00.01 1st October 2008
For further information please contact
Penny Sims, telephone: +44 (0)207 877 7044 / email: PSims@redcross.org.uk
- Estimated 5.4million dead but only 1% in UK aware of Congo conflict
- Most feel Britain is a ‘force for good’ in the world
- Red Cross survey launches ‘Civilians and Conflict’ month
Most people in the UK are unaware of major conflict zones, according to a new survey by ICM commissioned by the British Red Cross.
The survey was undertaken to establish levels of awareness amongst the British public ahead of the British Red Cross ‘Civilians and Conflict’ month, which launches today (1 October 2008). Respondents were able to name Afghanistan and Iraq as war zones, but more than 60 per cent mistakenly believed these countries had experienced the highest death toll amongst civilians of any conflict in the last ten years .1
Less than one per cent of respondents identified the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where an estimated 5.4m people have died as a result of the country’s long running conflict .2
When asked to name countries currently experiencing conflict, while 69% and 65% of those questioned identified Iraq and Afghanistan respectively, less than 1% of respondents were able to identify other countries including Sudan, Somalia, and Central African Republic. Almost one in five (18%) were unable to name five countries in the world in conflict .3
“Clearly people’s focus is on Iraq and Afghanistan where British forces are involved, but at the same time as these conflicts are unfolding, there are millions of people around the world whose lives are being torn apart in other, neglected conflict zones.“ said David Peppiatt, Head of Humanitarian Policy at the British Red Cross.
“Reports often focus on numbers dead or political ramifications, but behind every headline there are real people struggling to live against a background of violence. The impact of war on civilians is devastating - murder, sexual violence, displacement, disease, separation of families, lack of access to clean water and food – these are the punishments inflicted on ordinary people living in the aftermath of forgotten wars.”
On the positive side, just over half of those polled think that Britain has been a force for good in the world over the past 5 years. Also, most people (58%) correctly identified that civilians, rather than combatants, have suffered the highest number of casualties in armed conflicts over the last 10 years . 4&5
The Red Cross supports a wide range of projects to help people during and after armed conflicts, including relief and emergency aid, food security programmes, providing water and sanitation and their international tracing and message service which helps reunite those separated by conflict.
As part of Civilians and Conflict month, the British Red Cross is launching an online Alternate Reality Game (ARG) called Traces of Hope, which brings to life the work of the Red Cross’s International Tracing and Messaging Service. The game, written by one of the creators of the UK's biggest online drama series KateModern, challenges players to reunite a young man, Joseph, and his mother, who have been separated by conflict in Uganda. To join in the game, players can visit www.tracesofhope.com any time from September 29th to register. To find out more about the work of the Red Cross and Civilians and Conflict month go to www.redcross.org.uk.
ENDS
AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEW:
David Peppiatt, Head of Humanitarian Policy
Dorothea Arndt, British Red Cross, New Media Manager
Jessica Mullen, British Red Cross, Red Cross Tracing and Messaging Services
Contact: Penny Sims 020 7877 7044, psims@redcross.org.uk
OTHER MATERIALS:
Images and case studies available on request
Notes to editors
British Red Cross helps people in crisis, whoever and wherever they are. We are part of a global voluntary network, responding to conflicts, natural disasters and individual emergencies. We enable vulnerable people in the UK and abroad to prepare for and withstand emergencies in their own communities. And when the crisis is over, we help them to recover and move on with their lives. www.redcross.org.uk
1. 8,000 dead, 1,500 civilians in 2007 (UN report ‘Situation in Afghanistan); Figures for Iraq vary from151,000 (WHO, 2003-06) to 600,000 (John Hopkins University, USA, 2003 – 06)
2. Figure since 1998 for DRC from International Rescue Committee, 2007 www.theirc.org. Death toll is estimated and result of direct and indirect consequences of conflict
3. ICM interviewed a random sample of2072 adults aged 18+ by telephone between 17th-21st September 2008. Surveys were conducted across the country and the results have been weighted to profile of all adults. ICM is a member of the British Polling Counil. Further information at www.icmresearch.co.uk
4. 'At the turn of the twentieth century, the ratio of military to civilian casualties in wars was 8:1. Today, this has been almost exactly reversed; in the wars of the 1990s, the ratio of military to civilian casualties is approximately 1:8.' (Kaldor, M. (2006), New and Old Wars, 2nd Ed., Cambridge, Polity Press, p. 9)
5. International Committee of the Red Cross Emergency Appeal 2008, page 8: "According to the ICRC's analysis, there is a trend whereby civilians are being specifically targeted and the number of indirect victims is growing" | 
