Head of the ICRC Museum in Geneva proposes takeover by the Confederation
Published: Wednesday, Nov 13th 2024, 17:40
العودة إلى البث المباشر
The director of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum in Geneva is calling for a nationwide debate on the future of the institution. A takeover by the federal government should also be considered. The background to this are plans to cancel the Department of Foreign Affairs' contribution to the museum.
"There must be a public debate about the future of the museum," Pascal Hufschmid told the Keystone-SDA news agency on Wednesday. Such a decision should not be made without consulting those affected.
The museum's holdings include the medal that ICRC founder Henri received in 1901 as the first winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, around 13,000 posters and files on prisoners of war in the First World War. Hufschmid emphasized that he could not imagine this immense legacy languishing away from the public eye in the future.
Structural deficit
The discussion about the museum was triggered by the Federal Council's cost-cutting proposals. These envisage that the Department of Foreign Affairs will no longer pay the current subsidy of CHF 1.1 million per year in future. According to Hufschmid, the amount corresponds to a quarter of the museum's annual budget.
In return, the ICRC Museum could take part in tenders from the Federal Office of Culture from 2027 to 2030. However, Hufschmid only expects to receive around 300,000 francs a year from this: "We would definitely have a structural deficit." He had already warned in October that the museum's continued existence was at risk as a result of the savings plans.
Significant for the whole of Switzerland
The museum director therefore believes that the federal government has a duty: every year, the museum talks to more than 120,000 visitors about international humanitarian law, around 25,000 of whom are children and young people.
It's not just a Geneva issue, says the museum director: "Every canton has a connection to the history of the Red Cross. Henry Dunant is a national figure. " His museum is just as important for Switzerland's image as the National Museum. Nationalization should therefore not be a taboo.
For Hufschmid, it is also conceivable that the museum could continue to look after the collections, but deposit them with an institution of national importance. This would relieve the museum of high costs. Private funding is also not out of the question. However, private donors tend to invest in projects and not in operating costs, he pointed out.
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