JCU grad faces hunger, disease and war in Darfur
Abeshwa Tadesse , a John Cabot University graduate (Class of 2003), 
works with Action Against Hunger, an international humanitarian organization
in the Darfur region in Chad near the border with Sudan. After Tadesse earned his BA in International Affairs
at JCU in 2003, the multi-lingual Tadesse got his Masters in Human Development and Food Security
at the Roma Tre University.
He was in Rome recently where another JCU alumnus, Fatin
Al-Rawahy, interviewed him. Here's what he had to say:
(Picture at right: Tadesse in Darfur refugee camp)
Which organization are you working in?
I’m working in one of the NGOs called Action Against Hunger. It is a French organization and has international offices in the United Kingdom and Canada. This organization is very neutral and independent from donors.
What is the nature of your work and how does this organization chose a country that needs aid?
We are working on emergency
issues, helping people. The organization does an assessment before
choosing a country and based on this assessment the aid is sent to the
chosen country. However, the main goal of our aid is to fight malnutrition.
What does your organization do to help these people?
Well, I started my work in east Chad, where there are 200,000 refugees from Darfur. In Abeche a town in east Chad, the humanitarian community (with which I work) has set up 12 camps, and in the area where these people are gathered, in coordination with the humanitarian community, we provide them with food, water, medical care, as well as education. This camp will receive refugees until the conflict in Sudan is over.
What were the reasons you chose to work in east Chad?
There are three reasons – the first is my motivation. I always wanted to work in a harsh environment and in humanitarian assistance. The second reason is to improve my skills, as I want to gain experience in management and human resources. The third reason is that I want to be able to learn enough about this type of work so as to share my ideas with this organization. What helped me most to get this job, I would say, was my BA in International Affairs and my MA from Roma Tre, my internship in FAO as well as IPGRRI (an international plant and genetic resource), and even my experience in Student Services at JCU. The skills I learned with these academic and working experiences helped me in management and organization. However, the most important skill in this job is motivation, because without it, it would be really hard to face the many challenges and difficulties, the lack of comfort, food, water and the harshness of life in this environment.
For how long have you been in Abeche? Tell us more about the security and way of communication in this particular town.
I first went there on the 18th of September, 2006. I stayed there for only three months because an unexpected rebellion broke out on the 25th of November, 2006, and we had only 50 minutes to evacuate from the town -- a day I will never forget. Working in such an environment is very dangerous as there is lack of security and communication. The only way we can assure our security is by being accepted by the town people. The money is not spent in arms, but it is spent in communication means such as satellites. However, it is hard to be up-to-date on everyday world and local news as internet connections are very slow and very difficult to get. For this reason, we must depend on good communications with the people of the town, as they are the ones to provide the latest updates on the local situation. This information does not always match what is heard on the media.
What is the current situation of this crisis?
Right now there is a challenge in (southeast) Chad as there are 140,000 people who are “internally displaced”. (These are) Chad people who had moved away from the Sudanese border because of the spill-over-effect of the Darfur conflict and of ethnic conflicts. They were left with no assistance as the organizations working with human relief have serious difficulties reaching that area. They have no food, no house and not even medical care. This however has seriously affected mothers and children, as mothers who usually breast-feed their children, suffering from hunger, can no longer feed their babies. The children, thus, are the first victims of the war. Despite all of this, we still manage to get aid through Libya and Cameroon, but sometimes we experience difficulties in delivering the goods. There is growing concern now in providing food to these people because the approach of the June and July rain season, which will make transport and communications almost impossible.
Comments