| “Our
challenge is not to be the biggest,
and the most respected one, but the
most credible and the most efficient
and effective one while delivering
services to the most vulnerable people.”
-Mr.
Didier J. Cherpitel
(Secretary General
of the International Federation of
Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
Mr. Didier J. Cherpitel, and Head
of the South Asia Regional Delegation
of the Federation Mr. Bob. McKerrow
talked about the Red Cross, the Federation
and its present challenges to Khem
Aryal, Information Officer of the
Nepal Red Cross during their visit
to the Nepal Red Cross on 29 November
- 3 December 2002. Here is an excerpt
from the talk.)
| Q.
You are here right after the Asia
Pacific Red Cross Red Crescent
Conference held in Manila. What
is the main outcome of the conference?
What can the people of this region
expect from the conference? |
| Mr. Cherpitel: I think they
can expect a few things. The first
one is that all the participants
had an opportunity to reconnect
with other National Societies
not only of this region but the
whole Asia-Pacific and exchange
the practices, exchange opinion,
and exchange ideas. The benefit
for the participants and the Nepal
Red Cross was to meet, discuss,
and reconnect with others. A few
topics were disaster response,
disaster preparedness, health
in community, primary and major
pandemics like HIV/AIDS, migration
of population, refugees and internally
displaced people. |
| |
| Q.
The present context is different
from that of Dunant’s time
when he took initiative to found
the Humanitarian organization
Red Cross. Some of the features
that were present those days are
prevalent, but there are many
new challenges arising. These
days the Red Cross is working
in the field ranging from HIV/AIDS
to conflict management. To what
extent can the Red Cross take
responsibility? How does the Red
Cross limit or extend its programmes? |
Mr. Cherpitel: We focus on vulnerability.
We are driven by the need of the
most vulnerable people. Poverty
is a very important cause of vulnerability.
Not only one but very important
one. Because disaster or conflict,
indeed, results into vulnerability
for some people. So not only poverty,
but a major part of vulnerability
is by poverty. Yes, now indeed,
since the battle of Selferino
where Henri Dunant was exposed
to 14 thousand wounded people
in the battlefield a lot of things
have changed. But the conflict
has remained an important point.
That’s the mandate of the
International Committee of the
Red Cross. Our National Societies
in every domestic situation will
be exposed to different kinds
of vulnerability, not only conflict.
Sometimes it’s primarily
based on poverty, not exclusively.
People are moving from mountains
to Kathmandu, have difficulties
to find shelter, to find the right
food, and health assistance. Thus
vulnerability is created by conflict,
created by economic situation,
created by draught, so in a way
created by a lot of things. Another
element of vulnerability is based
on lack of basic access to primary
health. Health and care in the
community is very important programme.
Providing or complimenting the
public assistance especially through
education, a lot of diseases can
be prevented. A lot of diseases
which are preventable like malaria,
diarrhoea, HIV/AIDS kill something
like 13 million people a year.
So, preventable diseases kill
a lot more than natural disasters.
But they are silent. They don’t
talk about them. But there’s
where precisely the Red Cross
through community level, through
volunteers at the grass root level
actively works on education, prevention
and vaccination. We have a campaign
around the world on prevention
of HIV/AIDS. You have programmes
on drinking water; you have programmes
in sanitation in Nepal Red Cross.
We have campaign on vaccination
on polio, on tuberculosis, on
eradication of malaria. All these
diseases kill especially the most
vulnerable people because they
do not have the necessary divide
to food and hygiene. And they
kill the youngest ones, children,
women, and there’s precisely
where Red Cross is working. So
the mandate from the battlefield
to the most exposed vulnerability
in terms of health is very important
thing. The mandate is depending
upon the situation, the mandate
has broadened and at the same
time within the Federation, we
have focused through the Strategy
2010 on four core areas: a) Disaster
Preparedness, b) Disaster Response,
c) Health and Care in the Community
and d) Promotion of Humanitarian
Values. These are the four core
areas on which all our National
Societies are focusing strategic
priorities. |
| |
| Q.
Does it mean that whatever work
a National Society executes comes
under one of these four core areas? |
| Mr. Cherpitel: Not necessarily.
Ideally, that is the frame; the
works should come under them.
But the National Societies have
different needs; therefore they
can do all things. If they can,
why not? Many of them do other
things. Blood for instance is
a very important activity of many
National Societies including Nepal
Red Cross. It is not specifically
mentioned in our strategy because
some National Societies are not
working in blood, and will never
be doing. So it depends on the
country, it depends on the needs;
it depends on the means as well.
|
| |
| Q.
Disasters arising from conflict
situation are increasing day by
day. More and more people are
being displaced in the world.
How has the Red Cross supported
such people? ICRC plays the main
role regarding the IDPs, I think.
|
Mr. Cherpitel: It depends. Internally
displaces people, so-called IDPs,
are covered by the movement. People
are internally displaced for many
reasons: social and economic reasons
primarily. You cannot find work
in your village, in your district,
your province, and you come in
the city. You cannot find work
and you move elsewhere. The economic
situation again created on poverty
or draught, natural disasters
could be also an effect on movement
of population. It could be also,
as you say, conflict. So, the
Movement as such, National Societies,
the ICRC for the conflict, the
Federation for disaster, for economic
reasons, social reasons, support
internally displaced people.
There is a large part of the vulnerable
population that the Federation
is paying attention to. They are
most exposed to lack of food,
not being properly served on health
care, preventable diseases; they
are exposed to violation of basic
rights, health crisis. |
| |
| Q.
There are other humanitarian organizations
working for alleviating human
suffering. How does the Red Cross
differentiate itself from other
organizations? Is there any such
need to build its image as an
organization as different from
others? |
| Mr. Cherpitel: Absolutely. I
think the Red Cross is unique.
It’s unique in a very simple
way, because we have through the
National Societies at the community
level, through the volunteering
service, has a unique access to
the vulnerable population. And
that’s exceptional. No other
organization can match it. All
the more is the fact, which is
the second point, that the network
of National Societies, their confederation
and movement are very visible
in their work. So between Kabhre
district here and a village in
Uganda there are many similarities,
because of their local bases they
can make a difference. I can then
talk about HIV/AIDS, I can represent
the Federation on HIV/AIDS at
the UN and advocate for the most
vulnerable because of our local
touch. We have the capacity to
make something quite exceptional
which no other organization has.
That’s the major difference.
And what does it mean? It means
that many international organizations
like UNHCR, UNICEF, UNDP, DFID,
ECHO etc. are using the Red Cross
as an implementing agency. The
reason is that it is a very credible
organization, we are global; we
are worldwide, that’s very
unique. No other organization
will ever match it. |
| |
| Q.
What can be the key role the Federation
is playing as a partner of the
Red Cross Movement? What are the
present challenges the Federation
is facing the most? Being a big
organization also means that it
needs to deal with bigger issues.
|
Mr. Cherpitel: We have quite
a few challenges. The first one
is it’s not to be the largest
humanitarian organization, not
to be the biggest, not to be the
most respected one, but the most
important thing for us is to be
the most credible one, is to be
the most efficient and effective
one while delivering services
to the most vulnerable people,
and that means to be effective
and efficient. It means that our
National Societies, the Nepal
Red Cross, the Sri Lankan Red
Cross, the Indian Red Cross etc.
the 179 National Societies are
credible to civil society, and
partners in their community. That
is the challenge we are facing.
And that’s the reason why
the Federation has moved into
an objective to strengthen the
capacity of the National Societies.
The stronger the National Societies
are, such as Nepal Red Cross,
the stronger will be our Federation.
That’s clearly a very important
challenge.
The second one is to make sure
that not only to be credible,
to be effective, to be efficient
but we build a better circle where
our credibility will attract attention
and visibility and therefore will
show us from the humanitarian
work. And the visibility, ability
to advocate, to position our Federation,
to position our action and make
it visible and make them credible
to other partners bringing money,
resources, people to our movement
and Federation. That’s what
I call better circle. It’s
not only to say some good things,
it’s to do them, and to
be seen doing them, to attract
the attention and get credibility
and get more resources to do more.
So that’s the better circle
which I was in fact focusing in
Manila. If we work very well together
where everyone has a responsibility,
the Nepal Red Cross has a responsibility;
we have different roles, different
responsibilities, and different
duties, that we are mutually dependent.
If Nepal Red Cross is weak, I
am weak; if I am weak you are
weak. So that’s where our
strength lies. And that’s
a challenge. And I am very confident
we can bear it, I am very confident
we can make it up. |
| |
| Q.
Number of Red Cross volunteers
is decreasing in global context
though it is increasing in Nepal.
What is your opinion about it?
|
| Mr. Cherpitel: No, I don’t
agree with you. I don’t
think it is decreasing. You know
things are changing slightly.
It’s increasing in Nepal;
it’s increasing in some
of the other countries where precisely
the volunteers and members are
kept busy. We have seen in those
countries where National Societies
have come up with programmes like
in Nepal, the number of volunteers
is increasing. So it’s something
which is slightly changing. Slowly
but it is changing. I am very
proud for what we have seen in
the last 20 years. The decreasing
of volunteers is not only stabilization
in some countries, like in Nepal,
where we have seen it is very
rational that if we come with
right strategy, right objectives
and right programmes we can mobilize
the volunteers and members and
increase our numbers. I am pleased
to see that also in this country.
|
| |
| Q.
South Asia is a disaster prone
region. Annually there are many
disasters: landslides, flooding,
earthquake, drought, migration,
communal riots, conflict and internally
displaced people and many more.
How has the Federation taken this
region? |
| Mr. Bob McKerrow: We believe
in community solution to community
problem. The National Society
is sovereign. We have to try to
build the capacity of the National
Society to focus its programmes
more at community level. As in
Nepal, we have good examples of
community based first aid, community
based local programmes, and community
based disaster preparedness and
more. The 23 thousand volunteers
prepared for cyclone in Bangladesh
with very low financial support
given to them could do extraordinary
job. They could run their programmes
at community level very well. |
| |
| Q.
Nepal Red Cross is now about four
decades old. It is our pleasure
to have this opportunity to welcome
you in Nepal. You have also visited
a district branch and have an
interaction with both governance
and management of the NRCS, and
also the prime minister of Nepal.
How is your impression of Nepal
and the Nepal Red Cross? |
Mr. Cherpitel:
Excellent. Excellent on all
fronts. Excellent in terms of
strategic thinking, excellent
in terms of implementation throughout
the country, excellent in terms
of coverage on all main aspects
related to your environment,
excellent in terms of self-
funding and self serving at
the district level, and at the
headquarters level. Very impressive.
I was not surprised because
I was expecting it. But I can
say for me Nepal Red Cross is
one of the strongest one in
the region, in Asia. Having
done that is 40 years is very
impressive, and that shows also
dedication and commitment of
the people. What strikes me
the most in discussions, and
in presentation is the importance
attached to people and training
of the people. That keeps their
motivation high, their dedication
commitment high, and I have
to say, I am very impressed.
And, to finish, I would like
to congratulate the Nepal Red
Cross, the governance, its management,
its members, volunteers and
all for their tremendous job.
And I think I will definitely
be inspired for many years by
what I have seen here in Nepal.
Thank you
so much…. |
Mr. Cherpitel:
Thank you, too, for it inspired my
action. And I will keep referring
to Nepal Red Cross as a public example.
|
