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Red Cross and Red Crescent flags

Geneva Convention

by Alvin Heims, 29 Nov 1999

1949 Geneva Convention
Red Cross
Red Crescent Society
Iranian Red Lion and Sun
Red Chevron

1949 Geneva Convention

The following summarizes the provisions of the 1949 Geneva Conventions that govern the use of the Red Cross, Red Crescent, and Red Lion and Sun flags. Geneva I governs land warfare, Geneva II governs warfare at sea. There are also Geneva III and IV, but they have no provisos concerning flags:

Geneva I, Art. 38, provides for use of the Swiss federal arms in reversed colors, the red cross on a white ground, as the emblem and distinctive sign of the Medical Service of armed forces. [This was originally provided for in article VII of the first Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Wounded in Armies in the Field, signed on August 22, 1864.] The red crescent or red lion and sun, in lieu of the red cross, will be recognized for use by countries that were already using those devices when the 1949 convention was adopted.

Geneva I, Art. 39, requires the emblem (red cross, etc.) to be displayed on the flags, armlets and on all equipment employed in the Medical Service. The same provision is also contained in Geneva II, Art. 41.

Geneva I, Art. 42, limits the display of "the distinctive flag of the Convention" to medical units and establishments entitled to be respected under the Convention and permits it to be displayed in conjunction with the national flag of the party to which the unit or establishment belongs. [The 1864 convention required it to be displayed with the national flag.] When medical units fall into the hands of the enemy, they display only the flag of the Convention.

Geneva I, Art. 43, requires medical units of neutral countries "which may have been authorized to lend their services to a belligerent" to fly the flag of the Convention and the national flag of the belligerent to which they have been lent, and permits them to fly their own national flag as well. Such neutral medical units may continue to fly their own national flags even if they are captured.

Geneva I, Art. 44, bans all uses of the Red Cross or equivalent emblems (including flags) other than to indicate or protect medical units and establishments and related personnel and material under the Geneva Conventions, except that national Red Cross/Red Crescent Societies may use the emblems in peacetime for other activities in conformity with the principles of the Red Cross movement. In wartime, they may use the emblems for their other activities only if they are clearly not implying the protection of the convention. International Red Cross organizations (such as the International Committee of the Red Cross) may use the Red Cross emblem at all times.

Geneva II, Art 43 requires hospital ships to "make themselves known by hoisting their national flag and further, if they belong to a neutral state, the flag of the Party to the conflict whose direction they have accepted. A white flag with a red cross shall be flown at the mainmast as high as possible." Hospital ships that are provisionally detained by the enemy haul down their national colors. Coastal lifeboats operating from a base occupied by the enemy may continue to fly their own national colours along with the Red Cross flag.

Geneva II, Art 44, limits the use of the distinguishing signs, including the flag, to indicating ships and vessels protected by the convention, whether in peace or war (except as otherwise agreed, e.g., by Geneva I).

Joe McMillan, 2 May 2000

The main authority to use the red cross/red crescent symbol is not by any international red cross organization (ICRC or IFRC) or national red cross society but by the parties to the Geneva conventions (or any party to a conflict, since the protocol includes civil wars within its ambit) to designate military medical facilities and units. In fact, in both wartime and peacetime the national red cross societies can use the symbol only with the approval of their governments. The same applies to the other symbols provided for under the conventions and the protocol: decisions on where to display them is the responsibility of the authorities of the governments who signed the convention or of the parties to a conflict.

Joe McMillan, 6 May 2000

Red Cross

by Alvin Heims, 29 Nov 1999

Kindersley (1997) states (in the Tonga page) that the flag with the red cross coupee was adopted in 1863.
António Martins, 12 March 1999

The plain Red Cross or Red Crescent flag is primarily used to identify medical units of military forces as provided by the 1864 and subsequent Geneva conventions, although national governments may authorize Red Cross or Red Crescent societies to use the flags provided there is no possibility of confusion with the primary use of the flag. The convention also allows the various international Red Cross organizations (ICRC and IFRC) to use the symbols. Therefore, the plain Red Cross is not a unique identifier of the ICRC.

The basic right to use the Red Cross and Red Crescent flags does not derive from either of these organizations. It is an inherent right of all states that are parties to the Geneva Convention of 1949 and any other belligerent that might be engaged in combat in accordance with the laws of armed conflict.
Joe McMillan, 1 April 2003

Vexillologist Léon Nyssen received a letter (in French) from ICRC quoting the Acts of Geneva Convention of 1949:
"C'est de propos délibéré que l'on n'a pas voulu fixer la forme de la croix rouge, ce qui eut ouvert la porte à des abus dangereux... Si la forme de la croix avait été fixée de façon immuable, n'aurait-on pas cherché à justifier des attaques contre les bâtiments protégés par la convention en prétextant que les signes n'avaient pas les proportions prescrites?..."

A tentative translation:
"On purpose it has been desired not to determine the shape of the red cross, which determination would have given way to dangerous abuses...If the shape of the cross had been determined in an immutable way, would not one try to justify attacks against buildings protected by the Convention, arguing that the symbols did not have not the settled proportions?...
Armand du Payrat, 1 April 2003

Nowadays it is normal that the Red Cross symbol in ordered (i.e. peaceful) conditions is modeled after the Swiss flag, more or less. However, looking at old documentaries it seems to me that before, say 1950's, the shape of the cross was usually much thinner (even to one third of the width of the Swiss cross).
Zeljko Heimer, 1 April 2003

Red Crescent

by Alvin Heims, 29 Nov 1999

The Red Crescent flag is used in Islamic nations.

The Red Crescent, the Muslim version of the Red Cross, is depicted as having the upper and lower tips of the crescent to the viewers left. In French Naval Commander du Payrat's publication "Album des Pavillons Nationaux et des Marques Distinctives" the tips of the crescent are to the viewer's right. I observed news photos from Iraq on more than one occasion showing what appear the be field ambulances with the Red Crescent displayed on the side of the vehicle and the crescent's tips are to the viewer's right.
Tru Pope, 22 July 2003

I believe that this is not strictly regulated by the ICRC, just as in the cross emblem version where width and length of the crossbars is irrelevant. It was intentionally left unspecified so that in combat no side might "make mistakes" supported by slight (or big) deviations from a "perfect" pattern.
Zeljko Heimer, 23 July 2003

Red Lion

by Alvin Heims, 29 Nov 1999

In 1980 the Islamic Republic of Iran decided to give up the red lion and sun and use the red crescent in its place. This flag is therefore obsolete.

Red Chevron

Looking at Victor Lomantsov's Vexillographia site (issue on the CD that he courteously provided to me in Stockholm) I read about the Kazakh Red Cross and Red Crescent society flag. That seems to employ the new symbol consisting of a "red chevron" with the red cross and the red crescent in base of it. As my Russian is not that good (and I have no patience reading it really carefully) I am not sure if that is still a proposal, or if this new symbols is already being used.

Some years ago I have been reading about this new symbol being discussed by the ICRC, but as far as I was aware, the proposal was not yet formally adopted. Are there any changes about that?

From memory, the red chevron symbol was proposed to replace the religious symbols and would therefore remove the unwanted connotations and problems that other religions see in the two internationally adopted symbols (three actually, the third is the red lion-and-sun symbol not used any more). This would enable inclusion of the Red Magen David society too, and would enable the other religions to find their place in the scheme. The world-wide symbol is to be the chevron only consisting of a 45 degrees rotated square that is "missing" the lower quarter. In this quarter the local symbol may be added at will (or after certain regulations) just as the Kazakh flag shows.
Zeljko Heimer, 13 September 2003

The ICRC website is still citing the proposed status of the emblem. As they note, the emblem must first be recognized by the signatories to the Geneva Convention as a symbol of the ICRC. World events appear to have delayed this from becoming an official symbol to date.
Phil Nelson, 13 September 2003

As Phil pointed out, this still seems to be a proposal. The Singapore Red Cross has an English language web page with illustrations of apparently two designs. See http://www.redcross.org.sg/IntSvc_EmblemIssue.htm
Thorsten, 13 September 2003

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