Hague Law

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

2. 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

Geneva Convention Cheat Sheet

1. Protects against the arbitrary power of the enemy

2. 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

3. 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

4. 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

5. 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

6. 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...

Buy the full version of these notes or essay plans and more in our International Humanitarian Law Outlines.