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International Civil Defence Organization

image by Eugene Ipavec, 13 July 2006

International Civil Defence Organization

See also:

International Civil Defence Organization

The flag of the International Civil Defence Organisation (ICDO) was sighted as a table flag used at the 38th ICDO Executive Council meeting held in Geneva, Switzerland held from 30th June to 1st July 2005[1]. The emblem of the ICDO as used on the flag, features an orange globe with white longitude and latitude lines throughout on which is placed a blue equilateral triangle. The blue triangle on an orange field is the distinctive sign of Civil Defence as spelt out in the 1977 Protocols to the 1949 Geneva Convention[2]. The globe and triangle is completed with green laurels[3]. The ICDO emblem is placed on a white field when used as a flag. Also perhaps of interest in relation to the emblem of civil defence, the ICDO and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) jointly organized a meeting of experts on the implementation of international humanitarian law relating to civil defence from 30 June to 2 July 1997.

In an article summarising the various discussions that went on in the meeting[4], one of the issues raised was that of regulating the use of the civil defence emblem along the lines of the Red Cross-Red Crescent emblem where it seems to have been agreed that, "No additions should be made to the [civil defence] emblem, referred to in Protocol I as 'the international distinctive sign'. Governments that had made additions should be asked not to do so and to amend their legislation."

ICDO's emblem was also given mention where, "[i]t was noted in passing that the logo of the ICDO was different from the international emblem."

Notes & references:-
1. International Civil Defence Journal, No.2 October 2005, Volume XV. Available online at http://www.icdo.org/publications.html)
2. See FOTW websites
3. ICDO emblem can be seen at http://www.icdo.org/
4. Stéphane Jeannet, "Civil Defence 1977-1997: From Law to Practice", International Review of the Red Cross No.325, 31-12-1998, pp 715-723. See article
online at http://www.icrc.org/Web/Eng/siteeng0.nsf/iwpList74/5A6114ED72F9B728C1256B66005C6DAC
Herman Felani, 20 December 2005

The flag is shown in a photo at the ICDO site, http://www.icdo.org/, but with a difference - two lines of blue writing are beneath the logo. I can't make them out. Based on the context of the photo, this might be a headquarters flag.
Eugene Ipavec, 13 July 2006