[Source: Statutes of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, available at http://www.icrc.org [1]. Footnotes omitted]
(adopted by the 25th International Conference of the Red Cross at Geneva in 1986,
amended in 1995 and 2006)
The International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent,
Proclaims that the National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies together constitute a worldwide humanitarian movement, whose mission is to prevent and alleviate human suffering wherever it may be found, to protect life and health and ensure respect for the human being, in particular in times of armed conflict and other emergencies, to work for the prevention of disease and for the promotion of health and social welfare, to encourage voluntary service and a constant readiness to give help by the members of the Movement, and a universal sense of solidarity towards all those in need of its protection and assistance.
Reaffirms that, in pursuing its mission, the Movement shall be guided by its Fundamental Principles, which are:
Recalls that the mottoes of the Movement, Inter arma caritas and Per humanitatem ad pacem, together express its ideals.
Declares that, by its humanitarian work and the dissemination of its ideals, the Movement promotes a lasting peace, which is not simply the absence of war, but is a dynamic process of cooperation among all States and peoples, cooperation founded on respect for freedom, independence, national sovereignty, equality, human rights, as well as on a fair and equitable distribution of resources to meet the needs of peoples.
In order to be recognized in terms of Article 5, paragraph 2 b) as a National Society, the Society shall meet the following conditions:
The International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent
The International Conference is the supreme deliberative body for the Movement. At the International Conference, representatives of the components of the Movement meet with representatives of the States Parties to the Geneva Conventions, the latter in exercise of their responsibilities under those Conventions and in support of the overall work of the Movement in terms of Article 2. Together they examine and decide upon humanitarian matters of common interest and any other related matter.
The Council of Delegates of the International Red Cross
and Red Crescent Movement
The Council of Delegates of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement (hereinafter called “the Council”) is the body where the representatives of all the components of the Movement meet to discuss matters which concern the Movement as a whole.
The Standing Commission of the Red Cross and Red Crescent
The Standing Commission of the Red Cross and Red Crescent (called “the Standing Commission” in the present Statutes) is the trustee of the International Conference between two Conferences, carrying out the functions laid down in Article 18.
Any proposal to amend the present Statutes and the Rules of Procedure must be placed on the agenda of the International Conference and its text sent to all members of the Conference at least six months in advance. To be adopted, any amendment shall require a two-thirds majority of those members of the International Conference present and voting, after the views of the International Committee and the Federation have been presented to the Conference.
Links
[1] http://www.icrc.org