On air: Should the Red Cross teach the Taliban first aid?
| 15:00 UK time, Friday, 28 May 2010
Chloe here: Will you continue to donate to the International Committee of the Red Cross knowing they provide this kind of training? Is it morally wrong, or is neutrality a fundamental part of the charity's work? The ICRC will be coming on to today's show to take your questions.
There's lots of chatter on Twitter about this story. Here's what AEBJ tweeted:
'Red Cross has been giving Taliban food, blankets & medical supplies for years. I will never donate 2 them again'
The ICRC has its actions
p>ANDY'S ORIGINAL POST - The International Committee of the Red Cross says it is providing the Taliban with first aid training. The have also been giving the Taliban medical equipment so that fighters wounded in battles can be treated, especially where transporting them to hospital is difficult.
The ICRC s:
"Even after the fighting is over in a particular area, we're having difficulty transporting patients to doctors. Mines, checkpoints and general insecurity stop us getting through safely."
The ICRC s:
"Even after the fighting is over in a particular area, we're having difficulty transporting patients to doctors. Mines, checkpoints and general insecurity stop us getting through safely."
The Red Cross claims it is bound by the Geneva Convention as well as its neutrality, but an Afghan government official has the policy, saying the Taliban
"don't deserve to be treated like humans"
Jonn Lilyea, an ex US military blogger, with the Afghan government:
Of course, I'm not so callous that I don't think our enemies don't deserve decent medical treatment, but the Taliban should have considered their logistal shortcomings before declaring war on everyone around them...I think the Red Cross' time would be better spent reaching out to the people isolated by the war than to hope that they can get trickle down medical attention to non-combatants from the Taliban"
Stephanie Sanok, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies :
"One might argue that ICRC is providing this kind of assistance and training, so why not provide the combatants with more training? But wonders "Where do you draw the line? What kind of assistance is it acceptable to provide the Taliban?"
The ICRC has with other militant groups in the past, most notably Hamas & other factions in Gaza, as well as armed groups in Sudan. They point out that they offer their training to many factions in conflicts, including the Afghan police force.
So is providing first aid training to those who are fighting against the Afghan and Coalition forces crossing a line? Or are all sides in conflict entitled to treatment when they are wounded, no matter who they are fighting for?
