
COTABATO CITY (February 17, 2023) – Today, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) marks its 160th year of work to bring relief to millions of people adversely affected by armed conflict.
Technological advances have changed warfare drastically since 1863. But one thing has remained sadly consistent: the level of suffering that civilians caught in conflict are made to endure. The ICRC’s co-founder, Henri Dunant, wrote this 160 years ago, after witnessing the horrors of combat:
“Houses were riddled with holes, shattered and ruined, and their inhabitants, who had been in hiding, crouching in cellars without light or food for nearly 20 hours, were beginning to crawl out, looking stunned by the terrors they had endured.”
The text reads as though it could have been written today about people suffering from conflict in Ukraine, or Yemen, or Syria. Civilians suffering through the fighting seen in Afghanistan or Somalia in recent years are stunned by the terrors of the conflicts there.
“After 160 years of work, the International Committee of the Red Cross can say the world has made real progress to reduce civilian harm on the battlefield. Yet we still see massive suffering in conflicts today, meaning much more work remains to be done to reduce the pain and heartbreak,” said ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric.
“Respect for international humanitarian law has been, and will continue to be, the only way to preserve a minimum of humanity during conflict. The laws of war must be elevated to a political priority,” he added.
The ICRC works in 100 countries with a workforce of more than 21,000 people. Over the years ahead, the ICRC, alongside its partners within the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, will continue its work to ensure that the neutral, impartial and independent nature of our humanitarian activities is understood by all, even as new weapons and technologies continue to be introduced.
Always on the side of humanity, the ICRC will also continue to advocate and insist on greater respect for international humanitarian law, which prohibits violence directed at people who are not involved in armed conflict. ### (Tu Alid Alfonso/BangsamoroToday with report from ICRC)
More Stories
Chief Minister Ebrahim graces the State of Bangsamoro Women Address
Bainon G. Karon, Chairperson of BWC during the State of Bangsamoro Women Address held at SKCC, BGC, Cotabato City on...
BARMM Chief Minister Ebrahim awards KAPYANAN 150-unit housing project in Maguindanao del Norte
BARMM Chief Minister Ahod B. Ebrahim together with KAPYANAN staff and Local Government Unit Officials in Maguindanao del Norte. (Photo...
ICRC teams begin multi-day operation to reunite hostages and detainees with their families cum deliver assistance
ICRC facilitate the release and transfer of hostages held in Gaza and of Palestinian detainees to the West Bank. (Screenshot...
MP Atty. Arnado implements series of development programs for the Bangsamoro
Presentation of the signed Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between and among MP Atty. Arnado's office and partners in BARMM. (Photo...
BARMM government builds 180 Million Pesos Kabuntalan-Pahamudin Bridge
Ground breaking ceremony of the PhP180 Million Kabuntalan-Pahamudin Bridge at Maguindanao del Norte. (Photo courtesy of Province of Maguindanao del...
STATEMENT OF MINISTER MOHAGHER M. IQBAL, CHAIRMAN OF THE MILF PEACE IMPLEMENTING PANEL ON THE ISSUANCE OF PRESIDENTIAL PROCLAMATION NO. 405 GRANTING AMNESTY TO THE MILF MEMBERS
Minister Mohagher M. Iqbal. (BMN/BangsamoroToday File Photo) STATEMENT OF MINISTER MOHAGHER M. IQBAL, CHAIRMAN OF THE MILF PEACE IMPLEMENTING PANEL...