Federation president calls for fight against discrimination to top international agenda
3 April 2002

The international community must redouble its efforts to tackle intolerance and discrimination at both global and local levels, the UN Human Rights Commission was told today by Juan Manuel Suarez del Toro Rivero, President of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

Suarez del Toro attacked the stigma and discrimination that so many people living with HIV/AIDS are forced to confront in their daily lives. He also defended the rights and needs of refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants stating that "no matter what the cause, vulnerability calls for a sympathic response. That is our basic stance."

He vowed to mobilise the combined strength of the Federation's 178 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies with 100 million volunteers and members to promote and protect the rights of the most vulnerable and to improve co-operation with international organizations such as the UN Human Rights Commission.

The Federation through its members is already promoting a global initiative for local action to promote tolerance, combat discrimination and achieve respect for cultural diversity. "We trust that the Commission, in this session, will consider it appropriate to encourage all governments to take the national debate outside their capitals, to the suburbs and to the countryside, where the problems are often more acute."

As evidence of the Federation's committment to human rights protection he recalled the pioneering work of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Colombia, France, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Philippines, to promote peace and defuse ethnic tensions.

Linking fundamental human rights and dignity with socio-economic factors, Suarez del Toro also called for the fight against extreme poverty to be at the top of the international agenda. A major focus of the next International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, which includes all States party to the Geneva Conventions, will be the protection of human dignity, he said. The conference will take place in Geneva in December, 2003.

For further information, or to set up interviews, please contact:

Denis McClean, Head of Media Service    Tel: + 41 22 730 4428 / + 41 79 217 33 57

The Geneva-based International Federation promotes the humanitarian activities of 181 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies among vulnerable people. By coordinating international disaster relief and encouraging development support, it seeks to prevent and alleviate human suffering. The Federation, National Societies and the International Committee of the Red Cross together, constitute the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.