Latest Articles
Back
International Committee of the Red Cross
International Committee of the Red Cross
International Committee of the Red Cross, ICRC, French Comité International de la Croix-Rouge, international non-governmental organization headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, that seeks to aid victims of war and to ensure the observance of humanitarian law by all parties in conflict. The Geneva Society for Public Welfare helped found the International Committee for the Relief of the Wounded and in 1875 it became the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The ICRC is now one component of an outsized network including national Red Cross and Red Crescent societies and therefore the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. (The Red Crescent was adopted in lieu of the Red Cross in Muslim countries.) The governing body of the ICRC is the Committee, consisting of no more than 25 members. All the members are Swiss, partly because of the origins of the Red Cross in Geneva but also to determine neutrality so any countries in need can receive aid. The Committee meets in assembly 10 times annually to make sure that the ICRC fulfills its duties as the promoter of international humanitarian law and because the guardian of the Fundamental Principles of the Red Cross: “humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity, and universality.”
The ICRC acts to assist all victims of war and internal violence, attempting to make sure implementation of humanitarian rules restricting armed violence. Its mission arises from the basic human desire to lay down rule governing the use of force in war and to safeguard the dignity of the weak. With a mandate from the international community to assist victims of war and internal violence and to market compliance with International humanitarian law, the ICRC strives for shielding and assisting the victims of armed conflict and internal violence so as to preserve their physical integrity and their dignity and to enable them to regain their autonomy as quickly as possible.
The Red Cross consists of the International Committee, the League of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and therefore the National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. It visits prisoners in war camps and provides relief supplies, mail and information for their relatives. The League of Red Cross and Red Crescent societies help in providing relief to victims of national disaster and aid in the development of national societies. Being a humanitarian agency, the Red Cross has national affiliates in almost every country within the world. It was established primarily to care for the victims of war but now the organisation is also involved in the task of aiding in the prevention and relief of human suffering.
The ICRC acts in a consultation with all other organisations involved in humanitarian work. It systematically reminds all military and civilian authorities directly involved in armed conflict or internal violence of their obligations under international humanitarian law and the other humanitarian rules by which they are bound. The Committee acts as an intermediary between the parties to armed conflict and promotes dialogue in situations of internal violence, with a view to finding solutions for matters of humanitarian concern.
