Emblems of humanity

The red cross and the red crescent emblems serve a specific purpose: to ensure the protection of those wounded in war and those who care for them. They are used first and foremost for the protective identification of the armed forces’ medical services, but also to identify people and equipment belonging to a component of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement i.e. the ICRC, the National Societies and their Federation. They stand for the Movement’s Fundamental Principles, particularly those of neutrality and impartiality.

In wartime, the red cross or red crescent emblem is the visible sign of protection conferred by the Geneva Conventions on people and objects authorised to display it: army medical services, including National Society staff incorporated in these services, authorized civilian medical facilities and the international organizations of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. This means that ICRC staff and its equipment may be marked with the red cross emblem for protective purposes. To ensure protection, the emblem must be large and clearly visible. Misuse of the emblem is a violation of international humanitarian law: it annihilates the very meaning of the emblem, which must at all times stand for protection and humanitarian assistance.

The emblem is also used to show that a person or object is linked to the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. To avoid confusion with the emblem used as a protective device, the red cross and red crescent used for indicative purposes is smaller in size.

The red cross was the emblem adopted by the International Conference meeting in Geneva in 1863. The follow­ing year it was given official recognition in the first Geneva Convention. Later, the Ottoman Empire decided to use a red crescent instead of the red cross. Sev­eral States followed suit and in 1929 the red crescent in turn was granted official recognition.

Дата добавления: 2015-09-01