DECEMBER 1970 TENTH YEAR - No. 117 international review• of the red cross + ""OPEflTY OF u.s. ARMY INTER ARMA CARITAS TliE JUDGE AOVOCAlE GEHERAl'S SCHGlOL L~ GENEVA INTERNATIONAL COMMITIEE OF THE REO CROSS FOUNDED IN 1863 INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS MARCEL A. NAVILLE, President (member since 1967) HANS BACHMANN, Doctor of Laws, Winterthur Stadtrat, Vice-President (1958) JACQUES FREYMOND, Doctor of Literature, Director of the Graduate Institute of International Studies, Professor at the University of Geneva, Vice-President (1959) MARTIN BODMER, Hon. Doctor of Philosophy (1940) PAUL RUEGGER, Ambassador, President of the ICRC from 1948 to 1955 (1948) RODOLFO OLGIATI, Hon. Doctor of Medicine, Director of the Don Suisse from 1944 to 1948 (1949) GUILLAUME BORDIER, Certificated Engineer E.P.F., M.B.A. Harvard, Banker (1955) DIETRICH SCHINDLER, Doctor of Laws, Professor at the University of Zurich (1961) HANS MEULI, Doctor of Medicine, Brigade Colonel, Director of the Swiss Army Medical Service from 1946 to 1960 (1961) MARJORIE DUVILLARD, nurse (1961) MAX PETITPIERRE, Doctor of Laws, former President of the Swiss Confederation (1961) ADOLPHE GRAEDEL, member of the SWiss National Council from 1951 to 1963, former Secretary-General of the International Metal Workers Federation (1965) DENISE BINDSCHEDLER-ROBBRT, Doctor of Laws, Professor at the Graduate Institute of International Studies (1967) JACQUES F. DE ROUGEMONT, Doctor of Medicine (1967) ROGER GALLOPIN, Doctor of Laws, former Director-General (1967) JEAN PICTET, Doctor of Laws, ChainiJ.an of the Legal Commission (1967) WALDEMAR JUCKER, Doctor of Laws, Secretary, Union syndicale suisse (1967) HARALD HUBER, Doctor of Laws, Federal Court Judge (1969) VICTOR H. UMBRICHT, Doctor of Laws, Managing Director (1970) Honorary members: Mr. JACQUES CHENEVIERE, Honorary Vice-President; Miss LUCIE ODIER, Honorary Vice-President; Messrs. CARL J. BURCKHARDT, PAUL CARRY, Mrs. MARGUERITE GAUTIER-VAN BERCHEM, Messrs. SAMUEL A. GONARD, EDOUARD de HALLER, PAUL LOGOZ, FREDERIC SIORDET, ALFREDO VANNOTTI ,ADOLF VISCHER. Directorate: Mr. JEAN-LOUIS LE FORT, Secretary-General. Mr. RAYMOND COURVOISIER, Special Assistant to the President ahd Director of Operations. Mr. CLAUDE PILLOUD, Director, Department of Principles and Law. INTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF THE RED CROSS DECEMBER 1970 :-lNo. 117 CONTENTS V. Segesvary : The Birth of Red Cross Solidarity - During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871 663 INTERNATIONAL Red Cross Relief Action in Jordan 686 COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS External Activities: JCRC President in the Federal Republic of Ger­ many - Greece - Near East - Republic of Viet­ nam - Khmer Republic - Laos - Hong Kong - Philippines - Ecuador 688 + Relief Service Activities .•..•...•.••••.• • • • • 695 IN THE RED CROSS League of Red Cross Societies; To the Help of WORLD East Pakistan Cyclone Victims . 696 Spain . 699 Tunisia " . 699 MISCELLANEOUS Universal Children's Day .. , . 701 For the Protection of Life . 702 BOOKS AND REVIEWS 703 Contents (1970) 708 FRENCH EDITION The French edition of this Review is issued every OF THE REVIEW month under the title of Revue internationa/e -de la Croix-Rouge. It is, in principle, identical with the English edition and may be obtained under the same conditions. SUPPLEMENTS TO THE REVIEW SPANISH M. Veuthey: La Cruz Roja y los conflictos sin caracter internacional - Indice, Vol. XXII (1970). GERMAN M. Veuthey: Das Rote Kreuz und die nicht-internatio­ nalen Konflikte - Inhaltsverzeichnis, Band XXI (1970). INTERNATIONAL The International Review is published each month by REVIEW OF the International Committee of the Red Cross THE RED CROSS 7, avenue de la Paix, 1211 Geneva I, Switzerland Postal Cheque No. 121767 Annual subscription: Sw. fro 25.- ($6) Single copies Sw. fro 2.50 ($0.60) Editor: J.-G. LOSSIER The International Committee of the Red Cross assumes responsibility only for material over its own signature. DURING THE FRANCO-PRUSS/AN WAR OF 1870-1871 The Birth of Red Cross Solidarity by V. Segesvary INTRODUCTION 1870-1871: the Franco-Prussian war! A terrible event which shook all Europe; the slaughter of battle, blood, suffering, hun­ dreds of thousands of prisoners, privation both for civilian popula­ tions and the military forces-horrors which, nevertheless, gave rise to an entirely new phenomenon of capital importance in the history of humanity. It was a war which marked the beginning of the great universal movement of Red Cross solidarity. " Political neutrality is not human indifference". This motto of the Belgian Red Cross Society was understood by millions of men and has for 100 years resounded among all people who work to save lives or improve the lot of mankind. That solidarity has assumed many forms and convinced people who previously had been sceptical of the necessity and utility of the Red Cross mission. " The flood of charity has continued unabated and we cannot think without a feeling of horror of what the plight of thousands of wounded who benefited from its salutary effects would have been if the official medical service had been left to its own devices, as was nearly always the case in wars previous to the advent of the Red Cross ".J 1 Gustave Moynier-Bulletin international des Societes de Secours aux militaires .blesses, Geneva. 663 THE BIRTH OF RED CROSS SOLIDARITY National Aid Societies for the nursing of the sick and wounded in the field-as Red Cross Societies were then known-from twelve countries not involved in the conflict-Austria, Belgium, Great Britain, Holland, Italy, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland-participated in this great surge of solidarity. Doctors and relief supplies arrived also from the United States of America which at that time did not have a Society. Of course, the Red Cross Societies of the two belligerent coun­ tries, France and Germany (Prussia was the leading power of the German Federation, its partners being associated in the operations) made enormous efforts and were the first on the fields of battle to alleviate without distinction of nationality the suffering of the soldiers. Many reports and abundant literature on the subject mention the activities of these societies and show the value and scope of the vast amount of work they accomplished. However, we shall not deal with that here, our subject being the solidarity displayed by the Red Cross Societies of other countries. The International Committee, in Geneva, directed by the Berlin Conference in 1869 to set up in time of war a mail and information bureau for the purpose of facilitating" the exchange of communica­ tions among committees and the forwarding of relief", founded in July 1870 the International Agency in Basle. The latter received and forwarded much relief and many letters and messages. To the areas where the fighting was raging, it sent medical and nursing personnel recruited from volunteers or made available by governments and National Societies. A full account of the work in favour of wounded and sick soldiers and distressed civilian populations would cover hundreds of pages. We shall limit ourselves here to giving an outline by analysing the main activities and characteristics of the assistance given by each society or country.! * Obviously the foreign Societies' efforts in solidarity, like the action of the Societies of the belligerent States, were to follow 1 Plate. 664 THE BIRTH OF RED CROSS SOLIDARITY very closely the development of the military operations. Conse­ quently there were two distinct phases to the movement of Red Cross solidarity in 1870-71: The first phase lasted for about three months, starting on August 5th, the day on which the battle of Wissembourg was fought. The work of the ambulances and the relief and medical supplies were concentrated at that time in the North-East of France along the frontiers with Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany, par­ ticularly in the regions of Metz and Sedan where the gory battles of Froeschwiller, Forbach, Gravelotte, Saint-Privat, Beaumont and Pont-a-Mousson took place. Assistance from neighbouring coun­ tries such as Luxembourg and Belgium and from the International Agency in Basle, adjoining Alsace, was of major importance, although the relief supplies, medical personnel and ambulances sent by the English and Dutch Societies also played a considerable role. The second phase lasted from November 1870 to March 1871. Assistance moved to the north-west, centre and east of France following the rapid advance of the Prussian offensive towards Paris and following the movement of the armies of the Loire, the North and the East. During that time, the assistance provided by the British, Dutch, Swiss and Russian Societies increased whilst that from the countries surrounding the initial theatre of operations virtually ceased in the case of Luxembourg, or was reduced in the case of Belgium. The concentration of assistance in the areas mentioned did not mean that material assistance was no longer necessary behind the lines, hundreds of kilometres from the front in places to which the seriously wounded, the sick and the prisoners were taken. Red Cross solidarity, taking the form of material and financial relief as well as medical assistance was in evidence everywhere. Consignments sent by the British Society from its large depot in London made their way as far as the provinces of the West, South-West and South of France. A Dutch ambulance rendered signal service at Bordeaux. These are but two examples of the action undertaken by Societies ofcountries not engaged in the conflict. The same solidarity was in evidence also in Prussia and other .States of the German Confederation in the course of the two 665 THE BIRTH OF RED CROSS SOLIDARITY phases of the war. The extent and rapidity of the French defeat and, consequently, the large number of wounded or sick prisoners taken to the medical establishments in towns and villages on German territory, took the various Prussian and other organizations which looked after the military wounded and sick by surprise.