Geneva Conventions: Additional Protocols (Hansard, 28 January 1998)

§ Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean

I am pleased to be able to inform the House that the United Kingdom instruments of ratification of the two additional protocols of 1977 to the Geneva conventions of 1949 for the protection of war victims are today being deposited with the Swiss authorities in Berne.

The necessary legislation, Geneva Conventions (Amendment) Act 1995, received the Royal Assent on 19 July 1995.

A copy of the note accompanying the instrument of ratification has been placed in the Libraries of the House. The note contains the statements made by the United Kingdom on ratification of additional protocol I on international conflicts. In most cases these reflect similar statements made by the United Kingdom on signing Protocol I in 1977.

I wish to draw the attention of the House in particular to the statement concerning nuclear weapons, which is in the following terms:

"It continues to be the understanding of the United Kingdom that the rules introduced by the protocol apply exclusively to conventional weapons without prejudice to any other rules of international law applicable to other types of weapons. In particular, the rules so introduced do not have any effect on, and do not regulate or prohibit the use of, nuclear weapons."

Statements to similar effect have been made by NATO partners and others when ratifying protocol I. They reflect the basis upon which the conference which drew up additional protocol I took place and statements made at the conference by the United Kingdom delegation among others.

I would also draw the attention of the House to statement (m) on Articles 51 to 55 and statement (n) on 36WA Articles 56 and 85, paragraph 3c. These statements reserve our right to threaten reprisals if attacks were launched against our own civilians or civilian targets and remove the virtual immunity under the protocol for attacks on dams, dykes and certain nuclear facilities such as nuclear power stations, even when they are a significant part of the enemy's war effort. Both reservations have been drafted with great care to show that these would be measures of last resort, to be decided upon only if all else had failed, and requiring high level authorisation. Our actions would still be subject to the classic rule of proportionality.

I would also draw the attention of the House to statement (d) concerned with Article 1, paragraph 4 and Article 96, paragraph 3, which extend the application of the Protocol to armed conflicts "in which peoples are fighting against colonial domination and alien occupation and against racist regimes in the exercise of their right of self-determination."

To guard against the possibility that terrorist organisations may seek to misuse these provisions the statement makes clear that the term "armed conflict" is understood as denoting something clearly beyond the commission of ordinary crimes including acts of terrorism, and that the United Kingdom will not be bound, in relation to any situation in which the United Kingdom itself is involved, unless it expressly recognises the adversary as genuinely an authority representing a people engaged in an armed conflict of the type referred to in these articles.

In accordance with the powers conferred in Section 7 of the 1957 Geneva Convention Act, as amended by Section 4(7) of the Geneva Conventions (Amendment) Act 1995, the Government will certify in an Order in Council the terms of the statements made on ratification.

Article 90 of Additional Protocol I establishes an international fact-finding commission and provides that the high contracting parties may at the time of ratification or subsequently declare that they recognise, in relation to any other high contracting party accepting the same obligation, the competence of the Commission to inquire into allegations by such other party of facts alleged to be a grave breach or serious violation of the conventions or the protocol. The Government intend to make a declaration of acceptance of the competence of the fact-finding commission. It will be necessary first to bring before the House legislation to confer upon the members of the Commission and their staff the necessary privileges and immunities.