PROTECTION OF THE CIVILIAN POPULATION.

(fax from Gertjan van Hegelsom Head of the Legal Affairs Depertment of the Dutch Ministry of Defence) 08 15 1996


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PROTOCOL 1 ADDITIONAL TO THE GENEVA CONVENTIONS, 1977


PART IV

Civilian Population

Section 1 (1)

GENERAL PROTECTION AGAINST EFFECTS OF HOSTILITIES

Chapter I

BASIC RULE AND FIELD OF APPLICATION

Article 48-Basic rule

In order to ensure respect for and protection of the civilian objects, the Parties to the conflict shall at all times distinguish between the civilian population and combatants and between civilian objects and military objectives and accordingly shall direct the operations only against military objectives.

Article 49-Definition of attacks and scope of applications

  • 1. "Attacks" means acts of violence against the adversary, wheter in offence or in defence.

  • 2. The provitions of this Protocol with respect to attacks apply to all attacks in whatever territory conducted, including the national territory belonging to a Party to the conflict but under the control of an adverse Party

  • 3. The provisions of this Section apply to any land, air or sea warfare which may affect the civilian population, individual civilians, or civilian objects or land. They further apply to all attacks from the sea or from the air against objectives on land but do not otherwise affect the rules of international law applicable in armed conflict at sea or in the air.

  • 4.The provisions of this Section are additional to the rules concerning humanitarian protection contained in the Fourth Convention, particulary in Part II thereof, and in other international agreements binding upon the High Contracting Parties, as well as other rules of international law relating to the protection of civilians and civilian objects on land, at sea or in the air against the effects of hostilities.


    Chapter II


    CIVILIANS AND CIVILIAN POPULATION

    Article 50-Definition of civilians and civilian population

  • 1. A civilian is any person who does not belong to one of the categories of persons referred to in Article 4 A (1), (2), (3) and (6) of the Third Convention and in Article 43 of this Protocol. In case of doubt whether a person is a civilian, that person shall be considered a civilian.

  • 2. The civilian population comprises all persons who are civilians.
  • 3. The presence within the civilian population of individuals who do not come within the definition of civilians does not deprive the population of its civilian character.



    (1) For declaration in respect of this section by Belgium, see pp. 707 - 708

    Article 51 * Protection of the civilan population

  • 1. The civilian population and individual civilians shall enjoy general protection against dangers arising from military operations. To give effect to this protection, the following rules, which are additional to other applicable rules of international law, shall be observed in all circumstances.

  • 2. The civilian population as such, as well as individual civilians, shall not be the object of attack. Acts or threats of violence the primary purpose of which is to spread terror among the civilian population are prohibited.

  • 3. Civilians shall enjoy the protection afforded by this Section, unless and for such time as they take a direct part in hostilities.

  • 4. Indiscriminate attacks are prohibited. Indiscriminate attacks are:
    (a) those which are not directed at a specific military objective;
    (b) those which employ a method or means of combat which cannot be directed at a specific military objective; or
    (c) those which employ a method or means of combat the effects of which cannot be limited as required by this Protocol; and consequently, in each such case, are of a nature to strike military objectives and civilians or civilian objects without distinction.



  • 5. Among others, the following types of attacks are to be considered as undiscriminate:

    (a) an attack by bombardment by any methods or means which treats as a single military objective a number of clearly separated and distinct military objectives located in a city, town, village or other area containing a similar concentration of civilians or civilian objects; and
    (b) an attack which may be expected to cause incidental loss of civilian life, injury to civilians, damage to civilian objects, or a combination thereof, which would be excessive in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage anticipated.


  • 6. Attacks against the civilian population or civilians by way of reprisals are prohibited.

  • 7. The presence or movements of the civilian population or individual civilians shall not be used to render certain points or areas immune from military operations in particular in attempts to shield military objectives from attacks or to shield, favour or impede military operations. The Parties to the conflict shall not direct the movement of the civilian population or individual civilians in order to attempt to shield military objectives from attacks or to shield military operations

  • 8. Any violation of these prohibitions shall not release the Parties to the conflict from their legal obligations with respect to the civilian population and civilians, including the obligation to take precautionary measures provided for in Article 57.


    * For declaration in respect of this Article by Belgium, Italy, Netherlands and United Kingdom, see pp. 707, 712, 714, 717.

    Chapter III

    CIVILIAN OBJECTS

    Article 52.(1)
  • 1. Civilian objects shall not be the object of attack or reprisals. Civilian objcts are all obejects which are not military objectives as defined in paragraph 2.

  • 2. Attacks shall be limited strictly to military objectives. In so far as objects are concerned, military objectives are limited to those objects which by their nature, location, purpose or use make an effective contribution to military action and whose total or partial destruction, capture or neutralization, in the circustances ruling at the time, offers a defenitive military advantage.

  • 3. In case of doubt whether an object which is normaly dedicated to civilian purposes such as a place of worship, a house or other dwelling or a school, is been used to make an effective contribution to military action, it shall be presumed not to be so used.



    Article 53.(1) Protection of cultural objects and places of worship

    Without prejudice to the provitions of the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict of May 14 1954, and other relevant international instruments, it is prohibited:
    (a) to commit any acts of hostility directed against the historic mnuments, works of art or places of worship which constitute the cultural or spiritual heritage of peoples;
    (b) to use such objects in support of the military effort;
    (c) to make such objects the object of reprisals.

    Article 54 (1) - Protection of objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population


  • 1. Starvation of civilians as a method of warfare is prohibited.

  • 2. It is prohibited to attack, destroy, remove or render useless objects indispesable to the survival of the civilian population, such as foodstuffs, agricultural areas for the production of foodsturffs, crops, livestock, drinking water installations and supplies and irrigation works, for the specific purpose of denying them for their supplies and irrigation works for the specific purpose of denying them for their sustenance value to the civilian population or to the adverse Party, whatever the motive, whether to starve civilians...