Human Rights Watch made public today a letter to President Clinton calling on the United States to support the first-ever conference of the Geneva Conventions signatories, scheduled for July 15, 1999.
On February 9, 1999 one hundred and fifteen of the 188 signatories to the Geneva Conventions, including virtually all of the major allies of the U.S, voted as members of the UN General Assembly in favor of the conference. The resolution also called on Israel to accept the de jure applicability of the Fourth Geneva Convention in the territories it has occupied since 1967, and to reverse actions that contravene this Convention.
Vice-President Al Gore and Assistant Secretary of State Martin Indyk have repeatedly criticized the resolution, saying the conference would undermine negotiations between Israel and the PLO, and vowed that the U.S. will boycott and urge other governments to do the same.
"The protection of civilians should not be made subject to political bargaining," said Hanny Megally, executive director of Human Rights Watch's Middle East and North Africa Division. "To do so undermines the very basis of international law." He pointed out that the Geneva Conventions require all signatories, including the United States, to 'respect and ensure respect' of the Conventions 'in all circumstances.'"
Megally also noted that although a conference of Geneva Convention signatories was a new idea, in recent years smaller groups of states had come together to address grave breaches of international humanitarian law in Chechnya, the former Yugoslavia and the Great Lakes region of Central Africa.
"This conference is an unprecedented opportunity to advance the enforcement of the most important international humanitarian treaty we have," Megally said. "It is an embarrassment that any signatory wouldn't want to attend, but it is unconscionable that one would try to prevent this effort to enforce the Convention."
Click here for the text of the letter.
For Further Information:
In New York: Hanny Megally 212 216 1230
Clarisa Bencomo 212 216 1232
