Contact: Elizabeth Twinch on [email protected]
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KOSOVO HUMANITARIAN UPDATE OFFICE FOR THE CO-ORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS Monday, 11th June 2001 ISSUE No 37 FOCUS Events in FYROM since the beginning of March, coupled with the return of the Yugoslav Army to the Ground Safety Zone, have led to a flow of people into Kosovo that has increased over the past weekend; on Monday, 11th June, the figure stood at approximately, 41,500. Of those, it is estimated that some 2,000 have already returned, mainly to South Serbia and FYROM; more may have done so as very few people deregister before they leave. The response of the local community to the idps and refugees has meant that the need for intervention from the humanitarian agencies has been minimal. Local authority capacity in this regard has also increased greatly. In its recent updating of its emergency preparedness plan, the humanitarian community has highlighted both factors. Over the past few weeks, UN agencies, ICRC, UNMIK departments, international and local NGOs, KFOR and UNMIK Police, have all co-operated in and contributed to the drawing up of the new plan. At almost all levels of the plan, local authorities, village committees, Mother Theresa Society (MTS) and the Red Cross of Kosovo (RCK) play the leading roles with the humanitarian community in a supporting, advisory and co-ordinating capacity. For example, MTS and RCK are taking the lead in registering refugees and idps for humanitarian assistance shortly after they enter Kosovo, and UNMIK, assisted by UNHCR, is carrying out a further registration after people have been in the province a certain amount of time. This registration provides people with a paper that allows them access to local services and is accepted by the FYROM authorities as proof of entry into Kosovo for those who arrive without travel documents. The large number of host families that are making themselves available means that, unless there is a very large and sudden influx of people into the province, idps and refugees will continue to be accommodated in families, rather than in collective centres or tented camps. It also enables the idps and refugees, once they have registered with UNMIK, to be integrated into local health, education and social services; referral systems, for example, to the appropriate medical facility, are being set up for this purpose. Integration into the local community ensures that no parallel systems run by the international community will be set up, unless the influx is so great that tented camps requiring their own dedicated facilities provided by international NGOs become necessary. And although idps and refugees receive an initial supply of food and non-food items from the humanitarian community shortly after entering Kosovo, upon registering with UNMIK they become eligible to apply, if necessary, for cash-based assistance through the Department of Health and Social Welfare social assistance scheme. Provision is also being made for the livestock that people are bringing with them. According to the Department of Agriculture, in mid-May families from South Serbia had brought approximately 3,5000 sheep with them. This does not include the cattle and the horses and mules brought in by people from FYROM. The Department, in co-operation with FAO, is developing a plan to deal with the animals. It should be pointed out that updating the emergency preparedness plan is an ongoing process to ensure that the UN agencies and NGOs and UNMIK are able to deal with an emergency should it arise. It does not mean that the agencies are expecting a great influx of refugees and/or idps; simply that they are able to respond to one if necessary. Contact: Jeanne Boisclair on [email protected] 1 RED CROSS RESPONSE TO THE INFLUX OF IDPs Since November 2000, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), in close collaboration with the Red Cross of Kosovo (RCK), has been providing assistance to internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Kosovo. In response to the most recent influx of IDPs from Presevo Valley and the Ground Safety Zone (GSZ) that began in mid-May, ICRC in co-operation with the RCK, has established pre-registration tents that operate 24 hours a day at both official and unofficial border crossing points. The RCK registers the IDP's and directs them to host families if they are in need of accommodation. Tickets are then distributed to all displaced persons, which they can present to the local Red Cross branch at their new destination in order to receive food and non-food assistance. For IDPs accommodated at the transit centre in Gjilan/Gnjilane, two cooked meals per day are provided. From 13 to 29 May, over 7,000 displaced persons were registered. ICRC and RCK distribute one-month’s food rations once the IDPs settle in a municipality and register for assistance. To date, more than 4,000 IDPs have registered for food assistance and received their ration; non-food assistance in the form of blankets, mattresses hygiene parcels, etc is provided for those in need. Moreover, RCK is also taking part in the registration of refugee families from FYROM and contributing to the support provided to the host families. Other activities undertaken by the ICRC (protection department) and RCK include establishing contact between missing/dispersed persons and their families through the exchange of Red Cross Messages and by making satellite and mobile phones available for IDPs and refugees. In accordance with its mandate, ICRC also collects information and follows up cases of arrests and disappearances as well as other security issues. Contact: Elizabeth Twinch on [email protected] KFOR ON THE SOUTH SERBIA BORDER On 24th May 2001, NATO authorised the return of FRY Forces into “Sector B” the final sector of the Ground Safety Zone (GSZ), the demilitarised buffer zone between Kosovo and Serbia established by NATO, as armed groups such as the UCPMB had been operating within the sector with impunity for over 16 months, threatening the safety of the civilian population. In anticipation of a potentially large movement of people from the GSZ into Kosovo, among them possible UCPMB members or criminals, KFOR established Civilian Collection Points (CCPs) along the boundary of Sector B, close to the normal crossing points. The purpose of these CCPs is to screen men of military age who are suspected UCPMB members or criminals. The majority are released and allowed to continue into Kosovo, while those whom evidence shows either to be UCPMB members or to have taken part in criminal activity are transferred to a detention facility. While the men are being screened, their families are sent to a waiting area where they are given medical care, food and water. If need be, they receive overnight accommodation. Contact: Flemming Larsen on [email protected] 2 Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) Kosovo’s health authorities, with WHO acting in an advisory role, are currently dealing with an outbreak of Crimean- Congo Haemorrhagic Fever (CCHF). The disease is endemic in Kosovo, with a few cases normally reported each year (spring and summer). The first suspected case this year was registered on 21 May and by Sunday 10 June the number of suspected cases was 31. Four of these have died. The area where most cases have been reported is southwest Kosovo. Because the number of cases is higher than usual, this is called an outbreak. It is not an epidemic. There have been regular cases and outbreaks of CCHF in Kosovo since 1986. For example there were 43 sporadic cases with six fatalities from 1996 – 2000. The Department of Health and Social Welfare is in charge of outbreak control, with a technical commission (Outbreak Management Committee) based at the Institute of Public Health. WHO, which is a member of the outbreak management committee, will provide extra assistance in the event that the outbreak should exceed the capacity of IPH. Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a viral haemorrhagic (bleeding) fever. It is most usually found in animals, but sporadic cases and outbreaks occur in humans, normally when transmitted by some insects (ticks) or rodents. The disease is named after places where it was first described: in the Crimea in 1944 and then in the Congo. CCHF is a severe disease in humans, with a high mortality rate. Fortunately, human illness occurs infrequently, although animal infection may be more common. The virus can be found in many regions, including Eastern and Central Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East. The CCHF virus may infect a wide range of domestic and wild animals. Animals such as cattle, sheep and goats may become infected from the bite of infected ticks. Humans may become infected with CCHF through direct contact with blood or other infected tissues from livestock, or they may become infected from a tick bite. Most recorded cases have occurred in those working with the livestock industry, such as agricultural workers, slaughterhouse workers and veterinarians. The incubation period is usually 1-3 days, with a range of 1 – 12 days. Symptoms include: high fever (39-40 C) aching muscles, dizziness, neck pain and stiffness, headache, sore eyes, nausea and vomiting, diarrhoea, nose bleeds and other non-normal bleeding Other symptoms include a rash caused by bleeding into the skin. Anyone with a combination of two to three of these symptoms should go to the nearest health facility. T he mortality rate from CCHF is approximately 30 per cent. There is no safe and effective vaccine widely available for human use. To avoid contracting the disease: • People living in endemic regions should avoid areas where there are many ticks, particularly in the spring and summer. • Wear light coloured clothing that covers legs and arms • If living in an infested area, check the whole body regularly for ticks, remove ticks gently but promptly • Examine clothes regularly for ticks • Use tick repellents on skin and clothing • Tuck trousers into socks and keep sleeves rolled down • Health care staff must wear gloves and other protective clothing to prevent skin contact with infected tissues or blood.