GENEVA CONVENTION
FOR THE AMELIORATION OF THE CONDITION OF WOUNDED, SICK AND SHIPWRECKED MEMBERS
OF ARMED FORCES AT SEA
(Geneva,
12.VIII.1949)
The
undersigned Plenipotentiaries of the Governments represented at the Diplomatic
Conference held at Geneva from April 21 to August 12, 1949, for the purpose of
revising the Xth Hague Convention of October 18, 1907 for the Adaptation to
Maritime Warfare of the Principles of the Geneva Convention of 1906, have
agreed as follows:
The
High Contracting Parties undertake to respect and to ensure respect for the
present Convention in all circumstances.
In
addition to the provisions which shall be implemented in peacetime, the present
Convention shall apply to all cases of declared war or of any other armed
conflict which may arise between two or more of the High Contracting Parties,
even if the state of war is not recognized by one of them.
The
Convention shall also apply to all cases of partial or total occupation of the
territory of a High Contracting Party, even if the said occupation meets with
no armed resistance.
Although
one of the Powers in conflict may not be a party to the present Convention, the
Powers who are parties thereto shall remain bound by it in their mutual
relations. They shall furthermore be bound by the Convention in relation to the
said Power, if the latter accepts and applies the provisions thereof.
In
the case of armed conflict not of an international character occurring in the
territory of one of the High Contracting Parties, each Party to the conflict
shall be bound to apply, as a minimum, the following provisions:
1.
Persons taking no active part in the hostilities, including members of armed
forces who have laid down their arms and those placed hors de combat by
sickness, wounds, detention, or any other cause, shall in all circumstances be
treated humanely, without any adverse distinction founded on race, colour,
religion or faith, sex, birth or wealth, or any other similar criteria. To this
end, the following acts are and shall remain prohibited at any time and in any
place whatsoever with respect to the above-mentioned persons:
(a) violence to life and
person, in particular murder of all kinds, mutilation, cruel treatment and
torture;
(b) taking of hostages;
(c) outrages upon personal
dignity, in particular, humiliating and degrading treatment;
(d) the passing of sentences
and the carrying out of executions without previous judgement pronounced by a
regularly constituted court, affording all the judicial guarantees which are
recognized as indispensable by civilized peoples.
2.
The wounded, sick and shipwrecked shall be collected and cared for.
An
impartial humanitarian body, such as the International Committee of the Red
Cross, may offer its services to the Parties to the conflict.
The
Parties to the conflict should further endeavour to bring into force, by means
of special agreements, all or part of the other provisions of the present
Convention.
The
application of the preceding provisions shall not affect the legal status of
the Parties to the conflict.
In
case of hostilities between land and naval forces of Parties to the conflict,
the provisions of the present Convention shall apply only to forces on board
ship.
Forces
put ashore shall immediately become subject to the provisions of the Geneva
Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in
Armed Forces in the Field of August 12, 1949.
Neutral
Powers shall apply by analogy the provisions of the present Convention to the
wounded, sick and shipwrecked, and to members of the medical personnel and to
chaplains of the armed forces of the Parties to the conflict received or
interned in their territory, as well as to dead persons found.
In
addition to the agreements expressly provided for in Articles 10, 18, 31, 38,
39, 40, 43 and 53, the High Contracting Parties may conclude other special
agreements for all matters concerning which they may deem it suitable to make
separate provision. No special agreement shall adversely affect the situation
of wounded, sick and shipwrecked persons, of members of the medical personnel
or of chaplains, as defined by the present Convention, nor restrict the rights
which it confers upon them.
Wounded,
sick and shipwrecked persons, as well as medical personnel and chaplains, shall
continue to have the benefit of such agreements as long as the Convention is
applicable to them, except where express provisions to the contrary are
contained in the aforesaid or in subsequent agreements, or where more
favourable measures have been taken with regard to them by one or other of the
Parties to the conflict.
Wounded,
sick and shipwrecked persons, as well as members of the medical personnel and
chaplains, may in no circumstances renounce in part or in entirety the rights
secured to them by the present Convention, and by the special agreements
referred to in the foregoing Article, if such there be.
The
present Convention shall be applied with the cooperation and under the scrutiny
of the Protecting Powers whose duty it is to safeguard the interests of the
Parties to the conflict. For this purpose, the Protecting Powers may appoint,
apart from their diplomatic or consular staff, delegates from amongst their own
nationals or the nationals of other neutral Powers. The said delegates shall be
subject to the approval of the Power with which they are to carry out their
duties.
The
Parties to the conflict shall facilitate to the greatest extent possible the
task of the representatives or delegates of the Protecting Powers.
The
representatives or delegates of the Protecting Powers shall not in any case
exceed their mission under the present Convention. They shall, in particular,
take account of the imperative necessities of security of the State wherein
they carry out their duties. Their activities shall only be restricted as an
exceptional and temporary measure when this is rendered necessary by imperative
military necessities.
The
provisions of the present Convention constitute no obstacle to the humanitarian
activities which the International Committee of the Red Cross or any other
impartial humanitarian organization may, subject to the consent of the Parties
to the conflict concerned, undertake for the protection of wounded, sick and
shipwrecked persons, medical personnel and chaplains, and for their relief.
The
High Contracting Parties may at any time agree to entrust to an organization
which offers all guarantees of impartiality and efficacy the duties incumbent
on the Protecting Powers by virtue of the present Convention.
When
wounded, sick and shipwrecked, or medical personnel and chaplains do not
benefit or cease to benefit, no matter for what reason, by the activities of a
Protecting Power or of an organization provided for in the first paragraph
above, the Detaining Power shall request a neutral State, or such an
organization, to undertake the functions performed under the present Convention
by a Protecting Power designated by the Parties to a conflict.
If
protection cannot be arranged accordingly, the Detaining Power shall request or
shall accept, subject to the provisions of this Article, the offer of the
services of a humanitarian organization, such as the International Committee of
the Red Cross, to assume the humanitarian functions performed by Protecting
Powers under the present Convention.
Any
neutral Power, or any organization invited by the Power concerned or offering
itself for these purposes, shall be required to act with a sense of
responsibility towards the Party to the conflict on which persons protected by
the present Convention depend, and shall be required to furnish sufficient
assurances that it is in a position to undertake the appropriate functions and
to discharge them impartially.
No
derogation from the preceding provisions shall be made by special agreements
between Powers one of which is restricted, even temporarily, in its freedom to
negotiate with the other Power or its allies by reason of military events, more
particularly where the whole, or a substantial part, of the territory of the
said Power is occupied.
Whenever,
in the present Convention, mention is made of a Protecting Power, such mention
also applies to substitute organizations in the sense of the present Article.
In
cases where they deem it advisable in the interest of protected persons,
particularly in cases of disagreement between the Parties to the conflict as to
the application or interpretation of the provisions of the present Convention,
the Protecting Powers shall lend their good offices with a view to settling the
disagreement.
For
this purpose, each of the Protecting Powers may, either at the invitation of
one Party or on its own initiative, propose to the Parties to the conflict a
meeting of their representatives, in particular of the authorities responsible
for the wounded, sick and shipwrecked, medical personnel and chaplains,
possibly on neutral territory suitably chosen. The Parties to the conflict
shall be bound to give effect to the proposals made to them for this purpose.
The Protecting Powers may, if necessary, propose for approval by the Parties to
the conflict, a person belonging to a neutral Power or delegated by the
International Committee of the Red Cross, who shall be invited to take part in
such a meeting.
Chapter II. WOUNDED, SICK AND
SHIPWRECKED
Members
of the armed forces and other persons mentioned in the following Article, who
are at sea and who are wounded, sick or shipwrecked, shall be respected and
protected in all circumstances, it being understood that the term
"shipwreck" means shipwreck from any cause and includes forced
landings at sea by or from aircraft.
Such
persons shall be treated humanely and cared for by the Parties to the conflict
in whose power they may be, without any adverse distinction founded on sex,
race, nationality, religion, political opinions, or any other similar criteria.
Any attempts upon their lives, or violence to their persons, shall be strictly
prohibited; in particular, they shall not be murdered or exterminated,
subjected to torture or to biological experiments; they shall not wilfully be
left without medical assistance and care, nor shall conditions exposing them to
contagion or infection be created.
Only
urgent medical reasons will authorize priority in the order of treatment to be
administered.
Women
shall be treated with all consideration due to their sex.
The
present Convention shall apply to the wounded, sick and shipwrecked at sea
belonging to the following categories:
1.
Members of the armed forces of a Party to the conflict, as well as members of
militias or volunteer corps forming part of such armed forces.
2.
Members of other militias and members of other volunteer corps, including those
of organized resistance movements, belonging to a Party to the conflict and
operating in or outside their own territory, even if this territory is
occupied, provided that such militias or volunteer corps, including such
organized resistance movements, fulfil the following conditions:
(a) that of being commanded
by a person responsible for his subordinates;
(b) that of having a fixed
distinctive sign recognizable at a distance;
(c) that of carrying arms
openly;
(d) that of conducting their
operations in accordance with the laws and customs of war.
3.
Members of regular armed forces who profess allegiance to a Government or an
authority not recognized by the Detaining Power.
4.
Persons who accompany the armed forces without actually being members thereof,
such as civilian members of military aircraft crews, war correspondents, supply
contractors, members of labour units or of services responsible for the welfare
of the armed forces, provided that they have received authorization from the
armed forces which they accompany.
5.
Members of crews, including masters, pilots and apprentices, of the merchant
marine and the crews of civil aircraft of the Parties to the conflict, who do
not benefit by more favourable treatment under any other provisions of
international law.
6.
Inhabitants of a non-occupied territory who, on the approach of the enemy,
spontaneously take up arms to resist the invading forces, without having had
time to form themselves into regular armed units, provided they carry arms
openly and respect the laws and customs of war.
All
warships of a belligerent Party shall have the right to demand that the
wounded, sick or shipwrecked on board military hospital ships, and hospital
ships belonging to relief societies or to private individuals, as well as
merchant vessels, yachts and other craft shall be surrendered, whatever their
nationality, provided that the wounded and sick are in a fit state to be moved
and that the warship can provide adequate facilities for necessary medical
treatment.
If
wounded, sick or shipwrecked persons are taken on board a neutral warship or a
neutral military aircraft, it shall be ensured, where so required by
international law, that they can take no further part in operations of war.
Subject
to the provisions of Article 12, the wounded, sick and shipwrecked of a
belligerent who fall into enemy hands shall be prisoners of war, and the
provisions of international law concerning prisoners of war shall apply to
them. The captor may decide, according to circumstances, whether it is
expedient to hold them, or to convey them to a port in the captor's own
country, to a neutral port or even to a port in enemy territory. In the last case,
prisoners of war thus returned to their home country may not serve for the
duration of the war.
Wounded,
sick or shipwrecked persons who are landed in neutral ports with the consent of
the local authorities, shall, failing arrangements to the contrary between the
neutral and the belligerent Powers, be so guarded by the neutral Power, where
so required by international law, that the said persons cannot again take part
in operations of war.
The
costs of hospital accommodation and internment shall be borne by the Power on
whom the wounded, sick or shipwrecked persons depend.
After
each engagement, Parties to the conflict shall, without delay, take all
possible measures to search for and collect the shipwrecked, wounded and sick,
to protect them against pillage and ill-treatment, to ensure their adequate
care, and to search for the dead and prevent their being despoiled.
Whenever
circumstances permit, the Parties to the conflict shall conclude local
arrangements for the removal of the wounded and sick by sea from a besieged or
encircled area and for the passage of medical and religious personnel and
equipment on their way to that area.
The
Parties to the conflict shall record as soon as possible, in respect of each shipwrecked,
wounded, sick or dead person of the adverse Party falling into their hands, any
particulars which may assist in his identification. These records should if
possible include:
(a) designation of the Power
on which he depends;
(b) army, regimental,
personal or serial number;
(c) surname;
(d) first name or names;
(e) date of birth;
(f) any other particulars
shown on his identity card or disc;
(g) date and place of
capture or death;
(h) particulars concerning
wounds or illness, or cause of death.
As
soon as possible the above-mentioned information shall be forwarded to the
information bureau described in Article 122 of the Geneva Convention relative
to the Treatment of Prisoners of War of August 12, 1949, which shall transmit
this information to the Power on which these persons depend through the
intermediary of the Protecting Power and of the Central Prisoners of War
Agency.
Parties
to the conflict shall prepare and forward to each other, through the same
bureau, certificates of death or duly authenticated lists of the dead. They
shall likewise collect and forward through the same bureau one half of the
double identity disc, or the identity disc itself if it is a single disc, last
wills or other documents of importance to the next of kin, money and in general
all articles of an intrinsic or sentimental value, which are found on the dead.
These articles, together with unidentified articles, shall be sent in sealed
packets, accompanied by statements giving all particulars necessary for the identification
of the deceased owners, as well as by a complete list of the contents of the
parcel.
Parties
to the conflict shall ensure that burial at sea of the dead, carried out
individually as far as circumstances permit, is preceded by a careful
examination, if possible by a medical examination, of the bodies, with a view
to confirming death, establishing identity and enabling a report to be made.
Where a double identity disc is used, one half of the disc should remain on the
body.
If
dead persons are landed, the provisions of the Geneva Convention for the
Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the
Field of August 12, 1949 shall be applicable.
The
Parties to the conflict may appeal to the charity of commanders of neutral
merchant vessels, yachts or other craft, to take on board and care for wounded,
sick or shipwrecked persons, and to collect the dead.
Vessels
of any kind responding to this appeal, and those having of their own accord
collected wounded, sick or shipwrecked persons, shall enjoy special protection
and facilities to carry out such assistance.
They
may, in no case, be captured on account of any such transport; but, in the
absence of any promise to the contrary, they shall remain liable to capture for
any violations of neutrality they may have committed.
Military
hospital ships, that is to say, ships built or equipped by the Powers specially
and solely with a view to assisting the