Canadian Red Cross symposium: "Towards Global Social Responsibility"
Speech delivered by Didier Cherpitel, Secretary General, at the Canadian Red Cross syposium.
04 October 2002



Thank you,

Mr. Chair,

It is indeed an honour to be sharing the table with such distinguished speakers.

Both of the previous speakers have raised some important points regarding the roles and responsibilities of governments and the private sector towards achieving global social responsibility. I would like to come back to their points later, in particular, the intersection between the government, private and humanitarian sectors.

I will begin by speaking about global social responsibility from the perspective of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. The perspective is unique in that the 178 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, including the Canadian Red Cross, that together comprise the Federation, makes us the largest humanitarian organisation in the world.

For the Red Cross and Red Crescent, we share a belief that even in the worst of times, and the worst of situations, we all have a collective responsibility to alleviate suffering and protect human dignity. That belief is especially relevant and important today.
In these fragile times, humanitarian emergencies, whether from disasters or conflicts or other causes, are increasingly complex. And meeting the needs of the most vulnerable is becoming more challenging.

Global social responsibility begins with individual awareness and action. Our movement was founded by the actions and efforts of an individual, Henri Dunant. He was moved by the suffering he witnessed on the battlefield, and took action to organise relief for the wounded. But his sense of individual responsibility didn't end there. He advocated tirelessly for humanitarian values, and lobbied governments to accept responsibility for their actions in times of conflict. The result of that conviction was the creation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.

One of the early successes of the new movement was the adoption of the Geneva Conventions. In a way, the Conventions are one of the first examples of global social responsibility, because they established the collective responsibility of governments to ensure that non-combatants and civilians were protected from harm in times of conflicts.

From there, the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement has grown enormously. Today, millions and millions of volunteers around the world are working towards the common objective of improving the lives of the most vulnerable. The strength of the Movement is in our Fundamental Principles and our shared humanitarian values. These principles and values guide our actions, and a give us a common language no matter where we are in the world. They give us a shared mission to protect human dignity and alleviate human suffering without discrimination. To assist those in need, in a neutral and impartial way, whether in times of peace, disaster, or armed conflict. And to promote mutual understanding and lasting peace among all peoples.

The humanitarian contribution of the Red Cross and Red Crescent takes place in so many ways:

We promote humanitarian principles and values, such as non-discrimination and respect for human dignity. For example, the International Federation has recently launched a Global Campaign Against Stigma and Discrimination, to challenge individuals and institutions to confront negative and discriminatory attitudes about HIV/AIDS. And the Canadian Red Cross has been a leader in raising the issue of violence and abuse through its Respect-Ed abuse prevention programme. These initiatives are examples of how the Red Cross and Red Crescent is advocating and influencing behaviour changes in the community.

Health and care is another core area of Red Cross and Red Crescent action. The Canadian Red Cross has taken a leadership role in our Federation to work with other Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies around the world to help communities to improve their health conditions.

In Disaster Preparedness, we work to prepare communities and build their capacity to minimise the effects of disasters. Around the world, thousands of communities have benefited from Red Cross and Red Crescent community-based disaster preparedness programmes. The Honduran Red Cross, for example, with support from the Federation and other National Societies like the Canadian Red Cross, is training thousands of families on how to identify risks and take preventive measures before a disaster strikes.

Of course, in the event of an emergency or disaster, the Red Cross and Red Crescent are often the first to respond. I am sure the Canadian public is very familiar with the rapid and effective response of the Canadian Red Cross to domestic disasters, such as recent floods or the ice storms.

These examples illustrate how the Red Cross and Red Crescent can mobilise volunteers and resources to respond to humanitarian needs. What is common in all our work is that while our humanitarian concerns are global, our action is focussed is at the local level. Because it is at the local where we make a difference in improving the lives of vulnerable people. And underlying these actions is our commitment to strengthen the capacity of vulnerable communities, empowering them to take action, and to advocate at all levels to ensure that the needs and concerns of the most vulnerable are considered.

I have focussed on the Red Cross and Red Crescent, but of course, we are not alone in our humanitarian commitment. All over the world, humanitarian and not-for-profit organisations are working towards similar goals. The contribution of this 'third sector' is fundamental to civil society, and to promoting global social responsibility. Whether providing care and support in the community, or mobilising resources to respond to a crisis, or advocating and lobbying world leaders, it is this action by humanitarian and not-for-profit organisations in the third sector that is instrumental to establishing and implementing an agenda for positive change at the local and global level.

But our work is not easy. The humanitarian issues we address are becoming more and more complex, and increasingly global in scale and scope. And meeting the needs of the most vulnerable is becoming increasingly difficult. Dramatic images of destruction and human suffering caused by natural disasters or conflict, are difficult to ignore. But too often, the most devastating disasters are the forgotten ones, the one that are slow to develop, or hidden from view, sometimes right around the corner from us. Disasters like HIV/AIDS, which is eroding communities' abilities to cope and survive. Or famines, which affect vulnerable populations, particularly children, well before we see any signs of starvation. And other disasters, more difficult to confront, like issues of discrimination, intolerance, or violence in our communities. The ones that confront our own beliefs and attitudes, and challenge us to take our principles and put them into action.

It is clear that those of us in the third sector cannot confront all of the world's problems alone. As the mission statement of the International Federation says, we need to mobilise the power of humanity. We need to work together, in partnership, to meet the humanitarian needs of the most vulnerable. We need to promote and nurture a culture of global social responsibility. And the interaction between humanitarian and not-for-profit organisations, and government and business will be key to achieving that.

Both of the previous speakers made some excellent points regarding the role of governments and the private sector in relation to global social responsibility. I think that it is clear that in this day and age we cannot ignore the fact that events in one part of the world have repercussions globally. For governments and the private sector alike, it is important to look beyond their immediate concerns and take a global perspective. And it is important for both governments and businesses to understand and accept their responsibility for building a better world.

One of the key values and contributions of the humanitarian and not-for-profit sector is raising awareness and lobbying government and business leaders to take action. Often it is the third sector that is the first to identify issues of concern, and sound the alarm bell for action. Whether it is on humanitarian issues, social issues, environmental issues or others, the third sector has been the motor behind many of the successful examples of global social responsibility.

The Ottawa Treaty to ban the use of antipersonnel mines is a good illustration of this. The efforts of many social and humanitarian organisations, including the Canadian Red Cross and other members of the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement, were instrumental to creating the awareness and momentum that resulted in the Treaty. But the third sector could not complete the task alone. Here, the Canadian Government demonstrated its commitment to global social responsibility by taking a lead role in advocating with other states to accept and ratify the Treaty. Without that partnership between the two sectors, without a shared sense of global social responsibility, it would have been next to impossible to achieve this important goal.

And we should not ignore the contributions of the business community in these efforts. I would like to mention the generosity of Mr. Pindoff as one outstanding example of how members of business community can be key to mobilising the resources necessary to carry out vital land mine awareness and rehabilitation programmes.

Similarly, the business community is learning much from the third sector in terms of corporate responsibility, but also, in terms of the value of being an active and engaged partner in the community. As a former CEO myself, I am encouraged by the growing engagement of the business community with humanitarian issues. Many businesses make financial and in-kind contributions such as technical advise to support the work of humanitarian and not-for-profit organisations. Others donate staff time to volunteer with social organisations.

Businesses can gain much from the perspective and dedication of the third sector. But the relationship can also been mutually beneficial. Not-for-profit and humanitarian organisations can also learn much from the private sector about the need to maximise the use of resources, and to focus on results. An example of positive partnership is a recent agreement signed between the International Federation and Ericsson. Ericsson is providing telecommunications support and technical assistance to Federation emergency relief operations. In return, the Federation is providing emergency and disaster response training to Ericsson's staff.

These examples illustrate the positive value of developing partnerships between the three sectors. But global social responsibility depends on awareness and a commitment to collective action of all of us. It depends on all of us listening to and understanding the needs of the most vulnerable. And it depends on us understanding our collective responsibility to
respond appropriately to their needs, not the simply the needs we may have as institutions or organisations. The humanitarian and not-for-profit sector often calls for social responsibility from corporations and governments. But we all have to confront issues of accountability. We are also responsible for our actions, no matter how well-intentioned.

Collectively, those of us in the third sector have made great progress in moving away from paternalistic approach to programming and working with communities as equal and active partners. One very good example of this is the SPHERE Project. This is an initiative supported by the International Federation and several other organisations to establish minimum standards for providing humanitarian assistance in relief operations. These standards clearly put the focus on the rights of the beneficiaries, and underline the obligation of the humanitarian sector to act responsibly. It shows how we can hold ourselves to the highest standards of excellence in our work.

But if we really want to achieve global social responsibility, we will all have to challenge ourselves to do more. We must focus on strengthening the capacity of vulnerable communities, taking into account their needs, desires and expectations. All of us, governments, businesses, social organisations, individuals, need to move from ideas and expressions of concern, to concrete deeds. From principles to action. And, we will need to build effective partnerships between the three sectors, and most importantly, with vulnerable communities if we are to succeed.

I would like to end by expressing my sincerest thanks to all the volunteers and supporters of the Canadian Red Cross who are present here today. They are the most effective example of what it means to take the concept of social responsibility and put it into action, whether working at the local level or at the global level. I am always moved by your dedication and commitment to our humanitarian principles and values, and the example you set for us all.

My thanks to all of you.