Updating the Geneva Conventions
Abuse of Prisoners and Civilians Triggers War Rules Review
Sep 4, 2009
During World War II, Germany, the Soviet Union, and Japan mistreated prisoners of war. The Japanese were particularly brutal; putting prisoners on starvation diets, refusing them medical treatment, and forcing them into slave labour.
Massive bombing raids destroyed cities and killed millions of civilians. The greatest breach of civilized behaviour was the systematic attempt to murder all European Jews, Roma, homosexuals, and others.
However, despite the widespread disregard for the Geneva Conventions during World War II some were observed to the letter. Many prisoners of war were housed adequately and survived the hostilities in reasonably good shape. And, none of the combatants resorted to the use of poison gas.
Atrocities Prompt Effort to Update Geneva Conventions
As a result of the abuse of earlier agreements, a conference was held in Stockholm, Sweden in 1948 to renew and update all the Geneva Conventions. The outcome was four agreements, which were approved in Geneva in August 1949:
- Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field;
- Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded, Sick, and Shipwrecked Members of Armed Forces at Sea;
- Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War; and,
- Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War.
The first two conventions were mostly restatements of the protection of the sick and wounded and those trying to give them aid.
Improvement of Protection for Prisoners of War
The 1949 agreements said that prisoners of war:
- Must not be subject to torture or to medical or scientific experiments of any kind;
- Must also be protected against violence, intimidation, insults, and public curiosity;
- Must not be put on public display;
- Must be immediately evacuated away from a combat zone and must not be unnecessarily exposed to danger;
- Must not be used as human shields; and,
- Must not be punished for the acts they committed during the fighting unless the opposing side would have punished its own soldiers for those acts as well.
Convention on the Protection of Civilians
The provisions of the fourth convention contained little that was not established in international law prior to World War II.
Anybody falling into the hands of combatants was accorded protection. The following practices were forbidden: deportation of individuals or groups, regardless of motive; the taking of hostages; outrages upon personal dignity; torture; collective punishment and reprisals; the unjustified destruction of property; and, discrimination in treatment on the basis of race, religion, nationality, or political grounds.
Civilians are not to be subject to attack. This includes direct attacks on civilians and indiscriminate attacks against areas in which civilians are present. Warring parties must not use or develop biological or chemical weapons and must not allow children under 15 to participate in hostilities or to be recruited into the armed forces.
New Forms of Conflict Demand New Rules
In the years following World War II, new types of conflict emerged. Wars of liberation took place as colonized people fought for their independence and freedom. Ethnic clashes occurred within nations. And, international terrorism reared its ugly head.
Once again, it was necessary to review and update the Geneva Conventions. These issues were addressed by a Diplomatic Conference in Geneva between 1974 and 1977.
 |
