discover the icrc

8/3/2019 Discover the ICRC

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DISCOVERTHE ICRC


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Cover photo: Olav Saltbones/Norwegian Red Cross

International Committee o the Red Cross19 Avenue de la Paix1202 Geneva, Switzerland

T + 41 22 734 60 01 F + 41 22 733 20 57E-mail: [email protected] ICRC, September 2005


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CONTENTS

About the ICRC

The ICRC in a nutshell

The ICRC around the world

Legal status

Origins and history

Red Cross and Red Crescent

A global movement

Emblems o humanity

International humanitarian law

The rules o warDevelopment o the law

Weapons preventing the worst

Protection in war

Protection o civilians

Protection o detainees

Restoring amily links

Assistance or conict victimsEconomic security

Water and habitat

Health services

Preventive action

Making the rules known

Cooperation with

National SocietiesWhy cooperation?

Mutual support

Working with others

Relations with other organizations

Resources

Who works or the ICRC?

How the ICRC is nanced

MarkoKokic/Federation


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CarinaAppel/ICRC


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Despite eorts to achieve world peace in

the wake o two world wars, armed conict

remains a prominent eature o our human

landscape. The resort to arms continues to

be a means o settling dierences between

nations, peoples and ethnic groups, with

the accompanying toll o death and

suering.

The International Committee o the Red

Cross (ICRC) was ounded nearly a centuryand a hal ago in recognition o this sad

reality. It seeks to preserve a measure o

humanity in the midst o war. Its guiding

principle is that even in war there are limits:

limits on how warare is conducted and

limits on how combatants behave. The set

o rules that were established with this in

mind and endorsed by nearly every nation

in the world is known as internationalhumanitarian law, o which the Geneva

Conventions are the bedrock.

The ICRCs special role was assigned to it

by States through the various instruments

o humanitarian law. However, while it

maintains a constant dialogue with States,

it insists at all times on its independence.

For, only i it is ree to act independently o

any government or other authority, can the

ICRC serve the true interests o the victims

o conict, which lie at the heart o its

humanitarian mission.

The ollowing pages provide an insight into

this unique organization, its origins, aims

and ideals, how it works, why it works in

a certain way and who, ultimately, are the

beneciaries o its actions.

Te ICRCs mission is to protect

and assist the civilian and military

victims o armed conicts and

internal disturbances on a strictly

neutral and impartial basis.

Its tasks include:

- visits to prisoners o war and

civilian detainees;

- searching or missing persons;

- transmission o messages

between amily members

separated by conict;

- reunication o dispersedamilies;

- provision o ood, water and

medical assistance to civilians

without access to these basic

necessities;

- spreading knowledge o

humanitarian law;

- monitoring compliance with

that law;

- drawing attention to violations,and contributing to the

development o humanitarian

law.

ABOUT THE ICRC

The ICRC in a nutshell


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The ICRC around the world

Although the ICRC is the product o aprivate Swiss initiative, its work and scope

are international. The organization has

delegations and missions in some 80

countries around the world and employs

a sta o over 11,000 people, most o

them nationals o the countries in which itworks. About 800 people work at the ICRCs

headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland,

providing vital support to and supervision

o eld operations, and determining and

implementing institutional policies and

strategies.

ICRC ield delegations may cover one

country or, in the case o regional

delegations, several countries. They carry

out a range o activities, depending onthe situation and the needs in a particular

country. Activities may include:

- protecting and assisting the victims o

existing or emerging armed confict orviolence (civilians, people deprived o

their reedom, dispersed amilies, the

wounded and sick);

- preventive action, cooperation withNational Societies and humanitarian

coordination and diplomacy.

(For details o these activities, see relevant

chapter.)

Delegations also act as important early

warning systems. This enables the ICRC to

respond to needs quickly and eectively

when armed violence or confict erupts.

This map is or inormation purposes only and has no political signicance.


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Legal status

The ICRC is a neutral, impartial and

independent humanitarian organization.

Its mandate to protect and assist the

victims o armed conict has been con-

erred on it by States through the our

Geneva Conventions o 1949 and their

Additional Protocols o 1977 and 2005,

worthy successors to the First Geneva

Convention o 1864.

The ICRCs mandate and legal status set

it apart both rom intergovernmental

agencies, such as United Nations organi-zations, and rom non-governmental

organizations (NGOs). In most o the

countries in which it works, the ICRC has

concluded headquarters agreements with

the authorities. Through these agreements,

which are subject to international law, the

ICRC enjoys the privileges and immunities

usually only granted to intergovernmental

organizations, such as immunity romlegal process, which protects it rom

administrative and judicial proceedings,

and inviolability o its premises, archives

and other documents. Such privileges and

immunities are indispensable or the ICRC

because they guarantee two conditions

essential to its action, namely neutrality

and independence. The organization

has concluded such an agreementwith Switzerland, thus guaranteeing its

independence and reedom o action rom

the Swiss government.

Origins and history

The ICRC owes its origins to the vision and

determination o one man: Henry Dunant.

The date: 24 June 1859. The place: Solerino,

a town in northern Italy. The Austrian and

French armies were locked in bitter battle

and, ater 16 hours o ghting, the ground

was strewn with 40,000 dead and wounded.

That same evening, Dunant, a Swiss citizen,

passed through the area on business. He

was horried by the sight o thousands o

soldiers rom both armies let to suer or

want o medical care. He appealed to the

local people to help him tend the wounded,insisting that soldiers on both sides should

be treated equally.

On his return to Switzerland, Dunant

published A Memory of Solferino, in which

he made two solemn appeals:

- or relie societies to be ormed in peace-

time, with nurses who would be ready tocare or the wounded in wartime;

- or these volunteers, who would be

called upon to assist the army medical

services, to be recognized and protected

through an international agreement.

In 1863, a charitable association known as

the Geneva Society or Public Welare set upa ve-member commission to consider how

Dunants ideas could be made a reality. This

commission made up o Gustave Moynier,

Guillaume-Henri Duour, Louis Appia,

Thodore Maunoir and Dunant himsel

ounded the International Committee or

Relie to the Wounded, which later became

the International Committee o the Red

Cross (ICRC).


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The ve ounders then set about ensuring

that the ideas put orward in Dunants book

would become a reality. In response to their

invitation, 16 States and our philanthropic

institutions sent representatives to the

International Conerence which opened in

Geneva on 26 October 1863. It was at that

Conerence that the distinctive emblem ared cross on a white background, the reverse

o the Swiss national ag was adopted and

the Red Cross came into being.

To ormalize protection o medical services

on the battleeld and to gain international

recognition o the Red Cross and its

ideals, the Swiss government convened a

Diplomatic Conerence in Geneva in 1864.

Representatives o 12 governments took

part and adopted a treaty entitled the

Geneva Convention or the Amelioration

o the Condition o the Wounded in Armies

in the Field, which became the rst treaty

o humanitarian law. Subsequently, urther

conerences were held, extending the basic

law to other categories o victims, such asprisoners o war. In the atermath o the

Second World War, a Diplomatic Conerence

deliberated or our months beore

adopting the our Geneva Conventions

o 1949, which reinorced the protection

o civilians in wartime. These Conventions

were supplemented by three Additional

Protocols, adopted in 1977 and in 2005.

OlavSaltbones/NorwegianRedCross

Camp or Sudanese reugees, Chad.

Since 1863, the red cross has been a

symbol o hope or countless people

aected by armed conict throughout

the world.


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ThierryGassmann/ICRC


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RED CROSS AND RED CRESCENT

A global movement

The International Red Cross and Red

Crescent Movement is present and active

in almost every country and comprises

around 100 million members and

volunteers. It is united and guided by the

seven Fundamental Principles humanity,

impartiality, neutrality, independence,

voluntary service, unity and universality

which provide a universal standard o

reerence or all its members. Red Cross and

Red Crescent activities have one centralpurpose: to prevent and alleviate human

suering, without discrimination, and to

protect human dignity.

The Movement is made up o :

- the International Committee o the Red

Cross (ICRC);

- National Societies;

- the International Federation o Red Cross

and Red Crescent Societies (International

Federation).

The ICRC, the International Federation

and each countrys National Society are

independent organizations. Each has its

own status and exercises no authority over

the others. They meet every two years in the

Council o Delegates and gather every our

years, in principle, with representatives o

the States party to the Geneva Conventions

or an International Conerence o the Red

Cross and Red Crescent.

Fundamental Principles

Te seven Fundamental Principles

o the International Red Cross

and Red Crescent Movement,

which it is the ICRCs duty touphold, were ocially proclaimed

at the 20th International

Conerence o the Red Cross,

held in Vienna in 1.

Tey are:

Humanity

Te International Red Cross and

Red Crescent Movement, born

o a desire to bring assistance

without discrimination to thewounded on the battleeld,

endeavours, in its international

and national capacity, to prevent

and alleviate human sufering

wherever it may be ound. Its

purpose is to protect lie and

health and to ensure respect or

the human being. It promotesmutual understanding, riendship,

cooperation and lasting peace

amongst all peoples.


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Roles and responsibilities

The Statutes o the International Red

Cross and Red Crescent Movement

dene the relationship between the Red

Cross and Red Crescent institutions. The

responsibilities o each o the Movements

components were urther claried and

rened by the Seville Agreement adopted

by the Council o Delegates in 1997. The

Seville Agreement coners on the ICRC

the role o lead agency or international

operations conducted by the Red Cross and

Red Crescent in situations o armed conict

and internal strie, including activities or

displaced people.

The ICRC is responsible or veriying that

uture National Societies meet the criteria

or membership o the Movement and

that they are in a position to conduct

their activities in accordance with the

Fundamental Principles. I so, the ICRC

grants them oicial recognition. The

National Society concerned may thenapply to join the International Federation.

In practice, however, applications are

reviewed jointly by the ICRC and the

International Federation.

Whos who in the Movement

The International Committee o the Red

Cross is the Movements ounding body.

In addition to carrying out operational

activities to protect and assist victims

o armed conict, it is the promoter and

custodian o international humanitarian law.

It is also the guardian o the Fundamental

Principles. In cooperation with the

International Federation, it organizes the

Movements statutory meetings.

National Societies embody the work and

principles o the Movement in more than

180 countries. National Societies act asauxiliaries to the public authorities o their

own countries in the humanitarian eld

and provide a range o services including

disaster relie and health and social

programmes. In wartime, National Societies

assist the aected civilian population and,

where appropriate, support the army

medical services.

Impartiality

It makes no discrimination as to

nationality, race, religious belies,

class or political opinions. It

endeavours to relieve the suferingo individuals, being guided

solely by their needs, and to give

priority to the most urgent cases

o distress.

Neutrality

In order to continue to enjoy the

condence o all, the Movement

may not take sides in hostilities

or engage at any time incontroversies o a political, racial,

religious or ideological nature.

Independence

Te Movement is independent. Te

National Societies, while auxiliaries

in the humanitarian services o their

governments and subject to the lawso their respective countries, must

always maintain their autonomy so

that they may be able at all times to

act in accordance with the principles

o the Movement.


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The International Federation o Red

Cross and Red Crescent Societies works

on the basis o the Fundamental Principles

o the International Red Cross and Red

Crescent Movement to inspire, acilitate

and promote all humanitarian activities

carried out by its member National

Societies to improve the situation o the

most vulnerable people. Founded in 1919,

the International Federation directs and

coordinates international assistance o

the Movement to victims o natural and

technological disasters, to reugees and in

health emergencies. It acts as the ofcialrepresentative o its member societies

in the international ield. It promotes

cooperation between National Societies

and strengthens their capacity to prepare

eectively or disasters and to carry out

health and social programmes.

Te Sudanese Red Crescent is acrucial partner or the ICRC in

delivering assistance to displaced

people in the Darur region o Sudan.

Voluntary service

It is a voluntary relie movement

not prompted in any manner by

desire or gain.

Unity

Tere can be only one Red

Cross or Red Crescent Society

in any one country. It must be

open to all. It must carry on itshumanitarian work throughout its

territory.

Universality

Te International Red Cross and

Red Crescent Movement, in which

all Societies have equal status and

share equal responsibilities andduties in helping each other, is

worldwide.

BorisHeger/ICRC

Doctor treating Colombian reugees

in the Darien region o Panama.

Voluntary service is one o the

Fundamental Principles o the

Movement.

ThierryGassmann/

ICRC


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Emblems o humanity

From the very beginning, the ICRCs

ounders recognized the need or a single,

universal and easily recognizable emblem

amiliar to all. To their mind, the emblem

had to protect not only people wounded

in battle but also those bringing them

aid. It was also to protect all medical units,

including those o the enemy. The idea

was that the mere sight o it would prompt

combatants to show restraint and respect.

The red cross on a white background (the

reverse o the Swiss national ag) was

adopted by the International Conerenceo 1863 (see p. 7) as the distinctive sign

o societies bringing relie to wounded

soldiers (the uture National Societies). A

year later it was recognized by a Diplomatic

Conerence as the distinctive sign o

army medical services and sanctioned by

humanitarian law with the adoption o

the Geneva Convention o 1864. However,

in 1876, the Ottoman Empire decided touse a red crescent instead o the red cross.

Several States ollowed suit and in 1929 the

red crescent in turn was granted ofcial

recognition, along with the Iranian red lion

and sun (not currently in use).

Over the years, the Movement has been

considering the possibility o introducing

changes relating to the use o the emblemin order to tackle specic problems. Some

Societies that wished to join the Movement

were not comortable with either o the

existing emblems. The Magen David Adom,

the Israeli Society, wanted to use its own

symbol the red shield o David whereas

other Societies preered to use both the red

cross and the red crescent. Neither were

possible under the Geneva Conventions

rules. In addition, in some conicts, the use

o the red cross or the red crescent could

have created problems i misinterpreted by

either party.

To solve these problems, the DiplomaticConerence o December 2005 brought

together the States party to the Geneva

Conventions and adopted Additional

Protocol III, creating a new emblem, the

red crystal. This emblem, ree rom any

religious, cultural or political connotations,

gives States and National Societies greater

exibility in the use o the emblems and

puts an end to the question o prolierationo emblems.

The National Societies already using the

red cross or the red crescent can continue

to do so.

Today, all o the 186 National Societies use

the same emblem as the medical services

o the military orces in their country duringconict the so-called protective use.


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Use and misuse o the emblem

Use o the emblem as a protective device

is the visible maniestation o the protection

accorded by the Geneva Conventions

to persons (members o army medical

services, National Society volunteers, ICRC

delegates, etc.), medical units (hospitals,

rst-aid posts, etc.) and means o transport.

Use o the emblem as an indicative

device shows that a person or object

has a connection with the Movement. To

avoid conusion with the emblem used

as a protective device, the red cross, redcrescent and red crystal used or indicative

purposes are smaller in size.

Misuse o the emblem as a protective

device in time o war jeopardizes the

entire protective system established by

humanitarian law.

Misuse o the emblem as an indicative

device undermines its signicance in the

eyes o the public and thus diminishes its

protective power in wartime.

In cases o misuse o the emblem as a

protective device, the ICRCs role is to

remind the belligerents o their duty to

respect the emblem and o the steps to

be taken against those making improper

use o it, since primary responsibility or

respecting the emblem lies with States.

Where the emblem has been misused asan indicative device, the ICRC requests the

National Society concerned to take the

necessary action to stop such practices.

SudaneseRedCrescent

Under the Geneva Conventions,

persons, vehicles and buildings

protected by the red cross, red crescent

and red crystal emblems must be

respected and protected.

MarkoKokic/CICR


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TeunAnthonyVoeten/IC

RC


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How do you dene a conict?

An international armed conict

involves the armed orces o at

least two States.

A non-international armedconict is an armed conrontation

within the territory o one State

between the State armed orces

and organized armed groups, or

between such armed groups.

What is the diference between

international humanitarian law

and human rights law?

International humanitarian law

is very close to human rightslaw, in that both are concerned

with the protection o every

human beings physical and moral

integrity and dignity. However,

given the nature o humanitarian

law to minimize sufering in

armed conict this body o law

contains rules that are much more

specic than those contained

in human rights treaties, suchas rules pertaining to the

means and methods o combat.

Although distinct, human rights

law and humanitarian law are

complementary.

The rules o war

International humanitarian law, also known

as the law o armed conict or the law o

war, is the body o rules that, in wartime,

protects persons who are not or are no

longer participating in the hostilities. It

limits the methods and means o warare.

Its central purpose is to limit and prevent

human suering in times o armed conict.

The rules are to be observed not only by

governments and their armed orces, butalso by armed opposition groups and any

other parties to a conict.

The our Geneva Conventions o 1949 and

their three Additional Protocols o 1977

and 2005 are the principal instruments o

humanitarian law. Other texts include the

1925 Geneva Protocol banning the use

o gas, the 1980 Convention on CertainConventional Weapons and the 1997

Ottawa Convention on the Prohibition o

Anti-Personnel Mines.

The our Geneva Conventions o 1949 are

applicable to international armed conicts.

They stipulate that civilians and people who

are no longer taking an active part in the

hostilities, such as wounded or captured

combatants, must be spared and treated

humanely. They also set out the role the

ICRC plays in alleviating human suering.

In addition, Article 3 common to all our

Conventions authorizes the ICRC to oer itsservices in the event o non-international

armed conlict and accords minimum

protection to the victims o such situations.

Since August 2006, 194 States are party to

the Geneva Conventions.

The three Additional Protocols o 1977 and

2005 supplement the Conventions. Those

o 1977 aim to limit the use o violenceand protect the civilian population, by

strengthening the rules governing the

conduct o hostilities. At the beginning o

2005, 162 States were party to Protocol I and

157 were party to Protocol II. Protocol III

establishes an additional emblem, the red

crystal.

INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW

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Development o the law

As the nature o warare changes, new areas

o humanitarian law need to be explored

and developed. Beginning with the rst

Geneva Convention in 1864, the ICRC

has worked to improve the protection o

victims by promoting the development

and adoption by States o new legal

standards. Its legal experts organize and

participate in meetings and conerences on

humanitarian themes. Through its Advisory

Service on International Humanitarian Law,

the ICRC also encourages States to adopt

legislation to apply humanitarian law atthe national level. ICRC legal experts at

Geneva headquarters and in the eld give

technical assistance to States, or example,

on legislation to prosecute war criminals

and to protect the red cross, red crescent

and red crystal emblems.

The ICRC also seeks ways to improve

implementation o the law. In 2002, itlaunched a project on the reafrmation and

development o international humanitarian

law. As part o the project, the ICRC is

reecting internally on a range o current

and emerging issues relating to that law,

as well as consulting externally on these

topics.

At the request o the international

community, the ICRC has recently

undertaken a worldwide study on customary

international humanitarian law rules. The

study, completed in 2004, identies where

current recognized practice can complete

written law and treaties, particularly those

applicable to non-international armed

conicts.

In addition, the ICRC promotes awareness

o and compliance with the law (see also

Preventive action, p. 41).

The ICRCs operational activities are

complementary to its legal work. Apart

rom providing help to populations in

need, the ICRC, through its presence in the

eld, is in a privileged position to monitor

respect or humanitarian law, to observe

at close hand the problems that victims o

armed conict ace in their daily lives andto initiate the development o new law.

Whom does international

humanitarian law protect?

First Geneva Convention (1)

protects the wounded and sick in

armed orces in the eld.Second Geneva Convention

(1) protects the wounded, sick

and shipwrecked among armed

orces at sea.

Tird Geneva Convention (1)

protects prisoners o war.

Fourth Geneva Convention (1)

protects civilians.

Additional Protocol I (1)strengthens the protection o

victims o international armed

conicts.

Additional Protocol II (1)

strengthens the protection o

victims o non-international

armed conicts.

Additional Protocol III (200)establishes a new emblem, the

red crystal.

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When violations occur...

I the ICRC observes a violation o the rules

o war, it makes a condential approach

to the authorities responsible or the

incident. Where violations are serious,

repeated and established with certainty,

and when condential representations to

the authorities have ailed to improve the

situation, it reserves the right to take a

public stance by denouncing such ailure

to respect humanitarian law, provided

that it deems such publicity to be in the

interests o those aected or threatened by

the violations. Such a step is exceptional.

It is not the ICRCs task to investigate or

prosecute oences. States party to the

Geneva Conventions are duty bound to

introduce into their national legislation

provisions or the repression o violations

o humanitarian law, including the

prosecution or extradition o war criminals.

Oenders may be arraigned either beorethe national courts o the dierent States

or beore an international tribunal. The

1998 Rome Statute o the International

Criminal Court, which entered into orce in

July 2002, paved the way or the creation

o an internationally recognized body to

try perpetrators o war crimes who or

one reason or another have escaped trial

by their national judicial systems. In theCourts rules o procedure, ICRC sta are

uniquely exempt rom giving evidence, or,

i its sta could be called upon as witnesses

in judicial procedures, the organizations

neutrality would be jeopardized, putting at

risk impartial access to the victims o armed

conict.

BorisHeger/ICRC

Guard outside the presidential palace, Lima, Peru. All

soldiers are bound to respect the limits set by international

humanitarian law.


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Weapons preventing the worst

The ICRC is closely involved in ensuring that

weapons in use and under development

conorm to existing rules o humanitarian

law.

Limits on means and methods o

warare

Two aspects o the weapons issue are o

humanitarian concern. First, is a weapon

indiscriminate and thereore more likely

to cause civilian death and injury? And

second, does it inict more suering thanrequired or a given military purpose?

These concerns were central to the recent

worldwide campaign to ban landmines

which culminated in the 1997 Convention

on the Prohibition o the Use, Stockpiling,

Production and Transer o Anti-Personnel

Mines and on their Destruction, more

commonly known as the Ottawa

Convention.

In 2000, ollowing the Kosovo conict,

the ICRC called or a new international

agreement on other explosive remnants

o war (ERW). The cause rapidly gained the

support o NGOs and many governments.

Ater ormal negotiations between States

party to the 1980 Convention on Certain

Conventional Weapons, an international

agreement was concluded which requires

parties to an armed conict to take a

number o specic steps to reduce the

dangers posed by ERW. The new treaty,Protocol V on Explosive Remnants o War,

is an essential tool in eorts to minimize

civilian deaths, injury and suering arising

rom modern warare. More work is needed,

however, to raise awareness o the Protocol

and to ensure that it is widely ratied and

implemented by governments and armed

orces.

Te unregulated prolieration o

weapons and their easy availability

uel armed violence and put the

civilian population at risk.

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The ICRC also concerns itsel with weapons

under development, whose eects have

not yet been seen on the battleeld. The

1990s saw a brie but intense campaign

to bring about the prohibition o blinding

laser weapons, a goal achieved in 1995.

Equally alarming are the voices in the

scientic community that warn that the

current advances in lie sciences and

biotechnology could be put to hostile use.

The ICRC has learnt that such advances,

meant to beneit humanity, could beused perversely to make more eective

biological or chemical weapons. As a result,

in 2002 the ICRC launched a rare public

appeal to governments, military bodies

and the scientic community, reminding

these institutions o their legal and moral

obligations to do everything possible to

prevent poisoning and the deliberate

spread o inectious disease as methods owarare.

Unregulated availability o arms

Another growing concern in humanitarian

circles is the unregulated prolieration o

small military-style weapons. In most o

the conicts in the last decade, death and

injury have resulted less rom the major

conventional weapons, such as missiles,

tanks, aircrat and warships, than rom

small arms and light weapons. Anyone,

even children, can operate them, as they

are light and easy to carry, simple to handle

and require little or no training. Unlikemajor weapon systems, their availability

is subject to ew internationally accepted

norms. Even ater ghting has ended on the

battleeld, armed violence oten persists,

uelled by the easy access to weapons. In

some conict and post-conict situations,

rapid-ire assault riles are easier and

cheaper to obtain than ood.

There is strong evidence to suggest that

the widespread availability o military-style

weapons is having a detrimental impact on

respect or humanitarian law and on the

delivery o assistance to the victims o war,

whom that law seeks to protect. The ICRC

has contributed its expertise to the growing

international discussion on this problem,

highlighting the cost to civilians o theree ow o weapons and ammunition,

and has urged governments to take into

account the recipients likely respect or

humanitarian law when making decisions

on arms transers.

TeunAnthonyVoeten/ICRC

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PROTECTION IN WAR

In its activities to protect people in

situations o armed conict or violence,

the ICRCs mission is to obtain ull respect

or the letter and spirit o international

humanitarian law. It seeks to:

- minimize the dangers to which these

people are exposed;

- prevent and put a stop to the abuses to

which they are subjected;

- draw attention to their rights and maketheir voices heard;

- bring them assistance.

The ICRC does this by remaining close to

the victims o conict and violence and by

maintaining a condential dialogue with

both State and non-State actors.

A diversied strategy

The rst ormal step taken by the ICRC

when a conict breaks out is to remind

the authorities o their responsibilities

and obligations towards the civilian

population, prisoners, and wounded and

sick combatants, giving priority to respect

or their physical integrity and dignity.

Ater carrying out independent surveys,

the ICRC puts orward recommendations

to the authorities or tangible measures

preventive and corrective to improve the

situation o the aected population.

At the same time, the ICRC takes action

o its own accord to respond to the most

urgent needs, notably by:

- providing ood and other basic

necessities;

- evacuating and/or transerring people atrisk;

- restoring and preserving contact

between dispersed amily members and

tracing missing persons.

Where places o detention are concerned,

the ICRC also undertakes programmes

with a longer-term, structural perspective,providing technical and material assistance

to the detaining authorities.

An ICRC and Sri Lankan Red Cross team registers

requests to trace people who went missing during the

tsunami in December 2004.JessicaBarry/ICRC


23/5522

Protection o civilians

Civilians oten endure horriic ordeals

in todays conicts, sometimes as direct

targets. Massacres, hostage-taking, sexual

violence, harassment, expulsion, orced

transer and looting, and the deliberate

denial o access to water, ood and health

care, are some o the practices which spread

terror and suering among civilians.

Humanitarian law is ounded on the

principle o the immunity o the civilian

population. People who are not, or no

longer, taking part in the hostilities mayunder no circumstances be attacked:

they must be spared and protected. In

international armed conicts, the Fourth

Geneva Convention o 1949 and Additional

Protocol I o 1977 contain specic provisions

that protect civilians and civilian property.

In non-international armed conlicts,

the civilian population has the right to

protection by virtue o Article 3 common tothe our Geneva Conventions.

Protection is the mainstay o ICRC

activities, at the heart o its mandate and

o international humanitarian law. The

ICRC maintains a constant presence in

areas where civilians are particularly at risk.

Its delegates keep up a regular dialogue

with all weapon bearers, whether they aremembers o the armed orces, rebel groups,

police orces, paramilitary orces or other

groups taking part in the ghting.

BorisHeger/ICRC

Red Cross messages are a lieline

or amilies who have lost contact

with each other as a result o armed

conict.

In Chechnya, the ICRC distributes

mattresses and household goods to

displaced people who had to leave

behind all their belongings.

22


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Displaced by conict

Armed conlict oten results in large-

scale displacements o civilians, both

across international borders and within

the rontiers o aected countries. In

most cases, these people have had to

leave behind all but a ew o their worldly

possessions. They are obliged to travel

long distances, oten on oot, to seek sae

reuge away rom the ghting. Families are

dispersed, children lose contact with their

parents, and elderly relatives too weak to

undertake such an arduous journey are let

behind to end or themselves. Reugees

and internally displaced people lose theirmeans o generating their own income.

They are thereore dependent, at least in

the rst instance, on the goodwill o their

hosts and on humanitarian agencies or

their survival.

When people are displaced within their

countrys borders as a result o an armed

conict, they orm part o the aectedcivilian population. As such, they are

protected by humanitarian law and benet

rom ICRC protection and assistance

programmes.

Indeed, given the extremely precarious

situation in which many internally displaced

people nd themselves, they orm a large

percentage o the beneciaries o ICRC

activities. Where the national authorities

are unable to do so, the ICRC steps in

to provide or the most urgent needs o

displaced people. In doing so, however, it

keeps in mind that the resources o host

communities may have been stretched to

the limit to accommodate the new arrivals,

thereby rendering them vulnerable too,

and that those who are let behind may

also ace extreme hardship and danger. Itis with reerence to this, the bigger picture,

that the ICRC determines the beneciaries

o its assistance programmes. Vulnerability,

rather than belonging to a particular

category, is the deciding actor.

People who have ed across international

borders are considered reugees and

benet rom protection and assistancerom the Ofce o the United Nations High

Commissioner or Reugees (UNHCR). In

such cases, the ICRC acts only at a subsidiary

level, particularly where reugees are

protected by humanitarian law or when its

presence is required as a specically neutral

and independent intermediary (during

attacks on reugee camps, or example). It

also provides Red Cross message servicesto enable reugees to re-establish contact

with amily members rom whom they have

become separated as a result o an armed

conict (see Restoring amily links, p. 28).

BorisHeger/ICRC

2


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The ICRC believes that it is oten

violations o humanitarian law that cause

displacement in the rst place. In addition

to its operational work on behal o

reugees and displaced people, thereore,

the ICRC strives to disseminate and to

promote respect or humanitarian law so as

to prevent displacements (see Preventive

action, p. 41).

Women and war

The ICRC assists women victims o conict

as part o its broader mandate to protect

and assist all victims o conict. However,

since women do have specic protection,health and assistance needs, the ICRC

ocuses attention on ensuring that these

needs are adequately and appropriately

addressed in all its activities. In particular,

it puts emphasis on the protection which

must be accorded to women and girls,

and to spread awareness among weapon

bearers that sexual violence in all its orms

is prohibited by humanitarian law andshould be vigorously prevented.

Women and girls predominantly experience

armed conict as civilians and as such

are oten exposed to acts o violence,

including:

- death and injury rom indiscriminate

military attacks and the prevalence omines;

- lack o the basic means o survival and

health care;

- limitations on their means to support

themselves and their amilies.

Disappearances, hostage-taking, torture,

imprisonment, orced recruitment into

the armed orces, displacement these all

happen to women and girls, as well as men

and boys.

More specic but not exclusive to

women and girls is the crime o sexual

violence. Since wars began, rape and other

orms o sexual violence have been used

as a means o warare, to humiliate and

subjugate the enemy. Violations such as

rape, enorced prostitution, sexual slavery

and enorced impregnation or enorced

termination o pregnancy are heinousattacks against the lie and the physical and

psychological integrity o the person, and

are recognized as such under humanitarian

law.

Although women are requently portrayed

solely as victims, this does not reect reality.

Women throughout the world are showing

not only that they can be extremely resilient,but also that they can put their ingenuity

and coping skills to ull use in their daily

roles as heads o household, breadwinners

and care providers within their amilies and

communities. Such capacities are helping

to sustain and rebuild communities torn

apart by conict.

Women also take an active part in war, indirect combat as part o a military orce,

and may support their menolk who are

ghting. As combatants captured by the

enemy, women are aorded protection

equal to that o men under humanitarian

law. The law recognizes womens need

or special protection according to their

specic needs. Women ghters, like their

male counterparts, must also be instructedin the law o war, so that they can act in

accordance with the rules.

2

JessicaBarry/ICRC


26/552

Children and war

Although the ICRC acts impartially to

assist all the victims o war and internal

violence according to their needs, it cannot

be denied that the needs o children are

radically dierent rom those o women,

men and the elderly. All too oten children

are helpless, irst-hand witnesses o

atrocities committed against their parents

or other amily members. They are killed,

mutilated, recruited to ght, imprisoned

or otherwise separated rom their amilies.

Cut o rom the environment amiliar to

them, even those who manage to escape

lack any certainty as to their uture and thato their loved ones. They are oten orced to

ee, abandoned to their own devices and

rejected without an identity.

The ICRC registers children who have been

separated rom their parents as a result

o armed conict and searches or their

next-o-kin in order to restore contact; the

children are reunited with their amilies

wherever possible. I the children are too

young or traumatized to give details about

their identity, the ICRC takes a photograph,

which is then circulated widely or displayed

in public in the hope that their relatives will

recognize them.

The ICRC gives children, along with other

civilians, ood aid and other materialassistance, both in emergencies and

over the long term. It also improves their

access to sae water and medical care (see

Assistance or conict victims p. 31).

The Geneva Conventions and their

Additional Protocols give prominence

to the protection o children, both by

means o provisions protecting the civilianpopulation as a whole and provisions that

ocus specically on children. The ICRC has

been involved in the negotiation o other

treaties that provide similar protection,

especially the 1989 Convention on the

Rights o the Child and its 2000 Optional

Protocol on the involvement o children in

armed conict and the 1998 Rome Statute

o the International Criminal Court, Article 8o which considers it a war crime to recruit

children under the age o 15 years or to use

them to participate actively in hostilities.

Children in Kabul have grown up among the debris o war.

2


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Protection o detainees

In international armed conlicts, the

Geneva Conventions recognize the right o

ICRC delegates to visit prisoners o war and

civilian internees. Preventing them rom

carrying out their mission would amount to

a violation o humanitarian law.

In non-international armed conicts and

situations o internal violence, Article 3

common to the our Geneva Conventions

and the Statutes o the Movement

authorize the ICRC to oer its services to

visit detainees, and many governmentsaccept its proposal to do so.

Deprived o reedom: severe

vulnerability

Being deprived o their reedom puts

people in a vulnerable position vis--vis

the detaining authority and within the

prison environment. This vulnerability is

particularly acute in times o armed conictand internal violence, when the excessive

and illegal use o orce is commonplace and

structural deciencies are exacerbated.

The ICRC works to:

- prevent or put an end to disappearances

and summary executions, torture and

ill-treatment;

- restore contact between detainees and

their amilies;

- improve conditions o detention when

necessary and in accordance with the

applicable law.

It does so by carrying out visits to places

o detention. On the basis o its ndings,

it makes condential approaches to the

authorities and, i necessary, provides

material or medical assistance to the

detainees.

During visits, ICRC delegates conduct

private interviews with each detainee. They

note down the detainees details, so that

their cases can be ollowed right up to the

time o their release; the detainees describe

any problems o a humanitarian naturethey may ace.

While reraining rom taking a position as to

the reasons or their arrest or capture, the

ICRC tries to ensure that detainees benet

rom the judicial guarantees to which they

are entitled under humanitarian law.

BorisHeger/ICRC

2


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Conditions or ICRC visits

Beore beginning visits to places o

detention, the ICRC rst submits to the

authorities a set o standard conditions.

Delegates must be allowed to:

- see all detainees alling within the ICRCs

mandate and have access to all places

where they are held;

- interview detainees o their choice

without witnesses;

- draw up, during the visits, lists odetainees within the ICRCs mandate or

receive rom the authorities such lists

which the delegates may veriy and, i

necessary, complete;

- repeat visits to detainees o their choice

as requently as they may eel necessary;

- restore contact between detainees and

amily members;

- provide urgent material and medical

assistance as required.

Anayancy prison, Quibdo, Colombia.Te ICRC interviews all detainees

alling within its mandate in a given

place o detention to check on their

treatment and living conditions.

2


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Restoring amily links

The ICRCs Central Tracing Agency works

to restore contact between dispersed

amily members in all situations o armed

conict or internal violence. Each year,

hundreds o thousands o new cases o

people being sought by their relatives are

opened, whether they concern displaced

people, reugees, detainees or missing

persons. Those who are located are given

the opportunity to send and receive Red

Cross messages and/or are put in contact

with their amilies thanks to the worldwide

network supported by the ICRC andcomprising 186 National Societies.

Link to the outside

In international armed conicts, the ICRCs

Central Tracing Agency ulils the task

assigned to it under humanitarian law

o gathering, processing and passing on

inormation on protected persons, notably

prisoners o war and civilian internees.

For detainees and their amilies, receiving

news o their loved ones is always o huge

importance. In a wide range o contexts,

the ICRC has given prisoners o war,

civilian internees, security detainees and

sometimes even ordinary detainees the

opportunity to communicate with their

relatives.

Canete, Cocahuasi, Peru. Aer 23 years,

rst as a orced recruit o the rebels

and then as a prisoner o the military,

Evita is reunited with her brother

under ICRC auspices.

Jai

meRazuri/AFP

2


30/552

Dispersed amilies

Preservation o the amily unit is a universal

right guaranteed by law. The ICRC does

everything possible to reunite people

separated by conict, by establishing their

whereabouts and putting them back in

touch with their amilies. Special attention

is given to particularly vulnerable groups,

such as children separated rom their

parents or elderly people.

Sometimes, a travel document provided by

the ICRC is the only means or a destitute

person without identity papers to join hisor her amily settled in a third country or to

return to his or her country o origin. The

growing number o reugees and asylum

seekers has meant that the ICRC is called

upon more and more oten to issue travel

documents or people who have received

authorization to settle in a host country.

Missing persons: the right to know

Even ater the guns have allen silent, the

amilies o missing persons continue to

be haunted by the unknown ate o their

loved ones. Are they still alive? Are they

injured or imprisoned? Humanitarian law

obliges all parties to a conict to provide

answers to these questions and recognizes

the right o the amilies to know what

happened. The ICRC assists in this process

by collecting inormation on missing

persons or by putting mechanisms in place

together with the authorities with the aim

o clariying the ate or whereabouts opersons unaccounted or and inorming

their amilies.

At the end o 2001, the ICRC launched a

project on The Missing which aimed to

heighten awareness among governments,

the military and international and national

organizations o the tragedy o people

unaccounted or as a result o armed conictor internal violence, and o the anguish

suered by their amilies. A process o

consultation, drawing on the knowledge o

experts rom all corners o the globe,

culminated in an international conerence

on missing persons and their amilies,

convened by the ICRC in Geneva,

Switzerland, in February 2003. The

conerence brought together 350 partici-pants rom 86 countries, and its

recommendations orm a strong basis or

uture work. The ultimate goals are to

ensure that the authorities and leaders

responsible or solving the problem o

missing persons are held accountable, to

enhance assistance to amilies and to

prevent urther disappearances.

The ICRC is strongly committed to its

project on The Missing. Operational

guidelines are currently being implemented

on the ground by all the ICRC delegations

concerned.

Brcko District, Bosnia and Herzegovina. More than 13 yearsaer he went missing during the conict, the amily o this

young man still do not know whether he is alive or dead.

ICRC

2


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32/551

ASSISTANCE FOR CONFLICT VICTIMS

Modern-day humanitarian emergencies

are characterized by outbreaks o extreme

violence requently directed against

civilians. These oten coincide with or are

the indirect cause o other crises such

as amines, epidemics and economic

upheaval. The combined eects may put

the civilian population in extreme peril,

their coping mechanisms stretched to the

limit, and in dire need o assistance.

The primary aim o ICRC assistance is,

thereore, to protect conict victims livesand health, to ease their plight and to

ensure that the consequences o conict

disease, injury, hunger or exposure to the

elements do not jeopardize their uture.

While emergency assistance saves lives

and mitigates the worst eects o conict,

the ICRC tries always to keep sight o the

ultimate aim o restoring peoples ability to

provide or themselves.

Assistance may take a variety o orms,

depending on the region and the nature

o the crisis. It may include the provision o

ood and/or medicine, but usually builds

on the capacity to deliver essential services,

such as the construction or repair o

water-supply systems or medical acilities

and the training o primary-health-caresta, surgeons and prosthetic/orthotic

technicians.

Hebron, West Bank. Parcels

containing ood and basic necessities

enable destitute amilies to survive

during prolonged periods o ghting.

CarinaAppel/ICRC


33/552

In certain conicts, unlawul tactics may be

used by either side, such as blockades on ood

and other essential goods, obstruction o

water supplies, and deliberate destruction

o crops and inrastructure. In such cases,

beore providing assistance, the ICRC

attempts to prevent or bring an end to

violations by drawing the parties attention

to their responsibilities under international

humanitarian law.

Beore beginning any assistance programme,

the ICRC makes a careul assessment o what

each group needs in the context o its own

environment, so that the aid is appropriate.In addition, the ICRC makes sure that

supplies are distributed in compliance with

the principles o humanity, impartiality and

neutrality (see pp. 911).

In its constant quest to improve the

quality o its action, the ICRC monitors

each programme throughout, adapts it as

the situation evolves and, when it is over,evaluates the lessons learned and ways to

do better next time. The ICRCs evaluation

policy applies to every sphere o its activity,

not just relie operations, so that it can

provide the best response possible to the

multiaceted needs o conict victims.

An ICRC convoy brings desperately

needed supplies to the people o Aceh

suering the dual eects o conict

and natural disaster.


2


34/55

Economic security

Economic security means that a household

is sel-sufcient and can meet its own basic

economic needs. In a conict or crisis, in

which displacement, thet, looting and the

destruction o property and inrastructure

are commonplace, households may no

longer be able to provide or themselves,

thereby becoming dependent on outside

aid.

In its approach to assistance in the context

o an armed conict, the ICRC ocuses on

the dynamics o household economicsand is concerned with both the means o

production to cover all the basic economic

needs o a household and the provision o

resources to meet those needs. Although

some needs are more important than

others ood and water, or instance,

are vital there is too oten a tendency

to orget, in crisis situations, that human

beings need more than just ood to live on. The ICRC thereore takes into account all

o a households basic economic needs,

such as housing, clothing, cooking utensils

and uel.

Depending on the degree o loss o

economic security, the ICRC provides one

o three types o assistance:

- economic support: to protect victims

vital means o production, so that they

can maintain their productive capacity

and economic sel-sufciency at the

household level as ar as possible;

- survival relie: to protect the lives o

conict victims by providing them with

the economic goods essential to theirsurvival when they can no longer obtain

these by their own means;

- economic rehabilitation: to support

conict victims in restoring their means

o production and, where possible,

regaining their sel-sufciency.

BorisHeger/ICRC

Goma, Democratic Republic o the

Congo. Sewing workshops are just

one way o helping people who have

no means o livelihood to regain a

measure o sel-sufciency.


35/55

Halting the downward spiral...

The ICRC takes action the moment the early

signs o a crisis are detected, by reminding

the authorities o the protection due to

civilians under humanitarian law, including

respect or their persons and property. I

the population suers economic problems

through obvious impoverishment and its

means o production are decient or likely

to become inadequate, the ICRC intervenes

by providing economic support.

This could include ood distributions to

support the economy, aid designed todiversiy and intensiy production, or

the protection o livestock by veterinary

services. Where possible, it gives priority

to economic support activities. Other

types o assistance, however, are oten also

essential, because the ICRC is powerless to

prevent the process o impoverishment and

decapitalization generated by a conict.

When this happens, the ICRC providessurvival relie, by delivering essential

goods which can no longer be obtained by

the victims own means o production.

... and turning it upwards again

When things start to improve, the

population requires help to recover and

regain its sel-sufciency so that survival

relie operations and assistance caneventually be phased out. ICRC economic

rehabilitation programmes aim to

restore and reinorce means o production

through a range o activities, including

the distribution o seeds, agricultural

tools and shing tackle, the provision o

veterinary medicine or the rehabilitation

o irrigation systems, to help both resident

and displaced populations meet their ownneeds.

Over and out

In the past, emergency aid and

development programmes were regarded

as distinct and separate spheres, requiring

a dierent kind o response. There is now

increasing acceptance o the interrelation

between the two, leading to a broader

approach to humanitarian assistance. Thus,

when economic rehabilitation activities

are undertaken, a link is created with

development programmes allowing or a

smooth transition rom the emergency to

the development phases. Development

agencies must then take up the baton,investing resources and manpower so as

to reduce the structural vulnerabilities that

can encourage the outbreak o crises.

BorisHeger/ICRC

Darien province, Panama.

Distributions o seeds and agriculturaltools enable reugees to provide or

their own basic needs in the longer

term.


36/55

What is meant by habitat?

Habitat is a term which

designates not merely the

boundaries o the home, but

its relationship with the widerenvironment and the people who

live in it.

Water and habitat

The ICRCs water and habitat programmes

aim to:

- ensure that victims o armed conict have

water or drinking and domestic use;

- to protect the population rom

environmental hazards caused by the

collapse o water and habitat systems.

Even in peacetime, millions o people

throughout the world have diiculty

gaining access to clean drinking water,proper housing and decent sanitation. The

problem is urther compounded in wartime,

when destruction o inrastructure and mass

displacement can expose millions more

to death and disease. In the heat o battle,

water sources may be deliberately targeted;

people may have to leave their homes and

seek water in hostile environments; or the

inrastructure that provided water may bedamaged by the ghting.

A dramatic increase in waterborne and

water-related diseases, such as diarrhoeal

diseases, typhoid and cholera, are the

immediate signs o the breakdown o

these lie-sustaining systems. Further down

the road, water shortages reduce ood

production, aggravate poverty and disease,

spur large migrations and undermine

a States moral authority. As water and

shelter are so essential to survival, ensuring

access to them is a priority or humanitarian

organizations.

In order to provide access to water, improve

hygiene levels and protect the environment,the ICRC carries out a range o activities:

- rehabilitation o water-treatment plants,

distribution networks or gravity water

systems linked to pumping stations;

- construction o wells, harnessing

and protection o water sources and

drainage systems, construction o water-storage containers;

- purication and distribution o drinking

water;

MarcBleich/ICRC

Eastern Hararghe, Ethiopia. An ICRC

water point provides clean water ordrinking and household needs.


37/55

- construction and rehabilitation o

latrines and sewage-treatment systems;

collection and treatment o waste,

including hospital waste;

- renovation and reconstruction o health

acilities and schools;

- work on inrastructure in places o

detention to provide inmates with at

least the minimum water requirements

and ensure decent sanitation and living

conditions;

- setting up and organization o camps or

displaced people;

- introduction o vector-control

programmes, protection o oodstus,

decontamination o living spaces,

reduction o energy consumption, use o

alternative energy.

Health services

The aim o ICRC health programmes is to

ensure that the victims o conict have

access to essential preventive and curative

health care o a universally accepted

standard.

As a direct eect o conict, people can

be killed, injured or displaced, medical

structures destroyed and supply lines

disrupted. At the height o a conict, the

number o people who are wounded, all

prey to inectious disease or are aected

by malnutrition can reach epidemicproportions and quickly outstrip the

capacities o existing local health services.

Meanwhile, as an indirect consequence o

conict, the destruction o health acilities,

shortages o qualied sta and lack o

medical supplies can mean that the more

common health problems go unattended

and basic health services such as antenatal

care, vaccination programmes and electivesurgery all by the wayside. Thereore,

while rapid assistance is needed to attend

to the most urgent needs, support or the

existing health system is essential to ensure

that normal health services are restored or

maintained.

LeighDaynes/BritishRe

dCross

Children are vaccinated against polio in a camp or

displaced people, Darur, Sudan. During conict, regular

immunization programmes are disrupted, leaving the

population vulnerable to communicable diseases.


38/55

The ull spectrum o health careICRC health-related activities range rom

reconstruction or rehabilitation o buildings

to management support, training o

medical sta, epidemiological surveillance,

revitalization o immunization services,

supply o essential medicines and medical

equipment, and the loan o expatriate

surgical/medical teams. To counter the

disruption o primary-health-care servicescaused by conict, the ICRC provides direct

assistance to existing health centres and

district hospitals, as ar as possible with the

active participation o the communities

concerned. In cases in which hunger or even

amine have taken root, intensive eeding

centres supervised by medical sta are set

up or children suering rom malnutrition.

Undernourished children, besides acingdeath rom starvation, are extremely

vulnerable to disease and inection.

War surgery The ICRCs long experience in treating

war casualties has given it considerable

expertise in this ield. ICRC surgeons

train expatriate medical sta who have

volunteered to work or the organization

and are new to the specic skills and

techniques required in the eld. They also

teach local doctors these skills to enable

them to take over and continue to treat thewounded once the ICRC teams have let. At

international level, courses and workshops

are organized each year, such as the H.E.L.P.

courses (Health Emergencies in Large

Populations), which enable the ICRC to

share its knowledge and experience. ICRC

doctors publish manuals on war surgery

and contribute to proessional periodicals.

Baghdad (Irak). A badly injured

12-year-old boy is comorted by his

aunt aer the rest o his amily were

killed in a bombing raid.

BenotSchaefer/ICRC


39/55

In an unsae environment, gaining access

to the wounded and transporting them

to hospital can present considerable

difculties. The ICRC, in partnership with

the local National Society, develops

programmes or pre-hospital rst aid and

the evacuation and transportation o

injured patients.

The ICRC also builds National Societies

capacities to respond to emergency

situations by, or instance, running

irst-aid courses or volunteers, whichcover organization as well as lie-saving

techniques. The ICRC may provide National

Societies with communications equipment

and ambulances to assist them in preparing

or emergencies.

Health in prisons

ICRC medical sta accompany delegates

on their visits to places o detention in

order to assess the inmates health and

detect any consequences o ill-treatment,

whether physical or psychological. The

doctors and nurses who conduct these

visits are well versed in the speciic

problems o prison health, such as hygiene,

epidemiology, nutritional needs and

vitamin deciencies. They identiy priority

public health problems in prisons that

need to be controlled. When the risk o a

health problem in prison is so great thatthe response capacity o the penitentiary

health service is overwhelmed, the ICRC

implements vector-control programmes

to address such problems as tuberculosis,

HIV/AIDS and vitamin deciencies.

Addressing the health problems o prison

inmates also requires the training and

knowledge necessary to make propermedical assessments as to whether

detainees have been the victims o torture

or other orms o cruel, inhuman and

degrading treatment.

Darur, Sudan. Surgery or conict-

related injuries requires specialized

training.ThierryGassmann/ICRC


40/55

To walk and work again

During armed conlict, many people

become disabled either rom direct

causes such as anti-personnel mines or

ERW or rom indirect causes linked to

the collapse o health systems. Injuries

inicted by anti-personnel mines or ERW

can lead to amputation, severe disability

and psychological trauma. Such war

casualties require specialist surgery and

post-operative care in the rst instance

and rehabilitation and psychological

support in the longer term. In many cases,

the authorities do not have the means toprovide such care.

In 1979, the ICRC established a service

or the physical rehabilitation o war

victims. Since then, it has implemented

and/or assisted more than 85 projects in

36 countries. Hundreds o thousands o

people have received prostheses, orthoses,

crutches or wheelchairs, accompanied byphysiotherapy, helping them to regain some

measure o mobility and, in many cases,

economic independence. By providing

inancial, educational and technical

assistance, the ICRC aims to improve the

accessibility o rehabilitation services, to

enhance the quality o such services and to

ensure their long-term unctioning, since

people with conict-related disabilities willneed to have their appliances replaced and

repaired or the rest o their lives.

Not all governments have the means to

sustain these services, as rehabilitation is

still not considered a priority. The lack o

guaranteed long-term support by local

organizations has led to the creation o

the ICRC Special Fund or the Disabled. It

ensures the continuity o programmes ater

the ICRCs withdrawal rom a country and

supports physical rehabilitation centres in

developing countries.

Kuito, Angola. At a limb-tting centre run jointly by the

ICRC and the Ministry o Health, a patient tries out his

new-ound mobility. LenaEskeland/ICRC


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BorisHeger/ICRC


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PREVENTIVE ACTION

Making the rules known

The ICRCs preventive work is designed to

contain the harmul eects o conict and

keep them to a minimum. The very spirit

o international humanitarian law is to use

orce with restraint and in proportion to

the objectives. The ICRC thereore seeks to

promote the whole range o humanitarian

principles so as to prevent or at the very

least to limit the worst excesses o war.

Prevention through communicationIn its prevention programmes, the ICRC

targets in particular those people and

groups who determine the ate o victims

o armed conict or who can obstruct or

acilitate ICRC action. These groups include

armed orces, police, security orces and

other weapon bearers, decision-makers and

opinion-leaders at local and international

levels and, with an eye to the uture,teenagers, students and their teachers.

The strategy behind these activities

comprises three levels:

- awareness-building;

- promotion o humanitarian law through

teaching and training;

- integration o humanitarian law

into ofcial legal, educational and

operational curricula.

The ultimate aim is to inluence peoples

attitudes and behaviour so as to improve

the protection o civilians and other victims

in times o armed conlict, acilitate access

to the victims and improve security or

humanitarian action.


Sevastopol, Ukraine. Adolescents rom Red Cross branches

throughout the country take part in an Exploring

Humanitarian Law competition.

1


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Respect and ensure respect

States have a legal obligation to ensure

that their armed orces are ully versed in

the law o armed conict and universal

humanitarian principles at all levels in the

chain o command and that they apply

them in all situations. The ICRC promotes

the systematic integration o humanitarian

law and principles into military doctrine,

education and training and assists States in

this process.

Since the orces o law and order are oten

called upon to intervene in situations ointernal disturbances and violence, the

ICRC works to ensure that police and

security orces receive systematic training

in human rights and universal humanitarian

principles.

In many o todays armed conicts which

are mostly non-international weapon

bearers who may have little or no trainingare directly involved in the ghting. Recent

examples around the world have shown

how the prolieration o armed groups

has led to appalling abuses o the civilian

population and jeopardized the delivery

o humanitarian assistance. The ICRC

endeavours to establish relations and

build contacts with all the protagonists in a

conict. In this way, it can make the activitiesand working methods o the ICRC and Red

Cross and Red Crescent better known and

thus make it easier to reach the victims and

ensure the saety o humanitarian workers.

Making a diference

Humanitarian action has become the

domain o many organizations, groups

and individuals. As more entities respondto ever-pressing needs or humanitarian

assistance around the world, dialogue

is necessary to prevent duplication and

complication o eorts on the ground.

The ICRC thereore strives to make

decision-makers and opinion-leaders, such

as parliamentarians, members o NGOs and

specialized agencies, aware o its activities

in order to gain their support in ensuring

the implementation o international

humanitarian law. To this end, it engages

in humanitarian diplomacy, which includes

creating and maintaining a network o

contacts with a variety o humanitarian

actors and coordinating activities with

other actors in the eld.

Securing the uture

To reach tomorrows decision-makers and

opinion-leaders, the ICRC targets leading

universities to encourage the inclusion

o humanitarian law in courses oered in

particular by the aculties o law, political

science and journalism. As with the

military, the ICRCs approach is to work with

the authorities concerned, train trainers,produce resource materials and maintain

a network o contacts within the academic

world.

RalMaro/ICRC


44/55

In an attempt to reach all segments o

society and to include humanitarian law

as part o basic education, the ICRC helps

ministries o education, National Societies

and other educational bodies to introduce

humanitarian law and related topics into

secondary-school programmes. The ICRC

has developed an education programme

or young people aged between 13 and 18

years to help them embrace humanitarian

principles in their daily lives and to apply

the principles when assessing events at

home and abroad. The programme, entitledExploring Humanitarian Law, consists o

a resource pack, with 30 hours o learning

activities, translated into 25 languages.

Since its launch in 2001, the programme

has been adopted or is being considered

or adoption in secondary-school curricula

by the authorities o about 90 countries.

Saer steps

The lethal pollution rom mines and ERW

is a legacy o conict that continues to kill

and maim civilians, block access to basic

necessities and hinder reconciliation, oten

or decades ater the last shot has been

red.

In aected countries, the ICRCs preventive

mine-action programmes seek to reduce

the suering o people living in mine/

ERW-contaminated areas. Its programmes

are exible and designed to meet the

requirements o each situation. They mayinclude providing sae access to water and

rewood or to sae play areas or children.

It is also important to raise awareness o

the problem in order to prevent accidents.

This may involve giving inormation about

contaminated local areas or alerting people

at risk to the danger o mines and ERW and

promoting sae behaviour.

Social research on war

To develop new prevention strategies, in

1999 the ICRC launched a programme o

research in collaboration with academic

institutions. The aim o the programme

was to gauge the views o civilians and

combatants on the many acets o war

and build greater respect or the rules that

regulate war. By promoting the results othis research see Roots o behaviour in

war on the ICRC website the ICRC seeks

to build local and international momentum

and expertise regarding preventive

strategies, and strengthen research into

international humanitarian law by major

research and academic establishments,

international and non-governmental

organizations and prevention specialists.

Yemeni schoolgirls learn about basic

humanitarian principles.


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COOPERATION WITH NATIONAL SOCIETIES

Why cooperation?

The purpose o ICRC cooperation activities

is to enhance the capacity o National

Societies to ull their own responsibilities

as Red Cross or Red Crescent institutions

in providing humanitarian services in their

own countries. In particular, the ICRC assists

and supports National Societies in their

activities to:

- provide assistance to victims o armedconict and internal strie (preparedness

and response);

- promote international humanitarian

law and spread knowledge o the

Fundamental Principles, ideals and

activities o the Movement;

- restore contact between dispersedamily members as part o the

worldwide Red Cross and Red Crescent

tracing network.

Mutual support

In countries aected by conlict, the

National Societies and the ICRC work

together to mitigate human suering by

mounting joint assistance operations or

the victims. Where there is armed conict

or internal strie, the ICRC coordinates all

input by the various components o the

Movement, and supports the local National

Societies through various capacity-building

measures, mainly in the elds o operationalmanagement and the development o

human resources.

Because National Societies and the ICRC

share a responsibility to provide assistance

to victims o conict, they need each other

to accomplish this common mission. The

ICRC has developed substantial expertise

in the development and promotion ohumanitarian law and the Fundamental

Principles (see pp. 912), as well as a solid

experience o action in conicts, including

tracing which is a primary responsibility o

any National Society. This specic know-

how is valuable to National Societies, which

can count on the ICRCs support to enhance

their perormance in these areas.

BorisHeger/ICRC

Russian Red Cross volunteers help distribute mattresses to

displaced Chechens in Ingushetia.


47/55

Conversely, the wide network and intimate

knowledge o local conditions which are

provided by the members o National

Societies are essential assets to the ICRC in

the planning and conduct o its operations.

The main areas o ICRC cooperation with

National Societies involve:

- providing technical expertise and

material and nancial assistance to

National Societies to help them develop

their skills, structures and workingrelationships so that they may carry out

their tasks and responsibilities eectively

and efciently;

- advising and supporting National Societies

on compliance with the conditions

or recognition as a Red Cross or Red

Crescent Society, on the adoption

and revision o their statutes and on

other legal matters, especially or the

implementation o or compliance with

humanitarian law;

- promoting the exchange o operational

inormation and coordination o

activities among the Movements

components so as to make the best useo available resources and contribute

to mutually supportive action or

the victims o armed conicts and

internal strie, and the beneciaries o

assistance, in accordance with the Seville

Agreement (see p. 10).

Cooperation activities are carried out in

close consultation and coordination withthe International Federation, which has the

lead role in assisting National Societies in

their overall development endeavours.

CarinaAppel/ICRC

Palestinian Red Crescent volunteersdistribute vouchers provided by

the ICRC to needy amilies, which

they can exchange or ood or other

essential items.


48/55

WORKING WITH OTHERS

Relations with otherorganizations

Over the years, the number o agencies and

organizations working in the humanitarian

sphere has prolierated. While improving

the overall capacity to respond to crises,

this can also lead to conusion, duplication,

competition and misunderstanding.

In order to contribute to a more efcient

unctioning o the humanitarian endea-

vour, the ICRC consults and coordinateswith many international and non-

governmental organizations operating in

the same contexts, while maintaining its

independence. In its humanitarian activities

it attaches a great deal o importance

to ensuring that all such organizations

understand its approach and role so as

to oster harmonious cooperation and

complementarity in the eld.

Eorts have recently been undertaken to

establish a standardized approach and a

code o conduct or humanitarian work.

The ICRC is one o the parties behind the

"Code o Conduct or the International Red

Cross and Red Crescent Movement and

Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)

in Disaster Relie", and supports all eortsaimed at ensuring quality assurance in the

eld.

Representing the victims

The ICRC attends the periodic meetings o

international and regional organizations,

either as an observer or as a guest, and

participates in debates on issues o

humanitarian concern in order to drawattention to the plight o victims and seek

diplomatic support or its humanitarian

activities. For instance, the ICRC has

observer status at the United Nations

General Assembly, cooperates with the UN

Ofce o the Coordinator or Humanitarian

Aairs (OCHA) and, as a Standing Invitee,

attends the meetings o the Inter-Agency

Standing Committee, a coordinating body

which includes the main UN humanitarian

agencies, the International Federation

and NGOs. The ICRC also coordinates its

activities with those o other organizations,as appropriate, including the Ofce o the

United Nations High Commissioner or

Reugees (UNHCR), the United Nations

Childrens Fund (UNICEF), the World Food

Programme (WFP) and the World Health

Organization (WHO).

In addition, the ICRC maintains regular

relations with:

- the European Union (EU);

- the Council o Europe;

- the Organization or Security and

Cooperation in Europe (OSCE);

- the Arican Union (AU);

- the Organization o the Islamic

Conerence (OIC);

- the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM);

- the Organization o American States (OAS);

- the League o Arab States;

- the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).


49/55

Relations with the military

Recent years have seen a closer connection

being orged between military and

humanitarian action, even to the point

where it is no longer clear where one ends

and the other begins. The ICRC has raised

its concerns about these developments

in international orums, or it maintains

that the neutral and independent nature

o humanitarian action and the necessity

o providing protection and assistance to

all victims without discrimination make it

imperative that humanitarian activities be

conducted independently o political andmilitary considerations and objectives. At

the same time, the ICRC believes there is

much scope or constructive interaction

and cooperation between humanitarian

organizations and the military, which can

be enhanced by mutual consultation. It

continues to advocate nonetheless or

a clear distinction to be maintained in

substance and in appearance betweenmilitary and humanitarian operations (see

also Preventive action, p. 41).

Relations with the private sector

With the advent o globalization, the

private sector is playing an increasingly

prominent role

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