Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-hc48f Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-19T11:47:18.643Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Towards effective military training in international humanitarian law

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 September 2015

Elizabeth Stubbins Bates
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The obligation to train troops in international humanitarian law (IHL) is simply stated and its implementation delegated to State discretion. This reflects a past assumption that mere dissemination of IHL would be an effective contribution to the prevention of violations. Academic literature has evolved so that dissemination alone is now known to be insufficient for compliance, while the ICRC's integration model emphasizes the relevance of IHL to all aspects of military decision-making. A separate process, the ICRC/Government of Switzerland Initiative on Strengthening Compliance with IHL, is still in its consultative stages at the time of writing, but may result in voluntary State reporting and/or thematic discussions at meetings of States. This article synthesizes academic and practitioner insights on effective IHL training, and suggests a collaborative rubric for informative, standardized reporting on IHL training. Such a rubric could enable States and researchers to share best practice and future innovations on IHL training, using a streamlined, cost-effective tool.

Keywords

compliancedisseminationICRCintegrationIHLlaw of armed conflictmilitary trainingsocial psychology
Type
Triggering behavioural and structural change – analysis of assumptions
Information
International Review of the Red Cross , Volume 96 , Issue 895-896: Generating respect for the law , December 2014 , pp. 795 - 816
Copyright
Copyright © icrc 2015 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1 Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field of 12 August 1949, 75 UNTS 31 (entered into force 21 October 1950) (GC I), Art. 47; Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of Wounded, Sick and Shipwrecked Members of Armed Forces at Sea of 12 August 1949, 75 UNTS 85 (entered into force 21 October 1950) (GC II), Art. 48; Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War of 12 August 1949, 75 UNTS 135 (entered into force 21 October 1950) (GC III), Art. 127; Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War of 12 August 1949, 75 UNTS 287 (entered into force 21 October 1950) (GC IV), Art. 144; Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, 14 May 1954, 249 UNTS 240 (entered into force 7 August 1956), Art. 25; Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts, 8 June 1977, 1125 UNTS 3 (entered into force 7 December 1978) (AP I), Arts 83, 87(2); Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons which May Be Deemed to be Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects, 10 October 1980, 1342 UNTS 137 (entered into force 2 December 1983) (CCW), Art. 6; Second Protocol to the Hague Convention of 1954 for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, 26 March 1999, 2253 UNTS 212 (entered into force 9 March 2004), Art. 30.

2 Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of Non-International Armed Conflicts, 8 June 1977, 1125 UNTS 609 (entered into force 7 December 1978) (AP II), Art. 19; Yves Sandoz, Christopher Swinarski and Bruno Zimmermann (eds), Commentary on the Additional Protocols of 8 June 1977 to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, ICRC, Geneva, 1987, p. 1489, para. 4912; Jean-Marie Henckaerts and Louise Doswald-Beck, Customary International Humanitarian Law, Vol. 1: Rules, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2005 (ICRC Customary Law Study), Rule 142; Second Protocol to the Hague Convention of 1954 for the Protection of Cultural Property in the event of Armed Conflict 1999, above note 1, Art. 30.

3 CCW, above note 1, Art. 6, Amended Protocol II, Art. 14(3); Second Protocol to the Hague Convention 1954, above note 1, Art. 30; ICRC and Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, Montreux Document on Pertinent Legal Obligations and Good Practices for States related to Operations of Private Military and Security Companies during Armed Conflict, 2008 (Montreux Document), Good Practices 3(a), 10, 14(e), 35, 63.

4 GC I, Art. 1; GC II, Art. 1; GC III, Art. 1; GC IV, Art. 1 (common Article 1). Jean Pictet (ed.), Commentary to the Four Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, Vol. 1, 1952, pp. 347–349; Vol. 2, 1960, pp. 257–259; Vol. 3, 1960, pp. 613–615; Vol. 4, 1958, pp. 580–582. Editor's note: Revised versions of the Commentaries on the Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols are currently forthcoming. The revised Commentary on GC I is expected to be published in 2015.

5 Official Records of the Diplomatic Conference of Geneva of 1974–1977, Vol. 9, Summary Records, Third Session of Committee I, 59th Meeting, 17 May 1976 (CDDH/I/SR.59), pp. 241–244, draft Art. 37 of AP II – Dissemination, CDDH/1, CDDH/226.Corr.2.

6 Hampson, Françoise, “Fighting by the Rules: Instructing the Armed Forces in Humanitarian Law”, International Review of the Red Cross, Vol. 29, No. 269, 1989, pp. 111–124CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Sassòli, Marco, “The Implementation of International Humanitarian Law: Current and Inherent Challenges”, Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law, Vol. 10, 2007, pp. 45–73CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

7 Jenny Kuper, Military Training and Children in Armed Conflict: Law, Policy and Practice, Martinus Nijhoff, The Hague, 2005, pp. 173–174.

8 Bandura, Albert, “Moral Disengagement in the Perpetration of Inhumanities”, Personality and Social Psychology Review, Vol. 3, No. 3, 1999, pp. 193–209CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed; Dickinson, Laura, “Military Lawyers on the Battlefield: An Empirical Account of International Law Compliance”, American Journal of International Law, Vol. 104, No. 1, 2010, pp. 1–29CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

9 M. Sassòli, above note 6, p. 73; Paul Robinson, Nigel de Lee and Don Carrick (eds), Ethics Education in the Military, Ashgate, Aldershot, 2008; Cook, Martin L. and Syse, Henrik, “What Should We Mean by Military Ethics?”, Journal of Military Ethics, Vol. 9, No. 2, 2010, pp. 119–122CrossRefGoogle Scholar; David W. Lovell, “Educating for Ethical Behaviour? Preparing Military Leaders for Ethical Challenges”, in David W. Lovell and Igor Primoratz (eds), Protecting Civilians During Violent Conflict: Theoretical and Practical Issues for the 21st Century, Military and Defence Ethics Series, Ashgate, Aldershot, 2012, p. 141.

10 Muñoz-Rojas, Daniel and Frésard, Jean-Jacques, “The Roots of Behaviour in War: Understanding and Preventing IHL Violations”, International Review of the Red Cross, Vol. 86, No. 853, 2004, pp. 189–206CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

11 ICRC, “Roots of Behaviour in War: Revisited”, 3 November 2014, available at: www.icrc.org/eng/war-and-law/law-and-policy/articles/rbw.htm (all internet references were accessed in June 2015).

12 Richard Holmes, Acts of War: The Behaviour of Men in Battle, Cassell, London, 2003 (first published 1983); Ben Shalit, The Psychology of Conflict and Combat, Praeger, New York, 1988; Joanna Bourke, An Intimate History of Killing: Face-to-Face Killing in Twentieth Century Warfare, Granta, London, 1999.

13 ICRC, “Integrating the Law”, Publication Ref. 0900, 8 June 2007, available at: www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/publication/p0900.htm; ICRC, “Violence and the Use of Force”, Publication Ref. 0943, 31 July 2011, 2011, p. 58, available at: www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/publication/p0943.htm.

14 ICRC, “Decision-Making Process in Military Combat Operations”, Publication Ref. 4120, December 2013.

15 Resolution 1, 31st International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, 2011, available at: https://www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/publication/p4120.htm.

16 Oxford Manual on the Laws of War on Land, Institute of International Law, Oxford, 1880, Preface, cited in Sénéchaud, François, “Instructing the Law of Armed Conflict: A Review of ICRC Practice” Israel Defense Forces Law Review, Vol. 3, 2007, 49Google Scholar.

17 IIème Conférence international des gouvernements signataires de la Convention de Genève et des Sociétés et associations de secours aux militaires blesses et malades, Imprimerie J. F. Starcke, Berlin, 22–27 April 1869, cited in Vincent Bernard, “The ICRC's Evolving Experience in Prevention”, 36th Round Table on Current Issues in International Humanitarian Law, San Remo, 3–5 September 2013, available at: www.iihl.org/Media/Default/Round%20Tables/XXXVI%20Round%20Table/Speakers%20contributions/Bernard_Final.pdf.

18 Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armies in the Field, 6 July 1906 (entered into force 9 August 1907).

19 GC I, Art. 47; GC II, Art. 48; GC III, Art. 127; GC IV, Art. 144.

20 Common Article 1; J. Pictet (ed.), above note 4, Vol. 1, p. 384; Vol. 2, p. 257; Vol. 3, pp. 613–614; Vol. 4, p. 580.

21 AP I, Art. 87(2).

22 AP I, Art. 83(2).

23 Y. Sandoz, C. Swinarski and B. Zimmermann (eds), above note 2, p. 963, para. 3375.

24 Diplomatic Conference of Geneva of 1947–1977, Resolution 21, Dissemination of Knowledge of International Humanitarian Law Applicable in Armed Conflicts, para. 2(a).

25 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, above note 1, Art. 25; CCW, above note 1, Art. 6.

26 Peter Rowe, “The United Kingdom Position”, in Hazel Fox and Michael Meyer (eds), Effecting Compliance: Armed Conflict and the New Law, Vol. 2, BIICL, London, 1993, p. 203.

27 Official Records of the Diplomatic Conference of Geneva of 1974–1977, Vol. 10, Second Session, Committee I, paras 133–135.

28 Official Records of the Diplomatic Conference of Geneva of 1974–1977, Vol. 9, 59th Meeting, above note 5, para. 29.

29 Official Records of the Diplomatic Conference of Geneva of 1974–1977, 53rd Plenary Meeting, Fourth Session, 6 June 1977, p. 151, para. 62: “The President drew attention to the proposals by the delegation of Pakistan (CDDH/427 AND Corr.1) to delete Article 37, and replace it by the sentence ‘This Protocol shall be disseminated as widely as possible’ (CDDH/434). The numbering and positioning of the new simplified article would be dealt with at a later stage.” The simplified draft was adopted by consensus: Y. Sandoz, C. Swinarski and B. Zimmermann (eds), above note 2, p. 1488 and fn. 4.

30 Ibid., p. 1488, para. 4906.

31 Ibid., p. 1489, para. 4912.

32 CCW, above note 1, Amended Protocol II, Art. 14(3); Second Protocol to the Hague Convention of 1954, above note 2, Art. 30.

33 ICRC Customary Law Study, above note 2, Rule 142, pp. 501, 505.

34 David Turns, “Implementation and Compliance”, in Elizabeth Wilmshurst and Susan Breau (eds), Perspectives on the ICRC Study on Customary International Humanitarian Law, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2007, p. 362.

35 Sivakumaran, Sandesh, “Lessons for the Law of Armed Conflict from Commitments of Armed Groups: Identification of Legitimate Targets and Prisoners of War”, International Review of the Red Cross, Vol. 93, No. 882, 2011, pp. 463–482CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Bongard, Pascale and Somer, Jonathan, “Monitoring Armed Non-State Actor Compliance with Humanitarian Norms: A Look at International Mechanisms and the Geneva Call Deed of Commitment”, International Review of the Red Cross, Vol. 93, No. 883, 2011, pp. 673–706CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

36 CCW, above note 1, Art. 6, Amended Protocol II, Art. 14(3).

37 Second Protocol of the Hague Convention of 1954, above note 2, Art. 30(3)(a).

38 Montreux Document, above note 3, Good Practices 3(a), 10, 14(e), 35, 63.

39 Bartels, Rogier, “National Red Cross/Red Crescent Societies and International Humanitarian Law”, Israeli Defence Force Law Review, Vol. 3, 2007, p. 58Google Scholar, fn. 5.

40 D. Muñoz-Rojas and J.-J. Frésard, above note 10.

41 ICRC, above note 11.

42 William R. Peers, The My Lai Inquiry, Norton, New York, 1979; J. Bourke, above note 12, p. 194, cited in Paolo Tripodi, “Understanding Atrocities: What Commanders Can Do to Prevent Them”, in David Whetham (ed.), Ethics, Law and Military Operations, Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke, 2011, pp. 173–188; Report of the Baha Mousa Inquiry, Vol. 3, September 2011, Summary, Part XVIII, p. 1330, para. 294, but contrast p. 1333, para. 310.

43 R. Holmes, above note 12; B. Shalit, above note 12; J. Bourke, above note 12.

44 Yorkshire Television, Four Hours in My Lai, 23 May 1989, interview transcripts including interview with ex-sergeant, 2nd Platoon, 1988.

45 F. Hampson, above note 6; M. Sassòli, above note 6.

46 The “Dissemination: Spreading Knowledge of Humanitarian Rules” special issue of the International Review of the Red Cross, Vol. 37, No. 319, 1997Google Scholar, contains numerous case studies and reflections on IHL dissemination.

47 Save the Children Sweden, Behind the Uniform: Training the Military in Child Rights and Child Protection in Africa, 2009.

48 ICRC Customary Law Study, above note 2, Rule 142, p. 503, fn. 45 (citing the military manual of the Republic of South Africa).

49 David Lloyd Roberts, “Teaching the Law of Armed Conflict to Armed Forces: Personal Reflections”, in Anthony M. Helm (ed.), International Law Studies, Vol. 82, Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island, 2006, pp. 121–134; J. Kuper, above note 7.

50 Etienne Wenger, Communities of Practice, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1998; Catherine Elgin, Considered Judgment, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, 1999.

51 F. Sénéchaud, above note 16.

52 Parks, W. Hays, “Teaching the Law of War: A Reprise”, Israel Defense Forces Law Review, Vol. 3, 2007, pp. 9, 23Google Scholar.

53 CCW, above note 1, Art. 6, Amended Protocol II, Art. 14(3), cited in W. H. Parks, above note 52.

54 M. Sassòli, above note 6.

55 J. Kuper, above note 7, p. 173.

56 Ibid., p. 174.

57 Ibid., pp. 173–174.

58 F. Hampson, above note 6, p. 116.

59 Jon Saltmarsh and Sheena MacKenzie, “The Future of Collective Training: Mission Training Through Distributed Simulation”, RUSI Defence Systems, Royal United Services Institute, October 2008, pp. 107–110; McIntyre, Heather M., Smith, Ebb and Goode, Mary, “United Kingdom Mission Training Through Distributed Simulation”, Military Psychology, Vol. 25, No. 3, 2013, pp. 280–293CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Victoria Basham, War, Identity and the Liberal State: Everyday Experiences of the Geopolitical in the Armed Forces, Routledge, London, 2013, p. 30. There is a greater emphasis on the skills to be gained in distributed simulation than in the potential to integrate IHL through distributed simulation training.

60 Clarke, Ben, Rouffaer, Christian and Sénéchaud, François, “Beyond the Call of Duty: Why Shouldn't Video Game Players Face the Same Dilemmas as Real Soldiers?”, International Review of the Red Cross, Vol. 94, No. 886, 2012, pp. 711–737CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

61 Seiler, Stefan, Fischer, Andreas and Voegtli, Sybille A., “Developing Moral Decision-Making Competence: A Quasi-Experimental Intervention Study in the Swiss Armed Forces”, Ethics & Behavior, Vol. 21, No. 6, 2011, pp. 452–470CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

62 Marco Sassòli, “IHL Mechanisms in Armed Conflict: Where Is the Problem?”, 36th Round Table on Current Issues in International Humanitarian Law, San Remo, 5–7 September 2013, p. 2.

63 Republic of South Africa, Military Manual, cited in ICRC Customary Law Study, above note 2, Rule 142, p. 503, fn. 45.

64 Finnemore, Martha and Sikkink, Kathryn, “International Norm Dynamics and Political Change”, International Organization, Vol. 52, No. 4, 1998, p. 895CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

65 D. L. Roberts, above note 49, p. 126.

66 Ibid.

67 Ibid., p. 125.

68 Murphy, Ray, “International Humanitarian Law Training for Multinational Peace Support Operations – Lessons from Experience”, International Review of the Red Cross, Vol. 82, No. 840, 2000, pp. 953–968CrossRefGoogle Scholar; J. Kuper, above note 7, p. 173.

69 L. Dickinson, above note 8, p. 3.

70 Ibid., p. 26.

71 M. Sassòli, above note 6, p. 73; D. Lovell, above note 9.

72 A. Bandura, above note 8; J.-J. Frésard and D. Muñoz-Rojas, above note 10; P. Robinson, N. de Lee and D. Carrick (eds), above note 9.

73 Stephen Deakin, “Education in an Ethos at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst”, in P. Robinson, N. de Lee and D. Carrick (eds), above note 9, p. 15; Patrick Mileham, “Teaching Military Ethics in the British Armed Forces”, in P. Robinson, N. de Lee and D. Carrick (eds), above note 9, p. 43.

74 Martin L. Cook, “Ethics Education, Ethics Training and Character Development: Who ‘Owns’ Ethics in the US Air Force Academy”, in P. Robinson, N. de Lee and D. Carrick (eds), above note 9, p. 57.

75 M. L. Cook and H. Syse, above note 9, pp. 120, 121.

76 Plato, Meno, trans. Benjamin Jowett, Liberal Arts Press, New York, 1949.

77 John Keegan, The Face of Battle, Viking Press, New York, 1976, reprint Folio, London, 2007, cited in D. Lovell, above note 9, p. 146, fn. 14–17.

78 D. Lovell, above note 9, p. 142.

79 Ibid., p. 146.

80 Th. van Baarda, A., “Moral Ambiguities Underlying the Laws of Armed Conflict: A Perspective from Military Ethics”, Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law, Vol. 11, 2010, pp. 3, 39CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

81 Wortel, Eva and Bosch, Jolanda, “Strengthening Moral Competence: A ‘Train the Trainer’ Course in Military Ethics”, Journal of Military Ethics, Vol. 10, No. 1, 2011, pp. 17–35CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

82 Alexander Moseley, “The Ethical Warrior: A Classical Liberal Approach”, in P. Robinson, N. de Lee and D. Carrick (eds), above note 9, pp. 175–186.

83 Ibid.

84 P. Robinson, N. de Lee and D. Carrick (eds), above note 9, Introduction; Patrick Mileham, “Teaching Military Ethics in the British Armed Forces”, in Ibid., pp. 43–56.

85 D. Muñoz-Rojas and J.-J. Frésard, above note 10.

86 Ibid., p. 197.

87 Ibid., p. 194.

88 Ibid., p. 190.

89 Ibid., p. 200.

90 Ibid., p. 201.

91 ICRC, above note 13.

92 Ibid.; ICRC, “Violence and the Use of Force”, above note 13, p. 58. An earlier hint of “integration” appears in Klenner, Dietmar, “Training in International Humanitarian Law”, International Review of the Red Cross, Vol. 82, No. 839, 2000, pp. 653–662CrossRefGoogle Scholar, 656, 659, 660–661.

93 ICRC, above note 14.

94 ICRC, “Violence and the Use of Force”, above note 13, p. 58.

95 Ibid.

96 Ibid.

97 Mackinlay, W. G. L., “Perceptions and Misconceptions: How are International and UK Law Perceived to Affect Military Commanders and Their Subordinates on Operations?”, Defence Studies, Vol. 7, 2007, pp. 111–160CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

98 ICRC, above note 14.

99 Convention IV respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land (Hague Convention IV), 18 October 1907 (entered into force 16 January 1910), Art. 1.

100 ICRC, above note 14, pp. 22, 24.

101 Ibid., p. 22.

102 Ibid., p. 43.

103 Ibid., p. 18.

104 Ibid., p. 31.

105 Jutta Brunée and Stephen J. Toope, Legitimacy and Legality in International Law: An Interactional Account, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2010, pp. 16, 62.

106 ICRC, ICRC Prevention Policy, Geneva, Publication Ref. 4019, 11 June 2010, pp. 5–6, available at: www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/publication/p4019.htm.

107 Ibid., p. 9.

108 Resolution 1, 31st International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, 2011, available at: www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/resolution/31-international-conference-resolution-1-2011.htm (emphasis in original).

109 ICRC and Government of Switzerland, Background Document: Working Group Meeting on Strengthening Compliance with IHL, 8–9 November 2012, Geneva, October 2012. See also ICRC and Government of Switzerland, Background Document: Fourth Meeting of States on Strengthening Compliance with IHL, Geneva, March 2015. All documents on the Initiative are available at: www.icrc.org/eng/what-we-do/other-activities/development-ihl/strengthening-legal-protection-compliance.htm.

110 ICRC and Government of Switzerland, Third Meeting of States on Strengthening Compliance with International Humanitarian Law (IHL), 30 June–1 July 2014, Chairs' Conclusions. See also ICRC and Government of Switzerland, Preparatory Discussion in View of the Fourth Meeting of States (2015), December 2014.

111 ICRC and Government of Switzerland, Background Document: Fourth Meeting of States, above note 109, pp. 17–18.

112 ICRC and Government of Switzerland, Third Meeting of States, above note 110, pp. 2, 5.

113 Ibid., pp. 8, 10, 13.

114 Ibid., p. 3.

115 Ibid., p. 4.

116 ICRC and Government of Switzerland, Background Document: Fourth Meeting of States, above note 109, p. 6.

117 ICRC and Government of Switzerland, Third Meeting of States, above note 110, p. 13.

118 United Nations Office at Geneva, Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, Compliance Annual Reports Database, available at: www.onug.ch/80256EE600585943/(httpPages)/E0339F1FE92C35FBC12573E900351CD5?OpenDocument.

119 Contrast the view of Chilton, Adam S. and Tingley, Dustin H., “Why the Study of International Law Needs Experiments”, Columbia Journal of Transnational Law, Vol. 52, No. 1, 2013, p. 173Google Scholar.

120 Shaffer, Gregory and Ginsburg, Tom, “The Empirical Turn in International Legal Scholarship”, American Journal of International Law, Vol. 106, No. 1, 2012, p. 1CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

121 R. Holmes, above note 12; B. Shalit, above note 12; J. Bourke, above note 12.

122 D. Muñoz-Rojas and J.-J. Frésard, above note 10.

123 ICRC, “Integrating the Law”, above note 13.

124 ICRC, above note 14.

125 ICRC and Government of Switzerland, Third Meeting of States, above note 110.