Geneva Conventions and their additional protocols

Note: This article addresses the international humanitarian law, or law of war. For information on immigration and links to the 1951 Convention and 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, see the article about Immigration.

Overview and History

The Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols are a body of public international law, also known as the Humanitarian Law of Armed Conflicts. They aim to establish minimum protections, standards of humane treatment, and fundamental guarantees of respect to individuals victimized by armed conflicts. The Geneva Conventions are a series of treaties on the treatment of civilians, prisoners of war (POWs), and soldiers who are otherwise rendered hors de combat (French, literally for "outside the fight") or incapable of fighting.

The original Geneva Convention, initiated by what is now the International Committee for the Red Cross and Red Crescent (ICRC), was adopted in 1864 to establish the Red Cross emblem, signifying neutral status and protecting medical services and volunteers. This convention produced a treaty designed to protect wounded and sick soldiers during wartime.

The Swiss Government agreed to hold the conventions in Geneva, and a few years later, a similar agreement to protect shipwrecked soldiers was produced. In 1949, after World War II, two new conventions were added, and the Geneva Conventions entered into force on 21 October 1950. See: History of the ICRC

The ratification of the Geneva Conventions increased steadily over the decades. In the 1950s, 74 states ratified the Conventions, while 48 states did so in the 1960s, 20 in the 1970s, and another 20 in the 1980s. In the early 1990s, 26 more countries ratified the Conventions, largely following the break-up of the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia, and the former Yugoslavia. Since 2000, seven new ratifications have brought the total number of States to 194, making the Geneva Conventions universally applicable.

While the 1949 Geneva Conventions have been universally ratified, the Additional Protocols have not. Currently, 168 states are party to Additional Protocol I and 164 states to Additional Protocol II. This still places the 1977 Additional Protocols among the most widely accepted legal instruments in the world. See: Additional Protocols to the Geneva Conventions

Convention I

This Convention protects wounded and sick soldiers and medical personnel who are not taking an active part in hostility against a party. It ensures humane treatment without discrimination founded on race, color, sex, religion or faith, birth or wealth, etc. To that end, the Convention prohibits torture, assaults upon personal dignity, and execution without judgment (Article 3). It also grants the right to proper medical treatment and care.

Convention II

This agreement extended the protections outlined in the first Convention to shipwrecked soldiers and other naval forces, including special protections afforded to hospital ships.

Convention III

One of the treaties created during the 1949 Convention defined "Prisoner of War" and accorded such prisoners proper and humane treatment as specified by the first Convention. Specifically, it required POWs to give only their names, ranks, and serial numbers to their captors. Nations party to the Convention may not use torture to extract information from POWs. Additionally, it established the POWs must be released and returned to their home countries without delay after active hostilities end.

Convention IV

Under this Convention, civilians are afforded the same protections from inhumane treatment and attack afforded to sick and wounded soldiers in the first Convention. Further, additional regulations regarding the treatment of civilians were introduced. Specifically, it prohibits attacks on civilian hospitals, medical transports, etc. It also specifies the rights of internees (POWs) and saboteurs. Finally, it discusses how occupiers are to treat an occupied populace.

Protocol I

The signing nations agreed to implement additional restrictions on the treatment of "protected persons" in accordance with the original Conventions. They also provided further clarification on the terms used in the Conventions. Additionally, new rules were introduced for the treatment of the deceased, protection of cultural artifacts, and addressing dangerous targets, such as dams and nuclear installations.

Protocol II

In this Protocol, the fundamentals of "humane treatment" were further clarified. Additionally, the rights of interned persons were specifically enumerated, providing protections for those charged with crimes during wartime. It also identified new protections and rights for civilian populations.

Protocol III

Protocol III was adopted in 2005 to add the "red crystal” emblem to the list of symbols used to identify neutral humanitarian aid workers.

Ratification and Disputes:

The United States has signed and ratified the four Conventions of 1949 and Protocol III of 2005 but has not ratified the two Protocols of 1977 (Protocols I and II) (though it has signed them).
Disputes arising under the Conventions or the Protocols are settled by courts of the member nations (Article 49 of Convention I) or by international tribunals.
The ICRC has a special role given by the Geneva Conventions: It handles and is granted access to the wounded, sick, and POWs.

Common Article 3 is applied to all four protocols of the General Conventions.

Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions covered, for the first time, situations of non-international armed conflicts. Types vary significantly and include traditional civil wars, internal armed conflicts that spill over into other States, and internal conflicts in which third-party states or multinational forces intervene alongside the government.

Common Article 3 functions like a mini-Convention within the larger Geneva Convention and establishes fundamental rules from which no derogation is permitted. It contains the essential rules of the Geneva Convention in a condensed format and makes them applicable to non-international conflicts.

It requires humane treatment for all individuals in enemy custody, without discrimination. It expressly prohibits murder, mutilation, torture, the taking of hostages, unfair trials, and cruel, degrading treatment.
It requires that the wounded, sick, and shipwrecked be collected and provided with care.
It grants the ICRC the right to offer its services to the parties involved in the conflict.
It calls on the parties to the conflict to bring all or parts of the Geneva Conventions into force through "special agreements."
It recognizes that applying these rules does not affect the legal status of the conflict parties.
Given that most contemporary armed conflicts are non-international, it is crucial to fully uphold Common Article 3.

Applicability of the Geneva Conventions

The Conventions apply to all cases of declared war between signatory nations. This is the original sense of applicability, which predates the 1949 version.
The Conventions apply to all cases of armed conflict between two or more signatory nations, even without a declaration of war. This language was added in 1949 to accommodate situations that have all the characteristics of war without an existing formal declaration of war, such as a police action (a military action undertaken without a formal declaration of war).
The Conventions apply to a signatory nation even if the opposing nation is not a signatory, but only if the opposing nation "accepts and applies the provisions" of the Conventions. Source: 1952 Commentary on the Geneva Conventions, edited by Jean Pictet.

Enforcement of the Geneva Conventions

The Geneva Conventions provide for universal jurisdiction, as opposed to a more traditional (and limited) territorial jurisdiction that was designed to respect the sovereignty of States over their citizens. The doctrine of universal jurisdiction is based on the notion that some crimes, such as genocide, crimes against humanity, torture, and war crimes, are so exceptionally grave that they affect the fundamental interests of the international community as a whole. It renders the convicts or accused of such crimes to the jurisdiction of all signatory states, regardless of their nationality or the location of their crime.

Every state that is bound by treaties is legally obligated to search for and prosecute those in its territory who are suspected of committing crimes, regardless of the nationality of the suspect or victim, or the place where the act was allegedly committed. The State may hand the suspect over to another State or an international tribunal for trial. In cases where a country's laws do not allow for the application of universal jurisdiction, that country must create the required domestic laws before doing so. Additionally, the country must actively use this jurisdiction unless it decides to transfer the suspect to another country or an international tribunal.

Despite being a signatory to the Conventions, there are some notable and often-criticized U.S. cases involving conduct that would otherwise be prohibited by the Conventions, such as Hamdi v. Rumsfield (2004). In Hamdi, a U.S. citizen was accused of being a member of the Taliban forces on U.S. soil as an "enemy combatant," and was detained by unilateral Executive decision. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on the validity of his detention. Hamdi argued that such detention was illegal under the Geneva Conventions without express Congressional consent. The Court rejected this argument and held that consent existed since September 11, 2001, through an Authorization for Use of Military Forces (AUMF), a Congressional resolution that empowered the President to use all necessary and appropriate forces against any nations, organizations, or persons determined to have planned, authorized, committed, or aided in the September 11, 2001 attacks. See: 50 U.S. Code Chapter 33 - War Powers Resolution.

Geneva Conventions of 1949

Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field, of 12 August 1949
Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of Wounded, Sick and Shipwrecked Members of Armed Forces at Sea, of 12 August 1949
Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, of 12 August 1949
Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949

Protocols of 1977

Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts, of 8 June 1977
Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of Non-International Armed Conflicts, of 8 June 1977

Additional Resources

Reference Guide to the Geneva Conventions Society of Professional Journalists
International Humanitarian Law International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
International Red Cross and Red Crescent
List of Nations Ratifying or are Otherwise Party to the Geneva Conventions and/or Protocols
ICL Practice Relating to Rule 157, Jurisdiction over War Crimes
Hamdi v. Rumsfeld; also, Hamdi (LII page)