Section 2 Human Security and ODA

The concept of human security refers to the position that international organizations, governments and NGOs need to address, in closer collaboration, an array of problems which affect seriously the fate of the individual in an age of globalization and recurrent regional conflict: namely, poverty; environmental devastation; drug abuse; human trafficking and other forms of international organized crime; the exodus of refugees and the threat to children under conditions of conflict; and anti-personnel mines as recognized threats to human survival, life, and dignity. The recent economic crisis in Asia spurred a stronger awareness of such a notion among Japanese citizens, and in a policy speech delivered in Hanoi in December 1998, Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi underscored the value of guaranteeing human security as an important element of Japanese foreign policy, announcing that Japan would establish the Human Security Fund under the United Nations.

Currently, the Japanese government is giving a fresh drive to its development cooperation policies including ODA, by introducing the human security dimension.

On June 24, 1999, MoFA and the United Nations University held an international symposium with the theme of "Development: With a Special Focus on Human Security".¹⁸ Held at the United Nations University in Tokyo, the symposium was attended by both Minister for Foreign Affairs Masahiko Koumura and State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Keizo Takemi. In his keynote speech, State Secretary Takemi pointed out that in addressing the various problems which arise from globalization and regional conflicts, the state-centered security policies perspective should also include a focus placed on individual humans (human security).

Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi
delivers a policy speech entitled "Toward the Creation of a Bright Future for Asia" in Hanoi, December 1998.

He noted that the objective of the symposium was to explore the concept of "human security" as a policy idea, which Japan is conveying to the international community as one of the essential principles for the conduct of Japanese foreign policy in the twenty-first century. Employing this concept to define new policy approaches for each area of development, State Secretary Takemi went on to highlight key concerns relating to each of the symposium's themes. Further he referred to the importance of individuals (especially women), the key role of NGOs and stressed the need for partnership among donor countries, developing countries, international organizations, and NGOs as well as the importance of strengthening the role and function of the United Nations as an international coordinator.

Large scale natural disasters and armed conflicts result in a humanitarian crisis which destroys the very foundations for human livelihood and, furthermore, devastate the fruit of years of development. Subsequent efforts in recovery and reconstruction demand tremendous investments of money and time. Considering such a situation as a major threat to human security, Japan has placed priority on providing assistance to the victims of these violent events.

Political and diplomatic initiatives are of paramount importance to prevent and find solutions to conflicts. ODA can contribute to the prevention of conflicts by alleviating poverty, economic disparities, and other background factors that could nourish hostile confrontation. ODA can even be instrumental in the in- and post-conflict phases: it is a major source of short-term emergency relief and medium- and longer-term reconstruction assistance. ODA also plays an important role in disaster prevention, relief, and recovery. These points are elaborated below, referring to some illustrative cases.

1. Response to the Kosovo Conflict

In the Autonomous Province of Kosovo in Yugoslavia, the escalation of military hostilities between Serbian security forces and the ethnic Albanian-led Kosovo Liberation Army in February 1998 led to a massive exodus of refugees and internally displaced persons. Although members of the international community sought to mediate a political solution to the conflict, the Yugoslav government rejected the resulting peace proposal, prompting NATO to initiate an air campaign against Yugoslavia. Some 800,000 ethnic Albanians crossed over the border to the neighboring countries. In accommodating this massive influx of refugees, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) and Albania were confronted by serious social and economic strains.

Recognizing the urgent need for the international community to provide aid to the Albanian refugees and the neighboring countries affected by the refugee inflow, in April 1999, Japan pledged an assistance package amounting to approximately $200 million to contribute to the solution of the Kosovo conflict. This package was comprehensive in scope and contained three core components: (i) humanitarian relief for the refugees, supplied through the UNHCR and other international organizations; (ii) aid for the neighboring countries (Albania and FYROM) that accommodated the massive inflow of refugees (including aid for the increase of food production, non-project grant aid and other grant assistance, donations of medical supplies, and the deployment of medical experts); and (iii) about $100 million in funding for refugee repatriation and resettlement programs and the reconstruction of Kosovo, with the objective of creating a post-conflict framework for lasting peace. In July 1999, Japan pledged an additional $20 million in humanitarian aid for the displaced, to be provided through the UNHCR and WFP.

Foreign Minister Masahiko Koumura
visits a camp for Kosovar refugees in Macedonia.

The Kosovo conflict reaffirmed the value of the NGO role in the arena of emergency humanitarian assistance. The Japanese government decided to provide for greater flexibility in the management of its NGO subsidy framework and grant assistance for grassroots projects scheme in order to provide financial aid swiftly for activities led by Japanese NGOs in Kosovo Province and its neighboring countries. This initiative is also followed by the government's financial support to the United Nations Volunteer (UNV) for the assignment of Japanese international volunteers to local UNHCR offices and the introduction of an enhanced support measure for emergency humanitarian assistance projects of Japanese NGOs.¹⁹

2. Efforts to Deal with Anti-Personnel Mines

2.1 International Undertakings

Countless anti-personnel mines²⁰ planted in Cambodia, Bosnia, Mozambique, Angola, Afghanistan, and other war-torn areas of the world continue to indiscriminately maim and kill innocent civilians.²¹ They present a serious bottleneck to national reconstruction and development, hindering the return and resettlement of civilians and agricultural development. As a result of growing international concern over this issue, "Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction" (the Ottawa Convention) was adopted in September 1997, and signed at the signing ceremony in Ottawa the following December.

2.2 Actions by Japan

Japan has worked actively to contribute to the solution of various problems caused by anti-personnel landmines, for example, by hosting the Tokyo Conference on Anti-Personnel Landmines in March 1997. At that conference, the participants drafted the "Tokyo Guidelines" for international cooperation on this issue, setting the ultimate goal of "zero victims." Further, in November 1997, Japan announced that it would provide about ¥10 billion in aid over the next five years to put the guidelines into practice. It has since been actively engaged in activities in two areas: (i) assistance for mine clearance operations; and (ii) assistance for land mine victims. For mine clearance operations, Japan has been providing financial assistance through international organizations (donating $6.9 million through the UNDP for mine clearance activities of the Cambodia Mine Action Centre [CMAC], and providing $1 million in emergency grants to the UNDP for its Massingir District Mine Clearance Project in Mozambique). Japan is also donating mine clearance related equipment, and dispatching experts through bilateral aid arrangements (a senior technical advisor specializing in information telecommunications was sent to CMAC headquarters, for example). In this context, the government is also promoting NGO-led mine clearance activities through the scheme of grant assistance for grassroots projects. Landmine victims are being assisted chiefly in the form of aid through international organizations and NGOs to establish facilities for rehabilitation and production of artificial limbs. Including projects prior to November 1997, Japan has already disbursed more than $43 million in aid for mine-related projects.

State Secretary for Foreign Affairs
Keizo Takemi addresses the First Meeting of States Party to the Ottawa Convention.

2.3 First Meeting of States Party to the Ottawa Convention

The Ottawa Convention took effect on March 1, 1999, with Japan already having become a party to the treaty on September 30, 1998. The first Meeting of States Party to the Ottawa Convention convened in Maputo, Mozambique in May 1999. Japan was represented by State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Keizo Takemi, who took the opportunity to emphasize the importance of moving forward under the Zero Victim Program with international efforts in mine clearance and victims assistance. Mr. Takemi also presented the Japanese aid record to date and underlined three principles for the provision of assistance: ownership, partnership, and human security.²²

3. Emergency Assistance for Relief and Recovery from Natural Disasters

3.1 Overview

In the event of a large-scale natural disaster in a developing region of the world, Japan has made preparations to furnish three types of emergency assistance on request from disaster-affected countries or international organizations: (i) dispatch of Japan Disaster Relief Teams, (ii) donations of emergency supplies, and (iii) emergency grants.

Several regions worldwide were heavily hit by large scale natural disasters in 1998 and early 1999, including a tsunami in Papua New Guinea, floods in China and Bangladesh, hurricanes in Central America and the Caribbean, and earthquakes in Colombia and Turkey. Such frequent devastation was reflected in the emergency assistance that Japan provided in FY1998: seven Japan Disaster Teams deployed to six countries (these were Honduras, to which, as explained in Sub-section 3, Self-Defense Force troops were dispatched, Papua New Guinea, Bangladesh, the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Colombia), 30 separate packages of emergency supplies (totaling ¥540 million in value), and 22 packages of emergency grant (totaling ¥13.269 billion). This represented a substantial increase on the corresponding levels of emergency assistance provided in FY1997 (deployment of four Japan Disaster Relief Teams, 19 packages of emergency supplies, and 15 emergency grant packages).

In regard to disaster relief, when a disaster strikes a region, the most immediately required assistance is for rescue activities- search, location, rescue and transportation of victims-and medical care activities, including medical check-ups and disease control in the affected area. At the next stage, it is necessary to investigate the possibility of collateral damage or of secondary disaster damage, as well as the extent of damage to lifelines, after which temporary measures and rehabilitation activities must be moved into place. In particular, swift and effective reaction is crucial in the initial stage following a disaster. Japan has established a Japan Disaster Relief Teams framework²³ that is capable of mobilizing rescue teams and medical teams within 24 and 48 hours, respectively, after receiving requests for emergency assistance from disaster-hit countries.

Below we highlight Japan's international disaster relief activities, including medium- to long-term recovery and reconstruction assistance, in the aftermath of the hurricane which battered Honduras in November 1998 and the earthquake which struck in Turkey in August 1999.

3.2 Emergency Assistance for Earthquake Victims in Turkey

In August 1999, the northwestern part of Turkey was hit by a strong earthquake that claimed even more victims than the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in 1995. Japan immediately sent a rescue team (39 members), followed by two medical teams (totaling 31 members) and an expert team (eight members) in the evaluation of earthquake resistance. It also sent a 20-member team of experts in lifeline restoration, including several personnel from Hyogo Prefecture (six members) and Kobe City (five members) with hands-on experience in dealing with the aftermath of the Hanshin-Awaji earthquake, as well as 13 experts to supervise the construction of prefab housing. In effect, Japan provided emergency assistance to Turkey with the cooperation of close to 100 experts from diverse professional backgrounds.

The rescue team reacted swiftly to the disaster, arriving in northwestern Turkey 41 hours after the earthquake had struck. Fiberscopes, acoustic detectors, probes for detecting signs of life and other sophisticated instruments were used to locate and rescue earthquake victims, successfully extricating one survivor from the rubble. In addition to its contributions in terms of personnel, Japan (as of January 12, 2000) also provided Turkey $3 million in emergency grant funding (about half of which covered the shipping expenses for 500 temporary housing units mentioned below) and $1.4 million in emergency supplies (including tents, blankets, generators, and water tanks). Moreover, the Japanese government decided to provide Turkey with a total of about 1,000 temporary housing units used for the accommodation of people affected by the Hanshin-Awaji earthquake, shipping expenses included. Of these, 500 units were to be delivered by Self-Defense Force vessels in accordance with the Law Concerning the Dispatch of Japan Disaster Relief Teams, and the remaining 500, through private maritime shipping channels (as of Jan 12, 2000). Again in November an M7.2 magnitude earthquake struck centering on the town of Düzce in northern Turkey and causing substantial damage. Japan immediately dispatched a forward team from its Japan Disaster Relief Team together with a medical team (19 members), medicines, and medical equipment.

3.3 Dispatch of an SDF (Self-Defense Forces) Unit to Hurricane-Battered Honduras and Assistance for the Reconstruction of Central America

In early November 1998, much of northern Honduras was devastated in the wake of Hurricane Mitch, a storm that had been brewing in the Caribbean since late October.²⁴ Acting in response to a Honduran government's request for the dispatch of an SDF unit for emergency relief, Japan decided to send an SDF medical and epidemic prevention unit. This was the first overseas dispatch of an SDF unit in accordance with the Law Concerning the Dispatch of Japan Disaster Relief Teams.²⁵

Operating on the ground from November 17 through 30, the medical and epidemic prevention unit treated 4,031 patients and secured an epidemic-free area of around 33,200 square meters. In addition, Japan provided Honduras with emergency supplies, equivalent to approximately ¥16 million in value, as well as a $800,000 emergency grant. JOCVs who had been sent to Honduras over this period also worked in close collaboration with the medical and epidemic prevention unit team, making an outstanding contribution in areas such as interpreting. Japan's cooperation received the highest commendation and praise from President Carlos Flores and the government and people of Honduras.

Having overcome the immediate crisis caused by the hurricane with the support from the international community, the Central American countries found themselves confronted by the formidable task of longer-term reconstruction. To consider international support for reconstruction of these countries, in December 1998, the Emergency Consultative Group Meeting for Central America was held in Washington, and in May 1999, the Consultative Group Meeting for the Reconstruction and Transformation of Central America was held in Stockholm. On that occasion, Japan overviewed its assistance already implemented to the affected countries, approximately ¥19.7 billion (around $166 million) to four hurricane-devastated Central American countries, and announced that it would provide more assistance for the region bringing the total amount of Japanese assistance for recovery and reconstruction to approximately ¥36 billion (around $300 million) by the end of 1999.²⁶

TOPICS 5.Japan Disaster Relief Teams Help Rescue a Trapped Survivor of an Earthquake in Northwestern Turkey

TOPICS 6.Japan Disaster Relief Teams Sent to Honduras: First Overseas Deployment of SDF as a Japan Disaster Relief Team

TOPICS 7. Japanese Bridges Survive Nicaraguan Hurricane Unscathed

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