MCIC Situation report Macedonia no. 13/2001

August 27 - September 2, 2001

Skopje, September 3, 2001


HUMANITARIAN SITUATION

Displaced persons

The number of the IDP increases.
According to the Macedonian Red Cross, the number of the internally displaced population (IDP) in Macedonia is 74,524. 3,829 of them have been sheltered in the collective centers.

The number of Kosovo refugees unchanged. According to UNHCR data, there are approximately 45.000 (ethnic Albanian) refugees in Kosovo, while approximately 36.000 people have returned to Macedonia.


HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE

Food

UNHCR assistance for the displaced people from Ljuboten.
On the 29th of August, in the Cair town district, UNHCR distributed humanitarian assistance to 43 displaced people from Ljuboten village, near Skopje. The assistance consisted of blankets, mattresses, hygiene articles and kitchen supplies.

The branch office of the organization "Spike of Goodness" from Skopje started to distribute food assistance for the month of August to the displaced population of the crisis regions, sheltered in Skopje families.

On the 27th of August, the Natira NGO from Kumanovo started to distribute flour for 1000 families (25 kg for each family).

On the 31st of August, ICRC distributed assistance for the Tearce community (Neprosteno and Slatino), and the Lipkovo municipality. It comprised family and individual packages of food, wheat flour and baby formula.

Health care

A team incorporating the IRC and the International Red Cross visited Aracinovo last week, and experts assessed the damage in the ambulance. Minor reconstructions are needed. UNICEF donated the equipment, as well as doctor and nursery kits. The team is expected to begin to operate this week.

The World Health Organization (WHO), is planning to evaluate the health facilities in the regions in which access is possible, while the conflict - affected villages will be examined later on.

Shelters

On the 22nd of August, the Macedonian Government and the humanitarian agencies started the evaluation of the damaged houses in Aracinovo. So far, approximately 300 houses in Aracinovo, 20 houses in Lopate and the school in Brnjarci have been assessed.

Water supplies and sanitary facilities

In the village of Aracinovo, the MCIC installed 5 reservoirs, each with a capacity of 20,000 litres for sanitary water. Although communal hygiene will remain in charge of water supply, it is believed that its machinery will be disencumbered.

Schools and education

The Government of the Republic of Macedonia decided to start the school year on the 10th of September, instead of the 1st of September.

Humanitarian mine defusing

The Army of the Republic of Macedonia announced that there are 2,000 pressure - activated mines in the crisis regions of Tetovo, Kumanovo-Lipkovo and Skopje. The Tetovo-Jazince road, all the entries to the villages around Tetovo, the Sipkovica hillside, a section of the Tetovo-Gostivar road, the area around Ramno at the Tanusevci watch-tower, the entries to the Slupcane, Opae, Orizare and Vaksince villages have all been labelled as dangerous minefields. The US Embassy suggested the Macedonian Government that its experts should defuse the mines in these areas.

On the 1st and 2nd of September, the NATO special forces started to defuse and mark the mine fields on the Lesok-Zilce road, near the Tetovo-Jazince road.

Preservation of human rights

The MCIC, together with other local NGOs started with the distribution of the "Information and legal support for internally displaced population" leaflet.

The Institute for Sociological, Political and Juridical Research institute promoted the Macedonian and Albanian translations of the "Head rules for internal displacement" yesterday. (published by UN OSNA).

Psychosocial activities

The UNICEF is active in summer camps for coping with stress in regions with a larger concentration of IDP, such as Skopje and Tetovo. Three summer camps are operational in Kumanovo. They offer a variety of sports and recreations, psychosocial consultations, health education, caring for and development in the early childhood, mine hazard activities etc.

Post-crisis rehabilitation

The Government of the Republic of Macedonia, the UNHCR and the IMG are reconciling the Object Reconstruction Strategy, as well as the formats for damage evaluation.


HUMANITARIAN ORGANIZATION

Financing

The Netherlands have accepted to be the host of the possible donation conference for Macedonia, which is planned to be held in mid October this year.

Co-ordination

The sixth meeting humanitarian co-ordination of the NGOs.
A meeting of the humanitarian co-ordination of the NGOs was held on the 28th of August. The mine protection training locations have been designated - in the collective centers in Skopje, the facilities at "Megasi", two primary schools and three private houses in Kumanovo; the facilities at "Daja" in Kumanovo, the facilities at "Mesecina" in Gostivar, the facilities at "Spike of Goodness" in Skopje and the primary school "Nikola Vapcarov" in Skopje.

MCIC has also announced that the emergency operations management training in English will be held from the 5th to the 9th of September in Skopje.

There was an announcement at this meeting, saying that during the process of reconstruction and building of objects, after evaluation, the reparations of different types of objects will also begin. Also, the damage evaluation team in the village of Lopate, which should begin to operate in near future, has representatives from the local government. As for the beginning of the new school year, the displaced children will be able to be taught in the nearest school.

The seventh meeting of the NHC.
On this meeting, the chairman gave an account of the recent activities. It was said that convoys with displaced people headed to Tearce, Lesok and Neprosteno are being organized on a daily basis. The increasing number of IDB in the collective centers, because of lack of support for the domestic help was also underlined.

The representative of the Education and Culture Ministry said that the promised support in the form of school books should be carried out, but also mentioned that it should include all children, not only the ones affected by the conflict.

The representative of the ICRC informed us of the measures taken for rescue of the kidnapped children.

The foreign organizations urged the Government to assist with the vital removal of blockades on the Tabanovce border crossing.

Several subsequent activities were underlined at this meeting: the ICRC and UNICEF should create a programme for informing the population of the landmine hazard; WFP/The World Food Organization, accompanied by other organizations will commence the assessment of food requirements; ECHO will soon begin the distribution of hygienic packages for the IDP sheltered in family homes.


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