PRESS RELEASE
On the 50th Anniversary of the Fourth Geneva Convention: Justice Delayed, Justice Denied
Ref.,: 76/99
Date: 15 August 1999
On the 12th of August 1999 the world commemorated the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Geneva Conventions which constitute the cornerstone of international humanitarian law. The four Conventions together make up the basic protection system provided by international law to the victims of wars and armed conflicts through the obligations imposed on conflicting parties to regulate their conduct and to protect civilians and other victims from the atrocities of the war.
International humanitarian law, and especially the Fourth Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons Time of War, is of utmost importance in regard to the Palestinian Territories occupied by Israel in 1967. This importance arises in light of the recognition of the international community of the de jure applicability of the Convention to the Occupied Territories. Israel continues, as usual, to reject the international consensus that its occupation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including Jerusalem is a belligerent occupation, and that provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention are therefore applicable.
This means that any measures taken by the Israeli occupying power aimed at changing the legal and demographic status of the territories are illegal and void. This criminalizes Israeli settlements, the illegal annexation of Jerusalem or any other parts of the Occupied Territories, and other measures and practices. The Convention is a source of protection for the rights and properties of Palestinian civilians who are under Israeli occupation, and as such, it must be applied.
The Israeli refusal to apply the Convention’s de jure application to the Occupied Territories and its ongoing systematic and continuous violation of the provisions of the Convention are of permanent concern to the international community. This has clearly been shown since 1967 through the various organs of the United Nations.
In 1997 the Israeli government escalated its establishment of settlements in Occupied Jerusalem. It confiscated the Jabal Abu Ghuniem (Har Homa) and established a new settlement. Consequently, the UN General Assembly has adopted since that time five resolutions in which it declares the Israeli practices to be illegal. At the same time asking the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention to take the initiative to fulfil their legal obligations under article 1 to respect and to ensure the respect of the Convention in all circumstances. To do so the UN General Assembly has invited the Parties to convene a conference to investigate measures to apply the
Convention to the occupied territories and authorized the Swiss government, as the depositary of the Convention, to take the preparatory measures to convene the Conference. In its last resolution of the 8th February 1999 the UNGA set the 15th of July 1999 to be the date of the convening of the Conference.
Every body was optimistic that finally the international community had decided to resuscitate international humanitarian law, to apply the provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention to the Occupied Territories, and not to tolerate the crimes that are committed by Israel. This optimism was, however, very soon found to have no basis, as the High Contracting Parties displayed a grave politicization of international humanitarian law, paying no attention to their legal and moral obligations towards victims of wars and armed conflicts. The Conference was convened, on the assigned date. But while humankind was waiting for practical measures to protect the victims of the Israeli violations and to alleviate the causes of their suffering, what we got was a farce lasting only minutes, the crowning glory of which was a statement of almost ten lines.
Before the convening of the conference, many countries, especially the USA, had done their utmost to obstruct the Conference, by exerting pressure resulting in a number of countries deciding not to attend. Even before this, the very process of preparation for the convening of the Conference was highly politicized.
The convening of the Conference of the High Contracting Parties to investigate measures to apply the Convention to the Occupied Territories is a significant development since it is unprecedented in the history of the Convention to have such a Conference to investigate a specific case. Therefore the convening of the Conference in this politicized manner is dangerous precedent that will undermine the credibility of the international community in similar cases. The politicization of international law in this way should be viewed as undermining international humanitarian law, and is no doubt a comfort to violators of human rights around the world.
The main question that arises as we commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Geneva Conventions is whether the international community, through the intensive and good work of standard setting and codification of international rules, has succeeded to alleviate the suffering of the victims of war and armed conflict, and to provide them with the proper protection. The answer is no. The history of the application of the Convention, especially in the Palestinian case, has shown a dangerous politicization of the rules, which themselves, 50 years after their codification, no longer provide the needed protection. This process has also shown unprecedented paralysis on the part of the international community to apply its own resolutions, as a result of direct American, European, and Israeli pressure.
To preserve international law, and consequently provide a protection for war victims, it is necessary not to mix politics with law, and not to sacrifice morals for narrow utilitarian interests. This experience has shown that the Geneva Conventions are in need of creating a more effective and responsive mechanism for the protection of the victims of wars. The Conventions will be of no real legal and political meaning unless a mechanism is created to translate their provisions on the ground. The history of international instruments shows that the first step is standard setting, but that the absolutely vital next step is the development of effective enforcement mechanisms. In this regard we are asking the whole international community to adopt a fifth convention dedicated to the application of the four Conventions as a way to ensure that the essence of the Geneva Conventions is being achieved.
Although the conference of the High Contracting Parties, of the 15th July 1999 resulted in dangerous consequences and a step backward for international law, with States evading the fulfillment of their legal and moral obligations under the Convention, we still demand more of international law. In particular, the application of the Fourth Geneva Convention, an end to the Israeli violations, and protection for Palestinian civilians. Not doing this will definitely contribute to the undermining of international peace and security. The de jure application of the Fourth Geneva Convention in the Occupied Territories provides the conditions for achieving a just peace in the region.
For More Information Contact:
Palestinian Center for Human Rights
Tel/Fax: (+) 9727 2824776 / 2823725
E-mail: [email protected], Web page: www.pchrgaza.org
Trial Version
