U KYAW Sandar is the head of the Myanmar Red Cross Society (MRCS) in Bogale. He and the 30 to 80 volunteers who work with him wear jackets or t-shirts bearing a symbol that is recognised internationally – the red cross.

When I spoke to him three weeks ago he and his team had been working almost non-stop for five days, ever since cyclone Nargis struck. They were distributing water purification chemicals, administering basic first aid and moving severely injured survivors to a nearby hospital.

Go anywhere in the Ayeyarwady delta and you will meet many others like U Kyaw Sandar. They are not professional doctors or nurses. They are volunteers and part of the wider Red Cross or Red Crescent family. Many of them have been working every day since the storm.

Craig Strathern, the spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Myanmar, said these volunteers have been key players in providing aid to desperate cyclone victims.

“They provide this amazing volunteer network, which should not only be regarded as a source of labour, because they are part of the community – they understand the community’s needs. They also have links to the authorities that allow them access that other groups may not necessarily have,” he said.

He said, however, that there was also a problem with some organisations that are not affiliated with the Red Cross wearing the Red Cross emblem, whose use is restricted under the Geneva Conventions.

Mr Strathern said he is mainly concerned that those who use the emblem to get into affected areas might not be living up to the philosophy of the ICRC, which was founded nearly 150 years ago “to protect and assist the civilian and military victims of armed conflicts and internal disturbances on a strictly neutral and impartial basis”.

“When people see the red cross they expect that the assistance delivered will be in accordance with the Red Cross fundamental principals, which include impartiality, neutrality and independence,” explained Mr Strathern.

“In other words, the Red Cross will not discriminate. It gives on the basis of need, regardless of race, religion, political affiliation and so on. Neutrality – in that we do not get involved in political, ideological, philosophical discussions. You will not hear us criticising the government. That is not our job. Our job is to provide humanitarian assistance,” he said.

While striving for independence, ICRC adheres to the laws of the countries in which it is operating. But the national society, although by definition an auxiliary to the government, must seek to balance its connection to the government with a commitment to ICRC’s fundamental principals.

“The national society has every right to refuse to do things [asked of it by the government], if they are incompatible with our other fundamental principals,” said Mr Strathern.

He said he also recognises the psychological and physical impact that emergency situations have on volunteers, like U Kyaw Sandar.

“Part of the volunteering effort is a coping mechanism. To be occupied with helping people is commonly regarded as a delaying method, which is why there are strong psychosocial, community-based coping mechanisms,” he said.