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International Humanitarian Law

According to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), International Humanitarian Law ' protects persons who are not or are no longer participating in the hostilities and restricts the means and methods of warfare '. Its fonctions are twofold: first, to regulate the conduct of hostilities, and secondly, to protect the victims of armed conflict. International Humanitarian Law is also known as the 'law of war' or 'the law of armed conflict'. Moreover, it is proper to distinguish ' jus ad bellum (that is the set of rules of International Law relating to the conditions in which a subject of International Law is permitted to resort to armed force) from jus in bello (that is, the set of rules of International Law applicable to the mutual relations of parties to an international armed conflict, or more briefly the laws and customs of war) '. However, International Humanitarian Law does not include jus ad bellum but only jus in bello. In 1945, the Charter of the United Nations established that Member States shall abstain, in their international relations, from resorting to the threat or use of force (art. 2.4 of the Charter of the United Nations). Thus, the  Charter of the United Nations introduces the notion of Jus contra bellum that is the law on prohibition of war. Today, many regulations are accepted by the majority of States and are, therefore, regarded as an integral part of customary law.
                                         
Conventions concerning International Humanitarian Law

  • The Hague Conventions concerns the conduct of hostilities. These conventions introduce  regulations to limit the means and methods of warfare such as the Declaration of 1899 banning the use of poison gas and ' dumdum ' bullets. These conventions were elaborated at the International Peace Conference of 1899 and 1907.
  • The four Geneva Conventions of 1949 contain provisions for the protection of victims of armed conflict. The first Geneva Convention was introduced in 1864 by the International Committee of the Red Cross created by Henri Dunant. Its aim is to provide ' protection for the wounded and sick, but also for medical and religious personnel, medical units and medical transports '. In addition, it recognizes the protection of the distinctive emblems. In 1949, the second Geneva Convention was adopted and replaced Hague Convention of 1907 for the Adaptation to Maritime Warfare of the Principles of the Geneva Convention. This Convention applies specifically to wounded, sick and shipwrecked military personnel at sea during war. The third Geneva Convention of 1949 regulates the right of prisoners of war. It replaced the Prisoners of War Convention of 1929, broadening the categories of persons entitled to prisoner of war status. Moreover, ' the Convention establishes the principle that prisoners of war shall be released and repatriated without delay after the cessation of active hostilities '. Finally, the fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 takes account of the experiences of World War II and integrates protection of civilians, including in occupied territory, in the norms regulated by international humanitarian law. ' The bulk of the Convention deals with the status and treatment of protected persons, distinguishing between the situation of foreigners on the territory of one of the parties to the conflict and that of civilians in occupied territory '.
  • The Additional Protocols to the Geneva Conventions: in 1977, two Additional Protocols strengthened the protection of victims of international (Protocol I) and non-international (Protocol II) armed conflicts. Protocol II responds to the increase of civil wars and national liberation wars. In 2005, a third Additional Protocol on the adoption of an additional distinctive emblem, such as ICRC symbol, was adopted.

To whom does International Humanitarian Law apply?
International Humanitarian Law applies only to international and non-international armed conflicts. A distinction is made between international armed conflicts in which at least two States are engaged and non-international armed conflicts which refers to conflict on a single national territory between regular armed forces and identifiable armed groups, or between armed groups fighting one another (Art. 3, common to the four Geneva Conventions).
International Humanitarian Law protects the people who do not take part actively in the fighting, such as civilians, wounded, medical and religious military personnel. In addition, it also protects those who have ceased to take part in the hostilities, such as prisoners of war, sick combatants and soldiers. In this instance, International Humanitarian Law prescribes that ' these categories of person are entitled to respect for their lives and for their physical and mental integrity. They also enjoy legal guarantees '. In addition, specific regulations prescibes decent conditions of detention for prisoners of war.

To limit the effects of armed conflict, International Humanitarian Law forbids all means and methods of warfare which:

  • fail to discriminate between those taking part in the fighting and those who do not
  • cause superfluous injury
  • cause severe damage to the environment

The implementation of International Humanitarian Law
States must teach humanitarian rules to their armed forces as well as to the general public.  Futhermore, they have to implement preventive measures against International Humanitarian Law violations. To this end, governments must sanctions in case of the most serious violations such as war crimes. States must also pass laws to protect the red cross emblems.
At international level, two International Criminal Tribunals were created in the aftermath of the conflicts which took place in former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. In 1998, The International Criminal Court of the Hague was established by Rome Statute, with the responsibility of repressing inter alia war crimes.

The difference between Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law
Although, some of their rules are complementary, Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law constitute two distinct parts of International Public Law. International Humanitarian Law applies only in situations of armed conflict, while Human Rights apply to all human beings at all times. Nevertheless, some Human Rights provisions can be suspended in war time.

Further readings

The Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs publishes a useful ABC of Human Rights available online.