The year 1910 was a period of troubled relations between Ecuador and one of its neighbouring countries. At that time, emergency medical teams did not exist in Ecuador, so a group of doctors based in Guayaquil decided to create the very first emergency brigade to assist any possible conflict victims. A few weeks later, the government issued the first decree establishing the Ecuadorian Red Cross, and giving it the mission to mitigate human suffering in times of peace, as in war.
Under the slogan: “100 years. Passion for Life”, celebrations to mark the anniversary of the founding of the Ecuadorian Red Cross will last all of 2010. On Thursday 22 April – the anniversary day, a special evening was organized which included speeches, testimonials, awarding medals to volunteers for outstanding service and entertainment, in the presence of both the president and the secretary general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) as well as government authorities, Ecuadorian Red Cross leaders, and many other invited guests from the diplomatic community and other organisations.
After extending his congratulations and appreciation to the volunteers, staff and governance of the Ecuadorian Red Cross for their work with vulnerable groups and the progress made in community-based programmes and disaster response, IFRC President Tadateru Konoé pointed out that today’s challenges are more and more global, if not regional, and that good collaboration is key.
“Situations such as those experienced by Haiti and then Chile highlight, once again, how important it is for National Societies and the Federation to synchronize our efforts even more effectively if we are to provide decisive responses to protect human life and dignity in the face of hazards of this kind,” he said in his keynote speech.
In his address, Dr. Juan Cueva Ortega, President of the Ecuadorian Red Cross, looked to the future “Our organization plans to increase its risk reduction and disaster management programmes to mitigate the effects of global warming. We plan to tackle emerging and re-emerging diseases such as malaria, dengue, H1N1 flu and tuberculosis. We also intend to work more to defend human rights, to protect women, to engage in the fight against stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV, and to increase our assistance to migrants and refugees,” he said.
Over the years, the Ecuadorian Red Cross has increased its activities to reach more and more sectors of the population – youth outreach centres were opened, emergency teams were strengthened and branch offices now cover the country’s 24 provinces.
Today, with 4,000 volunteers, the Ecuadorian Red Cross manages some 30 community development programmes and offers health services which include laboratories, blood centres, rehabilitation and vaccination programmes. Its National Blood Service provides blood to 80% of the country’s hospitals and clinics. Its first national Blood Centre, inaugurated last November 5, is the fourth largest in Latin America.
On the morning of 22 April, the Ecuadorian Red Cross hosted a meeting of Spanish-speaking Red Cross Societies as part of its centenary celebrations. The IFRC president congratulated participants on the preparations they have made over the past months to better address today’s new humanitarian challenges.
“The increase we are seeing in the frequency, scale and impact of climate-related disasters in the Americas and other parts of the world and the mobilization of human resources to deal with them highlight the fact that what was previously regarded as a catastrophic prophecy is now a reality that affects the daily lives of vulnerable communities, regardless of the position we take in the scientific and political debates,” underlined Mr. Konoé.
“Dear friends, I think that the world needs the Red Cross and Red Crescent today more than ever,” he said.