- In full:
- International Movement of the Red Cross and Red Crescent
- Areas Of Involvement:
- war
- natural disaster
- humanitarianism
Red Cross and Red Crescent
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What is the Red Cross and Red Crescent?
The Red Cross and Red Crescent is a worldwide humanitarian network with national groups in almost every country. The Red Cross began in 1863 as the International Committee for the Relief of the Wounded to care for war victims. Later, national Red Cross societies formed to prevent and relieve human suffering through services such as first aid, disaster relief, and health programs.
The Red Cross is the name used in countries under nominally Christian sponsorship, while the Red Crescent is used in Muslim countries. The organization's structure includes the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and the national societies. The ICRC, composed of Swiss citizens, acts as a neutral intermediary during wartime and was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1917 and 1944.
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When and why were these organizations founded?
The Red Cross and Red Crescent is a worldwide humanitarian agency with national affiliates in almost every country. The Red Cross movement began in 1863 with the founding of the International Committee for the Relief of the Wounded (now the International Committee of the Red Cross).
Swiss humanitarian Henri Dunant organized emergency aid at the Battle of Solferino in June 1859, which inspired him to found the organization. Dunant proposed the formation of voluntary relief societies in all countries in his book A Memory of Solferino. The organization spawned national Red Cross societies. The Red Crescent was adopted in Muslim countries in 1906.
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What types of help do they provide during emergencies?
The Red Cross and Red Crescent provide various types of help during emergencies, including but not limited to:
* Providing shelter, food, and health services
* Providing financial assistance, transportation, and medications
* Acting as a liaison between government and insurance agencies
* Providing long-term assistance when other avenues have been exhausted
* Providing relief after natural disasters
* Aiding in the development of national societiesThe Red Cross also offers services such as community assistance to the economically disadvantaged, support for military members and their families, and health and safety education.
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How are the Red Cross and Red Crescent different or similar?
The Red Cross and Red Crescent are part of a global humanitarian network with national groups in almost every country. The Red Cross began in 1863 to assist war victims, and later, national societies formed to ease human suffering. Activities include first aid, disaster relief, and health services.
The Red Cross is used in countries with nominally Christian sponsorship, while the Red Crescent is used in Muslim countries. Both are guided by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and share the same principles of humanity, impartiality, and neutrality.
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How do these organizations operate in different countries?
The Red Cross and Red Crescent are international humanitarian organizations with national affiliates in almost every country. Founded in 1863, the Red Cross aids victims of war, and the prevention and relief of suffering. The Red Crescent is used in Muslim countries.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. Its members are Swiss to maintain neutrality. National societies offer services like first aid and disaster relief. The American Red Cross also collects blood donations and provides community assistance. Each society operates independently within its country, but all adhere to the Fundamental Principles: humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity, and universality.
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What impact has the Red Cross and Red Crescent had on global humanitarian aid?
The Red Cross and Red Crescent is a global humanitarian network with national affiliates in almost every country. It began in 1863 to care for war victims but evolved to prevent and relieve human suffering more broadly.
The Red Cross arose from Henri Dunant's efforts to aid wounded soldiers at the Battle of Solferino in 1859. Dunant proposed forming voluntary relief societies in all countries, leading to the creation of the International Committee for the Relief of the Wounded in 1863.
Today, the Red Cross and Red Crescent network includes the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and national societies. The ICRC, awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1917 and 1944, acts as a neutral intermediary during wartime, visits prisoners, and provides relief. The American Red Cross, founded by Clara Barton in 1881, offers disaster relief, blood donation services, and health and safety education.
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Red Cross and Red Crescent is a humanitarian agency with national affiliates in almost every country in the world. The Red Cross movement began in 1863 with the founding of the International Committee for the Relief of the Wounded. Although the organization (renamed the International Committee of the Red Cross in 1875) was established to care for victims of battle in time of war, later national Red Cross societies were created to aid in the prevention and relief of human suffering generally. Its peacetime activities include first aid, accident prevention, water safety, training of nurses’ aids and mothers’ assistants, and maintenance of maternal and child welfare centers and medical clinics, blood banks, and numerous other services. The Red Cross is the name used in countries under nominally Christian sponsorship, while Red Crescent (adopted on the insistence of the Ottoman Empire in 1906) is the name used in Muslim countries.
The ICRC was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1917 and 1944 and shared a third Nobel Prize for Peace with the League of Red Cross Societies in 1963 (see Winners of the Nobel Prize for Peace).
Origin
The Red Cross arose out of the work of Henri Dunant, a Swiss humanitarian, who, at the Battle of Solferino, in June 1859, organized emergency aid services for Austrian and French wounded. In his book Un Souvenir de Solferino (1862; A Memory of Solferino) he proposed the formation in all countries of voluntary relief societies, and in 1863 the International Committee for the Relief of the Wounded was created. This organization in turn spawned national Red Cross societies.
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The Geneva Convention of August 22, 1864, the first multilateral agreement on the Red Cross, committed signatory governments to care for the wounded of war, whether enemy or friend. Later, this convention was revised, and new conventions were adopted to protect victims of warfare at sea (1907), prisoners of war (1929), and civilians in time of war (1949).
Structure and operations
The worldwide structure of the Red Cross and Red Crescent now consists of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC; Comité International de la Croix-Rouge), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRCRC), and more than 190 national IFRCR members. (In 1919 the League of Red Cross Societies was founded as an umbrella organization to facilitate closer cooperation among the national societies. The organization was renamed the League of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in 1983 and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in 1991.) The governing committee of the ICRC is an independent council consisting of 15 to 25 Swiss nationals with headquarters in Geneva. During military conflicts, the ICRC has acted as an intermediary among belligerents and also among national Red Cross societies. Whenever possible, it has also visited prisoners of war and civilian populations devastated by military attacks or natural disasters. The ICRC provides relief supplies for prisoners of war and information for their relatives.