NEWS RELEASE
4 February 2008
New Zealand Red Cross Aid Worker Safe In Chad
New Zealand Red Cross has one humanitarian aid worker based in Chad. He is currently located in the city of Abeche,
Eastern Chad and has reported he is safe and sound. He says there has been no significant change to the situation in
Abeche.
He is in Chad on a 12 month mission working with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as a Protection
Delegate. His role involves focusing on the protection of people deprived of their freedom due to the armed conflict -
monitoring the condition of people held in prison or in detention centres, assisting detained people maintain contact
with their families, and providing neutral and impartial reporting to the authorities about detention facility
conditions.
The ICRC’s immediate plans are for the New Zealand Red Cross aid worker to remain in Abeche where he is safe.
His four colleagues are located in Chad’s capital N'Djamena. They are safe and remain in their Red Cross compound,
clearly marked with a Red Cross emblem, which is close to the airport. While they are able to maintain contact with ICRC
Headquarters in Geneva they have reported that the telephones are not working properly and the lines are overloaded.
New Zealand Red Cross currently has 21 humanitarian aid workers located in 13 countries around the world.
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