العربية
Protecting Aid Workers and Preserving Humanitarian Space
Official Statement
Brussels for Human Rights and Development (BHRD)
August 19, 2026
On World Humanitarian Day, Brussels for Human Rights and Development (BHRD) stands in recognition and solidarity with the hundreds of thousands of humanitarian workers and volunteers who continue to provide assistance and a lifeline to communities facing some of the world’s most challenging conditions of conflict, insecurity, and disaster.
Humanitarian action is more than an emergency response to crises. It reflects one of the highest principles of human solidarity: protecting human dignity and upholding every person’s right to life and to live with dignity, free from discrimination.
Amid escalating conflicts and the growing economic, social, and environmental challenges facing communities around the world, civil society organizations and local initiatives have become an essential pillar of humanitarian response and an indispensable safety net for people affected by crises.
BHRD believes that the effectiveness of humanitarian action depends fundamentally on empowering civil society organizations and ensuring a safe, independent, and enabling environment in which they can carry out their humanitarian and development work freely, impartially, and without undue pressure or restriction.
As a human rights organization, BHRD reaffirms the following core principles on this occasion:
1. Protecting humanitarian workers and community volunteers
Humanitarian personnel and civil society volunteers must be protected from attack, intimidation, and obstruction. Their safety and security must be guaranteed through effective legal and practical protections in all areas where they operate.
2. Ensuring unimpeded humanitarian access
Humanitarian assistance, essential supplies, and basic services must be allowed to reach all people in need safely, promptly, and without politicization, discrimination, or arbitrary restrictions.
3. Supporting local civil society
National, community-based, and grassroots organizations are often the first to respond when crises emerge. Strengthening their capacity, resources, and protection is essential to ensuring rapid, effective, and locally grounded humanitarian action.
4. Preserving the independence and neutrality of humanitarian action
Humanitarian work must remain independent of political conflicts and rivalries. The humanitarian space necessary for civil society organizations to fulfill their mission must be respected and protected at all times.
On World Humanitarian Day, BHRD renews its firm commitment to defending the values of human solidarity, human dignity, and fundamental rights. We reaffirm our commitment to working alongside humanitarian actors, civil society organizations, and community initiatives to protect those who serve and support those affected by crises.
Protecting humanitarian workers and enabling them to carry out their work safely and independently is not only a humanitarian obligation—it is an investment in a more just, dignified, and secure future for all.
Brussels for Human Rights and Development (BHRD)
August 19, 2026