Niger food crisis and the UN

Madam, - I wrote recently in this newspaper about the horror facing three million hungry people in Niger and the appalling indifference…

Madam, - I wrote recently in this newspaper about the horror facing three million hungry people in Niger and the appalling indifference of the international community towards their suffering (Opinion & Analysis, July 29th). I accused the United Nations with "failing to deliver" and "forcing aid agencies such as Goal to pick up the pieces" - criticism which relates not to any specific UN agency but to the UN's stifling bureaucracy and utter failure to treat human misery in a serious manner.

I stand by these criticisms. The camera does not lie. The truth is, as I pointed out in the article, there is no entity on the planet which accepts ultimate responsibility for deaths in famine situations.

I was therefore surprised to read in Paul Cullen's article "UN denies inaction on food crisis in Niger" (The Irish Times, August 15th) that officials of the World Food Programme were "flabbergasted" at Goal's accusations. The UN itself has repeatedly referred to a figure of three million people at risk in Niger. Does the UN expect rank-and-file people to believe it is on top of the situation and that it is dealing effectively with the severe food shortages, and more importantly, with the misery this is causing for the countless children who are in pain?

It is simply not enough for the UN to raise the alarm about impending famines; it must ensure that the international community responds appropriately. Otherwise it is pointless having the UN involved in such serious issues. Clearly a new, more effective mechanism to deal with famine situations must be established. Until such time as the international community accepts the need for an international rapid response force, capable of rushing into a beleaguered area at a moment's notice and delivering life-saving assistance, situations such as Niger will continue - and millions of innocent people will perish needlessly.

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I fully agree with the sentiments expressed last week by Paul Harvey of the Overseas Development Institute in London when he said: "Niger is a story of a failed system". - Yours, etc,

JOHN O'SHEA, Goal, Dún Laoghaire.