Introduction
The Geneva Conventions are a series of international treaties concluded in Geneva from 1864 until 1949 to reduce the harm caused by war to soldiers and civilians. In 1977, two additional protocols were added to the 1949 agreement. The Geneva Conventions were closely associated with the Red Cross. Henri Dunant initiated international negotiations that led to the Convention for the Amelioration of the Wounded in Time of War, ratified in 1864.
Geneva agreement provided for four specifications: the first one is the immunity of hospitals for treating wounded and ill soldiers and their staff from being captured and destroyed, second is to provide impartial reception and treatment of all casualties, third is to protect civilian aid providers, and fourth is to acknowledge the Red Cross symbol as a means of identifying those covered by the agreement.
Convention Of Geneva Origins- The First Geneva Convention
Throughout history, rules of war have evolved from civilization to civilization, such as the Babylonians were exemplary, and the Romans were the opposite, about the Mongolians, they did not hesitate to decimate entire cities. That was all before Henry Durant came on the scene. Henry Durant was a businessman from Geneva who sought things with Napoleon II to acquire land for business purposes. He witnessed the aftermath of the bloody battle of Solferino. It prompted him to write an account of what he had experienced while proposing a way to mitigate some of the violence of war –for example, training volunteers to assist those affected by war civilians, as well as soldiers.
To explore Durant’s idea led to the formation of an early form of the Red Cross. Sixteen nations sent delegates to Geneva in October 1863 to discuss the conditions of humanitarian treatment during the war. The Geneva Convention 1864 treaty ratified by the twelve nations became the First Geneva Convention.
The Conversion Of 1906 and 1929
Another conversion took place by the Swiss government to review and make improvements in the first Geneva Convention. The modification included protection for the wounded and captured prisoners of war and safeguards to the personnel treating and retrieving the dead and wounded.
At the end of World War I in 1919, it was declared that the modifications made in 1906 were not enough for humanitarian operations during wartime, so it was revised in 1929 to ensure a civilised treatment of the prisoners.
As a result of the new amendments, prisoners now have rules regarding their daily lives, and the Red Cross is in charge of collecting and transmitting information on the death and wounding of combatants.
(Image will be Updated soon)
When Will The Fourth Geneva Convention Take Place?
In the year of 1949, the fourth Geneva Convention took place to protect the civilizations. However, despite signing the Convention of 1929, the German government carried out horrific acts on numerous civilian and military personnel during World War II. Thus to protect the non-combatant civilians, the Geneva agreement was expanded in 1949.
The new article added some provisions to protect:
Personnel, facilities, and equipment related to medicine
Wounded and sick civilians alongside military forces.
Military ministers.
Armed citizens who resist invading forces
Protocols Of Geneva Agreement
1977 saw the addition of Protocols I and II to the Geneva Convention 1949. Improved civilian and military protections in international armed conflicts. Protocol I increased protections for civilians, military workers, and journalists during international armed conflicts. It also banned weapons that cause unnecessary suffering or cause severe damage to the natural environment. ICRC reports that Protocol II was adopted because most victims of armed conflicts since 1949 were victims of civil wars.
In addition, children might be well cared for and educated, and the following is prohibited:
Assaulting Hostages
Terrorism
Plundering
Slavery
Group punishment
Discrimination and degradation
Over 190 states follow the Geneva Convention in the belief that some battlefield behaviours can lead to excessive casualties that can harm the entire international community. The rules attempt to prevent unrestrained violence against armed forces, medical staff, and civilians—to the extent possible within the context of wars and armed conflicts.
Do You Know?
In 1949, the Geneva Conventions were adopted.
These treaties relate to civilians, prisoners of war (POWs), and soldiers incapable of fighting. During wartime, this treaty aims to protect wounded and sick soldiers.
Among the Geneva Conventions, there are four treaties as follows:
First Geneva Convention: To improve conditions of wounded and sick troops in the field.
Second Geneva Convention: To improve the welfare of wounded, sick, and shipwrecked members of the armed forces at sea.
Third Geneva Convention: Treaty relating to the treatment of prisoners of war
- Fourth Geneva Convention: Governs the protection of civilians during wartime
FAQs on Geneva Conventions
1. What are the additional protocols of the Geneva Convention?
Since the adoption of the Geneva Convention, there has been a significant increase in conflict and wars of national liberation that is not international. In response, two Additional Protocols were adopted to the four 1949 Geneva Conventions in 1977. They strengthen protections for victims of international conflict (Protocol I) as well as non-international conflict(Protocol II) and limit the way wars are fought. A non-international armed conflict is referred to only as a non-international armed conflict under Protocol II.
An additional emblem, the Red Crystal, was created by the Third Additional Protocol in 2005, which has the international status as the Red Cross and Red Crescent emblems.
Additional Protocol I- international conflicts.
Additional Protocol II- non-international conflicts.
Additional Protocol III- additional distinctive emblem.
2. Where do the Geneva Conventions apply?
States Party to the Geneva Conventions on 21 October 1950, the Geneva Conventions became effective. As the decades passed, the number of ratifications grew steadily: 74 states signed on during the 1950s, 48 during the 1960s, 20 during the 1970s, and another 20 during the 1980s. During the early 1990s, 26 countries ratified the Conventions, largely as a result of the breakup of the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia, and the former Yugoslavia.
In the past seven years, seven new ratifications have brought the total number of States Parties to 194, making the Geneva Conventions universally binding.
