1 Following a practice that is more than one hundred years old, I will use the expression ‘International Red Cross’ or, more simply, ‘Red Cross’ to designate the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, particularly when referring to periods in which those expressions were the only ones in official use.

2 The only body with a similar composition is the International Labour Conference, which brings together the member states of the International Labour Organization and the trade union federations and employers' federations of those countries.

3 The history of the foundation of the Red Cross is well known and there is extensive literature on the subject. The following personal accounts and other works are of particular interest: J. Henry Dunant, A Memory of Solferino, English version provided by the American Red Cross, reprinted by the ICRC courtesy of the American Red Cross, ICRC, Geneva, 1986 (original French edition: Un souvenir de Solférino, Imprimerie Jules-Guillaume Fick, Geneva, 1862); Henry Dunant, Mémoires, text compiled and presented by Bernard Gagnebin, Henry Dunant Institute, Geneva, and Éditions L'Age d'Homme, Lausanne, 1971, in particular pp. 32–121 ; Alexis François, Le berceau de la Croix-Rouge, Librairie A. Jullien, Geneva, and Librairie Édouard Champion, Paris, 1918; Pierre Boissier, History of the International Committee of the Red Cross: From Solferino to Tsushima, Henry Dunant Institute, Geneva, 1985, pp. 7–121 ; François Bugnion, ‘La fondation de la Croix-Rouge et la première Convention de Genève’, in Roger Durand (ed., with the collaboration of Jean-Daniel Candaux), De l'utopie à la réalité: Actes du Colloque Henry Dunant tenu à Genève au palais de l'Athénée et à la chapelle de l'Oratoire les 3, 4 et 5 mai 1985, Henry Dunant Society, Geneva, 1988, pp. 191–223 ; François Bugnion, The International Committee of the Red Cross and the Protection of War Victims, ICRC, Geneva and Macmillan, Oxford, October 2003, pp. 1–28.

4 The plan of the founders of the Red Cross took practical shape in the Resolutions and Recommendations adopted by the constituent Conference of October 1863, which gave birth to the Red Cross. Those Resolutions formed the basis upon which the National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies were established and the statutory framework of the Movement until the adoption by the Thirteenth International Conference of the Red Cross, held in The Hague in 1928, of the first Statutes of the International Red Cross. The Resolutions and Recommendations of the constituent Conference are reproduced in Compte rendu de la Conférence internationale réunie à Genève les 26, 27, 28 et 29 octobre 1863 pour étudier les moyens de pourvoir à l'insuffisance du service sanitaire dans les armées en campagne (excerpt from Bulletin No. 24 of the Geneva Public Welfare Society), Imprimerie Jules-Guillaume Fick, Geneva, 1863, pp. 147–149 ; Handbook of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, 14th edition, ICRC and Federation, Geneva, 2008, pp. 515–516 ; Dietrich Schindler and Jirí Toman (eds.), The Laws of Armed Conflicts: A Collection of Conventions, Resolutions and Other Documents, 4th edition, M. Nijhoff Publishers, Leiden and Boston, 2004, pp. 361–363.

5 Article 3 of the Resolutions of the constituent Conference of October 1863, Handbook, above note 4, p. 515.

6 Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement (‘Statutes’), adopted by the Twenty-fifth International Conference of the Red Cross, held in Geneva in October 1986, in International Review of the Red Cross, No. 256, January–February 1987, pp. 25–59 ; Handbook, above note 4, pp. 517–534.

7 The National Society of Israel uses the name Magen David Adom (Red Shield of David).

8 Statutes, Art. 9, para. 1.

9 Ibid., Art. 9, para. 2.

10 Ibid., Art. 8.

11 Ibid., Art. 10.

12 Established by the Thirteenth International Conference of the Red Cross, held in The Hague in 1928, the Standing Commission comprises nine members – two representatives of the ICRC, two representatives of the Federation, and five members of National Societies, each elected in a personal capacity by the International Conference. On the origin and functions of the Standing Commission, see François Bugnion, ‘The Standing Commission of the Red Cross and Red Crescent: its origins, role and prospects for the future’, in Liesbeth Lijnzaad, Johanna van Sambeek, and Bahia Tahzib-Lie (eds.), Making the Voice of Humanity Heard: Essays on Humanitarian Assistance and International Humanitarian Law in Honour of HRH Princess Margriet of the Netherlands, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, Leiden and Boston, December 2003, pp. 41–59.

13 Statutes, Art. 10, para. 5.

14 Circulars from the Prussian Central Committee, 23 November 1868 and 1 March 1869, 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, Imprimerie J.-F. Starcke, Berlin, 1869, pp. 3–5 and 7–9 . The proceedings of the first fifteen conferences were published only in French; as from the Sixteenth International Conference (London, 1938), the proceedings were also published in English and, as from the Eighteenth Conference (Toronto, 1952), in Spanish.

15 Richard Perruchoud, Les résolutions des Conférences internationales de la Croix-Rouge, Henry Dunant Institute, Geneva, 1979, pp. 46–49 and 394–397.

16 Ibid., p. 48.

17 Ibid., pp. 106, 107–108 . In a similar vein, see Auguste-Raynald Werner, La Croix-Rouge et les Conventions de Genève, Georg & Cie, Geneva, 1943, p. 79.

18 R. Perruchoud, above note 15, p. 108. In 1991, the General Assembly of the League of Red Cross Societies decided to change the institution's name to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

19 Statutes, Art. 11, para. 4.

20 Ibid., Art. 2, para. 4.

21 I will return to the genesis and scope of the Statutes and the Fundamental Principles in discussing the organization of humanitarian action (see below).

22 Sixteenth International Conference of the Red Cross, London, 20–24 June 1938, Report, The British Red Cross Society, London, 1938, p. 21.

23 On 25 October 1971, the United Nations General Assembly decided to recognize the People's Republic of China as the sole legitimate representative of China in the United Nations and as a permanent member of the Security Council.

24 The Republic of China had taken part in the 1949 Diplomatic Conference and had signed the new Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949. It was also bound by its ratification of the 1929 Conventions. The People's Republic of China, which did not take part in the 1949 Diplomatic Conference, acceded to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949 on 28 December 1956.

25 Eighteenth International Conference of the Red Cross, Toronto, July–August 1952, Report, Canadian Red Cross Society, Toronto, 1952, pp. 11–12 , 47–49 and 53–69 . Catherine Rey-Schyrr, De Yalta à Dien Bien Phu: Histoire du Comité international de la Croix-Rouge, vol. III, 1945–1955 , ICRC and Georg Éditeurs, Geneva, 2007, pp. 120–125.

26 Nineteenth International Conference of the Red Cross, New Delhi, October–November 1957, Report, Indian Red Cross, New Delhi, 1958, pp. 53–55.

27 Ibid., pp. 60–68.

28 Ibid., pp. 141 and 161, Resolution XXXVI.

29 Ibid., pp. 141–146.

30 Ibid., p. 145.

31 Ibid., pp. 130–131 and 162, Resolution XL.

32 Centenary Congress of the International Red Cross, Commemoration Day, Council of Delegates, Report, ICRC, League, and Swiss Red Cross, Geneva, 1963, pp. 101–102.

33 ICRC Archives, record of the plenary meetings of the ICRC, letter from Mrs Li Te-chuan, President of the Chinese Red Cross, to Ambassador André François-Poncet, Chairman of the Standing Commission, 30 January 1965, annexed to President Samuel Gonard's letter to the members of the ICRC, 24 February 1965. Twentieth International Conference of the Red Cross, Vienna, 2–9 October 1965, Report, Austrian Red Cross, Vienna, 1965, pp. 39–40 (int. Lauda).

34 Ibid., pp. 39–44.

35 Twenty-first International Conference of the Red Cross, Istanbul, 6–13 September 1969, Report, Turkish Red Crescent Society, Istanbul, 1969, p. 9.

36 Resolution 2758 (XXVI) 1971, adopted on 25 October 1971; Resolutions Adopted by the General Assembly during its Twenty-sixth Session, 21 September–22 December 1971, United Nations General Assembly, Official Records: Twenty-sixth Session, Supplement No. 29 (A/8429), p. 2.

37 Twenty-second International Conference of the Red Cross, Tehran, 8–15 November 1973, Report, Iranian Red Lion and Sun Society, Tehran, 1973, p. 12.

38 Statement by Ambassador D. D. Afande, Twenty-fifth International Conference of the Red Cross, Geneva, 23–31 October 1986, Report, Swiss Red Cross, Berne, 1987, pp. 79–80.

39 Twenty-fifth International Conference of the Red Cross, Geneva, 23–31 October 1986, Report, pp. 97–98.

40 Statement by Minister Jean Mouton Brady, Ibid., p. 85.

41 ‘Croix-Rouge: la conférence chavire’, in Journal de Genève, 25 October 1986, p. 16. See also 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’, in International Review of the Red Cross, No. 257, March–April 1987, pp. 133–151CrossRefGoogle Scholar ; Sandoz, Yves, ‘Analyse juridique de la décision de suspendre la délégation gouvernementale sud-africaine de la XXV^e Conférence internationale de la Croix-Rouge’, in Annuaire français de droit international, Vol. 32, 1986, pp. 591–602CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

42 Twenty-fifth International Conference of the Red Cross, above note 38, pp. 121–122 . Paul-Émile Dentand, ‘Croix-Rouge: derniers compromis’, in Journal de Genève, 1 November 1986, p. 24.

43 Because of the insecure situation prevailing in Colombia, the Colombian Red Cross Society found itself obliged to give up organizing the Conference. The Standing Commission decided that the Conference would meet in Budapest in 1991.

44 Twenty-fifth International Conference of the Red Cross, above note 38, p. 145.

45 D. Schindler and J. Toman, above note 4, p. 649.

46 The ICRC had already twice saved the International Conference from death. Following the Franco-Prussian War in 1870–1871 , the recriminations between the former belligerents were so violent that the Austrian Red Cross Society, which had invited the Third International Conference to meet in Vienna in 1871, preferred to postpone the Conference indefinitely. After ten years of trying in vain to get the Austrian Red Cross to honour its commitments, the ICRC resolved to convene the Third International Conference itself; the Conference was held in Geneva in September 1884. Similarly, after World War I, the French Red Cross declared that it would not take part in meetings with the German Red Cross unless the latter apologized for Germany's violations of the law of war. The German Red Cross replied that it did not have to apologize for crimes attributed to the imperial government and that violations had in any case been committed by both sides. Having spent more than two years trying to work out an agreement, the ICRC decided to convene the Tenth International Conference, which was held in Geneva from 30 March to 7 April 1921. The French Red Cross refused to take part.

47 The National Societies could not be invited because the composition of the conference would then have been identical to that of the International Conference. However, while the Swiss government, the depositary of the Geneva Conventions, may convene a meeting of the states parties to those Conventions, it has no authority to convene the International Conference unless it is mandated to do so by the Conference itself or by the Standing Commission.

48 ‘International Conference for the Protection of War Victims (Geneva, 30 August–1 September 1993): report on the protection of war victims, prepared by the International Committee of the Red Cross, Geneva, June 1993’, in International Review of the Red Cross, No. 296, September–October 1993, pp. 391–445.

49 ‘International Conference for the Protection of War Victims (Geneva, 30 August–1 September 1993): final declaration of the Conference’, in International Review of the Red Cross, No. 296, September–October 1993, pp. 377–381.

50 Twenty-sixth International Conference of the Red Cross, Geneva, 1–7 December 1995, Report, ICRC and Federation, Geneva, 1996, p. 40.

51 Seventeenth International Conference of the Red Cross, Stockholm, 20–30 August 1948, Report, Swedish Red Cross Society, Stockholm, 1948, p. 93, Resolution XIX.

52 Twenty-second International Conference of the Red Cross, Tehran, 8–15 November 1973, Report, p. 122, Resolution XIII.

53 Draft Rules for the Limitation of the Dangers Incurred by the Civilian Population in Time of War, 2nd edition, ICRC, Geneva, April 1958, p. 12; D. Schindler and J. Toman, above note 4, p. 342.

54 Nineteenth International Conference of the Red Cross, above note 26, pp. 153–154 , Resolution XIII; Nineteenth International Conference of the Red Cross, New Delhi, October–November 1957, Final Record Concerning the Draft Rules for the Limitation of the Dangers Incurred by the Civilian Population in Time of War, ICRC, Geneva, April 1958, cyclostyled.

55 Twenty-sixth International Conference of the Red Cross, above note 50, p. 126, Resolution II, G.

56 Ibid., pp. 126–127 , Resolution II, H.

57 Twenty-eighth International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 2003, Report, ICRC and Federation, Geneva, 2004, pp. 30–31 , Resolution III. On the contribution of the International Conference to the development of international humanitarian law, see also Abplanalp, Philippe, ‘The International Conferences of the Red Cross as a factor for the development of international humanitarian law and the cohesion of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement’, in International Review of the Red Cross, No. 308, October 1995, pp. 520–549.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

58 Compte rendu des Travaux de la Conférence internationale tenue à Berlin, above note 14, pp. 3–5 , 7–9 , 15–18 , 27–36 , 153–208 , 211–215 , 251–253 ; P. Boissier, above note 3, pp. 229–230 , 233–234 . The representatives of the ICRC did not take part in the debate on that issue at the Berlin Conference, probably considering that it needed to be settled by the National Societies themselves. However, in the preliminary correspondence, the ICRC had indicated its opposition to such an extension of the National Societies' field of activity.

59 On the development of the activities of the International Committee during the Franco-Prussian war of 1870–1871 , see P. Boissier, above note 3, pp. 241–269 ; F. Bugnion, International Committee of the Red Cross, above note 3, pp. 32–37.

60 Compte rendu des Travaux de la Conférence internationale tenue à Berlin, above note 14, p. 254, Resolution IV/3.

61 Troisième Conférence internationale des Sociétés de la Croix-Rouge tenue à Genève du 1er au 6 septembre 1884, Compte rendu, ICRC, Geneva, 1885, pp. 61–66 , 69, 84–85 , 86; Du rôle du Comité international et des relations des Comités centraux de la Croix-Rouge, Report submitted by the International Committee to the International Conference of Red Cross Societies in Karlsruhe in 1887, ICRC, Geneva, 1887, pp. 9–14 ; Quatrième Conférence internationale des Sociétés de la Croix-Rouge tenue à Carlsruhe du 22 au 27 septembre 1887, Compte rendu, Central Committee of the German Red Cross Associations, Berlin, 1887, pp. 92–93 , 95–97 , 101.

62 Troisième Conférence internationale des Sociétés de la Croix-Rouge, above note 61, pp. 74–83 ; Du rôle du Comité international, above note 61, pp. 22–24 ; Quatrième Conférence internationale des Sociétés de la Croix-Rouge, above note 61, pp. 19–20 , 90, 93–94.

63 Ibid., p. 90.

64 Regulations respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land annexed to The Hague Convention (II) of 20 July 1899, Art. 15. On the origin of that provision, see F. Bugnion, in International Committee of the Red Cross, above note 3, pp. 69–71 ; Roger Durand, ‘Les prisonniers de guerre aux temps héroïques de la Croix-Rouge’, in R. Durand, above note 3, pp. 225–297.

65 The Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth International Conferences, held in St Petersburg in 1902, in London in 1907, and in Washington in 1912.

66 Resolution VI, Neuvième Conférence internationale de la Croix-Rouge tenue à Washington du 7 au 17 mai 1912, Compte rendu, The American Red Cross, Washington, 1912, p. 318.

67 ‘L'insurrection dans l'Herzégovine’, in Bulletin international des Sociétés de la Croix-Rouge, No. 25, January 1876, pp. 1–4 ; ‘Une mission au Monténégro: rapport présenté au Comité international de la Croix-Rouge par ses délégués’, in Bulletin international des Sociétés de la Croix-Rouge, No. 26, April 1876, pp. 55–70.

68 This occurred on the initiative of the American Red Cross, which had submitted to the Conference a report on the question of Red Cross intervention in case of civil war. Neuvième Conférence internationale de la Croix-Rouge tenue à Washington du 7 au 17 mai 1912, Compte rendu, pp. 45–48 , 200–203.

69 Ibid., p. 45.

70 On the action taken by the ICRC during the Russian civil war, see F. Bugnion, in International Committee of the Red Cross, above note 3, pp. 250–258.

71 This was, in particular, the case of the German Red Cross, the Finnish Red Cross, the Polish Red Cross, the Portuguese Red Cross, the Ukrainian Red Cross, and the Turkish Red Crescent. Each of the National Societies had submitted to the Tenth International Conference a report on the role of the Red Cross in case of civil war.

72 Dixième Conférence internationale de la Croix-Rouge tenue à Genève du 30 mars au 7 avril 1921, Compte rendu, ICRC, Geneva, 1921, pp. 217–218 , Resolution XIV.

73 On the action of the ICRC during the Spanish civil war, see F. Bugnion, in International Committee of the Red Cross, above note 3, pp. 266–283 ; Pierre Marqués, La Croix-Rouge pendant la Guerre d'Espagne (1936–1939 ): les missionnaires de l'humanitaire, L'Harmattan, Paris and Montreal, 2000.

74 This expression was coined by the Soviet delegation at the 1949 Diplomatic Conference.

75 On this subject, see the introductory speech given by Gustave Moynier at the constituent Conference of October 1863, Compte rendu de la Conférence internationale réunie à Genève, above note 4, pp. 8–9.

76 ‘Interoffice memorandum’ from Martin Hill, Assistant Secretary-General, to C. V. Narasimhan, Chef de Cabinet of the Secretary-General, 26 October 1962, reproduced in Chadwyck-Healey Inc. and The National Security Archives (eds.), Documents on the Cuban Missile Crisis 1962, Microfiche Collection, Chadwyck-Healey, Alexandria, VA, 1990, document 1392, quoted by Thomas Fischer, ‘The ICRC and the 1962 Cuban missile crisis’, in International Review of the Red Cross, No. 842, June 2001, p. 294. It should be pointed out that the only record of the ICRC initiative is to be found in this document. Neither President Léopold Boissier nor Roger Gallopin, the Executive Director, reported on the ICRC's contact with the United Nations.

77 ICRC Archives, minutes of the plenary session held on 31 October and 1 November 1962; Annual Report 1962, pp. 31–35 . See also T. Fischer, above note 76, pp. 287–309 ; Françoise Perret and François Bugnion, De Budapest à Saigon: histoire du Comité international de la Croix-Rouge, Vol. IV, 1956–1965 , Georg Editor and ICRC, Geneva, December 2009, pp. 473–502.

78 The Council of Delegates brings together the representatives of the Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies, of the ICRC, and of the Federation. The Standing Commission had decided to hold the Council of Delegates in Geneva in 1963, instead of the International Conference that it had had to give up convening because of the divergences on the question of the representation of China. On the origins, the role, and the attributions of the Council of Delegates, see Elzbieta Mikos-Skuza, ‘The Council of Delegates’, in Lijnzaad, van Sambeek, and Tahzib-Lie, above note 12, pp. 123–136.

79 Twentieth International Conference of the Red Cross, above note 33, pp. 100–101 , Resolution X.

80 ICRC Archives, Minutes of the Executive Council of the ICRC, 1 July 1982, 11 and 12 August 1982, 19 August 1982, 26 August 1982; Minutes of the ICRC Assembly, 19 August and 1 September 1982; International Review of the Red Cross, No. 230, September–October 1982, pp. 295–296 ; Annual Report 1982, p. 58; Keesing's Contemporary Archives, 1983, pp. 31914–31920 ; F. Bugnion, International Committee of the Red Cross, above note 3, pp. 490–491 . ICRC Archives, file 232 (214–00 ), Note 241 from the Baghdad delegation and annexes, 12 September 1990; Annual Report 1990, pp. 78–79 ; Christophe Girod, Tempête sur le désert: le Comité international de la Croix-Rouge et la guerre du Golfe, 1990–1991 , Établissements Émile Bruylant, Brussels, and L. G. D. J., Paris, 1995, pp. 64–65.

81 ‘La paix, qui est bien le problème crucial de tous les temps, déchaîne immanquablement dans les congrès qui prétendent lui trouver quelque affermissement des débats aussi pénibles que dangereux.’ Léopold Boissier, Statement on certain aspects of the centenary of the Red Cross, presented to the ICRC in its session on 3 October 1963, document D 841, appended to the minutes of the plenary session on 3 October 1963, p. 2.

82 Resolution XXI of the Twenty-fourth International Conference (Manila, 1981) and Resolution XVII of the Twenty-fifth International Conference.

83 Resolution IV, A, of the Twenty-sixth International Conference.

84 On the creation of the League of Red Cross Societies, see Daphne A. Reid and Patrick F. Gilbo, Beyond Conflict: The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, 1919–1994 , Federation, Geneva, 1997, pp. 26–41.

85 The Tenth, Eleventh, and Twelfth International Conferences, held in Geneva in 1921, 1923, and 1925.

86 Conférence internationale spéciale de la Croix-Rouge tenue à Berne du 16 au 18 novembre 1926, Compte rendu, Swiss Red Cross, Berne (s.d.).

87 For the history of those negotiations, reference could be made, in particular, to the following works: André Durand, History of the International Committee of the Red Cross: From Sarajevo to Hiroshima, Henry Dunant Institute, Geneva, 1978, pp. 139–194 ; D. A. Reid and P. F. Gilbo, above note 84, pp. 52–54 and 79–86.

88 Draudt, Colonel and Huber, Max, ‘Rapport à la XIII^e Conférence internationale de la Croix-Rouge sur les statuts de la Croix-Rouge internationale’, in Revue internationale de la Croix-Rouge, No. 119, November 1928, pp. 991–1010.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

89 Treizième Conférence internationale de la Croix-Rouge tenue à La Haye du 23 au 27 octobre 1928, Compte rendu, Imprimerie nationale, The Hague, 1929, pp. 12–19 , 48–75 , 85, 101–114 , 117–118 , 182–186.

90 C. Rey-Schyrr, above note 25, pp. 42–48.

91 Ibid., pp. 51–134 ; Dominique-D. Junod, The Imperiled Red Cross and the Palestine–Eretz-Yisrael Conflict 1945–1952 : The Influence of Institutional Concerns on a Humanitarian Operation, Kegan Paul International, London and New York, 1996, passim.

92 On the action of the ICRC during the 1948–1949 Arab–Israeli conflict and on the way in which that action became part of the ICRC's survival strategy, see, in particular, D.-D. Junod, above note 91.

93 Statutes of the International Red Cross and Rules of Procedure of the International Conference of the Red Cross: Proposed Revision, submitted by the Standing Commission of the International Conference of the Red Cross to the XVIIIth International Red Cross Conference (Document A 18), Geneva, 7 December 1951, cyclostyled.

94 Eighteenth International Conference of the Red Cross, above note 25, pp. 33–39 , 96–101 , 161–168.

95 Resolution XXXI, Twenty-fifth International Conference of the Red Cross, above note 38, pp. 121–122 , 166.

96 Compte rendu des Travaux de la Conférence internationale tenue à Berlin, above note 14, pp. 80–84 , 264.

97 Organisation générale et programme de la Croix-Rouge (D'après les décisions prises dans les Conférences internationales par les Fondateurs et les Représentants de cette Institution), 2nd edition, ICRC, Geneva, 1898, pp. 25–26.

98 Moynier, Gustave, ‘Ce que c'est que la Croix-Rouge’, in Bulletin international des Sociétés de la Croix-Rouge, No. 21, January 1875, pp. 1–8Google Scholar ; André Durand, ‘Quelques remarques sur l’élaboration des principes de la Croix-Rouge chez Gustave Moynier', in Christophe Swinarski (ed.), Études et essais sur le droit international humanitaire et sur les principes de la Croix-Rouge en l'honneur de Jean Pictet, ICRC, Geneva, and Martinus Nijhoff, The Hague, 1984, pp. 861–873.

99 Statutes of the International Committee of the Red Cross, 10 March 1921, Art. 3, in Revue internationale de la Croix-Rouge, No. 28, April 1921, pp. 379–380.

100 On the situation of the German Red Cross during World War II, see Dieter Riesenberger, Das Deutsche Rote Kreuz: Eine Geschichte 1864–1990 , Ferdinand Schöningh, Paderborn, 2002, esp. pp. 269–371 ; Birgitt Morgenbrod and Stephanie Merkenich, Das Deutsche Rote Kreuz unter der NS-Diktatur, 1933–1945 , Ferdinand Schöningh, Paderborn, 2008.

101 Now the General Assembly of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

102 Board of Governors, 19th session, Oxford, 1946, Resolution XII, amended by Resolution VII of the 20th session, Stockholm 1948, Handbook, above note 4, pp. 721–724.

103 Eighteenth International Conference of the Red Cross, above note 25, pp. 112–113 and 148, Resolution X.

104 Max Huber, La pensée et l'action de la Croix-Rouge, ICRC, Geneva, 1954; Jean S. Pictet, Red Cross principles, ICRC, Geneva, 1956.

105 Council of Delegates of the International Red Cross, Verbatim Report, Prague, 1961, p. 46. At the Council of Delegates, there was only one debate, started by a statement made by the President of the Alliance of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies of the USSR. That debate concerned the role of the Red Cross with regard to the preservation of peace, which was mentioned in connection with the principle of humanity.

106 Twentieth International Conference of the Red Cross, above note 33, pp. 51–52 and 99–100 , Resolution VIII. See also Hans Haug, with Hans-Peter Gasser, Françoise Perret, and Jean-Pierre Robert-Tissot, Humanity for All: The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, Paul Haupt Publishers, Berne, Stuttgart, and Vienna, and Henry Dunant Institute, Geneva, 1993, pp. 443–490.

107 International Review of the Red Cross, No. 256, January–February 1987, pp. 27–28 ; Handbook, above note 4, pp. 519–520.

108 International Court of Justice, Military and Paramilitary Activities in and against Nicaragua (Nicaragua v. United States of America), Merits, Judgement of 27 June 1986, ICJ Reports 1986, p. 125.

109 Together for Humanity: Thirtieth International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 26–30 November 2007: Council of Delegates of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, Geneva, 23–27 November 2007: Resolutions, ICRC – Federation, Geneva, 2008, pp. 78–80 , Resolution 2.

110 On this issue, see François Bugnion, Red Cross, Red Crescent, Red Crystal, ICRC, Geneva, 2007.

111 As an example, see two key reports that the ICRC submitted to the Twenty-eighth and to the Thirtieth International Conference: Twenty-eighth International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 2–6 December 2003, International Humanitarian Law and the Challenges of Contemporary Armed Conflicts, report prepared by the ICRC, October 2003 (document 03/IC/09); Thirtieth International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 26–30 November 2007, International Humanitarian Law and the Challenges of Contemporary Armed Conflicts, document prepared by the ICRC, October 2007 (document 30IC/07/8.4). Both reports are available at http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/htmlall/section_ihl_reaffirmation_and_development?opendocument (last visited 16 March 2010).

112 Nineteenth International Conference of the Red Cross, above note 26, p. 155, Resolution XX.

113 Any delivery of medicines to areas held by the insurgent forces was prohibited and the doctors were required to report suspicious injuries, which amounted in fact to preventing wounded insurgents from receiving treatment. Conversely, a number of French medical doctors were killed in ambushes or attacks.

114 Resolution XVII, Nineteenth International Conference of the Red Cross, New Delhi, October–November 1957, Report, pp. 103–104 and 154–155.

115 Between 1931 and 1933, Japan had invaded the Chinese provinces of Manchuria and Jehol and had combined these two provinces to create the puppet state of ‘Manchukuo’. To force China to cease boycotting Japanese goods, Japan had also occupied the Shanghai region. On 31 May 1933, an armistice had put an end to the fighting, but everyone knew that this was only a truce and that the hostilities could resume at any moment.

116 The arguments in favour of holding the International Conference in Geneva do not apply to the Council of Delegates since the states do not take part in it.

117 I am grateful to Mrs Angela Gussing Sapina, Deputy Director of Operations at the ICRC, for suggesting this simple but valuable proposal.

118 Statutes, Art. 8.

119 Ibid., Art. 11, para. 4.

120 On the role of governments within the framework of the International Conference, see Thomas Kupfer and Georg Stein, ‘The role of governments at International Conferences of the Red Cross and Red Crescent’, in Lijnzaad, van Sambeek, and Tahzib-Lie, above note 12, pp. 107–118.

121 Statutes, Art. 18, para. 1.

122 By a strange inconsistency, the Statutes stipulate that the Standing Commission shall establish ‘by consensus the list of observers’ (Art. 18, para. 1(d)) but make no mention of establishing the list of participants (states and National Societies). Since that question is not dealt with in any specific attribution of competence, it obviously forms part of the Standing Commission's general competence to ‘make arrangements for the next International Conference’ (Art. 18, para. 1).

123 ‘Funambule et illusionniste, la Commission permanente doit jongler avec la politique sans s'y brÛler, dans le but de l'escamoter à l'aube des Conférences’, Y. Sandoz, above note 41, p. 602.

124 It is obviously far easier to establish a mechanism or a procedure enabling possible issues of participation to be settled when no issue of that kind arises than when one does. Indeed, from the moment such a controversy emerges, the various players define their position in relation to it, with no regard for the general interest.

125 Statutes, Art. 10, para. 8 stipulates that ‘The International Conference may establish for the duration of the Conference subsidiary bodies in accordance with the Rules of Procedure’.

126 P. Boissier, above note 3, p. 208.

127 Treizième Conférence internationale de la Croix-Rouge, above note 89, pp. 21–27.

128 Personal communication from the Secretariat of the Standing Commission, 3 June 2009.

129 I am grateful to Mrs Marion Harroff-Tavel, Diplomatic Advisor at the ICRC, for a careful reading of this article and for suggesting this proposal.

130 Statutes, Art. 10, para. 4.

131 Twenty-seventh International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Geneva, 31 October–6 November 1999, Report, ICRC and Federation, Geneva, 2000, pp. 137–138 . Twenty-eighth International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, above note 57, p. 277.

132 In recent years a number of persons, including members of the Standing Commission, have suggested enlarging the number of elected members of the Standing Commission in order to better represent the growing number of National Societies. However, representing the National Societies is the first and primary task of the Federation. There is no point in turning the Standing Commission into a second federation and then setting up a co-ordinating body between the two.