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Published: August 13th 2015
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With only a few hours to spend in Geneva we were keen to get started. We went to catch the bus and had the fun of trying to buy tickets from a machine that wasn't working. We got one ticket just before we had to get off and had paid for the other but didn't receive it. Chris had told us about the museum of the International Red Cross so we left the bus just outside the UN building and walked up the hill.
Outside the museum was a set of statues called "The Petrified" which were really moving. They showed human figures wrapped in shrouds standing huddled together. Visitors were encouraged to interact with the statues and doing so was a strangely humanising experience.
We went into the museum not sure what to expect. Getting in was a bit of an ordeal, we paid and then had to put our bags in lockers and then had to sort out our headphones and download an app. The museum itself was amazing though.
The first room was entirely dark except for the projections of 12 people ("witnesses") on the wall. At this point there was no explanation of who
these people were. Being faced with 12 people who were obviously significant but at that point silent about their stories was quite poignant.
Upon leaving the dark room with many questions but no answers we walked into an antechamber which led to three exhibitions: "Defending Human Dignity", "Restoring Family Links" and "Reducing Natural Risks". Each of these was a fascinating insight into the diverse work of the Red Cross.
Defending Human Dignity was about the policy work of the Red Cross, challenging nations to respect humanity and uphold the value of all people. They had a copy of the original Geneva Convention which was incredible to see. There was also a section on the historical pursuit of human rights. It turned out that throughout history many civilisations have had laws which stated the requirement to protect non-combatants and protect prisoners of war. Unfortunately, even in the 21st Century not all countries value the dignity of humans, still some nations are not signatory to the Geneva Convention or the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. These countries still degrade both their citizens and those they find themselves fighting with. It just shows there is still work for the Red
Cross to do in furthering the cause of human dignity.
Restoring Family Links was about the Red Cross's work in crisis situations - such as refugee camps, emergency relief works and even prisons - to reconnect people to their loved ones. It showed how different communications channels have been used since World War 1. The examples of messages transmitted were so human. It also showed the bureaucracy required to inform families about the fate of soldiers and to reconnect children to their parents, particularly in conflict situations such as Rwanda. Another particularly moving exhibit was a huge banner that had been made by the mothers of the Srebrenica genocide. There were also a collection of artefacts which had been made by people unjustly imprisoned. These were incredible and showed the enduring nature of the human spirit, our capacity for creativity even in the midst of despair and our ingenuity to create even with limited resources. The whole exhibition triggered a whole flood of emotions from anger at the need for this work to hope at the fact that people are willing to do it and joy at the reconnection of people. It showed that love for people will conquer
the hatred that tears them apart. It also made me determined to make a difference in some way to those who are in the most desperate situations.
Reducing Natural Risk was about the work that the Red Cross does to protect communities from natural disasters or to ensure that they have the resources already in place to quickly restore their lives when calamity does strike. The main part of this was a multiplayer game about preparing an island for a tsunami. Unfortunately I couldn't work our how to play. There was also a series of posters from the history of the Red Cross to show their efforts in actively improving the health of communities.
At the end of each of the exhibitions there were dialogues from each of the witnesses who explained their story. Some were Red Cross workers or other officials whilst others were those who had suffered some kind of catastrophe. Their stories were moving and really helped to explain the necessity of the Red Cross and how they work.
By the time we had finished with the three permanent exhibitions we were tired and hungry and had very limited time left. We had to
miss the temporary exhibition which was about non-violent protest. We collected our things and made our way back to the UN building on Place de la Nations. As the weather had significantly improved we took a lot of photographs. Then we had to work out how to get into town. Fortunately some orange clad "Geneva Angels" were on hand to help us and they pointed us to the tram.
We got off the tram in the midst of a flea market. We obviously had no idea where we were going but one stall holder saw our difficulties and set us in the right direction. In quick succession we had an expensive but horrible sandwich from a stall, and then we saw theatres and opera houses; parks and gardens; a wall of religious reformers; the old town with its charming buildings; Calvin's college and cathedral; another cathedral and John Knox's chapel. It was a whirlwind tour of the old city and unfortunately we didn't have time to see much or go inside any of these fascinating buildings.
We were now running late to get back to the minibus before it departed and we were on the wrong side of
the city. We rushed across the city, crossed the lake in the burning heat of the sun and went to the bus station. We couldn't find the bus stop and searched for quite a while. Eventually we found it behind the bus station and had to wait half an hour for the next bus. We caught this without any problems and were taken back to the church. We were the last to arrive back, almost an hour late. I like to think we were the ones who made the most out of our day. We were stressed at being late but nobody commented and we were soon on the minibus being taken to Villefranche, the final destination of the tour.
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