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News release

Panama: Mothers' Stories; photo exhibition

The Regional Delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for Panama and the Caribbean, together with the Panamanian Red Cross (PRC), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) for the Americas and the Caribbean, the City of Knowledge Foundation (CdS) and the Panama Ministry of Government inaugurated the photographic exhibition "MADRES".

This initiative aims to make visible the challenges that mothers, from different positions and contexts, must face. It deals with the challenges faced by mothers deprived of their liberty, the challenges faced by migrant mothers along the migration route, as well as those who provide support in the communities that receive migrants, and the contribution of volunteer mothers and workers of the International Red Cross Movement.

The exhibition has 40 portraits and each one has a QR code where you can find the extended story of each of the protagonists, both in Spanish and English. The chosen themes, which served as criteria for the selection of images, were detention, migration, host communities and Red Cross.

From left to right: Oscar Chavez, head of ICRC Operations, Elias Solis, president of the Panamanian Red Cross National Society, Maria del Pilar Pitty, head of the Administrative Unit for Gender Equity and Equal Opportunities of the National Migration Service, Her Excellency Juana Lopez Cordoba, vice minister of the Ministry of Government of Panama; Marisela Silva Chau, head of the ICRC Regional Delegation; Irene Perurena, executive vice president of the City of Knowledge Foundation; Roger Alonso, head of the Disasters, Climate and Crisis Unit of the IFRC; and Crystal Madrid, Communications Officer of the ICRC Regional Delegation. Credit: ICRC

Marisela Silva Chau, head of the Regional Delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross for Panama and the Caribbean, mentioned that this exhibition has two purposes: to contribute to continue making visible the needs of migrant mothers, foster mothers and the work of volunteer mothers who make up the Red Cross and Red Crescent, and also to continue cultivating the value of empathy and the value of humanity.

Meanwhile, Juana Lopez Cordoba, Deputy Minister of the Panama Ministry of Government, invited us to reflect on this date and become aware of the role that we, as a society, have and the role that women's autonomy plays.

"Each image offers us the challenges and challenges those mothers live. These are portraits that mark a story, a feeling".

ICRC
ICRC

"I am pleased that of all the possible ways to commemorate, thank and honor the work of women volunteers, it is in the context of one of the most fundamental pillars of our strategy, which is to work with women. The evidence is overwhelming of what it means for the development of communities, working with them," said Irene Perurena, vice president of the City of Knowledge Foundation (CdS).

The ICRC Regional Delegation for Panama and the Caribbean, the Panamanian Red Cross, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the City of Knowledge Foundation (CdS) and the Ministry of Government of Panama extend their invitation to all those who wish to read, listen and visualize the stories of mothers from different positions.

The MADRES exhibition will be on display free of charge at the City of Knowledge Plaza, until December 16.

ICRC
ICRC

Did you know...

People deprived of their liberty are protected under international humanitarian law

Even in war, people who are detained must be treated humanely and with respect for their dignity. International humanitarian law sets clear rules for their protection - covering their treatment, conditions of detention and contact with their families. The ICRC visits people in detention to ensure these rights are respected. During visits, our delegates speak privately with detainees, assess conditions and share confidential recommendations with the authorities. Our goal is simple: to make sure humanity is upheld, everywhere.

Find out more about our work to help people in places of detention