PRESS CONFERENCE BY MEDECINS DU MONDE

Press Briefing

PRESS CONFERENCE BY MEDECINS DU MONDE

At a Headquarters press conference this morning, Médicins du Monde, a French medical association, briefed correspondents on a proposal to create, under the auspices of the United Nations, a commission to evaluate humanitarian situations in times of armed conflict. The commission would be responsible for influencing the introduction into Security Council decisions of protective measures on behalf of civilian populations caught in armed conflict.

The organization, founded some 20 years ago, has an international network that is active in nearly 100 countries, particularly those experiencing armed conflict -- including Bosnia and Herzegovina, Chechnya, Angola, Liberia, as well as in a number of Asian States.

The Vice-President of the organization, Dr. Claude Moncourge, said the most difficult aspect of its work was to reach civilians who had been affected by armed conflict and to evaluate their situation. That was becoming more difficult and dangerous, and sometimes even impossible. Consequently, Médecins du Monde had been attempting to find objective solutions to those problems, in addition to developing strategies for intervention.

He said a key problem for the civilian populations with which the organization was working with was the inability to arrive at objective diagnoses of their varying situations, detached from political factors. Other diagnoses made by non-governmental organizations could be considered unofficial and disorganized, and it was in that light that the United Nations could lend credibility to the process.

The proposed commission would be able to count victims, assess humanitarian needs and recommend protective measures for vulnerable civilians, he added. It would also be able to bring matters to the attention of the Secretary-General, when necessary, who would then bring, in accordance with Article 99 of the United Nations Charter, the commission's work to the attention of the Security Council. It would be funded by voluntary contributions from States and private donors.

In response to a correspondent's question on whether Médecins du Monde had been present during the recent crisis in Lebanon, Dr. Moncourge said the organization had worked in the southern areas, as well as in villages that were caught between the two forces. The population had been given both medical and material aid. Recently, members had to leave, but were on standby and in the process of evaluating the present situation.

The President of Médicins du Monde, Dr. Jacky Mamou, was also present at today's briefing.

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