Democratic Republic of the Congo: Red Cross condemns lack of respect for its emergency services

* Any views expressed in this article are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.

The Red Cross Society of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies strongly condemn the violence used against a person carrying out the purely humanitarian activity of assisting wounded people. They point out that the red cross emblem and Red Cross volunteers performing humanitarian tasks must be respected at all times. The Red Cross Society of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is made up of volunteers and first-aid workers whose exclusively humanitarian mission is to bring aid, protection and relief to the victims of disasters, crises and conflicts and to other needy people regardless of their race, religion or political affiliation. The Red Cross Society of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the ICRC and the International Federation offer their condolences to the victim's family and to all Congolese Red Cross volunteers and first-aid workers. For further information, please contact: Yves Heller, ICRC Kinshasa, tel: +243 81 700 85 36 Nelly Tangua, Red Cross Society of the DRC Kinshasa, tel: +243 99 967 31 68