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The importance of the International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent to National Societies: fundamental in theory and in practice

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 February 2010

Michael Meyer
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Abstract

The International Conference is based in particular on the long-established National Society auxiliary role and partnership with States. The importance of the Conference is clear from the Movement's Statutes. In practice, not all National Societies have taken full advantage of the opportunities provided by the International Conference for interaction and relationship-building with their own authorities. Practical ways are suggested to help National Societies participate more actively in the Conference and to use it to good benefit before and afterwards. The International Conference itself could increase its relevance by making more of its specific function with respect to international humanitarian law.

Type
International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent
Information
International Review of the Red Cross , Volume 91 , Issue 876: International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent , December 2009 , pp. 713 - 732
Copyright
Copyright © International Committee of the Red Cross 2010

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References

1 References in this article to ‘National Societies’ refer to the recognized National Red Cross and National Red Crescent Societies, and the Israeli National Society, the Magen David Adom. There are presently 186 recognized National Societies, found in every region of the world. There are also a number of unrecognized National Societies, sometimes referred to as ‘National Societies in formation’. The International Conference will be relevant to them as well. As illustrations, the conditions for recognition of National Societies were approved by the International Conference, and as a requirement for recognition by the International Committee of the Red Cross and admission to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, a National Society must agree to abide by the policies, decisions and rules adopted by the International Conference (e.g. see the Constitution of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Article 8(1)(B)(c), and the related Rules of Procedure, Rule 2.2.d).

2 For an account of the foundation of what has become the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, see Pierre Boissier, History of the International Committee of the Red Cross: From Solferino to Tsushima, Henry Dunant Institute, Geneva, 1985, pp. 7–83.

3 Ibid., p. 70. Exact numbers of representatives vary according to author.

4 Article 9 of the Resolutions of the Geneva International Conference might be interpreted in this way. The 1863 Conference was not itself an International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent; the first such International Conference, then called the International Conference of the Red Cross, was held in Paris in 1867.

5 François Bugnion, The International Committee of the Red Cross and the Protection of War Victims, Macmillan, Oxford, 2003, p. 16.

6 The International Committee of the Red Cross has also attended all these International Conferences and following its establishment in 1919, the then League of Red Cross Societies, now the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, has been represented as well.

7 Article 9. The most recent Statutes were adopted by the 25th International Conference of the Red Cross in 1986. These Statutes changed the name of the International Conference from ‘International Conference of the Red Cross’ to ‘International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent’. The Statutes were subsequently amended by the 26th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent in 1995 and by the 29th International Conference in 2006. A copy is available at http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/htmlall/statutes-movement-220506?opendocument (visited 13 October 2009).

8 The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement consists of three components: the recognized National Societies, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

9 Article 1(3). All States are parties to the 1949 Geneva Conventions, which thus enjoy universal acceptance. It also means that all States are entitled to participate in the International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent.

10 Ibid., Article 4(3).

11 In States with a common law legal tradition, and also in some other States, a National Society is often established by legislation referred to as a Red Cross or Red Crescent Act, or Law of Recognition. Examples are the Brunei Red Crescent Society (Incorporation Act) 1983, the Jamaica Red Cross Society Act 1964, and the South African Red Cross Society and Legal Protection of Certain Emblems Act 2007.

12 Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, Article 2(1).

13 Ibid., Article 2(2). This builds upon the Covenant of the League of Nations, Article 25, signed in 1919, and Resolution 55(I) of the United Nations General Assembly, adopted on 19 November 1946.

14 Representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross and of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies also participate in these deliberations.

15 As an example, at the 28th International Conference held in Geneva in 2003, an Agenda for Humanitarian Action was adopted which set out specific and measurable action-oriented goals with respect to four then topical issues: persons missing in connection with armed conflicts and other situations of violence; the human costs of the availability, use and misuse of weapons in armed conflicts; disaster risk reduction and improved disaster preparedness and response mechanisms; reduction in the risk and impact of HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases with regard to vulnerable people. The text was published by the ICRC and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Geneva, 2004, p. 11.

16 At the 30th International Conference, States and National Societies acknowledged the then current and still continuing humanitarian concerns generated by international migration and by violence, in particular in urban settings, and affirmed their commitment to work together and with other organizations to address them: Declaration ‘Together for humanity’, adopted in Resolution 1, also entitled ‘Together for humanity’, Geneva, 2007. The text was published by the ICRC and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Geneva, 2008, p. 73.

17 As an illustration, see the 26th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Resolution 5, ‘Strengthening national capacity to provide humanitarian and development assistance and protection to the most vulnerable’.

18 Article 9(2), Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.

19 As noted earlier in the text, the founding Conference of the Movement in 1863 led to the Diplomatic Conference held in 1864, which adopted what may be considered to be the first treaty of contemporary international humanitarian law, the original Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded in Armies in the Field. National Societies have featured in subsequent international humanitarian law treaties and contributed to their promotion and negotiation. The conditions for recognition of National Societies contain a number of elements related to international humanitarian law. These include official recognition by the legal government of the National Society's country as a voluntary aid society, in the sense that this term is used in the Geneva Conventions, and the stipulation that the Society must be guided in its work by the principles of international humanitarian law (Statutes of the Movement, Article 4). In addition, National Societies have statutory commitments to provide assistance to victims of armed conflicts as provided in the 1949 Geneva Conventions as well as to assist their respective governments in disseminating and implementing international humanitarian law (ibid., Article 3). Recent resolutions have expanded this auxiliary commitment of the Society to its State to include promotion of the law (e.g. see UN General Assembly Resolution 63/125, UN Doc. A/RES/63/125 (2009), preambular paragraph 17).

20 The previous version of the Statutes of the Movement contained somewhat similar wording (Statutes of the International Red Cross, adopted by the 13th International Conference of the Red Cross at The Hague in 1928 and revised at the 18th International Conference at Toronto in 1952, Article 2(3), International Red Cross Handbook, 11th edition, ICRC/League of Red Cross Societies, Geneva, 1971, p. 274). The present text is wider since it includes respect for existing international law.

21 To date, the engagement of the International Conference on the topic of IDRL may be said to rest on its general function to contribute to the achievement of the mission of the Movement (Article 10(1) of the Statutes of the Movement). So far, States have resisted the notion of a need for a general convention on IDRL, and the International Federation is not calling for such a convention. The IDRL programme has shown the existence of legal, administrative and other barriers to effective international disaster relief and recovery assistance. These are barriers to achieving the mission of the Movement, and the 30th International Conference adopted Guidelines to help in addressing them: Resolution 4, ‘Adoption of the Guidelines for the Domestic Facilitation and Regulation of International Disaster Relief and Initial Recovery Assistance’, ICRC/International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Geneva, 2008, p. 88.

22 The amendment procedure is set out in Article 20 of the Statutes and Rule 32 of the Rules of Procedure.

23 In making such a ruling, the International Conference must respect the independence and statutes of the two institutions.

24 Statutes of the Movement, Article 16.

25 A different interval may be decided by the International Conference (Article 11(1)) or by the Standing Commission (Article 11(2)).

26 Rules of Procedure of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, Rule 20. Rule 19 defines consensus.

27 The author estimates that 16–17 working days are required to prepare for the International Conference. This includes co-ordination and preparation of briefs and speaking notes, meetings and dealing with the administrative arrangements. However, it is also possible to devote less time to preparations and still contribute to and benefit from the Conference.

28 Such constraints may also affect a National Society's ability to follow up the decisions of International Conferences.

29 Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, Article 4(3).

30 See, for example, Pictet, Jean, Fundamental Principles of the Red Cross: Commentary, Henry Dunant Institute, Geneva, 1979, p. 63Google Scholar.

31 30th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 26–30 November 2007, Resolution 2, ‘Specific nature of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement in action and partnerships and the role of National Societies as auxiliaries to the public authorities in the humanitarian field’, ICRC/International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Geneva, 2008, p. 78.

32 See Richard Perruchoud, International Responsibilities of National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Henry Dunant Institute, Geneva, 1982.

33 For example, see Statutes of the Movement, Article 15(1); Constitution of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies 2007, Articles 18(2) and 18(4).

34 As at 30 June 2009, 91 States had such Committees or other national bodies on international humanitarian law – see ICRC Advisory Service on International Humanitarian Law, Table of National Committees and other National Bodies on International Humanitarian Law, 30 June 2009, available at http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/table-national-committees (visited 13 October 2009). The formal name of the UK body is the Inter-departmental Committee on International Humanitarian Law. The British Red Cross is the only organization outside government represented on the Committee. This is because of its auxiliary role and its expertise in international humanitarian law.

35 26th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 1995, Resolution 1, ‘International humanitarian law: From law to action – Report on the follow-up to the International Conference for the Protection of War Victims’, operative paragraph 4.

36 This could update the study by Richard Perruchoud, Les Résolutions des Conférences internationales de la Croix-Rouge, Henry Dunant Institute, Geneva, 1979, but also go beyond it to cover other matters, such as the harmony of the proceedings at each International Conference.

37 27th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 1999, ‘Plan of Action for the Years 2000–2003 ’, Final Goal 2.1, paragraph 1(a). The Plan of Action is published in the International Review of the Red Cross, No. 836, 1999, pp. 880–895.

38 Article 2. See the earlier section of this paper, entitled ‘Statutory importance: The International Conference in legal theory’, ‘The general context’, for an explanation.

39 27th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, ‘Plan of Action for the Years 2000–2003 ’, above note 37, Final Goal 2.1, paragraph 1(c).

40 26th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 1995, Resolution 1, ‘International humanitarian law: From law to action – Report on the follow-up to the International Conference for the Protection of War Victims’, operative paragraph 4. Also see 30th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 26–30 November 2007, Resolution 1, ‘Together for humanity’, operative paragraph 8. The Study itself can be found at: Jean-Marie Henckaerts and Louise Doswald-Beck (eds), Customary International Humanitarian Law, 2 Volumes, Volume I: Rules, Volume II: Practice (2 Parts), Cambridge University Press and ICRC, 2005.

41 For details, see Moreillon, Jacques, ‘Suspension of the government delegation of the Republic of South Africa at the Twenty-Fifth International Conference of the Red Cross (Geneva, 1986) – Different perceptions of the same event’, International Review of the Red Cross, Vol. 257, March–April 1987, p. 133CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

42 30th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 2007, Resolution 5, ‘Follow-up to the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding of 28 November 2005 between the Palestine Red Crescent Society and the Magen David Adom in Israel’, ICRC/International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Geneva, 2008, p. 105.

43 The processes for the adoption of the 1997 Ottawa Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction, and for the adoption of the 2008 Oslo Convention on Cluster Munitions are examples of a different approach. The adoption of the Third Additional Protocol to the 1949 Geneva Conventions, relating to the red crystal emblem, was done by vote. However, the process sought to be consensual.

44 As examples, see 26th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 1995, Resolution 2, ‘Protection of the civilian population in period of armed conflict’, and 30th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 26–30 November 2007, Resolution 3, ‘Reaffirmation and implementation of international humanitarian law: Preserving human life and dignity in armed conflict’, ICRC/International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Geneva, 2008, p. 81.

45 28th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 2–6 December 2003, Agenda for Humanitarian Action, ‘Enhancing Protection in Armed Conflicts and other situations of armed violence,’ General objective 1, ICRC/International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Geneva, 2004, pp. 12–15.

46 24th International Conference of the Red Cross, Manila, 1981, Resolution III, ‘Application of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 12 August 1949’, and Resolution IV, ‘Humanitarian activities of the International Committee of the Red Cross for the benefit of victims of armed conflicts’.

47 20th International Conference of the Red Cross, Vienna, 1965, Resolution XXV, ‘Application of the Geneva Conventions by the United Nations emergency forces’, and Resolution XXVIII, ‘Protection of the civilian population against the dangers of indiscriminate warfare’. Resolution III, ‘The Geneva Conventions and the Additional Protocols’, adopted at the 23rd International Conference held in Bucharest in 1977, indicates that the two previous International Conferences had adopted resolutions supporting the negotiations which led to the adoption of the 1977 Additional Protocols to the 1949 Geneva Conventions.

48 1949 Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field, Article 22.

49 1949 Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded, Sick and Shipwrecked of Armed Forces at Sea, Article 35.

50 1949 Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded, Sick and Shipwrecked of Armed Forces at Sea, Article 34.

51 1949 Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, Article 13.

52 1949 Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, Article 27.