The current Russo-Ukrainian War has resulted in the deaths of 1,179 people whilst 1,860 are estimated to have been injured (Anadolou Agency, 2022). The UN Refugee Agency has also reported that more than 3.9 million people have fled Ukraine to bordering countries, such as Poland and Hungary, whilst millions more have been displaced in the country. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has responded to the conflict by sending officials and establishing centres in Ukraine. Nevertheless there have been accusations aimed at the ICRC for failing to act in a neutral manner as this principle acts as an integral part of its mission statement. This blog will aim to investigate these allegations and how the ICRC has responded to them. This, though, will be preceded by the ICRC’s background.
BACKGROUND TO THE ICRC
The genesis to the ICRC was A Memory of Solferino, which was written by Henry Durant, who was a Swiss humanitarian. He based his works on his experience of the suffering of wounded French, Italian and Austrian soldiers following the Battle of Solferino, which constituted as part of the Italian Wars of Independence, in 1859. Durant’s account also focused on the lack of medical care they recieved and which contributed to the increased mortality rate. These figures played a major role in the formation of the ICRC in Geneva on the 17th February 1863. This creation was followed by the first Geneva Convention of 1864 which outlined “the basics, on which rest the rules of international law for the protection of the victims of armed conflict” (Pictet, 1951). In other words, this convention called for the protection of soldiers in conflict, regardless of which side they were fighting for. The importance of the Geneva Convention was such that its provision were extended to the needs and welfare of sailors and naval forces in 1907. In addition, national societies began to form with the inaugural group being founded in the Kingdom of Wurttemberg in November 1863. By the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, the ICRC had also expanded to include field medical care (ICRC, 2023).
Both world wars had a significant impact on the ICRC as it led them to increase their attention on the issues of prisoners of war and genocide. The large numbers of prisoners of war (POW) during both conflicts led to the establishment of a Central Prisoners’ of War Agency in Geneva, which allowed POWs to get in touch with their families. The ICRC also began inspections of POW camps during this period. The issue of POWs was a major one for the ICRC as many prisoners faced ill-treatment from their captors due to their affiliation and association with the captors’ belligerents and they were considered to be vulnerable. The importance of this issue led to the creation of the third Geneva Convention in 1929 (ICRC, 2023). The issue of genocide was also considered to be another serious issue for the ICRC as the horrors of the Holocaust during the Second World War revealed the extent of mass-murder against a certain group of people. The ICRC admitted that they did not do enough to prevent the Holocaust from occurring as Jean-Claude Favez conceded that the ICRC “did not take the supreme risk of throwing the full weight of its moral authority into the scales on behalf of these particular victims” https://www.icrc.org/en/document/wwii-nazi-genocide-and-other-persecutions.
This lack of action and the horror of the Holocaust led the UN General Assembly to define genocide as a crime under international law in 1946 and the implementation of the Fourth Geneva Convention in 1949 which ensured the protection of victims and groups of people during times of war. There were, though, issues with this convention as only civillans which were affected by international conflicts were included in this Convention. This, though, was rectified by the provision of two additional protocols in 1977 which each highlighted the protection of non-combatants in both external and internal wars.
Today, the ICRC employs over 20,000 staff who work in 100 countries and conflict zones which include both field and regional delegations. The organisation consists of an Assembly, an Assembly Council and a Directorate. The Assembly consists of between 15 and 20 Swiss nationals and it formulates and implements its framework and policies which are designed to cooperate with other related bodies. The Assembly Council is a subsidary body of the Assembly and it ensures that the organisation runs smoothly as well as overseeing its budget. Finally, the Directorate consists of six directors which help to ensure that the organisation runs smoothly. The organisation,as a whole, is headed by the President, Mirjana Spoljaric, who is assisted by Gilles Carbonnier, who is the organisation’s Vice-President. The ICRC is funded by the states who are party to it as well as by its various and associated Red Cross, Red Crescent and Red Crystal societies. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies was established in 1919 as a sister organisatino to the ICRC and it consists of 192 National Societies and helps around 160 million people.https://www.ifrc.org/who-we-are/about-ifrc.
THE IMPORTANCE OF NEUTRALITY TO THE ICRC
Russia launched a full-scale invaison of Ukraine on the 24th February 2022 which has claimed the lives of millions of civillans and soldiers. In addition to this, many countries have accused Russia over allegations of genocide in towns such as Bucha (Reuters, 2022).
In response to the conflict, the ICRC has sent 700 staff to 10 locations across Ukraine. Although their actions have been praised by many observers and countries, there have been allegations towards a possible violation of neutrality by the ICRC. This important concept is defined as one in which “the Movement may not take sides in hostilities or engage at any time in controversies of a political, racial, religious or ideological nature” (Haug, 1996). In other words, the ICRC refrains from taking sides as their motive is to discuss the situation with both sides of the conflict which would ensure that their universalist origins are maintained. Furthermore the ICRC intends to refrain itself from certain political, racial, religious or ideological motives. By doing this, it keeps itself away from racial prejudice or opinions against certain groups or factions. By abiding to the principle of neutrality, the ICRC increases universalism and it makes it easier for them to gain the viewpoints and opinions of both sides of a conflict as well as providing humanitarian help to victims.
PERCIEVED FAILURE OF EVACUATIONS
Yet there has been allegations of the ICRC siding with Russia on the conflict, especially over its handling over civillan evacuations. Attacks on many Ukrainian cities, such as Mariupol, have necessatised this mass exodus but it was believed to have been poorly conducted by the ICRC. On the 8th May 2022, the ICRC agreed with the UN to provide a corridor to allow for the evacuation of around 170 civllans from the Azvostal Steel Plant, near the city, to nearby Zapohrizia. Pascal Hundt, who was the head of the ICRC delegation, praised this move by saying that “we are relieved that we could evacuate more civillans from Azvostal and the Mariupol area and bring them to a safe place” https://www.icrc.org/en/document/more-150-civilians-evacuated-azovstal-and-mariupol-area-third-safe-passage-operation
Yet there have been allegations aimed at the ICRC for their percieved lack of action which could have been achieved earlier as previously attempted evacuation corridors have been aborted due to heavy fighting in Mariupol (Al-Jazeera, 2022)
ACCUSATIONS OF THE ICRC’S POTENTIAL BIAS TOWARDS RUSSIA
Of most notable concern has been their potentially biased links towards Russia. On the 25th March 2022, Peter Maurer, the then-President of the ICRC, met with the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov where the two officals discussed opening a camp in Rostov, which borders Ukraine’s Donbas region. This assumed move was heavily condemned by Ukrainian officals and civillans, with Olena Kondratiuk, the Vice-Speaker to the Vekhovna Rada, the Ukrainian Parliament, appealing to the ICRC not to open a camp in Rostov. This concern was also echoed by Mykhalio Radutskyi, the chair of the Ukrainian Parliament’s Public Health Committee, who stressed that the potential for the ICRC’s policy to open a camp in Russia would “legitimize” and support Russia’s “abduction and forced evacuation of Ukranians”https://cepa.org/article/supping-with-the-kremlin-devil-the-red-cross-dilemma/
The use of social media has exemplified the criticism towards the ICRC, with a Twitter user referring to the symbol of the ICRC as being similar to a swastika. Many aid workers have also faced threats from civillans which have prevented them from carrying out their duties. Tetiana Hoyenko, the director of the Kyiv branch of the Ukrainian Red Cross, stressed that the organisation couldn’t work for a week following the Maurer-Lavrov meeting. “People were so stressed and didn’t have time to analyse or properly grasp the situation. They just head the words ‘Red Cross’ and that was it- we were all traitors and our volunteers were getting guns pointed at us” https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/news-feature/2022/05/03/the-icrc-and-the-pitfalls-of-neutrality-in-ukraine
DEFENCE OF THE ICRC’S ACTIONS
The ICRC has defended these accusations by claiming that they were false and were part of a deliberate ‘misinformation’ campaign which was designed to undermine the credentials of the organisation. Gheradro Pontrandolfi, who was the head of the ICRC office in Kyiv, stressed that “there is not only a distortion, there is simply wrong information out there, and it is extraordinary damaging to us and to the Ukrainian Red Cross… but those who pay the price are the civillans here in Ukraine, because we will not be able to carry out our work” https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/news-feature/2022/05/03/the-icrc-and-the-pitfalls-of-neutrality-in-ukraine
The Russo-Ukrainian War, though, has not been the first conflict where social media and ‘misinformation’ has played a pivotal role in discrediting the ICRC. Idrees Ahmad, the director of the International Journalism Programme at the University of Stirling, referred to the Syrian Civil War as another example but stressed that social media had allowed civillans to express their anger at Russia.
OVERALL CONCLUSION
Overall it may be argued from this blog that the ICRC has, indeed, faced major accusations of acting in a biased matter against the principles of neutrality and has not acted in the interests of the victims of the conflict. It may not, though, be rational to stress that the ICRC has not actually acted biased and this is simply due to the growth of social media which allows people to easily criticize the ICRC which could easily ‘make or break’ the organisation.
QUESTIONS
- What are your intentions on insisting to people that you are not acting in a biased manner and are abiding by the principle of neutrality
- If so, how can you use social media as a way to convince people that your motives are not biased
- Do you have any intentions on establishing further aid stations and more field and regional centres in Ukraine
- Do you have any plans to establish rest centres and medical and support facilities in Ukraine’s bordering countries in order to accomodate and support refugees
- Is there any intention on the provision of mental health facilities and support services to help victims who have been traumatized by the war
WHAT I HOPE TO LEARN
By visiting the headquarters of the ICRC, i hope to gain a further on-hands experience of how the organisation functions. Furthermore i hope to meet a member of the ICRC in an attempt to gain expert knowledge and how they perform their duties and committments overseas.
Although I am not sure on my future career prospects in regards to working in an international organisation, I hope to gain some skills from visiting one and, in doing so, would equip me with the required skills which are needed to work in an institution such as the ICRC. Thus, this visit would be suffcient to make the trip to Geneva worthwhile.
Alistair Muir
BILBIOGRAPHY
www.aljazeera.com. (n.d.). ‘Impossible to proceed’: Red Cross halts Mariupol evacuation. [online] Available at: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/4/1/red-cross-postpones-evacuations-after-failing-to-reach-mariupol.
www.aa.com.tr. (n.d.). Red Cross seeks to open office near Russia-Ukraine border. [online] Available at: https://www.aa.com.tr/en/russia-ukraine-war/red-cross-seeks-to-open-office-near-russia-ukraine-border/2544478 [Accessed 13 Mar. 2023].
Haug, H (1996), “Humanity For All: The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement Berne/Stuttgart/Vienna
International Committee of the Red Cross (2016). International Committee of the Red Cross. [online] International Committee of the Red Cross. Available at: https://www.icrc.org/en.
Pictet, J (1951), “The New Geneva Convention for the Protection of War Victims” The American Journal of International Law,