The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do
evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing. (Albert
Einstein) The Treatment Centre for Victims of Torture (TZFO),
opened in1995, was the first standard treatment centre in
Switzerland for refugee victims of torture and war. A scientific
study commissioned by the Swiss Red Cross ("The Language of
Extreme Violence", H.R. Wicker, 1991) provided the basis.
According to the study, a quarter of the recognized refugees
living in Switzerland were victims of systematic torture in
their home country. In 2002, the treatment centre was renamed
the Swiss Red Cross Outpatient Clinic for Victims of Torture and
War (AFK) and integrated into the Swiss Red Cross Centre for
Migration and Health. The Swiss Red Cross AFK is now part of the
Department of Health and Integration and forms a permanent
feature of what the Swiss Red Cross offers as standard. It
employs 13 established specialists in the fields of psychology,
psychotherapy, psychiatry, medicine, and w