Juba, South Sudan
March 15, 2022 —- Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), also known as “Doctors without Borders”, said it wishes to dissociate from a Sudanese organization that holds the same name.
In a statement seen by Nyamilepedia on Monday, the internationally renowned MSF said there is another entity in Sudan, who according to Sudanese media reports, has issued a public statement in which it denounced the arrest of a health ministry doctor in the Jebel Marra region in South Darfur State.
“We stand in no relation to the NGO, their public statements, or any further content of the related media articles,” MSF said in a statement.
“This is not the first time that MSF’s name – which is under international and legal trademark protection – has been used erroneously to reflect the statements of another different organization, and we have engaged with the concerned Sudanese officials on multiple occasions to rectify and assert our independent position.” MSF added.
According to the statement, MSF, is an international, independent, medical humanitarian organization founded in 1971 that delivers emergency aid to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, natural disasters and exclusion from medical care – irrespective of race, religion, creed or political conviction.
In its statement, MSF emphasized that the values of neutral humanitarian intervention are what they represent in MSF’s identification and trademarks.
The international health NGO said it is essential that MSF ensures that none of its trademarks are being misused or used without authorization, and to eliminate any risk of confusion between organizations and other groups with the same or similar names.
“MSF calls on the Sudanese authorities to urgently address this important issue to ensure that future misrepresentation of MSF is avoided,” the statement further appealed.
MSF has been present in Sudan since 1978 providing humanitarian and medical care in Blue Nile, Khartoum, Gedaref, Kassala, East Darfur, Central Darfur, West Darfur, and South Darfur states.
