Sidney Stadelmann
November 20th, 2022
International humanitarian law is a set of rules that restricts the means and methods of warfare. It only applies during armed conflicts, and it aims to protect people who are not or are no longer directly involved in war hostilities. However, international humanitarian law failed Rwanda and its citizens. Although these laws are supposed to protect citizens, clearly they failed, as over 1 million people were murdered in the course of 3 months.
In Russia, issues around international humanitarian law are present. In the past, Russia was a leader in early efforts to establish the IHL. Russia initiated the St. Petersburg Declaration in 1868, which was the first treaty to ban a specific weapon. Additionally, The USSR advocated for better protection of civilians in wartime, and supported extending the IHL to non-international armed conflicts as well. However, Russia’s positive efforts towards the developments and establishment of IHL have stayed in the past. In recent times, Russia has systematically evaded IHL, and has not supported a single major treaty advancing IHL since 1991. We see the effects of this through the Ukrainian war, and Russia’s war strategies/practices. As stated in Human Rights Watch, “since the February 24, 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Russia’s leadership has engaged in a full-scale assault on the rights of its citizens…” For example, a series of laws were passed that effectively criminalize criticizing or reporting the war. Russian activists have been exiled, and additional laws have been enacted that criminalize anyone associated with independent groups that authorities deem “undesirable organizations.” These are just a few of the many, many ways Russia has neglected human rights of its citizens, not to mention the attack on human rights of Ukrainian people.
SOURCES:
Dam, Philippe, and Lucy McKernan. “UN Human Rights Council Should Mandate Expert Monitor on Russia.” Human Rights Watch, Human Rights Watch , 5 Oct. 2022, https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/10/05/un-human-rights-council-should-mandate-expert-monitor-russia.
von Gall, Caroline. “Russia’s Approaches to International Humanitarian Law.” Vlkerrechtsblog, Russias Approaches to International Humanitarian Law Comments, 13 Apr. 2022, https://voelkerrechtsblog.org/russias-approaches-to-international-humanitarian-law/.