Red Cross parcel refers to packages containing mostly food, tobacco and personal hygiene items sent by the International Association of the Red Cross to prisoners of war (POWs) during the First and Second World Wars,[1] as well as at other times. It can also refer to medical parcels and so-called "release parcels" provided during the Second World War.
The Red Cross arranged them in accordance with the provisions of the Geneva Convention on Prisoners of War (1929). During the Second World War these packages augmented the often-meagre and deficient diets in the prisoner-of-war camps, contributing greatly to prisoner survival and an increase in morale. Modern Red Cross food parcels provide basic food and sanitary needs for persons affected by natural disasters, wars, political upheavals or similar events.
More recent catastrophes involving delivery of Red Cross parcels include events in Georgia, Thailand and Great Britain.
- ^ Video: Santo Tomas Prisoners Liberated, 1945/03/01 (1945). Universal Newsreel. 1945. Retrieved 21 February 2012.