...The Red Cross idea was born in 1859, when Henry Dunant, a young Swiss from Geneva, came upon the scene of the bloody battle of Solferino in Northern Italy, fight between the armies of imperial Austria and the France-Sardinian alliance, about 40,000 laid dead or dying on the battlefield and the wounded were without medical attention. Henry Dunant organized nearby people of Castiglione and Solferino-travellers, priests, housewives, available to provide the wounded with food and First Aid. In 1862 he published the book A Memory of Solferino, in which he described the horror of the fight and condition of the thousands of wounded left without proper care. Dunant called for the creation of national relief societies, an idea which eventually led to the formation of the Red Cross. |Name : |Jean Henri Dunant | |Born : |May 8, 1828(1828-05 08)Geneva, Switzerland | |Died: |October 30, 1910(1910-10-30) (aged 82) | | |Heiden, Switzerland | |Nationalit: |Swiss | |Awards: |Nobel Peace Prize (1901) ...
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...The International Committee of the Red Cross Managing Across Cultures Case study Reference no 408-061-1 This case was written by Sowon Kim and Professor Susan Schneider, HEC-University of Geneva. It is intended to be used as the basis for class discussion rather than to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a management situation. The case was compiled from published sources. © 2008, HEC-University of Geneva. No part of this publication may be copied, stored, transmitted, reproduced or distributed in any form or medium whatsoever without the permission of the copyright owner. ecch the case for learning Distributed by ecch, UK and USA www.ecch.com All rights reserved Printed in UK and USA North America t +1 781 239 5884 f +1 781 239 5885 e ecchusa@ecch.com Rest of the world t +44 (0)1234 750903 f +44 (0)1234 751125 e ecch@ecch.com 408-061-1 THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS: Managing Across Cultures This case was written by Sowon Kim, Ph.D. candidate, and Susan Schneider, Chaired Professor of Human Resources Management at HEC – University of Geneva. The case was made possible through the generous cooperation of the International Committee of the Red Cross. The case is intended as a basis for class discussion rather than to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a management situation. © 2008 HEC – University of Geneva. All rights reserved. No part of this [publication may be copied, stored...
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...Intеrnаtiоnаl Соmmittее of Тhе Red Сrоss ICRC Culture and New Strategies Name Institution Lecturer Date International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is a multinational institution based on humanitarian factors established with the main objective being availing humanitarian aid to victims of war and other calamities (Kim & Schneider 2009). ICRC basically known as Red Cross is a an organization established and focused to deliver humanitarian services in times of both natural disasters such as floods, droughts, storms and earthquakes as well as in events of human made disasters such as wars, terrorism and other complex situations that require emergency reaction towards life-saving assistance. Formerly, ICRC was known as the International Committee for the Relief to the Wounded in Time of War which was founded by Dunant and four others in 1863 after the Swiss business man witnessed how the Italian Unification War left thousands suffering and i8n need of medical services. The organization was formed in 1864 with the origin from the Red Cross and the Red Crescent movements. The body was formed and established in the Swiss land (Switzerland) so as to be a custodian of the International Humanitarian Law. The ICRC has its headquarters in Geneva in Switzerland (Kim & Schneider 2009). Through independency, impartiality and neutrality, ICRC slowly became an international organization now with...
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...International Committee of the Red Cross An analysis of culture July 9, 2011 OL 615 Leadership Across Boundaries Quinnipiac University In order to understand the culture of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), one must first examine its history. The ICRC was formed in 1863 by Swiss businessman Henri Danant who witnessed the carnage of war and vowed to limit future sufferers of war. The two strategies he proposed, the formation of national relief societies and the development of an international convention to protect the sick and wounded in combat (Deresky, 2011) remain fundamental to the ICRC to this day. Coupled with Swiss values such as neutrality, independence, discretion and humanism, the ICRC has become a symbol of hope and humanity since then. As a multinational, humanitarian organization, the ICRC is facing challenges in many areas. In this analysis, we will explore these challenges, venture to answer the question of whether the ICRC’s culture helps or hinders its evolving strategies, and discuss the implications of these challenges on Human Resource Management. The mission of the ICRC is that it is “an impartial, neutral and independent organization whose exclusively humanitarian mission is to protect the lives and dignity of victims of war and internal violence and to provide them with assistance. It directs and coordinates the international relief activities conducted by the Movement in situations of conflict. It also endeavors to prevent...
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...prepare for it with a clear head. At a time when uncertainty is becoming increasingly widespread, it is essential for us to try and understand what is happening and, above all, to learn from today so that we can function better tomorrow. Eighteen months ago, the ICRC launched its Avenir project, which aims to analyse contemporary humanitarian action and to gain a fresh perspective for its future. In so doing, the ICRC committed itself to a process of change rendered necessary by the many challenges which arose from the extraordinarily turbulent period of history that started in 1989. Operational difficulties related to these upheavals and the tragedies that befell the ICRC in Burundi and Chechnya in June and December 1996, respectively, made it all the more urgent to set that process in motion. In order to define the organization’s future over the coming five to ten years the ICRC embarked on an extensive exercise, mobilizing more than 200 staff members at headquarters and in the field, the Group of International Advisers, various independent experts, and representatives of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. By mandate of the Assembly, which is the ICRC’s supreme decision-making body, a steering committee was set up to oversee the first part of the exercise which, to ensure progressive consolidation, was carried out in three separate stages. The first step was to create a number of working groups, each covering a specific subject, at headquarters and in the field...
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...iTHE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS (ICRC): MANAGING ACROSS CULTURE ‘We were an orgn made up of Swiss generalists. We are becoming a multicultural and professional enterprise.” 1. INTRODUCTION Dr. Jacques Stroun, M.D. – (1999) Director of Human Resources & Finance (before Head of Detention Division, Deputy Director of Operations) ICRC – provide humanitarian relief, Humanitarian ‘Multinational’ Organisation Home base: Geneva, Switzerland Orgn Values – Neutrality, Independence, Discretion & Humanism Total Workforce – (2008) over 14,000 over 100 nationalities Until recently – ICRC is very Swiss , very Genevoise Expatriate – open to all nationalities but 93% is westerners (1992) Changing expatriate composition – expatriates number increasing – Africa, Asia & Latin America HR Policy – recruitment from Geneva – sent to field with ‘learning by doing’, operate under sense of danger, meeting immediate challenges, focus on short term, quickly develops and reinforces team and team loyalties, rotation every 12 months, no formal training, no continuity for developing people, Career - little career planning, career developed through interpersonal networks & driven by opportunities, most recruits stayed for 2 to 3 years, no management development, those remain and reach top of HQ –mostly Swiss male (old school boys club) CURRENT CHALLENGES – greater diversity in mgmt ranks – more professionals, foreigners and women. NEW STRATEGIC PLAN (2007 -2010)...
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...Understanding Red Cross’ Past, World Efforts, and Relief Programs in Southeast Asia Our world is in continual turmoil, wars, border disputes, genocides, natural disasters and many more scar the globe annually. One can barely fathom all the problems that our world faces; we cannot prevent everything that can happen. However, there are many men and women through out the world that risk their lives daily in order to help those that cannot help themselves. These are the men and women of the Red Cross and Red Crescent society, who devote their time, sources, and at times their whole lives to help others. Red Cross has been around for many decades and has provided relief for many situations throughout the world; the most profound being for natural and man-made disasters through out the world. The Red Cross was created in 1863 by Henry Dunant who had watched a bloody battle ensue between armies of imperial Austria and the Franco-Sardinian alliance in Solferino, Italy. As over 4000 men lay dead, wounded or dying lacking much needed medical assistance, Dunant organized local people to bind the soldiers' wounds and to feed and comfort them. He called for the creation of neutral relief societies that would tend the soldiers and the people affected by wars paving the way for the future Geneva Convention. Thus in 1863 the idea was finalized and following year, 12 governments adopted the first Geneva Convention; a milestone in the history of humanity, offering care for the wounded, and...
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...intergovernmental negotiated decisions by the member states. Institutions of the EU include the European Commission, the Council of the European Union, the European Council, the Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Central Bank, the Court of Auditors, and the European Parliament. The European Parliament is elected every five years by EU citizens. Universal Declaration of Human Rights: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a declaration adopted by the United Nations government on the 10th of December 1948. The declaration arose after the Second World War and was the first document that expressed that humans are entitled to within their lives. The declaration consisted of 30 articles which have been elaborated by international treaties, regional human rights instruments, national constitutions, and other laws. Human Rights Act 1998: The Human Rights Act 1998 is an Act of Parliament of the United...
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...The American Red Cross is a non-profit organization that was created to assist people in time of need regardless nationality, race religious beliefs, class or political opinions. This national society has a long rich history and is one of the most identifiable humanitarian organizations in the nation. The mission of the American Red Cross is to alleviate and prevent human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors. It promotes mutual understanding, friendship, cooperation and lasting peace among all peoples. The programs are founded on principles of Humanity, Impartiality, Neutrality, Independence, Voluntary Service, Unity and Universality. The American Red Cross was created in 1881 and is part of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and is one of more than 145 national societies that make up the League of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. The ICRC paved the way for the American Red Cross when Henry Dunant, a Swiss businessman, authored A Memory of Solferino in 1862, in which he described what he had seen on an Italian battlefield in 1859 – over 40,000 troops either killed or wounded, left unattended. In 1863, his memoir encouraged others to create the ICRC, which adopted the iconic red cross on a white background, the reverse of the Swiss flag. Shortly thereafter during the U.S. Civil War, Clara Barton, a former school teacher and government worker from Massachusetts, entered the battlefields...
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...up with challenges resulting from the rapidness of the advancement of contemporary military technologies. Moreover, recent technological advances raise the prospect of upheavals in practice so fundamental that they challenge assumptions underlying long-established international laws of war.3 This is because advances in technology have dramatically affected the weapons and tactics of future armed conflict, the “places” where conflicts are fought, the “actors” by whom they are fought, and the “means and methods” by which they are fought.4 These changes stress the fundamental principles of the LOAC, thus undermining its ability to regulate the conduct of hostilities; namely, by posing challenges to the principles of distinction, proportionality, military necessity and unnecessary suffering. This essay aims to assess the impact technology has had upon the LOACs ability to regulate the 1 Dr. Jakob Kellenberger, 'International Humanitarian Law and New Weapon...
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...Horst Seibt COMPENDIUM OF CASE STUDIES OF INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW Horst Seibt Legal expert, German Red Cross COMPENDIUM OF CASE STUDIES OF INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW Translated and adapted from German by the International Committee of the Red Cross International Committee of the Red Cross 19 Avenue de la Paix 1202 Geneva, Switzerland T +41 22 734 6001 F +41 22 733 2057 E-mail: icrc.gva@icrc.org www.icrc.org Original German title: Es begann in Solferino ISBN 2-88145-058-X # International Committee of the Red Cross Geneva 1994 FOREWORD The ICRC takes pleasure in presenting this compendium of case studies of International Humanitarian Law (IHL), a collection of some 60 cases in which IHL is applicable, taken from a work entitled Es begann in Solferino by Mr. Horst Seibt, IHL expert, of the German Red Cross. With his kind permission, the ICRC has translated it and adapted it to the general plan of one of its recent publications, Basic Rules of the Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols. The analysis of case studies is (if I may be allowed the metaphor) a sort of obstacle race over IHL territory. It is the rider who, on completing his circuit faultlessly, realizes the majesty and beauty of horsemanship. And it is by overcoming all the difficulties of these cases that the importance of IHL, and its applicability to present conditions, will be realized and IHL better understood. The cases are admittedly difficult, but they can be an...
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...Drone strikes under International Humanitarian Law Feb 2, 2014 Aaron Mirza If there is an armed conflict, the legality of any drone strike must then be evaluated in accordance with IHL, including particularly the fundamental principles of distinction, proportionality, humanity, and military necessity. Distinction is particularly challenging in Federally Administered Tribal Areas, because fighters regularly intermingle with civilians, engage in routine activities and do not wear uniforms. Nonetheless, militaries engaged in an armed conflict must always attempt to distinguish between legitmate and illegitimate targets for an attack. Generally, “the civilian population as such, as well as individuals civilians, shall not be the object of attack.” Civilians lose this protection when they “take a direct part in hostilities.” Under the formulation of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) of what constitutes direct participation in hostilities, the act committed must adversely and directly affect the opposing party in a concrete manner or lead to the loss of life or property as part of a campaign in support of one party to a conflict. This definition adopts an approach focused on specific hostile acts of a certain magnitude rather than organizational membership or more indirect forms of support. The ICRC has further distinguished between civilians who participated in specific acts and those who maintain a continuous combatant function (CCF) by virtue of involvement...
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...Effects of War and Peace on Foreign Aid Glenda K. Walker Strayer University SOC 300- Sociology of Developing Countries May 4, 2014 Mr. J. Cathey The proliferation of crises around the world has led to a sharp increase in the scale of humanitarian aid required to meet the vital needs of the people affected by them for food, water, medical care and shelter. Humanitarian organizations can either meet those needs directly or support local services engaged in the same work. In most cases, both approaches are used. Malnutrition, illness, wounds, torture, harassment of specific groups within the population, disappearances, extra-judicial executions and the forcible displacement of people are all found in many armed conflicts. Aside from their direct effects on the individuals concerned, the consequences of these tragedies for local systems must also be considered: the destruction of crops and places of cultural importance, the breakdown of economic infrastructure and of health-care facilities such as hospitals, etc. The impact of armed conflict on people and systems vital to their survival can take different forms, as the following examples illustrate: when Rwandan refugees fled into former Zaire, the mortality rate rose sharply, to as much as 10 times what is regarded as the threshold of extreme emergency, and large scale displacement invariably causes a dramatic increase in malnutrition rates. In children under the age of five, this can reach 20% (Rwandan refugees in Zaire...
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...I. INTRODUCTION The main instruments of International Humanitarian Law (hereafter referred to as IHL) are the four Geneva Conventions of 12 August 19491 for the protection of war victims. These treaties which are universally accepted, protect the wounded, the sick, prisoners of war and civilians in enemy hands. They also protect medical services personnel such as medical personnel, medical units and establishments, and medical means of transport. As a matter of fact this kind of concern for the humanitarian aspect can be found in our ancient epics like the Mahabharata, where the rules of conduct of war as to the timing of attack and the prohibition attacking the unarmed were strictly laid down. The laws of Manu, a compilation of encyclopedic scope, which the British Professor Duncan M. Derrett a known authority on Hindu Law describes as a text "which constitutes India's greatest achievement in the field of jurisprudence" and regards this work as one of the world's premier compositions in ancient law, more valuable in every sense than Hammurabi and able to hold its own in comparison to the covenant and Priestly codes of Moses2 . Manu, while describing the duties of a King, warns against unusual cruelty even against an enemy in warfare, and has this to say, "fighting in a battle, he should not kill his enemies with weapons that are concealed, barbed, or smeared with poison or whose points blaze with fire. He should not kill anyone who has climbed on a...
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...Human Rights: Ceasing Torture and ill Treatment “In Guantanamo, Kurnaz was subjected to abusive practices and interrogation techniques, including waterboarding, religious and sexual humiliation, sleep deprivation, and solitary confinement. Of his time in detention, Kurnaz stated that he was repeatedly made to feel less human” (Patel). This excerpt is a real life connection of torture and ill treatment. Torture is commonly overlooked due to the lack of interest and knowledge about it. For instance, “In international human rights law, torture means any act by which severe pain or suffering, physical or mental, is inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining information or a confession, or to punish, intimidate or coerce” (Rabbit). Basically,...
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