Two massive earthquakes struck Nepal a year ago. Almost 9,000 people died and nearly a million buildings were destroyed. Over five million people suffered from the consequences of the earthquake. The Red Cross has been there since the start of the disaster.
Tens of thousands of refugees and immigrants are stuck in Greece. The Finnish Red Cross will send a specialist to support the international aid operation.
The office of Amnesty International in Finland, the Finnish Red Cross, the Finnish Refugee Council, the Finnish Refugee Advice Centre, Finn Church Aid, Save the Children Finland, the Federation of Mother and Child Homes and Shelters, and the Finnish Somali League have criticised measures which would make it more difficult to reunite families.
The Red Cross appeals to everyone to help Ethiopians. A severe drought means that millions of people in Ethiopia and in sub-Saharan Africa have no food.
At the moment, the efficient way to get help to those in need in Syria is via the Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund. The local volunteers do significant aid work in live-threatening conditions. They assist the Syrian people every day by delivering food, medicine and blankets.
The trucks, carrying food, medical supplies, blankets, and other aid supplies arrived in the towns of Madaya, Foa’a, and Kefraya on Monday, 11 January.
Many young people spend their Christmas alone, against their will. Every year, young people with nobody to spend the holidays with gather at the Red Cross Youth Shelter’s Christmas on-call service. For some, home might be too uncomfortable. At the Shelter, the young can spend their Christmas in a safe environment and discuss their worries with reliable adults.
Ban Ki-moon visited a reception centre maintained by the Finnish Red Cross and called the Finnish reception centre system a great example of efficiency.
Finnish language skills are often emphasized as a key factor to adapt in Finland’s society as a foreigner. Jana, Juan and Dani share their struggle and success with the language and give tips to those still learning Finnish. They also send greetings to Finns: please be more open and supportive towards persons learning the language – it is neither simple nor impossible.
The Secretary General of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Elhadj As Sy, who visited Finland in October, was impressed by how Finland cares for asylum seekers. He reminds everyone that humanitarian work needs more support during difficult times.
The Finnish Red Cross helps refugees to integrate in their new hometown. In Pudasjärvi in northern Finland the local International Club has quickly become a popular meeting place.
The Finnish Red Cross’s new app for tablet devices drew an interested crowd at the World Village Festival in Helsinki in late May 2014. The Risk Zones app offers information about development cooperation and disaster relief.
The Finnish Red Cross is the first NGO in Finland to release an app for tablet devices. The Risk Zones application uses photos, videos, stories and graphics to show how people can minimise risks, prepare for and survive disasters.
Red Cross volunteers in the Tampere region have been providing psychological support to the families who lost someone in the air crash on Sunday 20 April 2014, which took the life of eight skydivers.
The Voluntary Rescue Service emergency response groups help people in need and make it easier for the authorities to access greater numbers of people prepared to help out in an emergency. In late March 2014, the Voluntary Rescue Service celebrated its 50th anniversary in Tampere.
During the Week Against Racism (17–23 March 2014), the Finnish Red Cross handed out its annual Pioneer Against Prejudice Awards (Ennakkoluuloton edelläkävijä in Finnish) to companies, communities and people who have contributed to creating equality in Finland.
The Red Cross Refugee Tent tour is making its way around Finland. When the tent was pitched in the Åland Islands, children in particular were interested in it.
The primary school Jakomäen peruskoulu in Helsinki marked the Week against Racism with a visit from the Minister of Education Krista Kiuru. Speaking about racism and discrimination, her message was clearly: zero tolerance for all forms of bullying.
The members of parliament and the Minister of the Interior Päivi Räsänen received the Red Cross’ petition calling for immediate action concerning acceptance of Syrian refugees and increasing the refugee quota. The Minister of the Interior promised that the refugee quota would be raised.
Petitioning for the reception of Syrian refugees, will be addressed to the representatives of the various groups of the Finnish Parliament On Friday, 7 March.
The Finnish Red Cross and the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health have updated the way they work together on preparedness for accidents and in first-aid operations. The new agreement means that in a situation of public disturbance the Red Cross can, for the first time, also begin to coordinate other volunteer groups, in addition to the Voluntary Rescue Service.
The ski slope volunteer is both a skier and a helper, who is quickly on the spot when accidents happen. Eija Häkämies from Kouvola is on duty while spending time with her family.
On 17 February, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) will mark its 150th anniversary and commemorate the beginning of its efforts to bring relief to millions and improve the lives of countless people adversely affected by armed conflict.
Treating injured victims of the drawn-out and increasingly brutal conflict in Syria are part of everyday life at a hospital in Amman, Jordan. Thanks to the efforts of the Red Crescent, at least some of the tragic stories here will have a happy ending.
Particularly Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia are headed towards a humanitarian crisis due to drought. The Red Cross provides relief aid to the areas in most critical condition.
Each morning around six o’clock, Finnish Red Cross aid worker Pauli Immonen wakes up in his tent at the Port-au-Prince airport. Having had breakfast, he is off to the logisticians’ meeting at the nerve centre of the International Red Cross, the main camp, from which the Haiti operation is coordinated.
The International Red Cross is preparing to help quake victims in Haiti over at least a three-year period. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies estimate that some 60,000 families, or some 300,000 people, are in need of aid. The IFRC now estimates that providing them with aid over three years will cost a total of EUR 73 million.
A second batch of relief supplies leaves the Finnish Red Cross logistics centre in Tampere today, en route to Haiti. The supplies, including 240 family tents big enough to house a family of six, are first transported to Berlin by lorry. Also bound for Germany are 600 tarpaulins which can be used to build temporary shelters. In Berlin the Finnish supplies will join a German Red Cross field hospital and be flown to Port-au-Prince.
On Friday, 15 January 2010, the Finnish Red Cross has sent a mobile clinic to the earthquake zone in Haiti. A total of twelve aid workers have also been sent to Haiti to get the clinic up and running, and will then work in it. Eight of the aid workers are from Finland, two from Sweden and two from France.
