, he wānanga i ngā pūtake o te whanaketanga mai o ngā iwi, nāna ngā motu o Poronīhia i whakakāinga, ka utaina te karangatanga ki runga ki a rātou, he iwi Poronīhia. Ko te pātai matua, i ahu mai ngā iwi Poronīhia i whea? Tēnei, ka hahaina ngā whakaaro Māori me ngā whakaaro Tauiwi e pā ana ki te pūtakenga mai o te iwi tāngata ki te ao. I konei, ka kitea te rerekē o te titiro ā-ao a ēnei iwi tāngata.

Ka ū te titiro ki Hawaiki, e tau ana ngā kōrero tuku iho a te ao Māori, ki te ao Poronīhia hoki. E mea ana te Māori, he tūrangawaewae taurikura a Hawaiki, he pā whakawairua hoki. Ka riariakina e au ngā whakapae mō tēnei karangatanga kāinga i mau roa ai i ōna iwi kōrero.

Ka huri rā ki te āta whakatewhatewha i ngā rangahau mō te horanga haeretanga o te iwi tāngata mai i whirika, ki  hia ki te tonga mā rāwhiti, ā, tau atu rā ki roto i ngā whaitua moana o Poronīhia. I konei, kua āta wānangahia e au ngā whakapae huhua mō ngā take i horapa haere ai ēnei iwi ki roto o Poronīhia, ka tahi. Ka rua, ka tirohia ngā tohe e pā ana ki tō rātou āheinga ki te whakatere i ō rātou waka. Ko ēnei kōrero, he whakatuwhera i te pūtea mātauranga mō runga i ngā mahi whakatere waka a ngā tūpuna Poronīhia.

year: 2017