News

Counterterrorism Laws Hamper Humanitarian Aid

The red tape preventing relief.

Some humanitarian groups are afraid to give school supplies to children in Gaza—not because of Hamas, but because of the United Nations and the United States.

Under counterterrorism laws introduced after the September 11 terrorist attacks, humanitarian groups cannot provide aid that supports or gives resources to terrorists. But in places like Gaza, where the United States has classified local leaders as terrorists, most forms of aid will benefit these leaders. Thus humanitarian NGOS working in such places face the possibility of losing funding or even being labeled as criminals.

Today's counterterrorism policies also mean more paperwork and reporting requirements for NGOS. These have increased their operating costs, slowed them down, cut their funding, and undermined partnerships, according to a recent study by the Humanitarian Policy Group of the Overseas Development Institute.

"Counterterrorism has been a policy bulldozer," said Jeremy Konyndyk, director of policy and advocacy for Mercy Corps. "If a counterterrorism argument is made, the government treats it as a trump card, regardless of what the downside might be."

The new policies make it particularly difficult to work in Sudan, Afghanistan, North Korea, and Syria, he said. But the poster child for complications is Somalia.

No matter what NGOS do to keep aid flowing to the neediest people, there's always a risk some will be diverted, experts agree. This makes it especially difficult to work in a place such as southern Somalia, where much of the area is controlled by al-Shabaab, which Western nations link to al Qaeda. The U.S. government only this summer loosened some counterterrorism restrictions so aid groups could work more freely in the famine-stricken nation.

While new reporting requirements do mean some programs take longer to get off the ground, such policies also make relationships and funding structures clearer to donors and partners—which is not a bad thing, said Chris Sheach, deputy director of disaster response for World Concern.

"It's something everybody should have been doing a little bit more of anyway," he said.

One draft U.S. law would have required humanitarian agencies to provide personal information on staff, partners, and supplier staff, but did not explain how the information would be used, Sheach said.

That kind of reporting requirement makes humanitarian groups wary. "[We] need to avoid being perceived as the tools of government intelligence agencies, which could compromise [our] work and endanger staff," said Kent Hill, senior vice president of international programs for World Vision and former acting administrator of USAID.

The hope is for a legislative compromise that balances the importance of preventing aid to terrorists with allowing aid to the starving and poor.

"This is really a moral message and a values message," Konyndyk said. "It's saying, 'Yes, we need our security, but in the process we shouldn't forget our values.'"

Copyright © 2012 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

Related Elsewhere:

Previous Christianity Today coverage on the difficulties of administering humanitarian aid include:

Aid on the Edges | What turned Somalia into the epicenter of a famine hinders attempts to help. And now even the refugee camps are targets. (October 19, 2011)

Undoing the Famine Damage | If the famine in the Horn of Africa is manmade, human intervention can end the crisis. (October 12, 2011)

Famine in East Africa: Who Cares? | Several Christian NGOs are on the move, provided they can get the appropriate funds. (August 19, 2011)

CT also has more news stories on our website.

Also in this issue

The CT archives are a rich treasure of biblical wisdom and insight from our past. Some things we would say differently today, and some stances we've changed. But overall, we're amazed at how relevant so much of this content is. We trust that you'll find it a helpful resource.

Cover Story

The Cure for Election Madness

Calling All Callings: Amy Sherman on โ€˜Kingdom Callingโ€™

News

A Crackdown on International Adoptions

Review

Strength in Weakness: The Bible, Disability, and the Church

News

Europe's Top Courts Are on a Pro-Life Roll

A Pro-Life Plea This Election Season

Jesus and the Goodness of Everything Human

How Bethany Hoang Was Wired for Justice

Is Cage Fighting Ethical for Christians?

News

Go Figure

Excerpt

J. I. Packer and Carolyn Nystrom on God's Will

Review

Girl Meets Grace: Lauren Winner's New Reflection on Her Divorce and Desolation

News

Discipling the Dragon: Christian Publishing Finds Success in China

News

Will Immigration Slowdown Prompt a Bilingual Ministry Bust?

Wilson's Bookmarks

How the Physical Form of a Bible Shapes Us

Editorial

Thou Shalt Not Abuse: Reconsidering Spanking

Blessed Are the Jobless: How Ministries Aid the Unemployed

Six Indie Films You Won't Want to Miss

Readers Write

News

Passages

Natural Length Reading: Christianity Today Launches eBooks

News

Quotation Marks

News

Corporation Switches to Adult Stem-Cell Therapy, Copeland Loses Suit, and More

My Top 5 Books on Christians in Politics

Commander and Chaplain: The Faith of Presidents

News

Has the Same-Sex Marriage Debate Helped Pro-Life Advocacy?

Don't Worry, Read Happy: Alan Jacobs on The Pleasures of Reading

2012 Christianity Today Book Awards

News

Top 10 News Stories of 2011

The Annual Book and Music Awards

News

As USCIRF Faces Possible Closure, Funding Divides Religious Freedom Experts

View issue

Our Latest

Public Theology Project

The Bible Doesnโ€™t Fit an Information Age

Algorithms strip us of mystery. The Gospels restore our ability to be astonished by the truth.

Wire Story

Evangelicals for Harris Asked to โ€˜Cease and Desistโ€™ Billy Graham Ad

Franklin Graham says the campaign is โ€œtrying to mislead peopleโ€ by positioning his fatherโ€™s preaching in contrast to Donald Trump.

5 Lessons Christians Can Learn from the Barmen Declaration

How a wartime confession resisted Hitlerโ€™s Nazification of the German church, and why its principles are still relevant today.

Facing My Limits in a Flood Zone

As a minister, Iโ€™m used to helping people during crisis. But trapped at home during Hurricane Helene, I could only care for who was in front of me.

News

Back at Shooting Site, Trump Supporters Pray for His Protection

Still shaken by the tragic attack, Butler, Pennsylvania, welcomed the former president back with cheers of triumph and a memorial for the previous rallyโ€™s victim.

News

JD Vance Says Trump White House Will โ€˜Fight for Israelโ€™

The candidateโ€™s message at an October 7 memorial rally was popular among Christian supporters.

You Are the Light of the Public Square

American Christians can illuminate our countryโ€™s politicsโ€”if we engage with moral imagination, neighborliness, boldness, and humility.

Review

The Internetโ€™s Sins Are Our Sins. But It Shouldnโ€™t Escape All Blame.

A critic of tech panic forgets that our tools shape us just as we shape them.

Apple PodcastsDown ArrowDown ArrowDown Arrowarrow_left_altLeft ArrowLeft ArrowRight ArrowRight ArrowRight Arrowarrow_up_altUp ArrowUp ArrowAvailable at Amazoncaret-downCloseCloseEmailEmailExpandExpandExternalExternalFacebookfacebook-squareGiftGiftGooglegoogleGoogle KeephamburgerInstagraminstagram-squareLinkLinklinkedin-squareListenListenListenChristianity TodayCT Creative Studio Logologo_orgMegaphoneMenuMenupausePinterestPlayPlayPocketPodcastRSSRSSSaveSaveSaveSearchSearchsearchSpotifyStitcherTelegramTable of ContentsTable of Contentstwitter-squareWhatsAppXYouTubeYouTube