5 The early history of the Red Cross Society of China and its relation to the Red Cross Movement
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Caroline Reeves
Abstract
The Chinese Red Cross Society was founded in 1904 by a group of Chinese elites intent on helping their countrymen trapped by the Russo-Japanese war in north China. But even before this date, the Red Cross Movement was familiar to the imperial Chinese Government and to a growing cadre of Chinese intellectuals, merchants and officials. How did the Chinese understand the Red Cross Movement? How did they come to adopt a western organisation, permeated by principles and preoccupations foreign to China’s own cultural and material context? This chapter uncovers the original Chinese debates regarding China’s adherence to the Geneva Conventions and the formation of a Red Cross society sparked by the 1899 meeting at The Hague. These debates reveal important insights and correctives to the idea of ‘universality’ in the Red Cross principles.
Abstract
The Chinese Red Cross Society was founded in 1904 by a group of Chinese elites intent on helping their countrymen trapped by the Russo-Japanese war in north China. But even before this date, the Red Cross Movement was familiar to the imperial Chinese Government and to a growing cadre of Chinese intellectuals, merchants and officials. How did the Chinese understand the Red Cross Movement? How did they come to adopt a western organisation, permeated by principles and preoccupations foreign to China’s own cultural and material context? This chapter uncovers the original Chinese debates regarding China’s adherence to the Geneva Conventions and the formation of a Red Cross society sparked by the 1899 meeting at The Hague. These debates reveal important insights and correctives to the idea of ‘universality’ in the Red Cross principles.
Chapters in this book
- Front matter i
- Contents v
- List of figures viii
- Notes on contributors ix
- Acknowledgements xii
- 1 The Red Cross Movement 1
- 2 Certainty, compassion and the ingrained arrogance of humanitarians 27
- 3 The Americans lead the way? 47
- 4 Intertwined stories of war humanitarianism 63
- 5 The early history of the Red Cross Society of China and its relation to the Red Cross Movement 81
- 6 Failure to launch 97
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Part II Turning points
- 7 Challenging the colonial and the international 115
- 8 Realignment in the aftermath of war 130
- 9 The ‘British Red Cross still exists’, 1947–1974 148
- 10 Feed the hungry – no matter what? 164
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Part III The Red Cross’s modus operandi
- 11 ‘A cog in the great wheel of mercy’ 181
- 12 Coming of age in the crucible of war 199
- 13 The 1938 International Committee of the Red Cross Conference 213
- 14 ‘£50,000 is too small a fine to pay’ 230
- 15 The British Red Cross Society and the ‘parcels crisis’ of 1940–1941 245
- 16 The Red Cross in wartime Macau and its global connections 264
- 17 A humanitarian and national obligation 282
- Index 296
Chapters in this book
- Front matter i
- Contents v
- List of figures viii
- Notes on contributors ix
- Acknowledgements xii
- 1 The Red Cross Movement 1
- 2 Certainty, compassion and the ingrained arrogance of humanitarians 27
- 3 The Americans lead the way? 47
- 4 Intertwined stories of war humanitarianism 63
- 5 The early history of the Red Cross Society of China and its relation to the Red Cross Movement 81
- 6 Failure to launch 97
-
Part II Turning points
- 7 Challenging the colonial and the international 115
- 8 Realignment in the aftermath of war 130
- 9 The ‘British Red Cross still exists’, 1947–1974 148
- 10 Feed the hungry – no matter what? 164
-
Part III The Red Cross’s modus operandi
- 11 ‘A cog in the great wheel of mercy’ 181
- 12 Coming of age in the crucible of war 199
- 13 The 1938 International Committee of the Red Cross Conference 213
- 14 ‘£50,000 is too small a fine to pay’ 230
- 15 The British Red Cross Society and the ‘parcels crisis’ of 1940–1941 245
- 16 The Red Cross in wartime Macau and its global connections 264
- 17 A humanitarian and national obligation 282
- Index 296
