Every year since 1953, May 8 is celebrated as the World Day of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. Thus, a tribute is paid to the Swiss public figure Henri Dunant, who was born on this day in 1828. It was on his initiative that the formation of the first volunteer groups began, which provided assistance to the wounded on the battlefields.
In 1859, during the Battle of Solferino - one of the bloodiest in the 19th century - Dunant, who threw the call "We are all brothers" and gathered volunteers from nearby villages, became an active assistant to the medical services of the warring parties. In 1862 he wrote the book "Remembrance of Solferino", which put forward the idea of organizing an international society that would provide assistance to the wounded in the war.
Attorney Gustave Moignier, president of one of the Geneva charities, supported Dunant's idea and assembled a committee of 5, whose hard work in 1863 resulted in the creation of national charities by representatives of 16 countries and the transformation of the committee into the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), whose task became the coordination of the activities of these charitable groups.
A year later, the identification mark was adopted - a red cross, located on a white background, and meaning the legal protection of volunteers providing assistance to the wounded, medical services and victims of armed conflicts. The organization received its official name and charter in 1928. During the war with Russia, the Ottoman Empire began to use the red crescent as a protective emblem, nevertheless paying tribute to the red cross used by the enemy. In 2005, an additional emblem of the movement was adopted - a red crystal.
Today, the ICRC is a neutral, independent organization that provides protection and assistance to victims of internal unrest and armed conflict (sick, wounded and detainees). In its work, the organization is guided by the principle of impartiality. The National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, united in the International Federation, together with the ICRC constitute the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, with more than 100 million employees and volunteers.
