#11450 - Legal Sources - International Humanitarian Law

Deals with means and methods; limits the means of harming the enemy

Sections

1. III: Opening of Hostilities

2. IV: Laws and Customs of War on Land

   1. Art. 3: violating parties must pay compensation

   2. Annex to the Convention: Regulations Respecting the laws and customs of war on land

      1. Sec. 1: Belligerents

      2. Sec. 2: Hostilities

         1. Ch 1: means of injuring the enemy, sieges, and bombardments

         2. Ch 2: Spies

         3. Ch. 3: Flags of Truce

         4. Ch. 4: Capitulations

         5. Ch. 5: Armistices

      3. Sec. 3: military authority over the territory of the hostile state

3. V: Rights and Duties of Neutral Powers/Persons in War on Land

   1. Ch 1

      1. Art 2: Belligerents forbidden to move troops/munitions/supplies across territory of neutral power

      2. Art. 5: netural party must not allow belligerants to do so

   2. Ch. 2: Belligerents Interned and Wounded Tended in Neutral Territory

   3. Ch 3: Neutral Persons

4. VI: Status of enemy merchant ships at outbreak of hostilities

5. VII: Conversion of Merchant ships into war-ships

6. XIII: Rights and Duties of Netural pwers in Naval War

Protects against the arbitrary power of the enemy

Common Articles

1. General Provisions : Art. 1 - 12

   1. Respect for the Conventions

   2. Application of Conventions in international conflict, enemy occupation, or civil war

   3. Duration of application

   4. Special agreements contracting parties can come to

   5. Inalienability of the right of protected persons

   6. Duties of protecting powers

   7. Activities of the ICRC

   8. Conciliation procedure between the contracting parties

2. States duties to disseminate the Conventions to civilians and combatnats: (Arts. 47, 48, 127 and 144 of, respectively, GC I, II, III & IV)

3. Repression of Breaches of the Conventions: GCI: 49-52; GC2: 50-53; GC3: 129-131; GC4:146-149

   1. Imposes penal sanctions for breaches of the Conventions, especially grave breaches

   2. Defines grave breaches

4. Final Provisions

   1. Procedure for signature, ratification, and entry into force of the Convententions and for accession to them

First: Wounded & Sick

1. Wounded/Sick combatants shall be respected and cared for, whatever their nationality

2. Personnel/buildings/equipment that provide for wounded/sick shall be protected

3. Red cross/white ground = emblem of immunity

4. Art. 12: lists prohibited acts

   1. Attempts upon life

   2. Torture

   3. Willful abandonment

5. Art. 13: enumerates categories of persons put on same footing as members of armed forces, and hence entitled to protection

6. Art. 16: information to be given about wonded captives

7. Art. 17: duties to the dead

8. Art. 18: guarantees to inhabitatnts and Relief Societies the right to assist the wounded/sick

Second: Maritime

1. Covers same categories of persons as the First, and same protections as Land Convention

2. Ch 2: protects shipwrecked and wounded/sick

3. Art. 13: protects members of Merchant Navy

4. Ch 3: hospital ships & relief craft

5. Ch 4: medical personnel given wider protection than on land. May not be captured or retained. Personnel of other ships may sometimes be retained, but then put ashore ASAP, where they will come under the first convention

Third: Prisoners of War

1. Art. 17 – 108: conditions of captivity

   1. 17-20: interrogation of prisoners, disposal of personal effects, evacuation

   2. 21-48: regulates living conditions for prisoners in camp/during transfer, deals with places/methods of internment, accommodation, food, clothing, hygiene, medical attention, medical and religious personnel retained for the care of prisoners, religious needs, intellectual and physical activities, discipline, prisoner of war ranks, ransfer after arrival in camp

   3. 49-57: prisoner labor

   4. 58-68: financial resources of prisoners

   5. 69-77: correspondence, relief shipments

   6. 78-108: relations between prisoners and detaining authorities, complaints regarding captivity, presioners’ representatives, penal and disciplinary sanctions

2. Art. 109 – 121: termination of captivity

   1. 109-117: repatriation, accommodation of prisoners in neutral countries during hostilities

   2. 118-119: repatriation at close of hostilities

   3. 120121: death of POWs

3. Art. 126-132: requires belligerants to give neutral orgs free access to POW camps for inspection, and to disseminate text of Convention

Fourth: Civilians

1. Aims at ensuring that, even in the midst of hostilities, the dignity of humans universally acknowledged in principle, is respected

2. Art. 4: defines those to be protected

3. Art. 13-26: protection of GP against certain consequences of war. Covers population as a whole, not just protected persons. Safety zones, protections of hospitals, protections for children, etc.

4. Art. 29: responsibilities of state

5. Art. 32: prohibition of corporal punishments

6. Art. 33: prohibition of collective penalties, terrorism, pillage, reprisals

7. Art. 34: prohibits taking hostages

8. Art. 43: the occupant shall take all the measures in his power to restore, and ensure public order and safety while respecting, unless absolutely prevented, the laws in force in the country

9. Art. 46: prohibits pillage

10. Art. 50: no general penalty should be inflicted upon the population on account of the acts of individuals for which thy cannot be regarded as jointly and severally responsible

11. Art. 47-75: prescriptions for occupied territories

API: IAC

• Art. 6: qualified persons

• Art. 19: neutral and other states not parties to the conflict

• Art. 32-34: missing and dead persons

• Art. 41: safeguard of an enemy hors de combat

• Art. 52-56: civilians

• Art. 73-74: refugees

• Art. 76-78: protections of women and children

APII: NIAC

• Art. 4-6: humane treatment

• Art. 7-12: wounded/shipwrecked

• Art. 13-18: civilian population

Defined

1. Foundational treaty of the UN

2. Ratified by the 5 permanent members of the Security Council: China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, United States

3. Obligations to the UN prevail over all other treaty obligations

4. Cases can only be brought by states, not organizations, private enterprises, or individuals

Content

1. Ch I: purpose of the UN. Maintaining international peace and security.

2. Ch VI: describes SC’s power to investigate and mediate disputes

3. Ch VII: describes SC’s power to authorize economic, diplomatic, and military sanctions, as well as the use of military force, to resolve disputes

4. Ch VIII: makes it possible for regional arrangements to maintain peace and security within their own region

5. Ch XIV: establishes powers of the ICJ (art. 92)

6. Ch XV: establishes powers of the UN Secretariat

Adopted 17 July 1998, entered into force 1 July 2002

Established ICC. Determines:

1. Court’s functions

2. Jurisdiction

3. Structure

ICC can only investigate/prosecute the core international crimes

1. Genocide

2. Crimes against humanity

3. War crimes

4. Crime of aggression

Different from ICJ

1. Because the ICC is independent of the UN

Content

1. Art 6: defines genocide

2. Art. 7: defines crimes against humanity: widespread/systematic

   1. Murder

   2. Extermination

   3. Enslavement

   4. Deportation or forcible transfer of population

   5. Imprisonment

   6. Torture

   7. Rape/sexual slavery

   8. Persecution against any identifiable group

   9. Enforced disappearance of persons

   10. Apartheid

   11. Other inhuman acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering, or seirous injury to body or to mental or physical health

3. Art. 8: defines war crimes

4. Art. 21:...