Actions taken:
Republic of Poland and its National Red Cross Society (PRC) maintaining a long-standing partnership relations in the promotion, dissemination and implementation
of international humanitarian law, deem necessary to stress the importance of the red cross emblem recognition and protection at the national level. Therefore, the Republic of Poland and its National Red Cross Society pledge to strengthen legal mechanisms, undertake promotional and educational activities in area of red cross emblem protection.
Action plan:
– continuation of the work of the National Committee of Red Cross Emblem Protection
in the area of training and promotional activities regarding the red cross emblem
– building a dialogue platform to strengthen the legal protection of the red cross emblem
– intervention in case of abuse of the red cross emblem in public space
Indicators for measuring progress:
– number of interventions in case of abuse of the red cross emblem
– number of trainings / promotional activities regarding the red cross emblem
Resource implications:
– an increase of recognition of the red cross emblem and knowledge of its function
– a decrease in the number of abuses of the red cross emblem in public space
– strengthening the legal protection of the red cross emblem
Implementation:
Polish Red Cross
Attached to the PRC Governing Board, the Committee of Red Cross Emblem Protection undertakes a number of initiatives to raise public awareness of the emblem’s role and function as well as the scope of its protection. To this end, research papers and press releases are published on a regular basis, including in social media; trainings and lectures are delivered for students of law, political science, and international relations, members of uniformed services, employees and volunteers of humanitarian organisations, including in-house trainings for the PRC personnel; intervention letters are sent to entities misusing the emblem, advising them about such graphic sign or logo designs that do not infringe on the legally protected emblem of the red cross. The Committee shares its work with the sister societies of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent, and with the International Committee of the Red Cross. Also, the said organisations exchange knowledge, good practice, and experience, as well as information materials for wider use.
The armed conflict in Ukraine has triggered a significant rise in the misuse of the red cross emblem on the Polish-Ukrainian border. The PRC has diagnosed that private transports are using the emblem because they are convinced that it is an international symbol of humanitarian aid and any provider of the latter may mark themselves with it. The knowledge of the corresponding laws is scarce, and interventions aimed at curbing the misuse meet with incomprehension. In the reported period, the education measures have usually been taken with predefined addressees in view. A clear message is missing for the man in the street looking to engage spontaneously in the provision of aid, as also are warnings against unlawful activities using the red cross emblem as a disguise (human trafficking, smuggling etc.). In regard to the above, the PRC turned to Ministry of Foreign Affairs for help in disseminating a brief statement, which was subsequently distributed among other ministries and published on their websites. The PRC planned an awareness-raising campaign for the general public; work has been underway to develop a creative concept and promotional tools for use in the media.
A poster was designed in cooperation with the Ukrainian Red Cross Society to inform about the scope of protection of the red cross emblem as defined by the Polish and the Ukrainian laws, and about the legal sanctions for misusing the emblem. The posters were distributed among the border crossings on the Polish and the Ukrainian side and sent to the PRC Regional Branches.
Also, the PRC joined the international initiative of the International Red Cross Committee to analyse the present state of the law and its ensuing practice in regard to the protection and use of the red cross, the red crescent, the red crystal, and other emblems that apply to health service protection. The project has been carried out in cooperation with the Swiss Institute of Comparative Law and King’s College London, and a report introducing the outcome of the analysis will be published in the middle of 2024 so that the results could be presented at the upcoming International Conference of the Red Cross.
Ministry of National Defence
Following the approved training programmes for all education levels, the Ministry of National Defence has delivered in-house upskilling courses in International Humanitarian Law of Armed Conflicts (IHLAC). Also, the Ministry has maintained close contacts with the domestic society of the Red Cross, regularly referring its teaching staff to upskilling courses organised by the latter. At the IHLAC courses, the trainees learn about issues concerning the International Committee of the Red Cross and the National Societies of the Red Cross. They study the organisational structure of the Polish Red Cross down to the level of the basic units of the PRC Circles at schools, Social Youth Instructors, Honorary Blood Donors’ Clubs, Rescue Groups, and Humanitarian Aid Groups. Introducing the priority areas of the PRC, the trainers focus in particular on the idea of volunteering to help people aggrieved by disasters, catastrophes, accidents. The students and trainees become imbued with the fundamental principles of the Red Cross Movement, namely humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, universality and unity, as well as helping sufferers and people in need without differentiating between nationalities, races, creeds, sexes, or the beliefs the Red Cross Movement adheres to. The curriculum also includes a brief history of the red cross emblem and its identification, protection, and information functions. The attendees study the most important universally applicable legal instruments, military regulations, and bylaws of the Movement and the PRC that regulate the use of the red cross emblem (along with the red crescent and the red crystal). As an important aspect of that subject, the trainers discuss legality of using the emblem and its misuse. When used without the authorisation stipulated in the Geneva conventions and their additional protocols, the emblem may consolidate misconceptions about the entities making use of it, undermining its significance or even perpetrating perfidy in warfare or usurpation and emulation in peacetime.
Ministry of Culture and National Heritage
On 23 October 2019, with the participation of the University of Warsaw’s Faculty of Law and Administration, the Polish Advisory Committee, and the Polish Blue Shield Committee, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage and the Ministry of National Defence organised an academic conference to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the Convention of 14 May 1954 for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict and the 20th anniversary of the Second Protocol to that Convention. The Conference’s organising partner was the Commission for the International Humanitarian Law Promotion operating at the Executive Board of the Polish Red Cross. The event aimed at disseminating the international law provisions in regard to the protection of cultural property in armed conflict in different environments, broadening the knowledge of task owners in cultural institutions, encouraging the academia, including students, to carry out tasks in the area of cultural heritage security, and analysing the degree of fulfilment of the related obligations in Poland. The Conference comprised two panels: the protection of cultural heritage in armed conflicts in the light of international law and the protection of cultural heritage by the Armed Forces during missions, trainings and exercise, and communication.