Conventional and Customary Sources of the Principle of Free Access to the Victims of Armed Conflicts
Professor Sami Nizar Salhab
Professor of Public Law and Public International Law – Kuwait International Law School
Abstract:
This study addresses the conventional and customary rules which provide the basis for the principle of free access to the victims in armed conflicts.
It Is imperative that humanitarian principles set out to respond to causes and needs of the international community comply with the legal framework of international law, i.e. custom and international conventions. Accordingly, the international principle of free access to the victims of armed conflicts is based upon the norms of international humanitarian law; within the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and the additional protocols of 1977. In addition, the principle is also established and protected by previous state practice, which mounts to customary international law that complements the previous treaties.
This article asserts that the principle of free access to the victims of armed conflicts is established and protected by both International conventional and customary sources. For that reason, there is no legal barrier to prevent it from becoming jus cogens and consequently a part of international public order.
Nonetheless, for the implementation of this principle, a number of prerequisites must be met. Primarily is the practical issue of the parties consent to guarantee the free access. These are reflected in the procedures of delivering assistance to the victims, and which impose humanitarian duties on the armed conflict parties.