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PHAP publishes articles by selected member contributors on current challenges related to humanitarian action. All opinions expressed are the authors' own.

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Humanitarians and the modern interventionist family
Natascha Hryckow
5 June 2014
  “ Toute action de l’esprit est aisée si elle n’est pas soumise au réel. - Marcel Proust ” Humanitarian laws and principles were largely formulated and written between 1860 and 1930. Those ideas are being tested by the complex reality of today. Those...
On being neutral: Reflections on neutrality in humanitarian action
Martin Damary
28 April 2014
The core humanitarian principles, commonly understood as the principles of neutrality, impartiality, independence, and humanity, all require reflection on how they translate in practice. A decade ago, Marion Harroff-Tavel pointed out in an article that “people are not born neutral, they...
Knowledge management in the humanitarian sector: Challenges in improving decision-making
Maereg Tafere
12 March 2014
When I contemplated writing on knowledge management (KM), an article by Alan Fowler from 1997 came to mind: An almost universal weakness of NGOs is found within their often limited capacity to learn, adapt and continuously improve the quality of what they do. This is a serious concern because the...
Negotiating humanitarian access: Between a rock and a hard place
Soledad Herrero
11 February 2014
On June 2012, after months of negotiations, the UN and the Government of Syria agreed on a humanitarian plan. Subsequent statements show the bittersweet feelings that the outcomes of the negotiations left. “Comfortable or not comfortable, we simply have to accept the situation, and live with...
Condemned to resist
Sophie Delaunay
10 February 2014
Co-authors: Andres Romero & Mary Vonckx The objective of medical humanitarian action is to alleviate the suffering of people who are the direct victims of violence or otherwise neglected, discriminated against, or targeted by political power, whether in the form of a government or other...