INTER-DEPARTMENTAL COMMITTEE ON
THE REVISION OF THE GENEVA CONVENTIONS.
APPENDIX B
-
REPORT BY THE CHAIRMAN.
C.R.G.C./P(48) 551 52
APPENDIX B.
Page 290
REPORT OF THE ADMIRALTY SUB-COMMITTEE ON THE PROPOSED MARITIME CONVENTI ON
PART I - INTRODUCTORY
The International Conference of Government Experts held at Geneva in 1947 to revise the Prisoners of War and Sick and Wounded Conventions also produced the draft of a new Maritime Convention to replace the Tenth Hague Convention of 1907. Your Sub-Committee, believing not only that the Tenth Hague Convention contains inherent weaknesses but that the events of two World Wars have made it out of date, welcome this initiative. Bearing in mind that no serious attempt was made between the two World Wars to carry out modifications shown to be necessary by the First, they consider that it is highly desirable to revise the Convention before the lessons of the Second have been forgotten or forced into the background by other events. They consider, however, that in many respects the draft prepared by the 1947 Conference fails to take account of these lessons. They have therefore prepared a new draft. The texts of the Tenth Hague Convention, the 1947 draft and your Sub-Committee's proposals are set out in parallel columns in Part IV of this Appendix. In order not to provoke disagreement at the forthcoming international conference your Sub-Committee have adhered as closely as possible to the form and wording of the other texts, though they have felt it necessary to rationalize the order of the articles and, in particular to divide them up into four parts, viz. Personnel (provisions corresponding to those of the Geneva Conventions, as modified by the Committee), Hospital Ships, Rights of Belligerent Warships and Miscellaneous Provisions.
20
The principle cause of obsolescence in parts of Hague X is of course the development (over forty years) of new forms of Naval warfare, including the development of submarine and aerial craft, weapons and methods of war. Those who drafted the 1907 Convention had in mind the old-fashioned surface action at close range and the seizure (as distinct from the sinking) of merchantmen. They were not called upon to consider the results of submarine warfare against merchant shipping or the effects of bambing attacks carried out by aircraft which could not even see their target. The importance of these factors will be apparent from the following camentary on some of the draft articles.
This commentary has been divided into two sections.
(a) (Part II of this Appendix). Articles in which the Sub-Committee have
proposed changes (or resisted changes proposed by the 1947 Conference), concerning which they consider ministerial decisions are required.
(b) (Part III of this Appendix).
Articles involving less important changes, of which Ministers will nevertheless, in your Sub-Committee's opinion, wish to be aware.
Other changes can, if necessary, be seen from a comparison of the texts in Part IV of this Appendix but have not been separately discussed.
PART II- PROPOSALS REQUIRING MINISTERIAL CONSIDERATION
3. Article 1 (see also paragraphs 15, 16 and 27 below). Your Sub-Committee consider that a Convention whose main purpose is to apply the principles of the Geneva Conventions (including the proposed new Civilian Convention) to maritime warfare should begin with a general statement that, at sea, all persons who are wounded, sick or shipwrecked shall be respected and protected.
Page 290
-
87
Page 290
140
4. Article 2 (see also paragraph 28 below). Despite Articles 5 and 6 of the Eleventh Hague Convention it was the practice of both sides in the Second World Ragnatorease merchant seamen falling into the India Article 1 of the new Prisoners of War Convention, to which this article refers, will include merchant seamen (and civilim aircrew) among the categories to be treated as prisoners of war.
-
5. Article 3 (see also paragraph 29 below). Since merchant seamen (and civilian aircrew), though enjoying the status of prisoners of war if detained by the opposing belligerent, are not combatants, this article ensures that if they fall into neutral hands or are returned by the captar to their own country, they shall not be interned or prevented from taking further part in the war, as they would generally be if they were combatants.
6. Article 6 (see also paragraphs 17, 18 and 32 below). The 1947 draft requires that particulars of the wounded, sick and dead shall be communicated to the opposing belligerent "as soon as possible". Your Sub-Committee are advised that for reasons of security it is often undesirable to announce at once the sinking of an enemy ship (e.g. a submarine whose loss might not otherwise be known to its high command for some weeks). It would clearly be best to leave this idea out of the Convention altogether, but other delegations at the forthcoming conference are likely to press for something of this sort on humanitarian grounds, It is therefore proposed that the United Kingdom delegation should refuse to accept anything more than that such particulars should be notified "without unnecessary delay.'
!
7. Article 9 (see alsa paragraph 19 to 21 and 35 below). During the Second World War the United Kingdom found it necessary for reasons of operational security to refuse to recognise the large number of small hospital ships notified by the enemy; (a special, and obvious, case for refusal of immunity was that of air-sea rescue craft). It is now generally accepted that to earn immunity hospital ships should be of not less than a certain size and that small boats, such as air-sea rescue craft, should rely on their speed for protection. It is likely to be more difficult to reach agreement at the International Conference on the actual minimum. After hearing technical opinion your Sub-Committee recommend that the minimum should be 2,000 gross registered tons, but consider that the United Kingdom Delegation should be prepared, if necessary, to accept 1,500 tons. There is likely to be some pressure from the Netherlands Government for a third category between hospital ships and air-sea rescue craft; but it is considered that this would too greatly complicate the Convention without compensating advantage.
8. Article 15 (see also paragraph 41 below). This article, which states that hospital ships shall forfeit their immunity if they commit acts harmful to the enemy and lays down certain things which shall not cause a hospital ship to forfeit immunity, is in many ways the most important.
19.
The following is the text of Articles 5 and 6 of the Eleventh
Hague Conventi on
G
"Article 5 when an enemy merchant ship is captured by a belligerent, such of its crew as are nationals of a neutral state are not made prisoners of war.
The same rule applies in the case of the captain and officers likewise nationals of a neutral state, if they promise formally in writing not to serve on an enemy ship while the war lasts.
-
Article 6 The captain, officers and members of the crew, when nationals of the enemy state, are not made prisoners of war, un condition that they make a formal promise in writing not to undertake, while hostilities last, any service connected with the operations of the war.'