Protecting Civilians During Armed Conflicts
Three weeks ago, history was made in The Hague when three men were put on trial by a war crimes tribunal for alleged sexual violence against women during the Bosnian conflict in the early 1990s. The trial represents one facet of an increasingly sophisticated approach to dealing with armed groups. At a recent HSPH seminar in Cambridge, Jennifer Leaning, professor of health and human rights, and Claude Bruderlein, research fellow, both at the Center for Population and Development Studies, discussed armed groups and their treatment of civilians.
War crimes tribunals, such as the one underway, reassert the importance of international law, said Bruderlein, but more importantly, they offer opportunities to engage armed groups in a dialogue. "When they are a key actor in a situation, they need to be involved in the tribunal process," he said.
Bruderlein said the experience of humanitarian institutions such as the International Committee of the Red Cross has demonstrated the potential benefits of such a dialogue for civilian populations. Bruderlein and Leaning agreed that armed groups can and should be engaged in dialogue to protect human security. In addition, they offered specific criteria by which to determine how viable the dialogue can be.
War crimes tribunals are handicapped by the difficulty in gathering evidence in real time, said Leaning. Data is collected from satellite pictures, informants, and anecdotes. Being able to speak to armed groups successfully may help complete the data set.
