Question

Reaction about The Ethics of Disaster and Domestic Violence

Answer 1

# The ethics of disaster

∞ Purpose

= Ethics is the foundation on which societies and cultures are based and are fundamental to political, social and economic decision making.

= Ethical dilemmas have created controversy and heated debate over the years.

= Disasters have been defined in public health terms as destructive events that result in the need for a wide range of emergency resources to assist and ensure the survival of the stricken population.

= Lack of medical resources, in conjunction with a mass casualty situation, can present specific ethical challenges.

= The purpose of this paper is to explore the ethics of disaster management.

∞ Ethics in disaster response

= The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is founded on an ideal:

-to alleviate human suffering whomever it affects and wherever and however it occurs.

=The seven Fundamental Principles are the basis for the Movement’s action at all times.

= More broadly, the Movement is constantly re-examining and refining the way in which it works in order to ensure that its actions are in the best interests of the people it seeks to serve.

= The ethics of humanitarian action have been further articulated in the Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and NGOs in Disaster Relief.

= The Code of Conduct was developed in 1994 by the International Federation, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and six other leading aid agencies and represented a huge leap forward in setting standards for the conduct of disaster relief operations.

= It reasserts the basic humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality and independence and incorporates more recent development concepts such as respect for culture, participation, sustainability, accountability and dignity in images.

= The Code’s ten principles highlight, among other things, the right of disaster-affected populations to receive humanitarian assistance without discrimination and the crucial role played by women in disaster-prone communities.

= Emphasis is also placed on protecting and preserving the dignity of beneficiaries.

= The Code has three annexes containing recommendations for governments of disaster-affected countries, donor governments and intergovernmental organizations.

= The general thrust of these recommendations is the need to ensure rapid access to disaster victims, timely delivery of appropriate assistance and respect for the independence and impartiality of humanitarian organizations.

= Another such initiative is the Sphere project, launched in 1997 by the Movement and a group of non-governmental organizations.

=One of the main pillars of the Sphere project is the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response.

= The Humanitarian Charter upholds the right of people affected by disaster or armed conflict to life with dignity and thus to assistance to meet their basic needs.

= This right is enshrined not only in international humanitarian law but also in international human rights and refugee law.

= It is up to governments to guarantee this right, while humanitarian agencies can provide assistance where it is needed.

= The Humanitarian Charter further underscores the distinction that must be made during armed conflict between combatants and non-combatants and the principle of non-refoulement (that no refugee shall be sent to a country in which his/her life or freedom is threatened).

= The Minimum Standards specify the required levels of service in water supply, sanitation, nutrition, food aid, shelter, site planning and health care.

= Recently, particular focus has been placed on two key aspects of humanitarian action:

• * Quality – ensuring a minimum standard of service;
• * Accountability – being answerable to those who receive the assistance and those who finance it.

Linking these two aspects is an initiative to enhance the accountability of the humanitarian system, especially towards the beneficiaries.

At the International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent in 1999, states party to the Geneva Conventions and the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement pledged to "support efforts to develop minimum practical standards for the delivery of humanitarian assistance such as those elaborated in the Sphere project."

# Domestic violence ( dv)

∞ There are a small number of studies, supplemented by anecdotal evidence, that indicate increases in
domestic violence and sexual assault following disasters.

• * A 45% increase in domestic violence reports to police occurred, following the Mount St. Helen’s
volcanic eruption in 1980.
• * Following a 1989 earthquake in California, one shelter reported a 50% increase in request for
restraining orders. Sexual assault was reported to have risen 300% according to a United Way study.
• * Florida’s Hurricane Andrew in 1992, was followed by a 50% increase in spousal abuse calls. In 2004, the
state was hit by 4 hurricanes and 6 months later increases in calls and shelters were reported by dv
agencies.
• * The average state turn away rate at domestic violence shelters rose 111% over the preceding year,
following the floods that occurred in Missouri in 1993.
• * Following flooding In Grand Forks, North Dakota, requests for temporary protection orders rose by
18%, and counseling by 59% over the previous year (July 1996- July 1997). Calls were up 21%.
•* One article written by Catholic Charities provides a figure of a 45% increase in domestic violence
following Katrina.
• * One post-Katrina study of residents in trailer parks in Mississippi, found that gender based violence
had been at 4.6 per 100,000 persons prior to Katrina (occurred in August 2005). In 2006, the rate had
increased to 16.3 per 100,000. By 2007, it had dropped to 10.1 per 100,000 – still more than double
the baseline.
• * One survey reported 9 of 13 domestic violence programs reporting increases in DV after major storms
or disasters.
•* An earthquake in Australia was reported to be followed by a 50% rise in DV reports.
• * An oil spill in Alaska was followed by reported increases in DV and child abuse.

∞ Certain geographic areas and populations are more at risk for an increase in stress factors, including DV,
following a disaster:

• * higher in urban areas
• * those who are economically distressed
• * women more than men, including those who are elderly
• * immigrant populations
•* single parents and the disabled
• * may impact first responders as well as those who were victims

∞ Housing seems to be a key factor promoting DV following a disaster because it

•* Increases stress
• * People may return to an abusive partner or the same family where he/she experienced abuse
previously.
• * May share accommodations with family members or acquaintances and be exposed to violence (sexual
or domestic)
• * May aggravate strained child custody situations
•* People have fewer housing options to leave a dv situation
•* The abuser may use the crisis as a way to reform a relationship or fall back to the “old” behavior
patterns
• * May decrease affordable housing option due to “land grabs” and post-disaster upscale development

∞ which then impacts women and their children, as well as businesses who employ them

•* A male partner is identified as head of the household, and relief funds and services are geared to him,
leaving a female partner dependent upon him

∞ . On the other hand, a disaster may sometimes provide an opportunity

•* For the victim to access funds or services to help him/her establish a new household or make other
positive changes
•* The victim gains strength in having survived a disaster and builds on that to make changes in his/her
life
•* The victim’s loss of personal property may result in less of an “investment” in maintaining a personal
relationship

∞ Changes in DV reporting may also be linked to

•* Increases in DV reporting may be linked to closer living arrangements providing more opportunities for
3rd parties to observe and report DV

• * On the other hand, there is the thought that DV requires some level of privacy, and so while violence
may not increase in tight quarters, shouting, slamming, and leaving the residence may all escalate
when living in close quarters
•* An increase in reporting may come about because of more visibility and involvement with social
services or other avenues of help
•* Decrease in reporting or responding may be tied to the police or others “overlooking” or “excusing”
domestic violence in light of the stress of the disaster or other response priorities – this includes when
the perpetrator was a first responder

∞ The dynamics that occur post-disaster that relate to domestic violence include

•* Loss of support systems when displaced
•* Victims experience trauma or re-traumatization or re-victimization
•* The above may make them more susceptible to perpetrators who may increase their behaviors,
including sexual violence and trafficking, as well unscrupulous employment practices
•* Increase in housing costs
•* Decreases in wages
•* Reduced mobility, including the lack of transportation to jobs do to cars being ruined
•* Child care resources being lost (in New Orleans, 2/3s of child care remained lost 2 years post Katrina)

∞ There seem to be at least two schools of thoughts as to why domestic violence increases after disasters:

• * Violence is inflicted by the perpetrator to gain a sense of control in a situation that seems out of
control
• * The strain of the disaster creates family violence that develops when there is increases drug use, poor
coping skills, sleep distubances, increased depression, re-surfacing of PTSD, etc.

∞ With regards to both sexual assault and child abuse, it is recommended that efforts be made to track and
* act on the displacement of sexual offenders following as a disaster.