Myanmar Red Cross Society (MRCS) was founded in 1937 and it was earlier called Burma Red Cross. It has its headquarters in

Yangon Yangon, formerly romanized as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar. Yangon was the List of capitals of Myanmar, capital of Myanmar until 2005 and served as such until 2006, when the State Peace and Dev ...

History

In 1920, the Society came into existence as a branch of the

Indian Red Cross Society The Indian Red Cross Society (IRCS) is a voluntary humanitarian organization to protect human life and health based in India. It is part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and shares the Fundamental Principles of the Inte ...

. When Burma was politically separated from India in 1937, the organisation attained national status and was recognised as Burma Red Cross Society. The

International Committee of the Red Cross The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is a humanitarian organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, and is a three-time Nobel Prize laureate. The organization has played an instrumental role in the development of rules of war and ...

(ICRC) recognised it as a National Society in 1939. The Society was admitted to the

International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is a worldwide humanitarian aid organization that reaches 160 million people each year through its 191 member National Societies. It acts before, during and after disas ...

in 1946. The Burma Red Cross Act was enacted in 1959 and amended subsequently in 1964, 1971 and 1988. The 1959 (MRCS) Act confers responsibility to the National Society in implementing

humanitarian Humanitarianism is an ideology centered on the value of human life, whereby humans practice benevolent treatment and provide assistance to other humans to reduce suffering and improve the conditions of humanity for moral, altruistic, and emotiona ...

activities and alleviating human suffering. The

St. John Ambulance Brigade St John Ambulance is an affiliated movement of charitable organisations in mostly Commonwealth countries which provide first aid education and consumables and emergency medical services. St John organisations are primarily staffed by volunte ...

Overseas was taken over by the Society as Burma Ambulance Brigade under the 1959 Act. The Society was renamed Myanmar Red Cross Society in accordance with legislative change of the name from

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

in 1989.

Governance and management

The General Assembly is the highest governing body of the Society and is convened every three years. The Central Council is the governing body of the MRCS between the sessions of the General Assembly. The Central Council comprises 40 members, out of which 17 members represent States and Divisions level branches. The governance of the Society is formed by 10 Executive Committee members. 5 out of 10 members are retired professionals and who work full-time on voluntary basis, are responsible for providing guidance for making policy, giving directions and guidance in the implementation of the activities of the Society. The structure of National Headquarters (NHQ) consists of six Divisions and two Units. They are Administrative Division, Disaster Management Division, Finance Division, Health Division, Training Division and Communication Division, Development and Coordination Unit and Protocol Unit. The management is headed by the executive director, who is the full-time Executive Committee member of the National Society. The executive director carries out his functions under the authority of the Central Council and the executive committee. The Society is the largest humanitarian organization in Myanmar with its nationwide network of 330 branches (townships) with over 250000 volunteers throughout the country.

Awards

A member of Myanmar Red Cross Society won

Henry Dunant Medal The Henry Dunant Medal is the highest award of the Red Cross Movement. It is named after Henry Dunant, the founder of the Red Cross Movement. The medal is presented every two years by the Standing Commission of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. Th ...

in 1977 for saving a soldier whose car fell into the

Ayeyarwady River The Irrawaddy River (, , Ayeyarwady) is the principal river of Myanmar, running through the centre of the country. Myanmar’s most important commercial waterway, it is about 1,350 miles (2,170 km) long. Originating from the confluence of the ...

which was icy cold at that time . His name was Sai Aung Hlaing Myint. He was from

Kachin State Kachin State (; Jingpho language, Kachin: ) is the northernmost administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. It is bordered by China to the north and east (Tibet Autonomous Region, Tibet and Yunnan, respectively), Shan State to the sou ...

References

External links

Myanmar Red Cross Society Website
{{Authority control Red Cross and Red Crescent national societies 1937 establishments in Burma Organizations established in 1937 Medical and health organisations based in Myanmar