INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW | 10th SEMESTER | NATIONAL LAW INSTITUTE UNIVERSITY

RESEARCH ANALYSIS

“Role of ICRC in providing Humanitarian Assistance”

International Humanitarian Law

 INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW | 10th SEMESTER | NATIONAL LAW INSTITUTE UNIVERSITY

SUBMITTED TO SUBMITTED BY
Miss Neha Khurana Harsh Sahu
NLIU, Bhopal Roll no. - 2017 BA LLB 88
Enrolment no: A-1864
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Acknowledgement

This Research Project is made possible through the help and support from everyone, including:
parents, teachers, family, friends etc. While it is futile to try to do justice to the help and support
provided by people, please allow me to dedicate my acknowledgment of gratitude toward the
following significant advisors and contributors. I would like to thank Prof. Neha Khurana for
her support and encouragement. Throughout the work on this project, she offered valuable and
detailed advices on organization and the theme of the project. I would also like to thank my
University for availing me, access to premium resources that came a long way in providing
research material, as well as ideas for expressing the research.

Harsh Sahu
2017 BALLB 88

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Table of Contents
Acknowledgement......................................................................................................................... I

Index of Authorities (literature Review).....................................................................................III

Statement of Problem..................................................................................................................III

Objectives of Study.....................................................................................................................III

Hypothesis.................................................................................................................................. III

Research Question....................................................................................................................... III

Introduction................................................................................................................................... 1

The right to humanitarian assistance.............................................................................................1

Humanitarian Assistance and the Right to life...........................................................................2

ICRC’s mission............................................................................................................................. 3

Emergency assistance: ICRC policy.............................................................................................3

Procedure...................................................................................................................................... 4

Criteria and conditions for taking action.......................................................................................4

Urgent needs.............................................................................................................................. 5

The ICRC maintains complete supervision and control of its programmes...............................5

The ICRC has access to the victims of the conflict...................................................................6

Assistance must have a positive impact.....................................................................................7

Influencing factors........................................................................................................................ 7

Other organizations and agencies..............................................................................................7

Cooperation, not competition....................................................................................................8

Timing....................................................................................................................................... 9

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Conclusion.................................................................................................................................. 10

Bibliography............................................................................................................................... IV

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Index of Authorities (literature Review)

Other Authorities
ICJ, Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons, Advisory Opinion, 8 July 1996, ICJ
Reports 1996............................................................................................................................. 1
Jean Pictet, Développement et principes du droit international humanitaire, Pedone, Paris, 19831

Treatises
Geneva Convention....................................................................................................................... 4

Statement of Problem

What all is considered by the International Committee of the Red Cross in providing
humanitarian assistance?

Objectives of Study

To understand the criteria and the procedure undertaken by the ICRC for providing humanitarian
assistance in areas of armed conflict.

Research Question

What is the criteria and procedure undertaken by the International Committee of the Red Cross
for providing Humanitarian assistance.

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Introduction

Tension, conflict and war threaten progress in increasingly large areas of the world. War
undermines economic, agricultural and social development. It destroys infrastructure that was
already damaged or weakened, shuts down market systems and stops the supply of services.
In traditional societies, particularly in rural areas, when individuals feel threatened, they turn to
their families, their clans or their villages. The more highly developed a society becomes,
however, the more these small social groups give up the role of helping people face up to danger
and uncertainty. Risk management is gradually transferred to larger social units, such as the
town administration, the regional or national government, and private systems that provide
social security, insurance and pension schemes.
War, of course, damages all these structures, making it difficult or impossible for them to
function. Armed conflict scatters families, empties villages, obstructs administration, and breaks
down economic and social security systems. In some cases, though, when people depend on
their families or their villages, these smaller structures survive, because they are less affected by
terrible ordeals. The more a society's survival depends on superstructure - functioning industry,
energy supply, health services, trade, banking and so on - the greater the impact a war has on
people, and the less they tend to develop individual coping strategies.

The right to humanitarian assistance

First, the right of the civilian population to humanitarian assistance can be derived from the
principle of inviolability1 , which is at the basis of both International Humanitarian Law and
International Human Rights Law. Second, there are gaps in the regulation of humanitarian
assistance set forth in conventional IHL that can only be filled by IHRL (for example, the duty
of a State to ensure that its own population is adequately supplied in emergency situations and in
non-international armed conflict, the duty to cooperate with humanitarian organizations and the
duty to protect convoys, cannot be deduced literally from IHL). Third, as observed by the

1
Jean Pictet, Développement et principes du droit international humanitaire, Pedone, Paris, 1983, p. 78.

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International Court of Justice (ICJ), limitations on the right to life 2 and, specifically, on the right
to humanitarian assistance in conflict situations are determined by IHL. Fourth, the development
of IHRL will reinforce and advance the establishment of the majority of norms concerning
humanitarian assistance in armed conflict as part of customary law 3. Fifth, the fact that IHL is
binding on non-State parties engaged in internal conflicts indirectly implies that they, too, are
bound to comply with IHRL, at east concerning non-derogable rights. Sixth, the link between
these two bodies of law will allow the mechanisms established by both to be used to guarantee
respect for the right of victims to humanitarian assistance and to ensure that States fulfil the
duties associated with this right. Lastly, the recognition of the hard core of obligations relating
to humanitarian assistance as obligations ergaomnes deriving from jus cogens norms can be
deduced from an analysis of these two areas of law.

Humanitarian Assistance and the Right to life

There is no doubt that States have an obligation to respect and above all to ensure respect for the
right to life of all the individuals within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction. 4 This not only
implies that States must abstain from directly violating this right, but also, that they must take all
necessary steps to ensure that this right is not abused. “Taking all necessary steps” could be
construed as a duty to prevent and prepare for human disasters, but there is absolutely no
question that it establishes the duty of States to take positive action to eradicate or alleviate the
effects of any emergency situations.
The duty to guarantee the right to life puts the State in the position of guarantor, so that in the
event of wilful omission, the State could be considered directly responsible for any resulting loss
of life.
This duty to take positive action implies that States have a duty to ensure that the population
affected by a crisis is adequately supplied with goods and services essential for its survival and,
if they are unable to do so or their efforts fail, to allow third parties to provide the required relief

2
ICJ, Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons, Advisory Opinion, 8 July 1996, ICJ Reports 1996, para. 25.
3
e Manuel Pérez González, “Las relaciones entre el derechointernacional de
losderechoshumanosyelderechointernacionalhumanitario.
4
Article 2 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966.

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supplies. The two aspects of this obligation, the duty to provide humanitarian aid and the duty to
allow others to provide it, are very closely linked, as the latter presupposes the existence of the
former.
All this has direct consequences of a practical nature. The link between humanitarian assistance
and the right to life means that the duties of the parties to a conflict in this respect bestow the
right to receive humanitarian assistance offered by third parties on all the victims of all conflicts.
Although the right to life, which is at the root of the right to humanitarian assistance, cannot be
derogated from, it is not an absolute right and can be limited in times of armed conflict. And, as
pointed out above, it is the law of armed conflict that establishes the substance of this right and
the limitations to it. In spite of the fact that the right to humanitarian assistance, arising from the
right to life, is individual, there are two factors that affect its treatment as such. First, a crisis that
deprives an individual of the basic necessities of life affects a group of people, all of whom must
be helped. Second, violations of this right are usually committed on a collective scale: the right
to humanitarian assistance is generally denied to a group of people or to an entire population and
not to a particular individual.

ICRC’s mission

Initially, it was not the ICRC’s intention to take action on the ground. However, the National
Societies of countries in conflict – viewed as too close to the authorities – asked the ICRC to
send its own relief workers, believing that humanitarian work in times of conflict needed to offer
guarantees of neutrality and independence acceptable to all parties, which only the ICRC could
do. The ICRC therefore had to build up operational activities very quickly within a framework
of neutrality and independence, working on both sides of the battlefield. Formal recognition of
this function came later, when the Geneva Conventions explicitly recognized the purely
humanitarian and impartial nature of the ICRC’s activities, and gave the organization a special
role in ensuring the faithful application of international humanitarian law.5

5
The Icrc: Its Mission and Work. URL:https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/assets/files/other/icrc_002_0963.pdf (last accessed
30/7/2020).

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Policy

Emergency assistance can provide support and mitigate the worst consequences of war by
giving people enough clean water, food, and temporary shelter to meet their immediate, vital
needs. It does not, however, consider how these people can return to self-sufficiency in the long
term. They need help in finding both short- and long-term solutions: not only emergency aid for
their survival, but also rehabilitation so that they are able to meet their own needs, to some
extent at least, as they did before the conflict. This will also allow them to be less vulnerable in
the future.
A humanitarian emergency requires providing medical aid, food and material assistance to save
lives. However, if food is distributed in large quantities over a long period of time, dependency
can develop. People who feel dependent tend to suffer a loss of dignity, and this leads to a
reduced sense of initiative. Large-scale distributions can also interfere with the dynamics of
recovery. If needs are incorrectly assessed, people may exchange distributed food for more
urgently required goods. The food may end up for sale on the market and compete with local
products, which can harm local producers.
To avoid these pitfalls, the ICRC assesses what each group needs in the context of its own
environment. Careful assessments lead to sensitive and realistic objectives that can provide
efficient and lasting aid. No two contexts are identical; every situation calls for a solution tail or-
made to its unique circumstances.
The ICRC makes commitments to provide assistance for as short a time as is reasonable,
retaining a high level of flexibility so it can adjust to change. Different phases of an emergency
call for varying levels of aid. By continually re-assessing needs, monitoring and re-evaluating
objectives, the ICRC adapts its approach to try and provide optimal assistance over a period of
time. Short-term commitment means that the action it takes has to be not only effective but also
efficient, as help is often urgently needed elsewhere.

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Procedure

First of all, the ICRC always tries to ensure that the authorities allow individuals and
communities access to all essential resources and services, and supply whatever assistance is
required. Failing this, however, the ICRC stands ready to intervene, to protect people
endangered by armed conflict and to alleviate suffering caused by injury, disease or hunger.
Assistance can be offered in several areas, all equally important. The ICRC shares its expertise
in public health services, logistics and emergency assistance; gives support (in particular
through the local Red Cross/Red Crescent) involving local people as active participants to help
restore basic services; and acts as a neutral institution when necessary. All these areas are
closely linked. Assistance can be an important vector for other activities to protect people's lives
and health. Priority is given to troubled regions and to vulnerable people or groups who, even if
they are no longer involved in the hostilities, are still in a hostile environment.

Criteria and conditions for taking action

International humanitarian law gives great importance to assistance: bringing material aid to the
victims of conflict is an integral part of “protection”6, as defined by the Geneva Conventions and
their Additional Protocols. The ICRC will take action if certain criteria are fulfilled.

Urgent needs

Generally, the ICRC provides aid to cover urgent needs. The degree of urgency depends on its
cause, most clearly in situations that are marked by a crisis of great magnitude or gravity, are of
recent origin or are clearly deteriorating. Circumstances may not be life-threatening initially -
this can happen in countries with advanced economies - but early assistance may be crucial
anyway, to prevent conditions worsening to the point where they become critical.
Urgent action is required for as long as the fundamental needs of vulnerable people, clearly
identified, have not been met. To restore the conditions required for people to survive and live
with dignity, those giving aid must seek comprehensive solutions and design programmes to
6
Geneva Convention, 1949.

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provide, simultaneously, shelter from the elements, sufficient food and water, adequate hygiene,
medical care, and protection against attacks or threats to physical and mental well-being.
It is important to position the various stages of assistance, from emergency aid to sustained
recovery. Emergency aid must not block the road to development. The ICRC includes
rehabilitation projects in the emergency phase, but these projects must lead into development
programmes that others will carry out7. Giving people the specific things they lack allows them
to provide for their own needs again, directly mitigating the harm caused by conflict - for
example, distributing, at the right time and in the right places, seed and tools for agriculture or
equipment for fishing, or providing treatment or vaccinations for nomads'herds. In advanced
economies, it may not necessary to distribute food or other basic products if people are given,
instead, what they need to revive their own means of production, food processing or
manufacturing.
Enabling people to regain their self-sufficiency helps them maintain their dignity and return to
as normal a life as possible. In addition, it significantly reduces the quantity of resources that
would otherwise have to be brought in to sustain their lives and health.

The ICRC maintains complete supervision and control of its programmes

The ICRC considers an assistance operation feasible only if it can maintain its independence
throughout each and every phase. Independence means retaining autonomy to determine
beneficiaries, programmes, implementation systems, monitoring processes, and control
mechanisms... but it does not mean working in isolation. As far as possible, activities are
coordinated with local authorities or with other relief agencies. At the same time, the ICRC must
never make any commitments that might compel it to act in any way contrary to its fundamental
principles. It must remain free to make its own decisions, which are always reached in
consultation with the victims of the conflict.
Every assistance operation involves assessing needs, selecting priorities, determining who will
receive aid, choosing specific projects, and then transporting and distributing relief supplies. As

7
The role of the ICRC in emergency assistance. URL:https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/resources/documents/misc/57jmjb.htm
(last accessed 31/07/2020.

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a rule, the ICRC must be in a position to supervise all these stages of an operation. Given that
people on various sides of the conflict have opposing interests, the strict and continuous
supervision of all activities is often difficult and sometimes impossible. In such cases, the ICRC
must carefully weigh the (sometimes conflicting) humanitarian interests at stake in order to
decide what course to take. For example, it may plan to distribute food to a group of people in
desperate circumstances. Goods are transported to a distribution point, but it then turns out that -
because of lack of access to the beneficiaries or security problems - ICRC delegates are unable
to supervise the distribution. Failing to insist on such supervision (to provide aid at all costs)
would undermine the ICRC's credibility and the trust it needs from people on all sides of the
conflict. On the other hand, making supervision a sine qua non, to the detriment of people who
are suffering or whose very lives are at risk, runs counter to the principle of humanity, which
must always guide the ICRC's work.

The ICRC has access to the victims of the conflict

The ICRC must be allowed access to the people requiring aid (to observe their situation and
assess their needs) and must be certain that its action is in conformity with its criteria of
neutrality, independence and impartiality. It also seeks authorization to return and evaluate the
impact of its work on the condition of those receiving assistance - their state of health, food
supply, clothing, hygiene, shelter, and so on.
Governing authorities do not always automatically grant access to people in need, despite
treaties in force or commitments to respect fundamental humanitarian principles. Some legal
authorities, rebels, armed groups or individuals delay or deny access in order to exert political
and/or military pressure. When food is withheld as a weapon of war, or when ethnic cleansing is
part of the political strategy, the ICRC's mandate and ability to provide assistance will directly
oppose the goals of the warring factions.

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Assistance must have a positive impact

The principle of humanity means that helping the victims of conflict always comes first. The
ICRC takes into account local traditions and social structures, but refrains from acting against its
principles. For example, distributions in any one group will never favour one gender, regardless
of what local custom might be. The ICRC takes care to ensure that it does no harm. In particular:
 Assistance must not create resentment. The ICRC must not provide direct victims of a
conflict (displaced people, for example) with living conditions better than those of other
people in the same region. In some cases, it will give appropriate support to the local
population as well.
 The natural environment must be respected and preserved. The ICRC must consider the
impact of its actions on the environment. For instance, setting up a transit camp without
suitable fuel for cooking and heating could result in deforestation of the surrounding area.
 Assistance must not adversely affect the local economy. The ICRC must carefully
determine how its operation could affect the local market, as this might, in turn, have
detrimental consequences on the cost and availability of goods for the population.
 Aid must not contribute to the displacement of people. In tough economic times,
distributions can have a " pull " effect. People may feel encouraged to abandon their own
coping strategies and rely solely on external support. In addition, maintaining
distributions when they are no longer necessary can induce people to remain displaced
and so obtain assistance easily. ICRC emergency aid must not cause dependency: in
addition to immediate survival, its operations must promote the rehabilitation of self-
sustaining production cycles.

Influencing factors

Other organizations and agencies

The ICRC is usually the only intervening agency when visiting detainees or reuniting families
separated by armed conflict. This is not the case, however, for assistance operations. A wide

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variety of non-governmental relief organizations have come forth to provide aid in recent years.
The expanded role of the United Nations has led many UN agencies to increase their presence in
the field, as well. As a result, the ICRC may not always be the first to provide assistance.
Before taking action, the ICRC determines whether other organizations or agencies are present
and operational, and if so, it studies their plans, working criteria and implementation methods.
The benefits of early coordination are evident, to share information and avoid the duplication of
efforts and resources spent. However, the ICRC must assess whether plans put forward by others
are feasible, rather than simply take them at face value. While a conflict is front-page news,
fund-raising potential can be high, and some organizations and agencies may base their plans on
the funds they expect to obtain. If media interest dies down, these funding objectives might not
be met and programmes may not proceed as planned.

Cooperation, not competition

The armed conflict disrupts people's lives, the gap between their predicament and a " normal
lifestyle " is too wide to be closed by international humanitarian aid. The ICRC attempts to
narrow this gap by restoring essential resources and services to the levels considered normal
before the conflict began. The work of other impartial and competent organizations and agencies
can only come as a positive contribution to this objective, and a spirit of cooperation is vital to
maximize benefits for the victims. ICRC distributions may eventually be taken over by other
organizations. The ICRC must therefore conduct an early analysis of these potential
opportunities, given the importance of assistance as a vector for protection and the need to
maintain a "balance", i.e., work on both sides.

ICRC assistance is usually phased out when other agencies, essentially those with development
objectives, become fully operational again. Some of its emergency rehabilitation programmes
may then be transferred to the local National Society, providing, for example, medical assistance
to hospitals or other social welfare. With this in mind, the ICRC cooperates closely with the
Federation to strengthen the operational capacity of National Red Cross and Red Crescent
Societies, thereby contributing to the development of their countries.
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Some programmes - orthopaedic, agricultural or veterinary assistance, for example - cannot be

handed over to the operating National Society, as they do not fall within its mandate. So as not
to break the continuum from emergency assistance and rehabilitation to development, the ICRC
may involve other, " participating " National Societies in such assistance, through project-
delegation or bilateral-project arrangements. When a conflict is over, ICRC representatives
transfer responsibility for these projects to appropriate local authorities or to development
organizations and agencies. This is done to ensure continuity and so help people return to
normal life.
People in war zones, or anywhere where conflict brings destruction and disorder, need different
kinds of help, and various organizations belonging to the International Red Cross and Red
Crescent Movement take part in operations to assist them. The ICRC is responsible for the
general direction of such operations, and also in circumstances that require a specifically neutral
and independent institution. Clearly defining respective tasks is essential to avoid duplication of
effort, and also to make sure that - in contexts where tension is running high - only one entity
within the Movement is in contact with the de facto or de jure authorities. An agreement on the
organization of the international activities of the ICRC, the National Red Cross and Red
Crescent Societies and their Federation was signed in November 1997, and replaces the 1989
agreement on the roles of the different components of the Movement.

Timing

The aim is always to provide urgently needed assistance as quickly as possible. A speedy
response to a difficult situation helps the ICRC gain credibility on all sides of the conflict, with
the belligerents and with their victims. Giving aid can facilitate other, less popular activities that
are also aimed at helping vulnerable people.
Today's conflicts tend to be highly volatile - the humanitarian situation changing rapidly with
the formation of new alliances, the alteration of military strategies, cease-fire agreements, the
initiation of peace talks, and so on. In conducting its relief operations, the ICRC must constantly
evaluate these changes and adjust its programmes accordingly.

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If other impartial, competent aid-providers can safely assume responsibility for necessary but
routine ICRC distributions, the ICRC will adapt its operation to allow for a smooth transition.
This usually means gradually reducing ICRC assistance, to make sure that the replacing
organization or agency is able to take over.
There is no telling how a conflict will evolve, however. The ICRC makes certain that it is
always able to respond quickly to any new urgent need, generally keeping emergency stocks and
a logistic infrastructure close at hand so that it can supply essential aid at short notice. It thus
stands ready at all times to fulfil its special role as a neutral, impartial and independent
institution.

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Conclusion

As long as there is human interaction, there will be conflicts. Out of those conflicts, come
escalate to armed conflicts. The Role of the International Committee of the Red Cross, is to
minimise the loss and damage during such armed conflicts. The International Humanitarian Law
dictates that civilians and civilian objects must be protected from unnecessary damage.
However, when a situation has escalated to armed conflict, there’s no guaranteeing that civilians
will be kept out of harm’s way, i.e. some loss or damage is bound to happen, intentionally or
unintentionally. The ICRC short term emergency support as well as aims to rehabilitate people
displaced of their homes/jobs etc. in long term sustained recovery.
The ICRC considers providing assistance only if it can maintain its independence throughout
each and every phase i.e. autonomy to determine beneficiaries, programmes, implementation
systems, monitoring processes, and control mechanisms. Still, as far as possible, activities are
coordinated with local authorities or with other relief agencies. Further, the ICRC believes in
the motto of “cooperating not competition”. Hence,the ICRC teams up with other aid
organisations and the ICRC distributions may eventually be taken over by other organizations.
Also, the aim is to provide assistance as soon as possible. Just like justice, Help delayed is help
denied. Further, today's conflicts tend to be highly volatile - the humanitarian situation changing
rapidly with the formation of new alliances, the alteration of military strategies, cease-fire
agreements, the initiation of peace talks, and so on. In conducting its relief operations, the ICRC
must constantly evaluate these changes and adjust its programmes accordingly.

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Bibliography

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 JSTOR
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 Genevawaterhub.org
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 International Humanitarian Law: A Comprehensive Introduction Book by Nils Melzer
 The Humanitarians by David P. Forsythe
 The International Committee of the Red Cross: A Neutral Humanitarian Actor Book by
David P. Forsythe
 Perspectives on the ICRC Study on Customary International Humanitarian Law

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