Red Cross meeting to depoliticize international humanitarian law
Published: Thursday, Oct 24th 2024, 09:40
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The numerous violations of international humanitarian law in the Middle East and Ukraine will be the focus of the meeting of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and representatives of the member countries in Geneva from Monday. The humanitarian aid workers want to depoliticize the talks, but also know that one must not be "naive".
The conference is eagerly awaited, especially as it was postponed by a year due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The meeting, which takes place every four years, is attended by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and its 191 member countries, as well as the signatory states to the Geneva Conventions. The conference will be opened by Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis.
"More than ever, we need this conference," ICRC spokesperson Christian Cardon recently told the media. The International Committee of the Red Cross is regularly attacked in Ukraine, where various parties involved do not understand how it can conduct a dialog with the aggressors in Moscow. The ICRC reminds them each time of its neutrality.
Another point of contention is that Israel believes it is complying with international humanitarian law, but does not understand this to mean the same as the international community. This applies in particular to the possibility of targeting health centers if terrorist groups have set up offices among them. Here too, the ICRC insists on proportionality.
Political construction site of the first order
As the Geneva Conventions celebrate their 75th anniversary this year, ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric calls on states to make international humanitarian law a top priority.
In order to achieve this goal, the International Committee of the Red Cross has just launched an initiative with six countries and announced a meeting in two years' time to take stock of the situation. This initiative and the conflicts will not be addressed individually at the conference from Monday - also in order to achieve a depoliticization.
The meeting of the High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Conventions, which Switzerland intends to organize on the Middle East by the end of March, should also attract attention next week.
But "we are not naive", Cardon admits. The delegations, especially the representatives of the states, would probably come with very political speeches given the current situation.
Protection of civilians a priority
Five draft resolutions are on the agenda this year. The most urgently awaited one concerns a "culture of compliance" with international humanitarian law, as this is increasingly being violated in the various conflicts. "We need to get back to our principles," says Cordula Dröge, head of the ICRC's legal department, referring above all to the protection of civilians
For the first time, a draft resolution will deal with new technologies in conflicts. The ICRC admits that it is difficult to reach a consensus on this issue because states are so divided on the application of international humanitarian law to the internet.
Disasters and climate change
The other draft resolutions deal with the adaptation of laws to better prevent or respond to disasters, which has already been done in dozens of countries in recent years, but also with the humanitarian impact of climate change and the consideration of local actors to put them at the center of efforts.
The meeting is also a platform for testing new approaches. "We are not at the United Nations, we speak with one voice," says a representative of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. The resolutions, which are normally adopted by consensus, are not legally binding for the states, but the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement implements them.
Russian Red Cross also involved
Among the 191 national societies expected in Geneva will be the Russian Red Cross, which is accused of supporting the Russian army in Ukraine.
This allegation was investigated under the aegis of Manuel Bessler, former head of the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit and Vice President of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. The experts came to the conclusion that the Russian Red Cross works in accordance with humanitarian principles.
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