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The composition of the International Committee of the Red Cross

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 January 2010

François Bugnion
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Extract

“I Know of no part of jurisprudence or of the humanities to which the institution calling itself the Geneva Committee can be connected”, declared the renowned Russian jurist Fiodor Fiodorovitch de Martens, legal adviser to the Imperial Russian Government, at the Fourth International Conference of Red Cross Societies held in Karlsruhe in September 1887.

No wonder he was puzzled, for although the International Committee is an international institution by reason of its activities and duties, its composition is still that of a private association under Swiss law.

Type
Contributions to History
Information
International Review of the Red Cross (1961 - 1997) , Volume 35 , Issue 307 , August 1995 , pp. 427 - 446
Copyright
Copyright © International Committee of the Red Cross 1995

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References

1 Quatrième Conférence Internationale des Sociétés de la Croix-Rouge tenue à Carlsruhe du 22 au 27 septembre 1887, Compte rendu, p. 95.Google Scholar

2 Article 7, para. 1, of the Statutes of the ICRC, adopted on 21 June 1973 and revised on 6 December 1973, 1 May 1974, 14 September 1977, 29 April 1982 and 20 January 1988. See IRRC, No. 263, 03–04 1988, pp. 154–165, at p. 159CrossRefGoogle Scholar. The rule that members of the ICRC shall be co-opted from among Swiss citizens did not appear in the Statutes adopted on 15 November 1915 (ICRC archives, files CR 92 and 011) or those adopted on 10 March 1921 ( RICR, No. 28, 04 1921, pp. 379–380)Google Scholar. It was introduced for the first time in the Statutes adopted on 28 August 1930. See Manuel de la Croix-Rouge internationale, 6th ed., Geneva, ICRC, and Paris, League of Red Cross Societies, 1930, pp. 145–148, at p. 147 (Art. 7).Google Scholar

3 Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, adopted by the Twenty-fifth International Conference of the Red Cross, Geneva, October 1986, Article 5, para. 1, IRRC, No. 256, 01–02 1987, pp. 25–59 CrossRefGoogle Scholar, at p. 32. The rule stating that members of the ICRC shall be co-opted from among Swiss citizens already appeared in the Statutes of the International Red Cross adopted by the Thirteenth International Conference of the Red Cross, The Hague, 23–27 October 1928, Treizième Conférence internationale de la Croix-Rouge, Compte rendu, pp. 182–186, at p. 184Google Scholar. Thus the rule was introduced into the Statutes of the International Red Cross before it appeared in those of the ICRC.

4 The members of the International Committee are listed inside the cover page of every issue of the International Review of the Red Cross.

5 Reorganization of the International Committee, proposal put forward at the International Conference, Paris, 26 August 1867, Actes du Comité international de Secours aux Militaires blessés, Geneva, Imprimerie Soullier & Wirth, 1871, pp. 73–75.Google Scholar

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7 Compte rendu des Travaux de la Conférence Internationale tenue à Berlin du 22 au 27 avril 1869 par les Délégués des Gouvernements signataires de la Convention de Genève et des Sociétés et Associations de Secours aux Militaires blessés et malades, Berlin, Imprimerie J.-F. Starcke, 1869, pp. 18–19, 42–44, 221–228, 254–255 and 261–266.Google Scholar

8 Ninth circular to Central Committees, 21 September 1867, Actes du Comité international de Secours aux Militaires blessés, pp. 79–82 Google Scholar; Eleventh circular to the Central Committees, 30 March 1868, ibid., pp. 87–88; Note addressed to the Central Committees, 20 June 1868, ibid., pp. 94–109

9 “Du double caractère, national et international, des Sociétés de secours”, Bulletin international des Sociétés de secours aux militaires blessés, No. 4, 07 1870, pp. 159–162, at p. 160.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

10 Troisième Conférence Internationale des Sociétés de la Croix-Rouge tenue a Genève du ler au 6 septembre 1884, Compte rendu, pp. 61–70, 74–87 and 429.Google Scholar

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12 Ibid., pp. 22–24.

13 Quatrième Conférence Internationale des Sociétés de la Croix-Rouge tenue à Carlsruhe du 22 au 27 septembre 1887, Compte rendu, p. 90.

14 ibid., pp. 19–25, 69–70, 88–102.

15 Sixième Conférence Internationale des Sociétés de la Croix-Rouge, Vienna, 1897, pp. 99 and 218–226.Google Scholar

16 Conférence Internationale de la Paix, La Haye, 18 mai-29 juillet 1899, new ed., The Hague, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 1907, Part III, p. 2.Google Scholar

17 Ibid., pp. 2–3.

18 Interview of the Allied Red Cross Societies with the International Committee, Geneva, 12–14 February 1919, statement by MrNaville, Edouard, Acting President of the International Committee, RICR, No. 3, 03 1919, pp. 336–340, at p. 339.Google Scholar

19 Statuts et Règlement de la Ligue de Sociétés de Croix-Rouge (sic), RICR, No. 6. 06 1919, pp. 691–698.Google Scholar

20 On 25 February 1923 Sir Arthur Stanley, Chairman of the British Red Cross Society, wrote to Prince Charles of Sweden, President of the Swedish Red Cross, as follows: “Yet to me it would seem fair to reserve a place for the members of the ICRC so that the new organization might benefit from their experience, from an endeavour that has continued without interruption for 60 years, and to offer this venerable institution the place of honour which it deserves”, ICRC Archives, file CR 113; Réorganisation de la Croix-Rouge internationale, Report and documents concerning the discussions between the International Committee of the Red Cross and the League of Red Cross Societies, July 1922–July 1923, (Eleventh International Conference of the Red Cross, Geneva, 08 1923, Document No. 37), pp. 79–82, at p. 81 Google Scholar; Durand, André, History of the International Committee of the Red Cross: from Sarajevo to Hiroshima, Geneva, Henry Dunant Institute, 1984, pp. 177 and 183–184.Google Scholar

21 For the history of these negotiations, see Durand, , op. cit., pp. 139–194 Google Scholar, and Dunning, Henry W., Elements for the history of the League of Red Cross Societies, Geneva, League of Red Cross Societies, 12 1969 (cyclostyled), pp. 13–48.Google Scholar

22 Draudt, Colonel and Huber, Max, “Rapport à la XIIIe Conférence intemationale de la Croix-Rouge sur les Statuts de la Croix-Rouge internationale”, RICR, No. 119, 11 1928, pp. 991–1010.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

23 Treizième Conférence intemationale de la Croix-Rouge tenue à La Haye du 23 au 27 octobre 1928, Compte rendu, pp. 12–19, 48–75, 85, 101–114, 117–118 and 182–186.Google Scholar

24 Report of the International Committee of the Red Cross on its activities during the Second World War (September 1, 1939 – June 30,1947), Vol. III, Relief Activities, Geneva, ICRC, 05 1948, p. 364.Google Scholar

25 The Joint Relief Commission of the International Red Cross was a joint ICRC-League body formed in July 1941 to carry out relief operations for civilians affected by the war. For the activities of this body, see the Report of the Joint Relief Commission of the International Red Cross, 1941–1946, Geneva, ICRC - League of Red Cross Societies, 1948.Google Scholar

26 Speech by Count Folke Bernadotte, President of the Swedish Red Cross, Geneva, July 1946 (cyclostyled), ICRC Archives, file CR 109b; Report on the Work of the Preliminary Conference of the National Red Cross Societies for the study of the Conventions and of various Problems relative to the Red Cross (Geneva, July 26–August 3, 1946), Geneva, ICRC, 01 1947, p. 120.Google Scholar

27 “If we want to work effectively in wartime, it is quite a risk to propose an organization whose composition would have to be changed the moment war broke out” said Dr Gustave Adolphe Bohny, President of the Swiss Red Cross. Conférence préliminaire des Sociétés nationales de la Croix-Rouge pour l'étude des Conventions et de divers problèmes ayant trait à la Croix-Rouge, Procès-verbaux (cyclostyled), Vol. IV, meetings of Commission III, p. 83 (meeting of Tuesday 30 July 1946).CrossRefGoogle Scholar

28 Ibid., p. 79.

29 “My proposal resulted in lengthy and lively discussions. A special committee was formed which met frequently. In the course of these meetings I greatly revised my original attitude toward the problem (…). In short, I have become convinced that the International Committee ought to continue in its present form and retain its present composition.…”, Bernadotte, Folke, Instead of Arms, London, Hodder and Stoughton, 1949, pp. 129–131 and 163–166, at p. 130 Google Scholar; Hewins, Ralph, Count Folke Bernadotte, His Life and Work, London, Hutchinson & Co., 1949, pp. 171–173 and 175–179.Google Scholar

30 Final Record of the Diplomatic Conference of Geneva of 1949, Bern, Federal Political Department, 1949 Google Scholar (hereinafter: Final Record 1949), Vol. III, pp. 30–31.Google Scholar

31 Final Record 1949, Vol. II-B, p. 92 (the Bagge speech).Google Scholar

32 Ibid. (the Sokirkine speech).

33 Ibid., pp. 92–93 (the Cahen-Salvador speech).

34 Resolution 2, Final Record 1949, Vol. I, p. 361.Google Scholar

35 de la Pradelle, Paul de Geouffre, “Le contrôle de l'application des Conventions humanitaires en cas de conflit armé”, Annuaire français de droit international. Vol. II, 1956, pp. 343–352, at p. 351CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Aureglia, L. and de la Pradelle, P., “Organisation, fonctionnement et protection du contrôle de l'application des conventions humanitaires en cas de conflits armés”, Annales de Droit international médical, Monaco, No. 2, 02 1958, pp. 47–69, esp. p. 55.Google Scholar

36 Official Records of the Diplomatic Conference on the Reaffirmation and Development of International Humanitarian Law Applicable in Armed Conflicts (Geneva, 1974–1977)Google Scholar, Bern, Federal Political Department, 1978 (hereinafter: Official Records CDDH), Vol. X, p. 69 Google Scholar. (Doc. CDDH/I/235/Rev. 1, Report to Committee I on the work of Working Group A). This draft amendment was the result of the merger of two draft articles (Amendment CDDH/I/75, proposed by the Arab States, and Amendment CDDH/I/83, proposed by Norway, Official Records CDDH, vol. III, p. 31 and 35 Google Scholar. It is not our intention to offer an opinion here as to whether it is any part of the Protecting Powers' mandate to investigate and report on breaches of the Geneva Conventions, as the authors of these amendments claimed, but there is room for doubt.

37 Summary record of the twenty-seventh meeting of Committee I (Doc. CDDH/I/SR.27), Official Records CDDH, Vol. VIII, pp. 253–264.Google Scholar

38 Summary of the statement by Mr. J. Kobialka, United Nations observer, to Working Group A of Committee I on 6 March 1975 (Doc. CDDH/I/GT/48, 10 March 1975, cyclostyled). As far as we are aware, this document is not reproduced in the Official Records of the Diplomatic Conference.

39 Official Records CDDH, Vol. VIII, p. 264 (Doc. CDDH/I/SR.27).Google Scholar

40 des Gouttes, Paul, “Une thèse de doctorat en droit sur la Croix-Rouge”, RICR, No. 45, 09 1922, pp. 747–758, at p. 753.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

41 The only independence referred to here is that of the National Societies at the international level, in other words each National Society's independence vis-à-vis all other Red Cross and Red Crescent institutions. A National Society's independence of the government of its country is an entirely separate matter that has nothing to do with the composition of the International Committee.