Notes for a speech by Dr Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, to the South African Red Cross Society

16 October 1999

1. Greet
2. Thanks for invitation
3. SA Red Cross Society is an important institution. It has been through some very difficult times and, like almost every other organisation in South Africa, it is having to restructure.

Restructuring

4. We in Government know something about the pain and difficulties of restructuring. Our departments have all had to restructure. Our departments have all had to restructure. Some have done it more completely than others. They are the lucky ones. They have got most of that pain behind them, and can concentrate now on delivering to the public. Others have been slower and are suffering more now as they try to speed up delivery while still having to devote major energy to transforming themselves.
5. My advice to you on restructuring is very simple. Get on with it, and get it finished. Then everyone can settle down and get on with the core business of serving the people.
6. The SA Red Cross has a long and proud tradition of service in this country, and of participating in the Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
7. But in the past the SA Red Cross has drawn mainly from only part of the community, and its structures and representatives have reflected only a segment of our rich cultural diversity. In many ways it has been, in the true sense, a European Society doing good work in Africa.
8. The challenge is to build a vibrant, indigenous Red Cross Society, that reflects the new South Africa. It must draw on the traditions of the Red Cross and Red Crescent movement, and must contribute a strong African perspective to that movement. The African Renaissance must both inform and reflect the transformation of the Society.

International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC)

9. In considering the future shape and nature of the South African Red Cross Society, we must acknowledge and reflect on the contribution of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
10. The ICRC played a very important role in our struggle for liberation:

• Visiting many of our leaders when they were in jail.
• Preventing or at least limiting some of the worst abuses of power.
• Working quietly but very effectively to improve the conditions under which prisoners were held.
• Communicating with the families of prisoners and reassuring them wherever possible
• Reuniting children with their families
• Giving us all an example, and a role model, of humanity... of ubuntu.

11. It is a model which the SA Red Cross would do well to follow. It is a model of how to recognise the needs of others, and of how to serve others effectively, without being judgmental or patronising, and without being diverted or even hijacked by one faction or another. Partnership with civil society
12. There is an ever increasing need in South Africa for a strong partnership between government and "civil society".
13. A good strong partnership is like a good strong chair with its four legs firmly on the ground. And those four legs are:

• Government
• NGOs or Not for Profit Organisations (including churches, mosques and other faith organisations)
• Business
• Communities, or people themselves

14. And like a chair, if one leg is weak and collapses, the whole partnership collapses. We need each other.
15. The Red Cross Air Mercy Service is an excellent example of a partnership that is working well. As in any good marriage, there may be some tensions at time as people put forward different views on how best to achieve a common goal, but there is no doubt that the partnership is working.
16. The service started in the Northern Cape in March 1996 and was extended into KwaZulu-Natal in June 1998. Terms of skilled health professionals from the city hospitals are flown to more remote towns and hospitals where they treat patients and provide support and in-service training for local staff. More than 70,000 patients have already benefited and the province have been able to extend access to specialised services at very low cost.
17. The provincial health departments and local communities identify the needs, the provinces provide most of the skilled health professionals, while the Red Cross, supported by business, provide the aeroplanes, pilots and logistical support. It is a partnership that works

HIV/AIDS

18. But the most important partnership in South Africa today, is the Partnership against AIDS. And it is not yet working well enough.
19. AIDS already affects every one of us here in this room today, but we are not yet taking it seriously enough. We do not yet recognising how close it is to each one of us.
20. Nor do we recognise how much we can do to slow down the spread of this epidemic, nor how much we can do to improve our care and support for each other, if only we four partners work together.
21. Think of ten people between the ages of 15 and 45 who are close to you: your children, grandchildren, siblings, cousins, close friends.

• One of those people is very likely already HIV +ve, whether you know it or not
• Only 2 out of 10 used a condom the last time they had sex
• Another one of them will probably be HIV+ve before Christmas next year
• In some of our communities the figures are twice as high
• That is the reality

22. People you know are dying of AIDS. Whether you or the families admit it or not
23. Every one of us must ask ourselves the question, "What did I do about HIV and AIDS today?"
24. And we must ask ourselves that question every day.
25. The South African Red Cross Society is ideally placed to improve both the quality and the quantity of caring for those people infected with HIV, for those suffering the effects of AIDS, and for those whose lives are disrupted and potentially destroyed by HIV or AIDS in the family.
26. The Red Cross can help to change community perceptions by talking openly about HIV, AIDS, condoms and sex, and it can help HIV+ve people to live positively.
27. There is a huge need for better home care, and for more hospice and respite care. The Red Cross could play a major role in taking this forward.

Conclusion

28. In conclusion, as you move into your important meeting and deliberations, I would urge you:

• To be bold, to recognise your potential role in the African Renaissance, to take your restructuring seriously, and to get it done;
• To draw on the example and experience of the ICRC
• To build strong partnerships with government, other NGOs, business and communities; and
• To give serious attention to the role of the Red Cross in helping all South Africans to deal positively with the HIV and AIDS epidemics and their consequences.

Thank you