Continuing an activity which the ICRC first undertook over two years ago, ICRC Delegates have recently completed a series of eighteen visits to places of detention for Algerians in France.

In its letter of February 24, 1961, to the Federal Political Department in Berne, the Government of the Republic of the Congo (Leopoldville) confirms that this State would abide by the Geneva Conventions of 1949 as from June 30, 1960 when it became independent.

In keeping with the efforts which the International Committee of the Red Cross is pursuing in visiting civilians and military personnel detained in all areas in the Congo, one of its own doctor delegates was authorized by the Government in Leopoldville, in May, to visit Mr. Moise Tschombé, President, and Evariste Kimba, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Katanga, in the villa at Coquilhatville, where they had both been detained before being transferred to Leopoldville. Accompanied by a doctor of the Swiss Red Cross, the delegate made a thorough medical examination of both these Katanga personalities.

Since the beginning of the hunger strike started by the Algerian detainees in France, the ICRC's neutral humanitarian intervention was sought from various directions.

A mission of the International Committee of the Red Cross, the eighth since 1955, went to Algeria from January 25 to February 23, 1961, in order to visit the principal centres and prisons in which arrested persons had been detained as a result of the events. This mission, which consisted of Mr. Pierre Gaillard, Mr. Roger Vust and Dr. J. L. de Chastonay, visited 61. places of detention of various categories, as well as hospitals in which there were prisoners and detainees. During the course of these visits, relief supplies were handed over to persons under detention. Wherever they went the delegates of the ICRC were able to talk without witnesses and at length with detainees whom they themselves had selected or with those who had expressed the wish to speak with them.

On the occasion of the resignation of Dr. Weitz, President of the German Red Cross in the Federal Republic, the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Mr. Léopold Boissier, paid a short visit to Bonn.

The Joint Commission for the distribution of income from the Empress Shôken Fund met in Geneva on February 21, 1961. The accounts and the position of the Fund as on December 31, 1960, were examined and it was decided to allocate from the balance available of Sw.Fr. 13,292.35 the sum of Sw.Fr. 13,000.

Facilitated by the steps which the ICRC had been undertaking for several weeks, an exchange of French and Tunisian prisoners took place on September 10, 1961 in Bizerta. Shortly after President Bourguiba's press conference announcing this exchange, a delegate of the International Committee promptly went to the spot. Acting as an intermediary, he contributed, in co-operation with the Tunisian Red Crescent, towards the accomplishment of this humanitarian operation.

The International Commission of the ITS (International Tracing Service), which consists of representatives of the Governments of Belgium, France, German Federal Republic, Great Britain, Greece, Israel, Italy, Luxemburg, Netherlands and the United States, held its 25th meeting on October 30, under the presidency of the Italian delegate, Mr. Paolucci. This meeting took place at the Italian National Institute of Cologne, in the presence of the Directors of the ITS, Mr. Nicolas Burckhardt and of a representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Mr. Claude Pilloud, Assistant Director for General Affairs. It should be recalled that the International Tracing Service possesses immense archives and a great number of card-indexes concerning the fate of persons who had been deported, displaced or missing during the Second World War in Germany and in the countries then occupied by the German forces. Since 1955 the ICRC has been responsible for running this important information centre.

The International Committee has awarded its Gold Medal to Mr. Carl J. Burckhardt on the occasion of his 70th birthday in recognition of the eminent services which he has rendered. This high honour had only previously been bestowed upon Mr. Max Huber, Mr. Jacques Cheneviére and Miss Lucie Odier.

On November 11, the President of the Red Cross of the Rumanian People's Republic, Mr. A. Moisescu, arrived in Geneva from Budapest, accompanied by Mr. P. Radu, Vice-President and Mrs. Gorunescu.

Mr. Léopold Boissier, President of the International Committee, went to Norway last month, having been recently invited by the Students' Associations of the Polytechnicum of Trondhjem and of the University of Oslo to explain to their members the work of the Red Cross and the problems facing the ICRC in the world today.

The financial position at the end of December 1960 and accounts for the past year were verified by the Société fiduciaire OFOR S.A., the official auditors accredited by the Swiss Federal Council and the Commission tede'rale des Banques.