Keeping the pressure on

The “Come closer…” campaign, launched in Panama City, is part of the International Federation’s ongoing global anti-stigma campaign, ‘The truth about AIDS. Pass it on…’. The campaign addresses the marginalization of people living with and affected by HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). ‘Come closer’ campaign messages include: ‘Hug! Hug! You cannot get HIV by hugging!’

Since the launch in 2002 of the global anti-stigma campaign, the International Federation has implemented targeted activities to reduce stigma related to HIV/AIDS. National Societies have been encouraged to work with PLWHA to adapt global material, such as the stamps campaign, to local sensibilities and implement stigma reduction activities.

With messages like ‘You cannot get AIDS by... being a friend’ and “You cannot get AIDS by... holding hands” on stamp designs, the stamps campaign, which precedes the ‘Come closer…’ campaign, dispelled myths and fears related to HIV transmission.

Today more than 120 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies are actively campaigning against stigma and discrimination, as part of their work to promote humanitarian values and protect human dignity.

Thousands flees in Colombia

The consequences in humanitarian terms of the recent fighting in the northern part of the department of Cauca, in south-western Colombia, have been dramatic: over 6,000 people — most of them indigenous — have been displaced, 35 civilians wounded, two children killed and numerous homes damaged or destroyed. The fighting, which began with an attack on the Toribío police station on 14 April, spread in a few days to the neighbouring districts of Caloto and Silvia. The terrorized residents urgently needed food, mats and blankets.

On 17 April, joint ICRC and Colombian Red Cross Society (CRCS) teams supplied emergency aid for the displaced. They distributed 48 tonnes of food and over 2,500 mats and blankets. They also provided basic health care and carried out preventive activities.

Following the attack on Toribío, the indigenous village of Tacueyó in the district of Silvia was on high alert. After hearing an initial explosion on 24 April, many villagers fled. “There were about 180 of us running through the crossfire, many of us barefoot, others carrying children in their arms.” An ICRC/CRCS team travelling in four trucks reached the area a few days later with 18 tonnes of food and 1,000 mats, sheets and blankets as well as hygiene items and kitchen utensils.

According to Luis Evelio Ipia, an indigenous leader from Tacueyó, the residents are torn between staying and leaving: “We want to leave because our lives are in danger but at the same time we don’t want to abandon our homes and our animals.”

Hotel Rwanda

It is not the role of feature films to promote the image of an organization like the ICRC. Films, however serious the subject matter, are first and foremost entertainment, even if they do sometimes try to influence and inform. It was a surprise therefore to see in the film Hotel Rwanda such a poignant portrayal of the activities of the ICRC in what was one of the bloodiest crises in Africa in the 1990s.

It’s often difficult to explain to an outside audience the reality of protecting civilians in armed conflictor restoring family links. But in Hotel Rwanda both activities are portrayed with great clarity through one of the lesser roles in the film, an ICRC delegate.

The film vividly retells the terrible events in Rwanda in 1994, but it is also about a courageous individual triumphing over inhumanity. It is based on the story of one man, Paul Rusesabagina, played by Don Cheadle, who as manager of the Mille Collines hotel tries to save people from the ethnic slaughter. A Hutu married to a Tutsi, he puts himself and his family at great risk in a truly humanitarian cause.

Who knows the Geneva Conventions?

The ICRC has participated in the Gallup “Voice of the People” opinion research survey, which was conducted between June and August 2004. The survey focuses on global issues such as politics, governance and environment. Gallup interviewed more than 50,000 people in approximately 60 countries around the world.

Following the Abu Ghraib prison scandal in Iraq, it was important for the ICRC to gather quantitative credible information on the way people perceive the Geneva Conventions, their effectiveness and the issue of torture. The key findings are: more than half of the world’s citizens have heard of them. This is most prevalent in Europe and the Americas (60 per cent) than in Asia and the Pacific (43 per cent) and in Africa (35 per cent). However a fairly high awareness of the Geneva Conventions does not necessarily lead to a greater belief in their efficiency: among those who have heard of the Geneva Conventions, only one-third (38 per cent) think that they adequately protect people in wartime. The lowest recognition is in the Middle East and North Africa (26 per cent), followed by Europe and the Americas (36 per cent) and the highest recognition in Africa (52 per cent).

When offered a list of possible activities which might be effective in reducing or eliminating torture of prisoners in relation to war, the highest percentage (68 per cent) believed that visits to prisoners by the ICRC were most effective, ahead of more prosecutions (66 per cent) and greater public awareness (65 per cent). Later this year, Gallup will conduct another opinion survey on the perception of ICRC activities.