Yes, the Pakistan Red Crescent Society
has started to rake up the issue. As with other National Societies
it is agonising for PRCS to witness such blatant misuse of what
is a global humanitarian protective sign; the Red Cross/Red
Crescent Emblem. What is even more tragic is that most misusers
are unaware that they are even in the wrong.
Most doctors are surprised when they learn that the emblem
is not meant for them. The young son of a private doctor once
attended a puppet show organised by Pakistan Red Crescent Society
for school going children. In that one hour he realised the
significance of the Emblem in peace and wartime. He went home
and made his father take the Red Emblem sticker off his car.
The father is now a member at PRCS.
It is not only medical practitioners but others like medical
shops; pharmaceutical companies, government and private medical
institutions and organisations operating ambulance services
who are misusing the emblem.
The Emblem is not just a symbol. The Emblems of the Movement
are the linchpin of all humanitarian activity; protecting both
victims and those who come to their aid.
Today, the Red Cross emblem is used to identify and protect
medical and relief workers, military and civilian medical facilities
in combat zones, mobile units, and hospital ships. It also identifies
the programs and activities of Red Cross National Societies
throughout the world.
Behind this symbol lies more than a century of humanitarian
tradition. At a meeting in Switzerland in 1863, international
delegates recommended that volunteer medical personnel of all
countries working to improve the care of the wounded on battlefields
wear an easily recognizable sign. To honor the Swiss origin
of this initiative, the symbol of a red cross on a white background
(the reverse of the Swiss flag) was adopted. This symbol was
used to identify personnel, material and facilities used to
care forthe sick and wounded in times of armed conflict.
The symbol was later incorporated into the treaties known as
the Geneva Conventions. The first Geneva Convention was signed
on August 22, 1864, by the representatives of twelve countries.
It established the fundamental principle that "wounded
or sick combatants, to whatever nation they may belong, shall
be collected and cared for." Since almost every nation
in the world has signed the conventions, almost every nation
has incurred the responsibility to establish a Red Cross organization
and to protect the emblem ofthe Greek red cross.
By the terms of the treaty, persons and facilities bearing
the symbol are protected from attack. Over the years the protection
of the original Geneva Convention has been extended beyond the
battlefield to include the shipwrecked, the prisoners of war,
and the civilian populations affected by armed conflict.
