Latest news with #USAID-funded
The Star
18 hours ago
- Business
- The Star
Fund crunch hits Rohingyas in Bangladesh hard
COX'S BAZAR: A humanitarian crisis in Cox's Bazar Rohingya camps is brewing in the face of funding shortage for the refugees and more arrivals from the conflict-ridden Rakhine state of Myanmar. This year, US$934 million is needed for the 1.5 million people - 1.2 million Rohingya and 300,000 host community members - but only 19 per cent of the funding requirement has materialised. The gap has widened largely thanks to the funding cut by the Trump administration that in February eliminated more than 90 per cent of the USAID-funded foreign aid contracts and US$60 billion in overall US assistance worldwide. The overnight suspension of US funding came as a huge shock to the humanitarian community, The Daily Star has learnt from UN officials. The other donors who committed funding will release it in August or November, but their amounts have also declined. Last year, the total funding received was 68 per cent of the required amount, but this year it may not even reach 50 per cent, said a UN official on the condition of anonymity as he is not authorised to speak with the media. Dozens of projects including health, family planning, nutrition and education, supported by the USAID have been affected since the USAID cuts. For example, data collated by the Cox's Bazar District Family Planning Office says service recipients of oral pills declined to about 10,000 in April from over 20,000 in February, while condom recipients came down to 3,800 from over 6,500. The number of general patients seeking medical treatment in the Rohingya camps declined to 205,000 in April from 372,000 in February. "We are facing serious problems in receiving medical treatment - we no longer receive sufficient medicine," said Badrul Alam, head of Camp 26 in Ukhiya Rohingya camp. In cases of serious illness, the Rohingya have to seek treatment from doctors at their own expense, which is not possible for all refugees, he told The Daily Star on Wednesday (June 4). The latest sector to be hit by the fund cut is education, leaving at risk the future of 230,000 Rohingya children in Cox's Bazar, where about 1.2 million Rohingya have been living since 2017 after fleeing a brutal military crackdown in Rakhine State. On June 2 and 3, hundreds of host community teachers terminated from their jobs in the learning centres of Rohingya camps blocked the Cox's Bazar-Teknaf road, signalling deepening tension between the host community and Rohingya. Rohingya children will face serious safety risks with the closure of learning centres, which worked as protection spaces, said Rohingya rights activist T K Aung Myo. "Our Rohingya children are among the most vulnerable in the world," said Master Mohammad Zubair, chairman of the Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights. For them, education is a beacon of hope during a humanitarian crisis. Through education, they learn discipline and structure. "It is frustrating that the beacon is now going off," he added. The disruptions are taking place at a time when the vulnerable refugee camps were hit hard by the monsoon rains last weekend, damaging 1,400 homes. Communal spaces are being used to temporarily host affected families, said interim UNHCR Representative Juliette Murekeyisoni. However, even before the monsoon, there was not enough space to provide shelter to all, especially as thousands of newly arrived Rohingya have sought asylum here in recent months, she said. Over the last few months, according to a WFP update, some 150,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh and 50,000 more may flee by the year-end, making it challenging for the authorities to provide basic services. With drastic cuts in services in the camps, it is very likely that the Rohingya will be desperate to flee the camps, either to engage in local jobs or take risky journeys to foreign lands, said Rohingya Relief and Repatriation Commissioner (RRRC) Mizanur Rahman. The criminal activities among the Rohingya - including intra-feud, domestic violence and drug peddling - may rise, he said. A UN official based in Cox's Bazar said UNICEF, IOM and UNHCR have reduced to around 500 staff - both local and foreign nationals - following funding cut by the US government, which provides more than 50 per cent of the total Rohingya funding. "We have a food guarantee until October but after that what happens is up in the air. The Rohingya as well as the affected host community remain at serious risk," the official said. Handicapped International, a specialised non-governmental organisation, used to serve the more than 10,000 disabled Rohingya, but their operations are on halt now. "Gender-based violence in the camps is quite high. Services like handling these complaints and providing psychological support are so important for the people who fled genocide, but these services have become thin. We are very worried about what's going to happen in the days to come," said a UN official on the condition of anonymity. Funding cuts have led to some basic services like health and education, which is a violation of human rights, said Mohammad Zubair, chairman of the Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights. The decline of aid is a matter of concern, but more concerning is how efficiently the aid is being used in the management of the Rohingya camps, said Rezaul Karim Chowdhury, executive director of the COAST Foundation. "We have always been demanding that local NGOs be deployed to manage the Rohingya camps, while the UN remains at the policy level. But, we have seen that international aid agencies engaged in the management. This is not cost-effective," he said. The UN and international aid agencies need to have greater collaboration with the local authorities on effective management of the Rohingya camps, said RRRC's Mizanur Rahman. "Now it is more important than ever to restore the basic services for the Rohingya." - The Daily Star/ANN
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Activists say 70-year-old Worcester resident detained at Logan Airport, call for release
Immigrant advocates are planning to hold an "emergency" press conference in Boston on April 30 on behalf of a 70-year-old Worcester woman they say was detained by federal agents at Logan International Airport on April 29. The organization Neighbor to Neighbor identified the woman only by her first name, Ruth. A spokesperson from the group said Ruth was returning from vacation in Zimbabwe with her son. "Ruth has lived in the United States for many years, and is a lawful permanent resident," a statement by Neighbor to Neighbor said. "She has worked for a local Worcester based nonprofit since 2024. She previously worked for a USAID-funded nongovernmental organization in Africa, which focused on public health." Ruth's son, a U.S. citizen, was let through security, but his mother was detained and the son was not given a reason, the spokesperson said. The Telegram & Gazette has reached out to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for more information on the case. Roberto Diaz, executive director of local organization Worcester Interfaith, said he knew about Ruth through her work in local organizations such as the Student Clinic for Immigrant Justice. Several advocacy groups – including the Massachusetts Communities Action Network, Neighbor to Neighbor, Worcester Interfaith, Student Clinic for Immigrant Justice and LUCE Immigrant Justice Network – are planning to hold a press conference at noon outside the John Joseph Moakley Courthouse in Boston to call for her release, calling her a "mother, an elder and community leader." Return to for more on this story. This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Activists say 70-year-old Worcester resident detained at Logan Airport
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘Why should I care about kids with AIDS in Africa?'
I have heard some version of 'Why should I care about kids with AIDS in Africa?' multiple times since the Trump administration announced the dismantling of USAID, a program that spends just 24 cents out of every $100 of gross national income. Sometimes, the statement is even more blunt: 'I don't care about kids with AIDS in Africa.' It shocks me every time. Let's answer the question of why you should care. First and foremost, you should care because these are human beings with worth every bit as great as your own. All major world religions emphasize caring for the poor and treating others as we would like to be treated, but you do not need to be religious to recognize inherent human dignity. You should care because the costs of 'not caring' are paid in human lives. Literally. You should care because walking away from USAID-funded programs is destroying the soft power the U.S. government has spent decades building, allowing one of our nation's greatest threats — China — to take our place. A child in sub-Saharan Africa has the same worth as a child in downtown Salt Lake City, or Moab or St. George. Treating people with dignity starts with recognizing their worth. And we have a moral obligation to reach out and help those who need help. For Christians, Christ teaches in the New Testament: 'For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in. Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.' He then follows up with: 'Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.' (Matt. 25:40.) And when they were not ministered unto, he tells them bluntly, 'Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.' (Matt. 25:45; italics added.) Zakat, the practice of giving to those less fortunate, is one of the Five Pillars of Islam. Muslims donate 2.5% of their annual savings, 10% of their investment net profits and a third of the produce or crops from their agricultural efforts. 'It's an obligation, a must,' Abed Ayoub said in a Deseret News article about joint efforts between LDS Humanitarian Services and Islamic Relief USA. In Judaism, tzedakah is the Hebrew word for charity, 'and a pillar upon which the world stands,' according to the website. The word tzedakah means 'justice' or 'righteousness,' they explain. 'In Jewish thought, giving to people in need is not something extra; it's just the correct, honest thing to do. Our money is not ours. It belongs to God, who has graciously entrusted it to us. It is only right for us to distribute it as He wishes, sharing it with His needy children.' According to the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation, giving (dāna) is an essential Buddhist practice. It is about cultivating generosity, openness and the capacity to embrace others with compassion and love. And before you ask, no, churches cannot replace the work done by church/government partnerships. Even Bill Gates can't fill the gap. With the dismantling of USAID, the real cost is in human lives. Just two examples: HIV/AIDS and starvation. According to the New York Times, earlier this month, the Trump administration dismissed the few remaining health officials who managed programs for more than 500,000 children and more than 600,000 pregnant women with HIV in low-income countries. The Musk/Trump/DOGE/Rubio slashing of foreign aid has derailed the projected end of the AIDS pandemic and could lead to 4 million extra deaths by 2030. New figures show the number of AIDS-related deaths could jump from 6 million to 10 million in the next five years unless funding is reinstated, according to forecasts from the UN Aids agency (UNAIDS). A study in The Lancet released earlier in April estimated that suspending HIV/AIDS relief programs could lead to about 1 million new HIV infections by 2030 and could lead to nearly 500,000 AIDS deaths among children and the orphaning of 2.8 million more. In addition, 600,000 more newborns could be infected with HIV by 2030 — more than double the number originally forecast. The loss of so many babies and children that could have been saved is stunning in its scope. The cost of first-line HIV medications to keep a person alive is less than 12 cents a day. Starvation is a second tragic example. The famine in Sudan, for example, is on par with the Ethiopian famine of 1984, with far less media scrutiny. The sudden loss of funding is exacerbating it. Sudan's civil war, now in its third year, is the world's worst humanitarian crisis in decades, aid groups say. Last year, the United States gave $830 million in emergency aid, the New York Times reports. Within days of USAID funding being slashed, more than 300 soup kitchens run by Emergency Response Rooms in Khartoum, Sudan, were forced to close. In spite of assurances that aid is continuing, aid groups on the ground say the aid has not returned. Nicholas Kristof, columnist for the New York Times, countered Elon Musk's assertion that no lives have been lost due to funding cuts by traveling to Africa to find out for himself. Within days, he already had multiple stories. He is not the only one outraged and dismayed at the apparent willingness to shove programs for the world's poorest 'into the wood chipper,' as Elon Musk posted on X. 'The bludgeoning of PEPFAR and USAID, one of the most eloquent expressions of American values ever created, might be America's most spectacular act of self-sabotage in generations,' the musician Bono, a longtime leader in campaigns against global poverty, told Kristof. In the 1980s, political scientist Joseph Nye Jr. coined the term 'soft power,' defining it as a 'country's ability to influence others without resorting to coercive pressure.' In practice, that process entails countries projecting their values, ideals and culture across borders to foster goodwill and strengthen partnerships through projects that can include feeding the hungry, healing the sick, educating children, and yes, even music and theater programs. Foreign aid, then, has been a deliberate effort of the U.S. government to exert soft power. In the 1930 and 1940s, the government began turning to nonprofit organizations as a non-political, non-partisan way to get into countries governmental entities might not be able to. For example, Albert Einstein helped found the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in the 1930s to assist refugees from Nazi Germany like himself. During the Cold War, the IRC was looking for ways to get behind the Iron Curtain. It distributed a million pounds of butter to East Germans. Humanitarian aid? For sure. And also a generous helping of pro-democracy education. Over the last eight or nine decades, the United States could rightly claim pre-eminence in the soft power space, although China has been increasing its soft power with programs like Belt and Road Initiatives across Africa. Now, with the U.S. walking away from our soft power efforts, China is more than happy to take our place. Literally within days of the current administration announcing drastic cuts to USAID, China was announcing its replacement efforts. Fortune reports, for example, that when the U.S. canceled two aid projects in Cambodia in late February — one to encourage child literacy and another to improve nutrition and development for kids under five — China's aid agency announced funding for programs to achieve almost identical goals just a week later. Charles Kenny, a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development, said, 'It's a diplomatic gift' to China. Another example: The response to the recent 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar. Aid cuts significantly limited the U.S. response, but Chinese and Russian teams were among the first to provide emergency response personnel and key supplies. China has pledged an additional $137 million for ongoing earthquake relief needs. So why should you care about a child in Africa with AIDS? You should care because we have a moral responsibility to care for others. You should care because every child has inherent worth and dignity and is born with the same human potential as any other child. You should care about the global ramifications about flushing decades of work accumulating soft power and influence down the toilet and sending allies and potential allies into the arms of one of our nation's greatest threats. You should care because, again, it is the right thing to do.
Al Jazeera
26-04-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
USAID and the pacification industry in Palestine
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) opened its office in Palestine back in 1994. Its website, which is no longer available, used to boast that since then, it has 'helped four million Palestinians lead healthier and more productive lives'. Now that the agency has been shuttered by US President Donald Trump's administration, it is pertinent to evaluate the claim that USAID was a force for good in the occupied Palestinian territories. Undoubtedly, the shutdown of the agency has affected Palestinians, especially those benefitting from its funding for education and healthcare institutions. Humanitarian provision was also affected, with the World Food Programme, one of the main humanitarian actors in the occupied Palestinian territories, facing major disruptions. While the short-term negative impact is apparent, the utility of USAID and other US funding becomes questionable when put in the larger political context of the Israeli occupation of Palestine. As a researcher, I have been directly and indirectly involved in assessing USAID-funded programmes for years, and I have seen first-hand how they have contributed to maintaining Israeli occupation and colonisation. The US agency was far from 'helping' Palestinians lead better lives, as it claimed. USAID opened its West Bank and Gaza Strip office as part of the broader American effort to lead and shape the political settlement between Palestinians and Israelis initiated by the Oslo Accords of 1994. The so-called 'peace process' promised Palestinians an independent state on the lands occupied by Israel in 1967, with a final agreement supposed to be signed by 1999. Needless to say, such an agreement was never signed, as Israel never intended to conclude peace with the Palestinians and recognise their right to self-determination. Instead, Oslo was used to cover up Israel's relentless colonisation of the occupied Palestinian territories in the rhetoric of peace negotiations. The creation of the Palestinian Authority (PA) as a local governing body tasked with managing civil affairs for Palestinians in designated areas was part of this strategy. While the official Palestinian leadership envisioned the PA as a transitional polity that would administer daily life until an independent state was established, it was ultimately designed and closely overseen by the US to function as a client regime, managing and controlling the occupied population. To that end, the PA was obliged to engage in close coordination with Israeli security forces to suppress any form of resistance in the territories it managed. Its two main security bodies – the Intelligence Service and the Preventive Security – were set up to fulfil this duty. While US intelligence agencies were tasked with supporting and training the Palestinian security apparatus – funnelling millions of dollars to it every year – USAID was tasked with supporting the civilian functions of the PA. Between 1994 and 2018, USAID provided more than $5.2bn in aid to Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. It funded infrastructure, health, and education initiatives, with the aim of winning public support for the peace negotiations. A portion of its funding was funnelled through civil society organisations with two primary objectives: to depoliticise the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and to cultivate a network of civil society actors who would promote this agenda. The depoliticisation framework treated the Palestinian issue as an economic and humanitarian matter. This approach addressed Palestinian economic and social problems in isolation — detached from their primary cause: Israeli occupation. It also sought to delegitimise Palestinian resistance by portraying it as a source of instability and chaos rather than a political response to occupation. To distribute its funding, USAID established a complex system of background checks, alongside an Orwellian set of conditions. The vetting extended beyond the individual to their extended family, the name of the place, and even the cultural context in which the funds would be used — none of which could be associated with resistance. In this context, it is hardly surprising that USAID programmes often failed to improve the lives of ordinary Palestinians. A lot of USAID funding went into initiatives that sought to normalise Israeli colonisation by seeking to establish connections between Palestinians and Israelis. The premise was that the two people 'can learn to live together', which of course completely ignored the realities of apartheid and occupation. One of the USAID-funded programmes I assessed was the Conflict Management and Mitigation (CMM) Program, promoted under USAID's People-to-People Partnership framework. By 2018, CMM had allocated over $230m to different initiatives and was set to distribute another $250m by 2026. The programme included projects targeting bereaved parents, farmers, and students to promote peacebuilding. One such project sought to foster cooperation between Palestinian and Israeli farmers through shared farming experiences. During one focus group discussion, I spoke to a Palestinian farmer who explained that Palestinian olive oil production has been stagnating due to the Israeli occupation regime that restricted Palestinian farmers' access to water and, in some cases, to their land. 'These programmes,' he said, 'don't talk about these issues.' When I asked why he participated, he explained that the project enabled him to obtain an Israeli travel permit — allowing him to work on Israeli farms and earn an income to survive. The absurdity of this dynamic was striking: on paper, the programme spoke of fostering productive relationships between Palestinians and Israelis, building a shared, peaceful future where farmers become friends. In reality, however, Palestinian farmers signed so they could a travel permit and work on Israeli farms — many of which were established on confiscated Palestinian land. Participation in the programme did not resolve any of the problems the Palestinian farmers faced in olive farming – i.e., Israeli occupation policies. Another USAID-funded programme I studied, Seeds of Peace, had the mission to bring together young people from conflict regions who had the potential to become future leaders in their countries. The programme's central activity was a youth summer camp in an affluent area in the US state of Maine, where participants engaged in dialogue and leadership training. The two largest participant groups were Israelis and Palestinians. While the Israeli Ministry of Education was responsible for selecting Israeli participants, the Seeds of Peace office in Ramallah oversaw the recruitment of Palestinian participants. Each participant benefitted from a heavily subsidised programme, with costs reaching up to $8,000 per person. A closer look at participant lists over the years revealed a striking pattern: the sons and daughters of PA leaders and affluent families frequently appeared. Curious about this pattern, I once asked a programme officer about it. The response was revealing: 'In Palestinian society, leadership often passes to the children of high-ranking officials.' This meant that the organisation's —and by extension, the US's – vision of political leadership in Palestine assumed that power in Palestinian politics is hereditary and therefore, US initiatives should focus on the sons and daughters of the current elite. Seeds of Peace was by far not the only programme that served to support PA cadres and their families. Some relatives of high-ranking officials have received preferential treatment in securing lucrative USAID contracts; others have led nonprofit organisations funded by the agency. USAID has also been involved indirectly in the political scene in Palestine by supporting political actors favoured by Washington. Between 2004 and 2006, it implemented an expansive democracy promotion programme in the Palestinian territories in the lead-up to the 2006 legislative elections. While there is no direct evidence of financial support for specific candidates or party lists, observers have noted that civil society organisations (CSOs) linked to Fatah or the Third Way candidates were recipients of USAID funding. In some cases, this support was channeled through organisations operating in unrelated sectors. Despite substantial funding and political support, these groups failed to secure enough seats to prevent Hamas's electoral victory. After Hamas took control of Gaza, USAID continued supporting Palestinian CSOs, in some cases dramatically increasing their funding. USAID also supported the police force under the PA through rule of law programmes, although the bulk of funding for the PA's repressive security apparatus has come through the CIA and the International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement (INCLE) of the US Department of State. A more recent and stark example of problematic USAID involvement is the malfunctioning pier constructed by the US military in 2024 to facilitate aid delivery into Gaza, at a cost of $230m. The project was promoted as a humanitarian initiative and USAID was one of the organisations tasked with distributing the trickle of aid that came through it. In reality, the pier served as a public relations stunt by the administration of former US President Joe Biden to obscure US complicity in Israel's blockade of Gaza. It was also used by the Israeli military in an operation that resulted in the killing of more than 200 Palestinians, raising serious questions about the militarisation and misuse of aid infrastructure. The pier farce is a good illustration of the US approach to providing aid to the Palestinians: it was never done in their best interest. It is true that some impoverished Palestinians may be affected by the shutdown of USAID operations in the West Bank and Gaza. However, it is unlikely to decisively alter the situation on the ground. The cutoff of aid will have a more dramatic impact on the US strategy of leveraging Palestinian civil society organisations to promote a pacification agenda and perpetuate empty rhetoric about peace. In this regard, the shuttering of USAID could give an opportunity for the Palestinian civil society to reconsider its engagement with US government donors in light of its moral obligations to the Palestinian people. Millions poured into pacification clearly did not work; it is time for a new approach that actually serves the interests of the Palestinians. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial stance.
The Star
24-04-2025
- Health
- The Star
A deepening crisis as funding vanishes
IN Kenya's largest and poorest county, the despair of a beleaguered hospital director is palpable as he explains that the dismantling of American-funded aid means his facility will run out of USAID drugs next month. 'From then on, I don't know,' Ekiru Kidalio said, worried about the lack of treatment for measles and HIV among other things. Northernmost Turkana county borders Ethiopia, South Sudan and Uganda and is home to just under a million people, according to a 2019 census, a third of them refugees, many dependent on foreign assistance. US President Donald Trump's administration has announced dramatic cuts to USAID whose annual budget was close to US$43bil, more than 40% of the world's humanitarian aid. The decisions, taken thousands of kilometres away in Washington, are already being felt in Turkana's Lodwar County Referral Hospital, Kidalio, its acting director, said. USAID employed 64 staff, including nurses and clinical officers, out of around 400 employees at the hospital. 'All those workers were laid off,' he said. 'Everything was stopped... and then the commodities (drugs) were not received,' Kidalio added, voicing particular concern over shortages of measles vaccines. Kidalio said he was 'not aware' of any plans by the Kenyan government to tackle the shortfall. The local governor publicly urged the restoration of USAID-funded programmes when US charge d'affaires Marc Dillard visited recently. The destabilising shift has also created a lot of concern in the dusty town, dominated by UN-emblazoned white landcruisers and signs urging an end to gender-based violence or promoting aid groups. Members of the pharmacology department taking inventory of the last boxes of drugs delivered by USAID in a storeroom at Lodwar County Referral Hospital in Lodwar, Kenya. — AFP 'There is a lot of worry because the United States has ended their support,' said resident Lydia Muya, 32. The mother-of-three said residents – in a region where roughly three-quarters of the population live below the poverty line, according to 2021 government statistics – were particularly concerned about their access to medication. 'We see that is now a very big risk to us, because we depend on those medicines, so most of the people will suffer,' said Muya. 'It is difficult.' The picture is increasingly grim in Kakuma refugee camp, which hosts more than 300,000 people mostly from South Sudan, Somalia, Burundi and Rwanda. Protests broke out last month after news that rations, already lowered last year, would be further reduced because of the cuts to US foreign aid spending. 'It was tense,' said one humanitarian worker, based in Kakuma for almost five years, who spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not permitted to speak to the media. When asked if supplies were arriving, his response was blunt: 'No. With what money? No funding, no stuff.' 'It's operating on hand-to-mouth basis on this point,' he added. He estimated as much as 40% of the workforce had already been laid off as a result of the US cuts. The situation could still worsen. The World Food Programme, which supports just under 200,000 Kakuma refugees, said they had cut rations, delivered as food and cash, to 40% of their previous level. A mother-of-four, who had lived in the camp for almost two decades, said she was worried. 'How many days will I eat? The food can end so fast,' she said, asking to remain anonymous as she was unsure if she was allowed to speak to journalists. She is also worried about the coming rainy season when malaria cases soar. 'If you go to the hospital now, there is no medicine; they just check you. 'Trump has stopped everything, and it's closed now. There is nothing coming in and nothing coming out,' she said. Aid workers privately say that the situation is not just down to the US cuts and point to a lack of planning by NGOs. 'The camp has been managed as an emergency, so they were not preparing people' to become less dependent on aid, a second aid worker in Kakuma said. 'If refugees were treated like people not in an emergency set-up anymore... these fund (shortfalls) could not affect them,' he said, suggesting more should have been done on longer-term programmes. The first aid worker also voiced his frustration, saying budgets were eaten up by operational costs such as staffing overheads, transport and bureaucracy. 'The aid, the majority of it goes to the operational bit of it, not the actual work,' he said. 'It's madness.' Like other aid workers, he worries their programme sometimes creates dependency without offering a future. 'As a person who has worked in multiple areas, sometimes you wonder if you are really helping or if you are enabling,' he said. — AFP
