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IN PRAISE OF
"Sometimes on the evening news, we catch a glimpse of humanitarian workers
tackling some new nightmare somewhere in the world. Most of us have very little idea of what their lives are like, what their feelings are, or what it
takes to deal, day after day, with horror and abject misery. We have no idea what the toll is on their peace of mind and well being. Yael Danieli's book
breaks the customary silence about the lives and thoughts of that brave, public-spirited, and selfless band who set out to succor the world's most
helpless people. This is a great and long overdue service to these noble citizens of the world, and hopefully also a wake-up call to the international
community."
—Sir Brian Urquhart, Former Under-Secretary General of the United Nations
"My beloved brother, Raoul Wallenberg, is one of the brave individuals who as
citizens of the world have dedicated themselves to helping others. He did so at great risk to his own life, and was taken prisoner in Russia more than 55
years ago. His message can serve as inspiration to younger generations, such as the authors and the readers of this book, that one person can make a
difference."
—Nina Lagergren
"This is a vital and timely book. It takes the reader on a journey into a landscape of agonizing memory and painful reflection. In the slowly expanding
canon of literature about the psychological cost of war, this book deserves to occupy a towering position."
—Fergal Keane, Special Correspondent with BBC News, and author of' Season of Blood - A Rwandan Journey
"I have just completed ten years as UN High Commissioner for Refugees. While I am gratified that UNHCR has been able to save millions of lives and
has contributed to easing suffering, I must emphasize the incredible odds and hardship that my colleagues have had to face. Protecting refugees means
being with them in some of the most isolated and dangerous places on Earth. This book tells the stories of brave individuals who have dedicated
themselves to helping others sometimes at the cost of their own lives. It also reflects the serious dilemmas faced in safeguarding maximum security of
staff while also ensuring maximum effectiveness of missions. Above all, it appeals for strong support from the international community to end wars and
to shield both victims and those who protect and provide for them, both refugees and refugee workers."
—Sadako Ogata, Former UN High Commissioner for Refugees
"Much media coverage is given to the many disaster and conflict areas in the world which lead to human suffering and misery. Far too little interest
is given to those who often at great personal sacrifice devote their efforts towards bringing help, assistance and support to the victims of such
tragedies often in particularly hostile and dangerous situations. Yael Danieli's book not only draws attention to their devotion and courage but
also insists on measures that should be taken so that they can achieve their objectives in the more protected environment they deserve. We owe it to them
to read this excellent and compelling work."
—Raymond E. Kendall, Former Secretary General of Interpol
"The Universal Declaration of Human Rights speaks of the "disregard and contempt for human rights which have resulted in barbarous acts that outrage
the conscience of mankind," emphasizing the gap between the shared hopes of humanity and the daily reality for so many victims of human rights
violations. It is this gap that peacekeepers, humanitarian workers, human rights officials, journalists, volunteers and others strive to bridge.
Sharing the Front Line and the Back Hills tells their story, bringing together personal and professional experiences, explaining their work and the
pressures they confront, giving a human face to the suffering they seek to address. It is an important book that should be read and acted upon."
—Mary Robinson, High Commissioner for Human Rights
"At the end of the day it all comes down to single individuals: their courage, their fears, their sufferings, their dreams and their choices.
Whether a victim or a culprit, a bystander or an intervener we cannot escape the individual responsibility for what we do or do not do. I see biographies
as the front line of history, which to me is only a byproduct. Byproducts are necessarily the result of manipulation. What happens in the front line is the
real thing. This book is about the real thing."
—Giandomenico Picco, Former UN Hostage negotiator
"My mother died in January 2001 in a helicopter crash in Mongolia while on mission for the UN's Office of Coordination and Humanitarian Affairs. My
mother left us much too early. She had so much more to give, so much more to receive, so much more to become. This book is a tribute to her, and to many
like her, who have given their lives to help those in need."
—Sarah Strack, 17, daughter of Sabine Metzner-Strack
"This is a very important book because in it we hear the voices of people directly engaged in the often dangerous activities of peacekeeping and of
alleviating human suffering. We learn much about the psychological costs, but also about courage and about providing better means of individual and
collective support for those committed to such invaluable expressions of
humanity."
—Robert Jay Lifton, M.D., Department of Psychiatry and the Carr Center for Human Rights, Harvard Medical School
"Sharing the Front Line and the Back Hills is a unique and well-balanced
compilation of firsthand accounts of those brave individuals who are on the front lines in the atrocity zones providing humanitarian relief and reporting
mass crimes. The wide range of experiences recorded in this book provides a reality check for policy-makers and for those who may think that humanitarian
work can be undertaken without personal cost. This is must reading for everyone deploying to the field to alleviate and report human suffering, and
for government officials who need to understand what is truly at stake."
—David Scheffer, former U.S. Ambassador at Large for War Crimes Issues
“There is nothing quite like this book. I found it very timely, very refreshing, and
very relevant for my work in member care/human resource development. I believe
you will too. One of the most helpful aspects of the book is the "Voices"
sections that are interlaced throughout the chapters. These are short accounts
of personnel describing their pains and joys as they live and work in crisis
settings. These "Voices" validate what so many of us and our
colleagues have experienced in such settings. I highly commend Danieli’s book. I already refer to it often as
I teach and write.”
—Dr. Kelly O’Donnell, Consulting Psychologist, Geneva, Switzerland
"This book clearly portrays the confusion and terror experienced by
noncombatant participants in conflict zones, and spells out the need for better
preparation, debriefing, and follow-up support. Tragically, as we have found
with the therapists of trauma clients, relief workers require treatment
themselves (Figley, 1995). Nevertheless, the assumption made here, perhaps
rightly, is that such debriefing will be effective, though there is still
contradictory evidence for such efficacy (Bisson, McFarlane, & Rose, 2000). In
the end, this book underscores the lessons of the ages: War injures all who come
near, and its suffering extends long after peace arrives. That is why we must
persevere in identifying this suffering, developing effective interventions, and
constraining the violent effects of human aggression. Danieli and her colleagues
have contributed greatly to these efforts."
—Daniel Reed Johnson, Contemporary Psychology, APA Review of Books,
2003, Vol. 48, No. 4
ABOUT THE BOOK
In the past, the blue UN letters and the red cross provided protection;
increasingly, they designate targets. The number of horrifying attacks
on representatives of the United Nations, relief agencies, the media, non-governmental
and other organizations while on missions to alleviate and report
human suffering throughout the world has escalated alarmingly. They have
gone to countries and cultures not their own, often with little advance
preparation, little protection or support during their mission, and little
or no assistance at the time of and following their (re)integration or
discharge. International protectors and providers and their locally recruited
colleagues have been taken hostage, tortured, even killed. They have thus
been directly or secondarily traumatized, both physically and psychologically.
They and their families are paying a very high price, both immediate and
long-term, for their efforts on behalf of others.
Sharing the Front Line and the Back Hills points to a
crisis facing international institutions and the media who seek to alleviate
and report human suffering throughout the world. The goals of the editor
are to tell the story of thousands of individuals dedicated to helping
others; and to integrate issues of protection and care into all levels
of planning, implementing and evaluating international intervention and
action. The book identifies approaches that have proven useful and explores
and suggests future directions. The book reports comprehensively existing
empirical knowledge about stress and post traumatic stress reactions and
associated interventions among military peacekeepers, and represents the
first significant effort to
publish comparable research on their civilian counterparts. Interwoven
among the chapters are "voices" whose authors express in personal and moving
terms the impact of their experiences. This volume consists of six sections,
subdivided into chapters according to the type of international protectors
and providers (United Nation’s military and nonmilitary peacekeepers and
peace builders; civilian staff of the UN system, volunteers, non-governmental
organizations, and the media); the organizations they represent; their
focus (such as women, children and forensic work); the nature of knowledge
(data-based, descriptive, and reflective experiential) and challenges and
remedies (such as psychological, educational, legal and political). The
concluding chapter elaborates policy and program recommendations.
Intended audience: foreign ministries, ambassadors, delegates;
those associated with non- and inter-governmental organizations; humanitarians
human rights workers; policy-making institutions; libraries; the media;
practitioners of medicine, public health, and mental health; traumatologists;
emergency/disaster relief workers; international lawyers; criminologists
and victimologists; and the clergy.
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