Relief Workers Say Changes Threaten Their Neutral Image

Though aid workers strive to appear neutral in conflicts, local accusations of bias and undercover agendas have hampered relief efforts in Iraq, Afghanistan, Darfur, and other war-torn regions, reports Reuters.

Aid workers are usually accused of either being fronts for Western powers or promoting religion, usually Christianity, under the guise of offering relief.

The article notes that workers have faced resistance in every major humanitarian relief effort, dating back centuries. But the consequences today — numerous aid workers have been kidnapped, and some executed, around the world — makes the need to avoid the appearance of bias more crucial than in the past.