Cornelio SommarugaCornelio Sommaruga, Honorary President of Initiatives of Change International and former President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), has been awarded the Henry Dunant Medal at a ceremony which took place in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, on Monday 23 November. First bestowed 40 years ago, the Henry Dunant Medal is named after the Movement’s founder and is awarded every two years to a select few people in recognition of their outstanding dedication to the world’s largest humanitarian network.

“This is the highest distinction that anyone involved with the Red Cross and Red Crescent can aspire to,” said His Excellency Dr Mohammed Al-Hadid, Chairman of the Movement’s Standing Commission, which is in charge of the prize. “The world needs more people like these individuals, who have gone above and beyond the call of duty to help others.”

This year the medal was awarded to five members of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement to recognise their remarkable work and achievements.

Mr Sommaruga’s presidency of the International Committee of the Red Cross spanned a historic period marked by the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Rwandan genocide and the war in the Balkans. He strove to promote solidarity, responsibility, tolerance and respect in a time characterized by intense armed conflict and ethnic cleansing. Mr Sommaruga is also known for his initiatives leading to the creation of an additional emblem – the red crystal – which was adopted by the States party to the Geneva Conventions in 2005, officially making it a part of international humanitarian law.

Her Royal Highness Princess Margriet of the Netherlands, former Chair of the Movement’s Standing Commission, accepted the medal of Mr Sommaruga's behalf as he was unable to be present in Nairobi to accept his medal.

The other four recipients of the medal were Dr Muctarr Amadu Sheriff Jalloh (Sierra Leone); Mr Pär Stenbäck (Finland); Mrs Zoy Katevas de Sclabos (Chile); and Dr Fouad Hamza (Syria).

More information can be found on the ICRC website