EL Statement: The international community must act immediately to stop famine and humanitarian catastrophe in the Horn of Africa

The European Left is extremely concerned about the situation in the Horn of Africa countries. According to international organizations’ assessment, more than 11 million people suffer from hunger. Hundreds of thousands of helpless children, many of whom are orphaned, sick and old people are dying, hopelessly longing for aid. In his recent address UN Secretary-General sounds alarmed. As he said: “The United Nations has been sounding the alert for months”. He called on “the world’s people to help Somalia in this moment of greatest need. To save the lives of the people at risk — the vast majority of them women and children — we need approximately $1.6 billion in aid. So far, international donors have given only half that amount”.

While hundreds of billions of dollars are directed to preserve the current neo-liberal capitalist model, while, despite the crisis, the financial and banking system in many countries generates super profits in billions of dollars, while the number of legal millionaires and billionaires is constantly increasing worldwide, the United Nations are begging for another $ 800 million to save millions of people from starving to death.

It should be admitted that the unprecedented drought may hardly be held the only responsible for the declared famine. Millions suffering from hunger are in fact victims of the global capitalist system, a system in which the race for profits and super profits leads to conflicts, wars, higher food prices, reduced investment in the welfare and human development. The famine is generated by the capitalist system and is a shameful result of the developed countries’ policies towards the African continent and the Third World countries, in general.

The European Left urge European countries to heed the call by UN Secretary General, as well as the calls of many other international humanitarian organizations and to respond immediately to prevent millions of deaths.

The EL calls on all the progressive political forces in Europe to put pressure on their governments to allocate additional funds to the United Nations structures to fight against famine.

We must stop famine, we must mobilize worldwide!