The Voice (Francistown)
Naledi Mokgwathi
4 September 2007
Francistown — The President of the Botswana Red Cross Society, Nomsa Mbere, will be leaving the country for Israel on the 3rd of September.
Mbere was invited to Israel by The Israeli National Society; The Magen David Adom, after meeting them at the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Leadership Course that was held in Geneva.
"While I was there I met representatives from the, Palestinian, Lebanese, Pakistan, Iranian, Jordanian Crescent Societies; Kenyan, Namibian, Cuban, Philipines Red Cross Societies and Israeli Magen David Adom Society."
Being curious about the humanitarian situation in the Middle East, and the difficult environment under which humanitarian workers work, Mbere said that an invitation from Israel was welcome.
She also said that she hoped that this would be the beginning of many more visits to other countries in the Middle East.
"I hope this is just the beginning of my many visits to all the countries in the Middle East, already I have been invited to come to Jordan and I have also been having dialogues with the Iranians."
Coming from Southern Africa and knowing about the conflict in the Middle East, Mbere said that she was very impressed by the friendship between the Israelis and Palestinians during the course in Geneva, after all they have to work together in the delivery of humanitarian services on the ground, sparking an interest in Mbere to visit the countries to see their programmes.
"I was really impressed by the comradeship that the leaders had on a humanitarian level in spite of the conflicts outside. This made me want to see how they work together on the ground level. I guess they are morally bound by their belief in the principle of The Red Cross."
The Red Cross principle requires that on a humanitarian level Red Cross representatives be neutral, impartial and independent in their delivery of humanitarian services and act in unity.
Having just joined the Red Cross Society a couple of years ago Mbere describes her journey in the society as very enlightening and eye opening.
"I have learnt a lot and my experiences have opened my eyes. Being from a relatively peaceful country we sometimes forget how difficult it is for other people out there.
"I believe as Batswana we are morally bound to play our role in understanding and assisting wherever we can in cases of conflict. We have conflict in Africa in such places as Darfur and Somalia, and as members of the African Union we cannot ignore what is happening in other areas of Africa, nor can we underestimate the contribution that Botswana, through peace keeping, is making, but we need to strengthen our humanitarian efforts."
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