Multilingualism, nationality and flexibility: mobile communicators’ careers in a humanitarian agency

Abstract This article explores the management of multilingual mobile communicators at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) according to institutional requirements and the consequences on Arabic-speaking communicators’ careers. Based on interviews complemented by institutional documents, I analyse the impact of “multiple languages”, “‘easy’ nationality” and “flexibility for non-family posts” as key requirements for mobile communicators. The institutional shortage of Arabic speakers largely limited their experience to Middle East and Northern Africa (MENA) while other communicators allegedly had a broader variety of field experience for career advancement. Linguistic repertoires and nationality shaped mission allocation since acceptance of one’s nationality in the host country largely outweighed linguistic competences in Arabic in MENA, with a preference for European or dual nationals and the Lebanese over other Arab nationals. Flexibility for non-family posts, numerous in MENA, seems to reinforce an unequal distribution of reproductive work and structural gender inequalities. Many interviewed women felt that they had to choose between the agency and family. Although desirable, family posts outside MENA were not considered as exciting communications work. Besides hiring L2 speakers with an acceptable nationality, interviewed communicators suggested a new rotation system, advising roles for Arabic-speaking professionals and special quota for women.

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The evolution of language ideological debates about English and French in a multilingual humanitarian organisation

Language Policy ◽

10.1007/s10993-021-09586-0 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Maria Rosa Garrido

Keyword(s):

Language Ideologies ◽

International Committee ◽

Red Cross ◽

Evolution Of Language ◽

Institutional Conditions ◽

Arabic Speakers ◽

European Languages ◽

French And English ◽

Global Language ◽

Humanitarian Agency

AbstractThis article traces the evolution of the ideological construction of elite multilingualism, with a focus on the values accorded to French and English, under transforming socioeconomic and institutional conditions at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). The ICRC, a major humanitarian agency based in Geneva, opens a window onto the construction of “internationalisation” and its accompanying language ideologies, resulting in fluctuating hiring requirements for “delegates” (expatriate representatives). The data include job advertisements for delegate posts from 1989 to 2020 complemented by interviews with different generations of delegates and ethnographic fieldwork in a recruitment fair. The analysis of language ideological debates at the ICRC illuminates the articulations and tensions between “roots” in Geneva, symbolised by French, and “routes” in its delegations worldwide, with English as a lingua franca, in dominant discourses about multilingualism. The requirements for ICRC delegates include English as a must and at least a second ICRC working language. Concerning the latter, there are tensions between the desired language regime at headquarters, privileging French as the “parent” language, and the current needs in key operations, with a shortage of Arabic speakers. The analysis shows that French requirements for generalist delegates have fluctuated from perfect command and good knowledge to an optional second working language. In the 2020 recruitment campaign, elite multilingualism is hierarchically stratified into English as a global language, other “working languages” including Arabic, and non-European languages such as Pashto or Dari as newly-introduced “assets”.

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Fasting during Ramadan Increases Risk of Very Preterm Birth among Arabic-Speaking Women

Journal of Nutrition ◽

10.1093/jn/nxz126 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 149 (10) ◽

pp. 1826-1832 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Rasmi M Tith ◽

Marianne Bilodeau-Bertrand ◽

Ga Eun Lee ◽

Jessica Healy-Profitós ◽

Nathalie Auger

Keyword(s):

Preterm Birth ◽

Birth Certificates ◽

Second Trimester ◽

Ramadan Fasting ◽

Maternal Characteristics ◽

Very Preterm ◽

Arabic Speakers ◽

Very Preterm Birth ◽

Arabic Speaking ◽

The Impact

ABSTRACT Background The impact of fasting on risk of preterm birth during Ramadan is unclear. Objectives We evaluated the association between Ramadan fasting during pregnancy and risk of preterm birth for Arab women in Canada. Methods We analyzed birth certificates from 3,123,508 deliveries in Quebec, Canada, from 1981 to 2017. We identified 78,109 births of Arabic-speaking women and determined if Ramadan occurred during any trimester of pregnancy. We calculated rates of extreme (22–27 wk), very (28–31 wk), and late (32–36 wk) preterm birth and estimated RRs and 95% CIs for the association of Ramadan fasting with risk of preterm birth by pregnancy trimester, using log-binomial regression models adjusted for maternal characteristics. Results Arabic speakers had an overall preterm birth rate of 5.53 per 100 births, but rates varied with timing of Ramadan. Among Arabic speakers, fasting during Ramadan between weeks 15–21 of the second trimester was associated with 1.33 times the risk of very preterm birth relative to no fasting (95% CI: 1.06, 1.68). Between weeks 22 and 27 of the second trimester, fasting during Ramadan was associated with 1.53 times the risk of very preterm birth (95% CI: 1.21, 1.93). Ramadan fasting was not associated with extreme or late preterm birth regardless of the trimester of pregnancy. Conclusions In this study of 78,109 births to Arabic-speaking women in Quebec, Ramadan fasting during the second pregnancy trimester was associated with the risk of very preterm birth. Optimal prenatal education about nutritional needs in the second trimester of pregnancy is recommended.

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The International Committee of the Red Widget? The Diversity Debate and International Humanitarian Law

Israel Law Review ◽

10.1017/s0021223700013455 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 40 (2) ◽

pp. 614-647 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

René Provost

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Cultural Diversity ◽

International Committee ◽

Cultural Relativism ◽

Red Cross ◽

International Humanitarian Law ◽

Humanitarian Law ◽

Laws Of War ◽

The Impact

This article asserts there has been a lack of attention to the impact of cultural diversity within the field of international humanitarian law. Discussions surrounding culture in international humanitarian law have nearly always avoided the central issue of cultural particularism. This has been so in relation to the debate surrounding the emblem, in general surveys of humanitarian law, and in discussions of the laws of war in distinct legal and cultural traditions. The emblems debate, in particular, signals the elusiveness of rigid universality within international humanitarian law. Five elements are suggested to explain the resistance of humanitarian law to contagion by the cultural relativism debate in human rights: the nature of human rights, the distinct normative frameworks of human rights and humanitarian law, the unified conventional basis of humanitarian law, the very broad participation in the humanitarian regime, and the unique role of the International Committee of the Red Cross. While these reasons might explain the fact that the relativism debate in human rights did not readily transfer to humanitarian law, they offer no substantive basis for immunity for humanitarian law to the challenges posed by cultural diversity. Ultimately, the article proposes a legal pluralist approach that recognizes the role of actors in the cultural process of norm-creation. Given the continued violation of the laws of war, the author suggests a need to open the door to cultural diversity in order to generate greater compliance. Without cultural legitimacy, there is a danger that humanitarian law aspires to self-defeating universalism.

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The Impact of Individuals

10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190618445.003.0010 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Asher Orkaby

Keyword(s):

Southern Baptist ◽

International Committee ◽

Red Cross ◽

Rural Village ◽

Geneva Conventions ◽

South Arabia ◽

Domestic Power ◽

Tribal Areas ◽

The Impact ◽

First Time

No single foreign or domestic power was able to exercise control over events in Yemen, which created an opportunity for many to have a lasting presence in South Arabia. Three individuals, in particular, made inroads in Yemen that impacted the course of the civil war and the future of the country: Bruce Condé, an eclectic American philatelist, became postmaster general of Imam al-Badr’s tribal areas and singlehandedly brought tribal nonstate actors a level of international legitimacy. André Rochat brought the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to Yemen for the first time and played an important role in royalist healthcare and the adoption of Geneva Conventions in Yemen. Dr. James Young led a group of Southern Baptist missionaries in founding a modern Western hospital in the rural village of Jibla, amidst one of the most religiously conservative societies in the world.

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Linguistic Validation of a Battery for Measurement of Affirming Attitudes about Mental Illness

European Psychiatry ◽

10.1016/j.eurpsy.2017.01.980 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 41 (S1) ◽

pp. S614-S615

Author(s):

B. Saguem ◽

A. Ben Romdhane ◽

B. Ben Hadj Ali

Keyword(s):

Mental Illness ◽

Arabic Version ◽

Linguistic Validation ◽

Arabic Speakers ◽

Native Arabic Speakers ◽

Back Translation ◽

Competing Interest ◽

Arabic Speaking ◽

The Impact ◽

Professional Translator

IntroductionStigma restrains the life opportunities of individuals with serious mental illness. This study aimed at performing a linguistic validation of a battery for measurement of affirming attitudes; a battery that might be used to test the impact of anti-stigma and socially inclusive programs.MethodsThree measures were considered: the Recovery Scale, Empowerment Scale and Self-Determination Scale. Two native Arabic speakers, bilingual in English, independently translated the original measures into Arabic. A collaborative pooled version of the questionnaires was then obtained from the two translations. The pooled version was back-translated into English by a professional translator. A draft Arabic version of the battery was obtained from the comparison between the original questionnaires and the back-translation and was tested on 30 Arabic-speaking medical students. We also discussed the existence of other wording that enables the meaning of statements to be expressed clearly.ResultsThe test of the different items allowed the detection of three typing errors. It also highlighted mistranslating two terms to one term that does not distinguish between them in term of the meaning: “Goal” and “Purpose”. Comments were reported on the wording of certain items in the questionnaire. These comments referred to the problems related to the grammatical and syntactical construction of certain expressions. The translation from English into Tunisian dialect is different from our dialect.ConclusionWe proposed an Arabic version of a battery of measures that reflect affirming attitudes. This is a step for reliable measures that assess stigma in Arabic countries.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

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IHL 2.0: Is There a Role for Social Media in Monitoring and Enforcement?

Israel Law Review ◽

10.1017/s0021223712000180 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 45 (3) ◽

pp. 493-536 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Anne Herzberg ◽

Gerald M Steinberg

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Critical Role ◽

International Committee ◽

Red Cross ◽

Use Case ◽

Conflict Zones ◽

Legal Obligations ◽

Monitoring And Enforcement ◽

Fact Finding ◽

The Impact

This article will examine the opportunities and limitations of using social media in the execution of legal duties relating to the monitoring and enforcement of IHL. The article will first provide an overview of social media. Next, it will briefly summarise the normative framework of IHL as well as the legal duties of the primary actors and promoters of IHL (for example, states, the UN, NGOs, the International Committee of the Red Cross and courts) to monitor and enforce these rules. The article will then address specific legal obligations relating to IHL monitoring and enforcement and the impact of social media on meeting these requirements.Throughout, the article will use case studies from several conflict zones, including Sudan, Uganda, Mexico, Somalia, Gaza and Libya. The article will conclude that social media can play a critical role in promoting IHL education, and monitoring for potential violations. The benefits of this technology, however, are less clear for carrying out legal obligations related to the enforcement of IHL, such as fact-finding, arrest and prosecution. It is essential, therefore, that clear guidelines for utilising this quickly evolving technology, particularly in official fact-finding and judicial frameworks, be established.

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Twenty years after Novye Atagi: A call to care for the carers

International Review of the Red Cross ◽

10.1017/s1816383116000588 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 98 (901) ◽

pp. 299-314 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Christoph Hensch

Keyword(s):

Healing Process ◽

Humanitarian Aid ◽

International Committee ◽

Red Cross ◽

Aid Workers ◽

Personal Story ◽

Humanitarian Aid Workers ◽

The Impact

AbstractWorking in the humanitarian sector as an aid worker has become a dangerous endeavour, with attacks against humanitarian workers becoming more common. In this personal story by a former head of office at an International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) surgical hospital, a short, violent encounter leads to a long journey of recovery. There is an important role for the community in supporting the healing process; the author suggests that an integral and collaborative involvement by organizations like the ICRC is effective in addressing the impact of violence directed towards humanitarian aid workers.

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