Maria was born during the summer of the very first Hague Peace Conference, an institution created by her father which continues to this day. With the Conference, the Tsar and his international counterparts sought to create a global community with the goals of preserving peace, and, if it came to it, maintaining basic human rights during the misfortune of wartime. During that period, the Boer War raged on, and Nicholas II was deeply grieved by the plight of those housed in concentration camps, for him an unacceptable fate for the tens and thousands of women and children who perished there. Thus the convention set forth to protect the rights of civilians affected by war, as well as set limitations on the cruelties of warring parties against one another. The first conferences resolved to avoid use of particularly abominable weaponry; poisonous gasses, certain types of large explosives, bullets that do extreme inner bodily harm, etc. Additional legislation called for the protection of towns, hospitals, displaced individuals, and wounded enemies. 

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As world conflict continues to plague us in the present, it is an important objective for our own SFA community to come to the aid of those affected by wars and the violation of human rights. This page is created in response to that sense of duty towards our fellow man. In response to accusations that this may be a political stance, we assert that the SFA's sole allegiance is to that of humanity, humaneness, and the protection and implementation of human rights. Please browse the below index if you are seeking aid in any of these categories, or wish to expand your awareness and ability to aid those in these situations.