Humanitarianism in Africa
By often embracing a white-man's burden mentality, humanitarian organizations have engaged in a form of neocolonialism in which they maintain control and influence over formal colonies in the name of benevolent development.
With roots in late 18th century enlightenment thinking, humanitarianism stresses the universality of human rights and the responsibility of "civilized" people's to sympathize with those suffering and to actively help.
[8] The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) defines humanitarianism as "the independent, neutral, and impartial provision of relief to victims of armed conflict and natural disasters".
[9] In deploying relief, the ICRC follows seven principles: humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity, and universality.
Charity-based aid comes from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and can be directed towards locals to combat both short and long term issues.
Conversely, systemic aid is solely focused on longer term pervasive issues and is made through direct government-to-government transfers, or through international institutions.
[11] The goal of humanitarian intervention is to stop immediate violent conflict, not to explicitly promote political rights or change another country's political/social context.
Humanitarian intervention is justified under international law through the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) doctrine, which obligates UN members to intervene when human rights abuses occur.
Peacekeeping is not explicitly humanitarian intervention because it assists in state transformation by stationing neutral foreign troops within a conflict area for an extended amount of time to promote stability.
[14] However, modern "third-generation" peacekeeping can take on a more militarized form through peace-enforcement in which mission troops enforce post-conflict peace agreements through the threat or use of force with or without both parties consent, aspects more similar to humanitarian intervention.
Foreign aid in Africa can trace its origins to post World War II reconstruction and the Bretton Woods conference of 1944.
Designed to promote the stability of the post-war world economy, these organizations shifted their focus to Africa after the success of the US Marshall Plan in the 1950s to reconstruct war-torn western Europe.
The oil crisis of 1973 led to economic recession and high inflation marked by unsustainable fuel and food prices throughout Africa.
Peacekeeping missions also produce more stable post-conflict institutions and civil societies, through helping to reform legal, military, and government systems.
Various political factions vied for control, with members of the Congolese army revolting against the Lumumba government, killing both locals and Europeans in the process.
[24] However, on balance, preserving the territorial integrity of the Congo did save many lives compared to if ONUC had not happened at all, and therefore did accomplish its humanitarian mission.
Lacking the needed resources, UNAVEM III left Angola in 1997, leaving behind an even more ineffective observation mission (MONUA) to replace it.
The US decided not to send troops into Rwanda out of fear of repeating the mistakes it had made two years earlier in Somalia where 19 US soldiers died.
[29] Ultimately, lack of support from the international community led to UNAMIR failing, a consequence of which contributed to the deaths of over 800,000 people in Rwanda within a 100-day period.
Media coverage often shows Western organizations aiding impoverished sub-Saharan countries, yet fail to acknowledge inter-country activism and efforts.
While this may be reflective of "The White Man's Burden", it is argued that Western nations are more developed scientifically and could then produce resources to assist the continent.
The Rwandan army and the Interahamwe militias used the camps as a base to launch an attack and finish the genocide which had begun earlier that year in April.
While this is beneficial, it inadvertently ends up causing complications for humanitarian aid organizations because the anti-terrorist legislation does not make a difference between intentional and unintentional support to terrorist groups.
War-torn regions such as Somalia, Pakistan and Afghanistan have had villages attacked in response to their receiving aid from organizations because it was aimed at attaining allegiance.
Furthermore, aid strengthens African nation's domestic currency, which harms their international competitiveness to export goods (A phenomenon known as Dutch Disease).
Relatedly, aid has decreased the effectiveness of Africa's middle class and their ability to engage in civil society by removing the prime mechanism of accountability between citizens and government: the provision of public goods through taxes.
Many argue that only westerners and celebrities are portrayed as saviors in the media while ignoring the very real local and regional progress as well as the movements and philanthropic work done by Africans themselves.
Overall, the United Nations (UN), World Economic Forum (WEF), and many western non-governmental organizations (NGOs), who have used celebrities as spokespeople or participants in their activities, have viewed their involvement positively.
It is argued that this depicts a view that "rational" men have a better grasp and understanding of politics while "emotional" women are better suited to caring and dealing with household or societal issues.
Jolie's disengagement from her hedonistic class privileges along with a public image makeover strengthened her position to be an advocate of humanitarian aid in Africa.
