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Newsletter produced by the ICRC's Tokyo office (in English and Japanese)

Newsletter produced by the ICRC's Tokyo office (in Japanese)

Geneva/Tokyo (ICRC) – The president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Jakob Kellenberger, is in Tokyo for a four-day visit.

Newsletter produced by the ICRC's Tokyo office (in Japanese)

This article traces the ideological interpretation of the red cross emblem in Japan from its inception to the end of World War II and analyses the effect of such interpretation on the activities of the Red Cross society, the practices of the national army and the national identity. Unlike Turkey and Persia, Japan chose not to denote any religious character to the emblem. However, the symbol came to take on a national significance with ties to the Imperial Family and indigenous traditions, including those of warfare.

François Bugnion