Return to core humanitarian values

A call for a return to core humanitarian values and a better understanding of the aims and objectives of Muslim charities has been made at a seminar organised by Interpal, the relief and development fund for needy Palestinians. The seminar on 11 May was attended on 11 May by Oxfam, BOND, Muslim Aid, INTRAC, academic institutions and representatives of Palestinian organisations. The meeting called for the release of the BBC journalist, Alan Johnston, presently held captive in Gaza.

 

Opening the seminar, Interpal’s General Manager, Abdelkarim Bensiali, called for essential humanitarian values towards Palestinians to be recognised, and stressed that this could only be achieved through accountability and transparency. Martin Hearson, Sector Advocacy Officer at the British Overseas NGOs in Development (BOND) emphasised that Islamic charities in the UK were extremely vulnerable, and public opinion was fragile.

 

Richard Stanforth, Regional Policy Officer, Oxfam underlined that aid should not be politicised, and should be distributed on the basis of need. He said that dealing with the elected authorities on the ground was unavoidable. The meeting was briefed on the Montreaux Initiative, an accreditation process on governance and financial management for charities, by Jean-Nicolas Bitter from the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Interpal’s Managing Trustee, Dr. Essam Mustafa, has been a key player in the development of the initiative.

 

This is was the first in a series of seminars organised by Interpal on the delivery of humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people. A conference on building bridges between Islamic charities and the wider public will be held in October.