ABSTRACT
All human beings are entitled to adequate security in terms of the basic necessities of life, food, shelter, health and well-being. These basic rights are reflected in international instruments, in particular the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 1966 (ICESCR) which came into force on 3 January 1976.3 Whilst the general expectation is that State Parties will protect the fundamental human rights of the inhabitants of that state, governments often are unable or unwilling to protect these fundamental human rights, for instance, at times of natural disasters such as typhoons, earthquakes and tsunamis or man-made disasters such as mismanagement of water resources resulting in drought. In these circumstances international obligations mandate co-operation at the international level in guaranteeing these rights. This obligation is more often than not realised by the provision of financial and humanitarian aid. Recently, it has become apparent that there are problems with respect to the
delivery of humanitarian assistance due to the attendant presence of corruption in emergency situations. Emergency situations and incoming aid offer opportunities for fraud, false accounting, diversion of aid received and exploitation of the needy and the desperate by those in a position of power. The corrupt behaviour of those in a position of power means that the suffering of the vulnerable continues despite humanitarian aid making available food rations and medicines to those affected by the disaster and providing for basic infrastructure in affected areas such as shelter, roads, bridges and sanitation. A case study on Liberia published by the Overseas Development Institute highlights the risks of corruption associated with humanitarian assistance.4 These include bribery and extortion faced by aid agency staff in dealing with public officials, for instance, in the course of obtaining customs clearance, vehicle registration and visas,5 inflation of costs and false claims6 by local contractors and local partners. With the rise of international responsibility as embodied in the development of international human rights law, the notion of human security, the doctrine of the responsibility to protect and the rise of international civil society there is a sense of immediacy in combating the difficulties in humanitarian aid7 reaching the people who are truly in need.
