How has ICRC’s role changed over the years?

Providing aid to people in warzones has always been challenging. Humanitarian groups must deal with sometimes belligerent governments and now increasingly non-state actors.

But in doing so, are these organisations losing their legitimacy?

One such institution is the International Committee of the Red Cross. On Tuesday it delivered emergency supplies to people in a district of the Syrian city of Homs. 

But it’s been accused of being less willing to operate directly in conflicts such as Syria and Yemen, instead delegating to local organisations.

Founded in 1863 in Switzerland, the aim of the International Committee of the Red Cross has been to protect and help victims of war and violence.

But is it still up to that task?

Presenter: Mike Hanna

Guests:

Bertrand Taithe, executive director of the humanitarian and conflict response institute at the University of Manchester. 

Dhananjayan Sriskandarajah, secretary general of  CIVICUS, the World Alliance for Citizen Participation. 

David Forsythe, professor emeritus of political science at the University of Nebraska.