Geneva Convention

Why in news?

• Russian troops are accused of violation of Geneva Convention in the ongoing Ukraine war.

About Geneva Convention:

• Geneva Conventions is a series of international treaties concluded in Geneva between 1864 and 1949 for the purpose of ameliorating the effects of war on soldiers and civilians.
• The Conventions comprise of three protocols and four additional treaties that set the standards for ethical treatment in war.

The First Geneva Convention:

• To protects wounded and sick soldiers on land during war.
• On October 1863, delegates from 16 nations came to Geneva and discussed the terms of humanitarian treatment during the war. The result was a treaty signed by 12 nations and became known as the First Geneva Convention.

The Second Geneva Convention:

• To protects wounded, sick and shipwrecked military personnel at sea during war.
• It was called for by the Swiss government to review and make any improvements to the first Geneva Convention.
• The amendments in 1906 included protection for wounded or captured prisoners of war and protection for the medical personnel treating, evacuating and removing the dead and wounded

The Third Geneva Convention:

• Following the end of World War I it was decided that the amendments made in 1906 were not enough for humanitarian conduct in times of war and further updates were made in 1929 to ensure a civilized treatment to the prisoners of war.
• The new amendments introduced rules about the daily lives of prisoners and led to the establishment of the Red Cross as the main neutral organisation which will ensure the collection and transmission of data regarding the death and wounding of combatants.

The Fourth Geneva Convention:

• Geneva Convention of 1949, was the first Geneva Convention not to deal with combatants, rather it had the protection of civilians as its subject matter
• Although Germany was one of the signatories of the Convention of 1929, it did not stop its fascist government from carrying out horrific acts on both on the civilian and military personnel during World War II. Thus the Geneva Conventions were expanded in 1949 to protect non-combatant civilians.

Geneva Convention Protocols:

• In 1977, Protocols I and II were added to the Conventions of 1949.
• They strengthen the protection of victims of international (Protocol I) and non-international (Protocol II) armed conflicts and place limits on the way wars are fought.
• In 2005, a third Additional Protocol was adopted creating an additional emblem, the Red Crystal, which has the same international status as the Red Cross and Red Crescent emblems.

Which countries are signatories?

• The Geneva Conventions have been ratified by 196 states, including all UN member states.
• The three Protocols have been ratified by 174, 169 and 79 states respectively

PRACTICE QUESTION:

Consider the following statements regarding the Geneva Conventions:

1. The Geneva Conventions have been ratified by 196 states, including all UN member states

2. Geneva Convention of 1949, was the first Geneva Convention not to deal with combatants, rather it had the protection of civilians as its subject matter

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer