All Speaking Out Case Studies > Famine and forced relocations in Ethiopia 1984-1986
The 'Famine and Forced Relocations in Ethiopia 1984-1986' case study describes the constraints, questions and dilemmas faced by MSF during the famine that decimated Ethiopian populations in 1984-1985. This famine triggered an unprecedented humanitarian mobilisation and huge media attention. But the Ethiopian regime at the time also used the international aid as a bait to attract the populations and forcibly resettle them in appalling conditions causing the deaths of tens of thousands Ethiopians.
Questions and dilemmas:
- What should be done when it appear that aid is being used against the population for whom it is intended?
- Could MSF take the risk, by denouncing this drift, of endangering international aid operations in Ethiopia?
- Could MSF take the risk, by denouncing this drift, of jeopardising its own existence and, thus, its other relief activities to populations at risk?