Estonian Red Cross

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Punaisen Ristin lippu.jpg

The Estonian Red Cross ( Estonian Eesti Punane Rist - EPR ) is an aid organization based primarily on the work of volunteers and, as the national Red Cross Society of Estonia , part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement .

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) recognized it as a national aid society within the meaning of the Geneva Conventions and the statutes of the movement on February 25, 1922 . In the same year the Estonian Red Cross became a member of the League of Red Cross Societies, which was founded in 1919 and is now the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies .

history

The Estonian Red Cross was founded on February 24, 1919, one year after Estonia gained national independence. The Estonian government confirmed the statutes on the same day . The main task of the Estonian Red Cross when it was founded was initially in humanitarian work during the Estonian War of Freedom (1918–1920). In the interwar period , the Estonian Red Cross received reconstruction aid mainly from the United States . It itself provided support to alleviate the famine in Soviet Russia in the early 1920s .

From 1919 until the Soviet occupation of Estonia in 1940, the gynecologist Dr. Hans Leesment (1873–1944) President of the Estonian Red Cross. Since 1921 the Estonian Red Cross has awarded its own Estonian Red Cross Order of Merit (today Eesti Punase Risti teenetemärk ) to Estonians and foreigners for humanitarian support for the Estonian people or for saving human lives.

With the Soviet occupation of Estonia, the Estonian Red Cross was liquidated and incorporated into the Soviet Red Cross. Immediately after Estonian regained independence, it was re-established on September 17, 1991.

organization

The Estonian Red Cross is an association with legal capacity under Estonian private law . It is based in Tallinn .

The highest decision-making body is the general assembly ( congress ). The executive committee ( peavalitsus ) elected by the General Assembly is active, including the President of the Estonian Red Cross. A main committee ( peak committee ) acts as a consultative body . An office ( keskbüroo ) supports the work of the bodies and implements their decisions. The office is headed by a full-time general secretary ( peasekretär ). Red Cross associations can be founded in the districts and cities. They require the approval of the board of the Estonian Red Cross.

President is the former chief physician Dr. Hillar Kalda. The current Secretary General is Riina Käbi. In April 2007 she was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit for her commitment to the “Remembrance, Responsibility and Future” foundation .

activities

The current activities of the Estonian Red Cross focus on health-related and social services as well as the further development of the organization, including increasing the number of members and improving the equipment and training at local and regional level.

The Estonian Red Cross is also active in civil protection and first aid training . In Tallinn and Paldiski it operates soup kitchens for the socially needy.

At the international level, the organization works with the ICRC and the Federation in a number of aid projects. Among other things, the Estonian Red Cross provided humanitarian aid in Georgia , Chechnya and Afghanistan .

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