Charles Swift

1
International Humanitarian LawandRelief
Societies

• Charles Swift
• Counsel for the
• Muslim Legal Found of America

2
Purpose for the Geneva Conventions

• Protect civilian and others hors de combat from
  military attack
• Provide for humane treatment of civilian
  internees and captured combatants
• Ameliorate human suffering caused by war
• Care for sick and wounded generally
• Food and shelter for civilians and other persons
  hors de combat

3
What the Conventions Additional Protocols

• Do

• Dont

• Mandate humanitarian aid
• Place principal responsibility for aid on the
  Parties to the conflict
• Recognize the Role of NGOs in delivering
  humanitarian aid
• Protect those delivering aid as hors de combat

• Supplant National Sovereignty
• Permit aid or its denial to be used for military
  advantage

4
Aid and Types of Conflict
United States has not ratified Additional
Protocols I II
5
4th Convention occupied territory

• ARTICLE 63Subject to temporary and exceptional
  measures imposed for urgent reasons of security
  by the Occupying Power(a) recognized National
  Red Cross (Red Crescent, Red Lion and Sun)
  Societies shall be able to pursue their
  activities in accordance with Red Cross
  principles, as defined by the International Red
  Cross Conferences. Other relief societies shall
  be permitted to continue their humanitarian
  activities under similar conditions(b) the
  Occupying Power may not require any changes in
  the personnel or structure of these societies,
  which would prejudice the aforesaid activities.
  The same principles shall apply to the activities
  and personnel of special organizations of a
  non-military character, which already exist or
  which may be established, for the purpose of
  ensuring the living conditions of the civilian
  population by the maintenance of the essential
  public utility services, by the distribution of
  relief and by the organization of rescues

6
Common Article 3

• The wounded and sick shall be collected and cared
  for. An impartial humanitarian body, such as the
  International Committee of the Red Cross, may
  offer its services to the Parties to the
  conflict.

7
Additional Protocol II - the Protection of
Victims of Non-International Armed Conflicts

• Art 18. Relief societies and relief
• Actions
• If the civilian population is suffering undue
  hardship owing to a lack of the supplies
  essential for its survival, such as food-stuffs
  and medical supplies, relief actions for the
  civilian population which are of an exclusively
  humanitarian and impartial nature and which are
  conducted without any adverse distinction shall
  be undertaken subject to the consent of the High
  Contracting Party concerned.

8
Additional Protocol IICommentary

• If relief actions were carried out with great
  care and precision as to technical detail, it may
  be possible to overcome political or security
  objections which might be raised. The actions
  would have to strictly comply with any conditions
  that might be imposed (examples arrangement of
  transits in accordance with a precise timetable
  and itinerary, checking on convoys).4888
  Implementation in such a way would serve to
  clearly establish responsibilities. Once relief
  actions are accepted in principle, the
  authorities are under an obligation to
  co-operate, in particular by facilitating the
  rapid transit of relief consignments and by
  ensuring the safety of convoys.4889 In return,
  assistance by a humanitarian organization
  provides some important guarantees, for such
  organizations are run in such a way as to
  undertake and share responsibilities with the
  authorities at various levels

9
Commentary Art 18 Protocol II Humanitarian Aid

• ' Vis-à-vis the victims ' The humanitarian
  organization ensures that the assistance goes
  only to the beneficiaries, giving priority to the
  most vulnerable among them (women, children
  etc.). Professional methods and experience are
  valuable aids (for example, supervision of the
  distribution by means of marking recipients'
  hands with indelible ink)
• ' Vis-à-vis the authorities themselves ' The
  humanitarian organization guarantees that there
  will be no illegal traffic and the authorities
  control its activities.
• ' Vis-à-vis the donors ' The humanitarian
  organization is in a position to give guarantees
  to those providing the relief that consignments
  will not serve any other purposes than those for
  which they are intended its presence and its
  action, for which it must render accounts, will
  vouch for that.

10
Medical Aid Additional Protocol II

• Art 10. General protection of medical duties
• Under no circumstances shall any person be
  punished for having carried out medical
  activities compatible with medical ethics,
  regardless of the person benefiting there from.

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Terrorism and the Law of War

• Bush Administration Terrorists and those that
  Materially support them are outside the
  protections of the Law of War
• Hamdan v. Rumsfeld Common Article 3 protected
  Hamdan visa via Afghanistan (theater of armed
  conflict)
• Material Support and Humanitarian Aid
• Overly broad
• US may prohibit
• If authorized should comply with existing IHL
  norms