The Round-up offers a weekly sample of what our sister Red Cross Societies are working on around the world.
ITALY: The IFRC is deeply concerned by the news that a boat
carrying hundreds of migrants has capsized south of the
Mediterranean island of Lampedusa, with several fatalities reported and many passengers still believed missing. This tragedy follows yet another boat disaster off Libya the day before, with dozens of migrants. The IFRC reiterates its call to European governments and institutions for action to immediately ensure adequate safeguards to protect the dignity and safety of all migrants. They also call upon governments, in line with such relevant international law and national legislation, to grant to migrants appropriate international protection and to ensure their access to urgent humanitarian services, such as health care, shelter or assistance to make contact with their families. Most of the migrants who arrived on the coast of Italy since January 2014 have received essential support from the Italian Red They have focused on providing humanitarian assistance to migrants who arrive by sea to the southern border of Italy.
MALAYSIA: From May 4-9, the IFRC Asia Pacific office organized a
civil military forum in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, that brought together 18 senior managers of National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in the region together with members of the armed forces and external partners and ICRC. The aim was to build a common understanding of the roles played by military and humanitarian actors in emergencies.
COLOMBIA: A group of
health workers in Putumayo – epicentre of the armed conflict in the south of Colombia – have been trained by the ICRC to improve patient care for people with conflict-related injuries and conditions. In 2013, ICRC health-care experts trained some 2,100 people, including members of the communities worst affected by the violence.