Why in news?

The UN General Assembly's legal committee approved a landmark resolution on November 22, 2024, initiating negotiations for the first-ever treaty to prevent and punish crimes against humanity.

This step followed intense negotiations, culminating in Russia withdrawing amendments that could have derailed the process.

What’s in today’s article?

• Laws governing the conflict
• Need for a treaty dealing with Crimes Against Humanity Treaty
• Step towards a Crimes Against Humanity Treaty

Laws governing the conflict

• 1949 Geneva Conventions
  • The 1949 Geneva Conventions are a set of four international treaties establishing humanitarian protections during armed conflicts.
  • They safeguard wounded soldiers, prisoners of war, and civilians, emphasizing humane treatment and non-combatant rights.
  • Ratified by 196 countries, these conventions form the cornerstone of international humanitarian law, ensuring accountability and limiting the horrors of war.
• Additional Protocols to the Geneva Conventions (1977)
  • Two protocols that expand protections to cover civil wars and non-international conflicts, reinforcing humanitarian principles.
• International Humanitarian Law
  • The Law of Armed Conflict (LOAC), also known as International Humanitarian Law (IHL), governs the conduct of warfare.
  • It aims to protect those who are not actively participating in hostilities, such as civilians, medical personnel, and prisoners of war.
  • It sets out rules to limit the methods and means of warfare, ensuring humanitarian protections and minimizing suffering.
  • Key instruments include the Geneva Conventions and Hague Regulations, focusing on humane treatment during conflicts.
• Hague Conventions (1899, 1907)
  • These address the laws of war and war crimes, focusing on the conduct of hostilities, treatment of prisoners, and protection of civilians and cultural property.
• International Criminal Court (ICC) Statute (1998)
  • Established to prosecute individuals for crimes such as war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, ensuring accountability for violations of IHL.
• United Nations Charter (1945)
  • Governs the use of force in international relations, emphasizing the prohibition of aggressive war and the right of self-defense.

Why a Separate Treaty for Crimes Against Humanity is Necessary?

• Existing Legal Gaps
  • While global treaties address war crimes, genocide, and torture, there is no comprehensive international treaty specifically targeting crimes against humanity.
  • This creates a legal vacuum, leaving many atrocities unaddressed and perpetrators unpunished.
• Limitations of the International Criminal Court (ICC)
  • The ICC can prosecute crimes against humanity but lacks jurisdiction over nearly 70 countries, including major nations like the United States, China, and India.
  • A treaty would strengthen the international legal framework by ensuring a universal mechanism for prosecution and accountability.
• Broad Scope of Crimes Against Humanity
  • Crimes against humanity include murder, rape, sexual slavery, enforced disappearances, torture, and deportation, often committed as part of widespread attacks on civilians.
  • A dedicated treaty would comprehensively define these crimes and establish uniform standards for prosecution.
• Addressing Global Proliferation of Atrocities
  • The rise of conflicts and state-sponsored atrocities in regions like Ethiopia, Myanmar, Gaza, Ukraine, and Sudan highlights the urgent need for a binding international instrument to combat impunity and protect civilians.
• Universal Accountability
  • By criminalizing such acts globally, a treaty would eliminate safe havens for perpetrators, ensuring that no region or individual is beyond the reach of justice.

Step towards a Crimes Against Humanity Treaty

• About the news
  • A key United Nations (U.N.) General Assembly committee adopted a resolution paving way for negotiations on a first-ever treaty on preventing and punishing crimes against humanity.
  • Sponsors of the resolution, led by Mexico and Gambia with the backing of 96 countries, emphasized the need to close legal gap in dealing with such crimes.
    • Existing treaties cover war crimes, genocide, and torture, but no treaty specifically addresses crimes against humanity, such as murder, rape, sexual slavery, torture, and enforced disappearances.
• Timeline for Treaty Negotiations
  • The resolution outlines a structured timeline, with preparatory sessions in 2026 and 2027 and formal negotiating sessions in 2028 and 2029.
  • While some expressed disappointment at the extended timeline, the move is hailed as a significant step toward addressing impunity for grave human rights violations.