Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/1999-12-15-Speech-3-295"
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"en.19991215.10.3-295"2
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"Mr President, when the fiftieth anniversary of the four Geneva Conventions was celebrated in August 1999, it was an opportune time for the EU to strengthen its commitment to promoting International Humanitarian Law in all armed conflicts. In this connection the Finnish Presidency reaffirmed that the European Union considers compliance with the four Geneva Conventions and the two protocols to be important, as they are the general agreements relating to International Humanitarian Law. The European Union has urged countries, which have not yet done so, to be a party to the Geneva agreements and other agreements relating to humanitarian issues. The EU, where necessary, has also stated to countries involved in conflicts that the provisions of the Conventions must be fully taken into consideration.
At the twenty-seventh international conference of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent held between 30 October and 16 November, the EU for the first time adopted a resolution which stressed that recent and current conflicts have shown that war is ever more making victims of civilians, especially women and children, or that they have been used as pawns in war situations. The European Union said it was concerned about how serious the situation had become, and regretted the fact that International Humanitarian Law continued to be violated. In relation to this, the EU took a positive view of the UN Secretary-General’s recent report on the protection of civilians in armed conflicts. Many of the major recommendations of the Secretary-General should be looked into right away, as they offer a good basis for active commitment on the part of the Security Council in this matter.
To make the implementation of International Humanitarian Law more effective, the EU gave a general assurance on handheld weapons, light weapons and anti-personnel land mines. In addition, the Council expressed its grave concern, at a recent meeting on 11 November 1999, over continued military action in the northern Caucasus. In this connection, the European Union condemned all the disproportionate and indiscriminate use of force in Chechnya, which has caused severe suffering to the civil population. The Council also reminded everyone that all sides in a conflict have to comply with International Humanitarian Law. Furthermore, the Council urged the Russian Government in particular to avoid civil casualties and ensure that international humanitarian aid gets to its destinations unhindered, including the growing numbers forced to abandon their homes and cross the border into Ingushetia. The Geneva Conventions have an in-built preventative effect, and any who may be in violation of humanitarian legislation are more aware than ever that it can no longer be taken for granted that transgressors will go unpunished. The EU has said on many occasions said that the practice of impunity is not acceptable. If national systems are not effective enough, the international community ultimately has the responsibility to see that the law is enforced.
Trials involving violations of International Humanitarian Law are thus an important means of encouraging compliance with the Conventions. International courts hearing cases from the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda have emphasised the importance of the Geneva Conventions by increasing credibility in the notions of responsibility for war crimes and personal responsibility. In this connection the European Union has taken a positive view of the adoption of the statute for a permanent International Criminal Court. That will go further to promote the commitment to a speedy entry into force of the Rome Statute and the effective and credible establishment of an International Criminal Court.
The EU wants the international community to aim in the future, above all, at closing the widening gap between the existing international standards and compliance with them. The European Union is determined to include this special angle on humanitarian matters on the agenda at international forums. The Finnish Presidency, at the fifty-fourth sitting of the UN General Assembly, called on the international community to find the right solutions and answers to the new and unforeseeable challenges of humanitarian law."@en1
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