Red Cross under fire: aid flows in Ceuta, absent in Valencia floods

Help that arrives depending on the headline: Red Cross in the crosshairs

The latest migrant crisis in Ceuta has put the Red Cross back in the headlines. And not for the better. While the organization hands out food to some 4,000 migrants in the El Trampolín area, hundreds of residents affected by the Valencia floods in Spain are still waiting for an explanation of what they see as a glaring absence. The uncomfortable question hanging over the debate is: does this NGO help those who really matter?

Ceuta and Valencia: two faces of the same emergency

In Ceuta, the reality is stubborn: the Red Cross is on the ground, with food distribution operations that have already reached 4,000 people served. The political management of the border can be debated, but the humanitarian presence is visible.

In Valencia, the perception is the opposite. Testimonials gathered in the flood-hit areas speak of eight days of waiting until a van from the organization appeared. Eight days that, in a village buried in mud, are an eternity.

The case of Silla, in November 2024, soured the mood even further: volunteers photographed in orange groves untouched by the floods, which many interpreted as a PR operation. The explanations failed to convince.

The price of dependence: public money, salaries and a declining image

The Red Cross's funding model explains a lot. Figures are circulating, uncomfortable ones, suggesting that 45% of its budget comes from public subsidies. An entity that is "private, independent and neutral" but lives off the State ends up, sooner or later, prioritizing what matters to the State.

Then there is the matter of salaries. 93% of the budget going to staff costs, according to the accounts in circulation, leaves very little room for direct action. It is no surprise that among flood victims and grassroots volunteers the feeling is growing that the NGO has become a bureaucratic machine.

The famous Gold Raffle, that charity lottery that funded decades of humanitarian work, no longer generates the same goodwill. Each draw is remembered with irony, as a business disguised as solidarity.

The underlying debate: what kind of NGO do we want

Behind the controversy lies a deeper question: should a humanitarian organization act the same way in every emergency, or do we accept that priorities are set by the spotlight and the money?

One current of opinion holds that the Red Cross did more than it seems during the Valencia floods and that the accusations are part of an orchestrated smear campaign. Another, more skeptical one, reminds us that photos in disasters never come alone, and that those affected in Valencia are still waiting for answers.

The fact is that distrust has taken hold. The funding data and the handling of emergencies have placed the NGO in an uncomfortable position, where every move is scrutinized.

The question is no longer whether the Red Cross helps, but whom it chooses to help when it cannot be everywhere. And the answer, depending on where you look, hurts. While Valencians remember the mud that nobody came to clear, in Ceuta the food distribution continues. For the NGO, the next emergency is already here: rebuilding trust. And that cannot be fixed with volunteers.