Abbreviation PMI Legal status Foundation Founded 17 September 1945 | Type NGO Purpose Humanitarianism Founder Boentaran Martoatmodjo | |
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Formation 17 September 1945; 71 years ago (1945-09-17) Similar International Red Cross and Red, International Federation of Red Cr, International Committee of the Re, American Red Cross, Muslim Students' Association Profiles | ||
The Indonesian Red Cross Society (Indonesian: Palang Merah Indonesia) is a humanitarian organization in Indonesia. It is a member of International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
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Indonesia is the one of the very few Muslim-majority countries to use the Red Cross as its symbol. Because Indonesia is neither a strictly faith-based nor secular nation, it has chosen to use the Red Cross as its symbol.
In mid-2013, the Indonesian Red Cross Society had 32,568 people in its Volunteer Corps, 19,294 Individual Volunteers and 893,381 Blood Donor Volunteers, for a total of 945,243 persons, which is recorded as the highest number of volunteers in the world.
History
The IRCS was created on 17 September 1945, exactly one month after Indonesia's independence. President Sukarno ordered its inception when a battle between Indonesian soldiers and allied troops broke out, leaving many wounded, on 3 September 1945. Based on the performance, IRCS received an international recognition in 1950 that it was accepted as a member of the International Red Cross and achieved its legal status through Presidential Decree Number 25 Year 1959, which was later reinforced by Presidential Decree Number 245 Year 1963.
Location
The IRCS central headquarters is located at Jl. Jenderal Gatot Soebroto Kav. 96, Jakarta 12790.