In a message dated 1/16/02 1:39:55 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: << > Btw, has the international Red Cross/Crescent organization ever explained > why it won't accept the israeli Red Magen-David?
Can you explain what you're talking about? I'm not familiar with that. >> Rather than explain, here is some information on the subject: 1) From Israel's gov't site. 2) From the US senate (Hillary Clinton's release on the subject last year) 3) from Chicago's Red Cross They've been discussing it for years. The very short version is, unless Israel removes the Jewish Star from their ambulances, they will not be given international recognition and immunity from being fired upon by enemy forces the way the Red Cross is. </sarcasm/> Isn't it wonderful to be a member of a civilization? </sarcasm/> From: http://www.israel-mfa.gov.il/mfa/go.asp?MFAH01v80 Israel and the International Red Cross Israel, as a signatory to the Geneva Conventions, is a member of the International Red Cross. Its first-aid organization, "Magen David Adom", is represented by the red Star of David ("Magen David"). However, due to Israel's insistance on retaining its unique symbol, its status in the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies has remained that of observer only. (The Geneva Conventions currently recognize only two symbols: the Red Cross and the Red Crescent.) Israel fully complies with the ten conditions for recognition of national societies, with the exception of paragraph 5: the requirement to use the name and symbol of the Red Cross or Red Crescent. Israel's efforts to obtain recognition for the symbol of "Magen David Adom" has continued throughout the years, since 1949. At the IRC meeting held in Birmingham, England in October 1993, an Advisory Committee was established to review the organizational and statutory timeliness of the organization, including its symbols. A meeting of the Red Cross societies will be held at the end of November 1997. The societies will recommend to the International Conference (scheduled to convene at the end of 1999) several solutions to the problem of the symbol, among them the adoption of a uniform symbol (red diamond), within which the individual national societies can include particular national symbols. This solution is in principle acceptable to Israel. In the meantime, "Magen David Adom" continues to maintain good de facto working relations with the Swiss ICR and its representative in Israel, as well as with the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva. FROM: http://clinton.senate.gov/news/2001/03/2001312D01.html March 12, 2001 Senator Clinton Calls for Inclusion of Israel in International Red Cross Washington, DC – Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton today vowed to fight for the inclusion of Magen David Adom, Israel's humanitarian aid society, as a full voting member in the International Red Cross. Senator Clinton made the promise during an address to the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism's (RAC) 2001 Consultation on Conscience conference. The biannual event was hosted by RAC at the Grand Hyatt in Washington. "The decision of the International Red Cross to deny membership to Israel's society is an issue of social justice that has put Israel at a disadvantage and has sent a strong, unfortunate message to the world suggesting that Israel should be treated as a second-class nation," said Senator Clinton. "I recently met with Senator Fitzgerald and we have discussed what we can to together in the near future. And today, I am proud to say that I will join Senator Fitzgerald in sending a letter calling on the Bush Administration to make Israel's inclusion in the International Committee of the Red Cross a high priority." For more than 50 years, Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel's equivalent of the Red Cross, has been excluded from becoming a member of the International Committee of the Red Cross simply because MDA uses the red star of David as its emblem, rather than the red cross. In the Muslim world, countries are welcome to use the red crescent as their symbol. Israel's MDA is on call 24 hours a day, providing humanitarian relief at home and around the world, but is still not permitted to join this International humanitarian body. The American Red Cross has worked to eliminate the longstanding obstacles to MDA's membership. In October 2000, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed a resolution sponsored by Senator Peter Fitzgerald (IL) and others calling for the International Committee of the Red Cross and Federation to immediately grant MDA full voting membership. That followed a similar bipartisan resolution sponsored Congressman Engel and passed by the House of Representatives in May of last year. FROM: http://chapters.redcross.org/il/chicago/services/international/MDA.htm American Red Cross Works For Recognition of Israel's Magen David Adom Exclusion of the Magen David Adom (MDA - a.k.a. the Red Cross in Israel) from full membership in the International Red Cross and Red Crescent has been a long-standing point of contention between the American Red Cross and the decision-making bodies of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (Federation). We believe that exclusion of MDA from the Movement and the Federation, which now comprises 177 societies in sovereign nations, is a betrayal of our Fundamental Principles including Humanity, Impartiality, Neutrality, Unity and Universality. Almost 70 years ago a precedent was set when the ICRC and the Federation formally accepted the use of the red crescent as a protective emblem for Islamic nations. By accepting the crescent, the ICRC and the Federation recognized sensitivities that might have otherwise prohibited Islamic nations from contributing formally to the work of the Movement. It would be impossible to imagine the modern Red Cross Movement without the Red Crescent Societies, and MDA is similarly indispensable. Correcting this unacceptable situation has been a priority for the American Red Cross ever since Israel became a sovereign state and signed the Geneva Conventions in 1948. Dissatisfied with progress on this issue, in 1987, representing the humanitarian will of the American people, American Red Cross delegates passed a formal resolution at their national convention, calling for immediate admission of MDA. In 1989, the Board of Governors took this one step further by passing a resolution that not only emphasized the importance of MDA membership in the Federation, but also unilaterally recognized MDA as a Red Cross sister society. With bipartisan support, the U.S. Congress has also voiced the concern of the American public on this issue. In 1987, Congress called for granting the red shield of David the identical status of recognition as the red cross and red crescent. In its authorization of funding for foreign relations in 1988 and 1989, Congress advised that the State Department limit U.S. funding of the ICRC for these fiscal years until MDA recognition was granted. In 1999, the House of Representatives once again united to formally urge recognition of MDA and directed the president of the United States to enlist the cooperation of all nations signatory to the Geneva Conventions to achieve this. In 1998, the American Red Cross proposed granting MDA full membership by using a 'grandfathering approach' based on the precedents set by the ICRC and Federation in the past and the technical legal application of international Red Cross rules. Instead, the ICRC and Federation embarked upon a complex series of diplomatic conferences requiring super-majority votes with the goal of adopting a new neutral emblem. As a byproduct, these conferences would consider an option for full membership of MDA. Read the American Red Cross position on this process and the specific legal text. American support for resolution to this longstanding injustice has been growing throughout the protracted diplomatic process. On October 19, 2000, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed a resolution sponsored by Senators Fitzgerald (R-IL) and Lieberman (D-CT) and 22 other co-sponsors calling for the ICRC to immediately recognize and the Federation to immediately grant MDA full voting membership. This followed a similar bipartisan resolution passed by the House of Representatives on May 3, 2000. Since the new term began in January, Senator Clinton (D-NY) has added her voice to those in the Senate calling for resolution. In April 2001, H.CON. RES. 101 was introduced to the House of Representatives by Rep. Engel (D-NY), expressing the will of Congress that ICRC immediately recognize MDA and that this is a priority of the State Department. In 2000, the American Red Cross Board of Governors directed management to take all necessary actions to achieve full membership of MDA as soon as possible and has carefully considered developments on this issue at every step. At the American Red Cross national convention, held in May 2000, more than 1,100 delegates unanimously supported a resolution reaffirming their support for American Red Cross Board of Governors policy on MDA. After careful consideration and consultation among the Board of Governors and management, the American Red Cross decided to place in escrow its annual dues payment for the overhead expenses of the ICRC and Federation. In no way does this diminish the American Red Cross commitment or funding for humanitarian relief. We will never let policy differences with these Geneva-based institutions interfere with our mission to prevent and alleviate human suffering. In fact, our international efforts have grown significantly in response to the expectations and generosity of the American public. The American Red Cross believes that the exclusion of Magen David Adom from the global Red Cross family of societies has gone on for too long. Although the American Red Cross continues to work diligently with international leaders that control the recognition process (i.e., Federation and the ICRC) we believe this issue must be resolved now, and by that we mean in a matter of months not years. Indeed, Israel is not the only state facing problems because of its emblem. Kazakhstan, a former Soviet Republic, has also been denied membership in the International Movement because its emblem is comprised of both the crescent and the cross. This is also an unfair exclusion, especially since the society of the USSR used this same emblem. The leadership of the American Red Cross is committed to achieving full membership in the International Movement for both societies. They have been unjustly excluded for far too long.
