2024 Sydney Peace Prize Recognises International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement
4 November 2024
The 2024 Sydney Peace Prize will be awarded to the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement at the Sydney Town Hall on 18 November 2024.
Jagan Chapagain, Secretary General of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) will be in Sydney to accept Australia’s international prize for peace, which recognises leading global voices who advocate for peace, for justice and for our common humanity.
As we commemorate the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Geneva Conventions, we face unprecedented challenges to International Humanitarian Law. It’s in this context that the 2024 Sydney Peace Prize honours a remarkable movement of over 16 million people. The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement are recognised for its advocacy for peace, for its work saving lives and preventing the suffering of people affected by armed conflict, and for its commitment to International Humanitarian Law.
Jagan Chapagain, Secretary General of the IFRC, said: “This award is a testament to the dedication of our 191 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies’ staff and volunteers. Many are working in some of the most challenging and dangerous environments in the world. Their dedication reflects the fundamental principles and values that define our Movement.”
Melanie Morrison, Sydney Peace Foundation Director, said: “In a year of immense humanitarian need and suffering, this international Movement is there to support those targeted in conflicts across the globe – from Sudan to Syria, the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Israel and Lebanon, and Ukraine, Afghanistan to Yemen. The Movement’s unwavering commitment to principles of international humanitarian law remind us that humanity must always come first.”
University of Sydney Vice-President, External Relations, Kirsten Andrews, said: “The University congratulates the Sydney Peace Foundation and City of Sydney in awarding this year’s Sydney Peace Prize to the International Red Cross and the Red Crescent Movement, in recognition of the ongoing and vital importance of their work during a time of increasing global conflict.”
"The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is saving lives every day in more than 191 countries and is a deserving recipient of the 2024 Sydney Peace Prize," Lord Mayor Clover Moore AO, said. "This movement of more than 16 million humanitarians works in shockingly difficult and dangerous circumstances to provide a lifeline to those suffering in over 100 armed conflicts around the world.
“My congratulations and thanks to the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. Your courageous and critical work is inspiring and reminds us of how precious it is to live in peace.”
The Sydney Peace Prize Lecture and Award ceremony is on Monday 18 November at 6:30pm at Sydney Town Hall and the Gala Dinner is being held on Thursday 21 November at the Sheraton Grand, Hyde Park. This year the Sydney Peace Prize award funds will be directed to support the humanitarian work of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society.
The Sydney Peace Prize Lecture and Award ceremony is on Monday 18 November from 6:30pm to 8pm at the Sydney Town Hall. Tickets are available here.
ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL RED CROSS AND RED CRESCENT MOVEMENT
191 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies together constitute a worldwide humanitarian movement. Its mission is to prevent and alleviate human suffering wherever it may be found. It’s to protect life and health and ensure respect for the human being, in particular in times of armed conflict and other emergencies. It’s also to work for the prevention of disease and for the promotion of health and social welfare, to encourage voluntary service and a constant readiness to give help by the members of the Movement, and a universal sense of solidarity towards all those in need of its protection and assistance.
The Movement is guided by the Geneva Conventions and its Fundamental Principles: Humanity, Impartiality, Neutrality, Independence, Voluntary Service, Unity and Universality.
The Sydney Peace Prize is Australia’s international prize for peace, awarded by the Sydney Peace Foundation at the University of Sydney. The Prize recognises leading global voices that promote peace, justice and nonviolence. Laureates include Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Mary Robinson, Joseph Stiglitz, Patrick Dodson, Naomi Klein, the Black Lives Matter Global Network and the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
The Foundation advocates for peace with justice – recognising that to achieve true and lasting peace, we must, beyond ending war and violent conflict, address deep injustices and structural inequality.
MEDIA ENQUIRIES:
Melanie Morrison, Director, Sydney Peace Foundation
E: melanie.morrison@sydney.edu.au
M: 0401 996 451
University of Sydney media office
E: media.office@sydney.edu.au
M: +61 2 8627 0246 (diverts to mobile)
Australian Red Cross Media
E: media@redcross.org.au
Ph: 1800 733 443
