150 years of humanitarian action: Historical contours and current crossroads

Date: 2013-06-14

Time: 08:30 to 13:45

Venue: Conference Room , ISS Pretoria

RSVP: Marinkie Maluleke
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +27 12 346 9500

In 2013, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) celebrates 150 years of humanitarian action and support for the implementation and development of International Humanitarian Law (IHL), the laws governing armed conflict. ICRC has the specific mandate of guardian of the Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols. The scale, scope, and significance of humanitarian action have expanded significantly since the late 1990s, with a proliferation of actors, agencies, aims, and agendas. Indeed, humanitarian action can only be understood in relation to the world order that constitutes it.

Against this background and as part of ICRC's ‘150 years of Humanitarian Action’ commemorations, the ISS and the ICRC will convene a half-day colloquium focusing on humanitarian action in Africa. The colloquium will explore the historical contours and current challenges facing humanitarian action with inputs from academics, conflict analysts, and humanitarian practitioners.

Chair: David Zounmenou, Senior Researcher, ISS Pretoria

Welcome: Paul-Simon Handy, Head, Conflict Prevention and Risk Analysis Division, ISS

Speakers:

• Peter Maurer, President, ICRC
• Patrick Hamilton, ICRC
• Dan Kuwali, University of Pretoria
• Solomon Ayele Dersso, Senior Researcher, ISS Addis Ababa

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