Recently a Somalian refugee walked into the Australian Red Cross Office in Brisbane. He looked nervous, was visibly trembling and very emotional. He was there to meet with the International Tracing Department. They had called him to say that they had received a Red Cross Message (RCM) from his sister. The last time he had seen or heard from her was in 1991 when they both fled war-torn Somalia. That was eleven years ago.
'I was almost sick with emotion when Australian Red Cross called to say they had received a letter from Sahra. After eleven years all hope of ever seeing my sister had faded. I was so happy to learn that she was alive and well. It was the best feeling in the world,' said Abdi Raxmaan Cabdulali Ali, who now lives in Australia.
Abdi's story is not uncommon. In May 2002, a Sudanese father and daughter were reunited after twenty years when Australian Red Cross received a RCM addressed to his daughter, Safira.
They had become separated when she left her family home to find work in Khartoum. When civil war broke out they lost contact and she feared the worst. Concerned for her own safety and unable to trace her father she fled Sudan to escape the conflict, eventually settling in Australia with her husband and four children.
Australian Red Cross was able to assist Safira and Abdi because we are part of the global Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. This consists of the Geneva-based 178 member International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (Federation) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
The Tracing Service
The Federation and the ICRC work together to enable the International Tracing Service to trace family members in the midst of war, conflict or natural disaster.
Last year Australian Red Cross handled 1,585 cases for people desperate to restore family links. Of the cases sent to Australia from sister societies around the world, 1,046 (66 per cent) have been successfully resolved.
In the same period, 848 Red Cross Messages have been sent to and from Australia. RCM are unsealed letters containing family news in areas where the postal service is not operational, and as Ms Tabatha Murray, International Tracing and Refugee Services for Australian Red Cross explains, reuniting a family is a tremendously satisfying experience.
'It's wonderful to see a family back together after a long separation. The tracing caseworkers who reunited Safira and Abdi with their families will have shared in their joy and happiness,' said Ms Murray.
'It's an incredibly rewarding job and Australian Red Cross is fortunate to have a dedicated and talented team of professionals committed to restoring family links,' concluded Ms Murray.
National Missing Persons Week (NMPW) 4-10 August 2002
This week (4-10 August), the International Tracing Service of Australian Red Cross is joining non-government tracing organisations, community groups associated with families and friends of missing people and police services around Australia to raise awareness of people who have lost contact with family friends and loved ones.
National Missing Persons Week is coordinated by the National Missing Persons Unit (NMPU). The main focus for the campaign this year are the PLEaS Guiding Principles:
Prevention reduces the incidence of missing persons and therefore the emotional and financial costs, promoting and enhancing a safer society for all Australians.
Location recognises the critical needs to find the missing people as quickly as possible through a coordinated, national approach to reduce the impact on families, friends and the missing people themselves.
Education increases awareness in relation to missing persons to minimise the incidence, enhance the response and encourage a whole-of-government approach in cooperation with the community.
Support minimises the trauma suffered by the missing people, family, friends and the impact on the community.
Making a Tracing enquiry
If contact with a family member or a relative has been lost due to war, conflict or natural disaster, contact Australian Red Cross via the website, write to the Australian Red Cross Tracing Service in your State or Territory at GPO Box 9949 in your capital city, or freecall 1800 246 850 from anywhere in Australia.
Available for interview
Ms Tabatha Murray International Tracing & Refugee Services
For media information only
Mr Andrew Heslop
National Communications Manager
Australian Red Cross
Telephone +61 3 9345 1865
Mobile +61 419 579 209
Mr Ian Woolverton
Media Adviser - International Programs
Australian Red Cross
Telephone +61 3 9345 1868
