The International Committee of the Red Cross in Internal Armed Conflicts Is Neutrality Possible? Rajeesh Kumar The International Committee of the Red Cross in Internal Armed Conflicts Rajeesh Kumar The International Committee of the Red Cross in Internal Armed Conflicts Is Neutrality Possible? Rajeesh Kumar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses New Delhi, India ISBN 978-981-13-2600-4 ISBN 978-981-13-2601-1 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-2601-1 Library of Congress Control Number: 2018956578 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2019 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Cover illustration: © John Rawsterne/patternhead.com This Palgrave Pivot imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. The registered company address is: 152 Beach Road, #21-01/04 Gateway East, Singapore 189721, Singapore A cknowledgements This book has its origins as a doctoral thesis written at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. I would like to thank all the people who helped me in materializing this project. First, my doctoral super- visor, Dr. Moushumi Basu and other faculty members of the Centre for International Politics, Organization, and Disarmament, School of International Studies, in particular for providing a conducive research environment. Dr. Basu has always been willing to offer her guidance and find new ways to improve what I have written. A special thanks to Prof. CSR Murthy from who I learned a lot without conversing much. Thanks to Prof. Robert Kolb, University of Geneva, Switzerland and Prof. Peter J. Katzenstein, Cornell University, USA, for their extremely beneficial comments on my chapters. In the midst of busy academic schedule, nothing but the professionalism and passion of knowledge pushed them to spend their precious hours on my draft. Thanks to Fabrizio Benzi, Archivist and Daniel Palmieri, Research Officer, at ICRC Archives, Geneva, for their help that are not to be translated into words. Thanks also to the ICRC Archives and Library for allowing me to refer its early documents. Thanks to Jawaharlal Nehru University and ICSSR for financially supporting my field trips to Switzerland and Sri Lanka. Thanks to Sharon Susan Koshy for reading the initial draft. I owe many thanks to the editorial team at the Palgrave Macmillan for making the publication process smooth and efficient. v vi ACKNOwLEDGEMENTS I have also been fortunate to have supportive mentors and friends throughout my life. In no particular order, thanks to Prof. A. K. Ramakrishnan, Prof. M. H. Ilias, Dr. Happymon Jacob, Dr. N. Sebastian. Thanks to Ayyoob, Anwar, Basith, Farsana, Jojin, Kunju, Kunhi, Prasad, Swalih, Sudeep and many others in JNU. Kids in Mahanadi hostel, Iggu, Anamu, Minnu, Shalu, Ponnu, Maryam, Saman, Diya and their mammas, Manjula, Poovi, Shameena, Khadheeja, Jayasree, Ahsana were terrific in easing the strain of research. Also remembering friends in my hometown, Poolakkool. My gratitude extends to whole family members, especially Amma. Memories of Achan and Aandiappan. Finally, I would like to dedicate this book to my wife Bushra, and daughter Rida Sasha, for their love, serenity, and understanding. c ontents 1 Introduction 1 1.1 The ICRC: Origin, Mandate and Principles 4 1.2 Changing Nature of War and Its Impacts on Humanitarianism 9 1.3 Methodology 13 1.4 Structure of the Book 14 References 15 2 ‘Between States and Insurgents’: The ICRC in Internal Armed Conflicts 21 2.1 Rules of Internal Armed Conflicts: History and Practice 23 2.2 The ICRC and the Internal Armed Conflicts 26 2.2.1 Early Years 27 2.2.2 Washington Conference to the End of Second World War 28 2.2.3 The ICRC in Post-Cold War Internal Armed Conflicts 51 2.3 Customary International Law and Internal Armed Conflicts 57 2.4 Conclusion 60 References 62 vii viii CONTENTS 3 The ICRC and the Armed Conflict in Sri Lanka 69 3.1 Armed Conflict in Sri Lanka: An Overview 71 3.2 Regional and International Responses 74 3.3 Eelam War IV and the Humanitarian Catastrophe 76 3.4 The ICRC in the Sri Lankan Armed Conflict 80 3.5 Eelam War IV (2007–2009) and Post-War Relief Operations 82 References 92 4 The ICRC in Darfur Conflict, Sudan 97 4.1 Armed Conflict in Darfur 98 4.2 Humanitarian Disaster and International Responses 103 4.3 The ICRC in Darfur Conflict 106 References 117 5 Conclusion 121 5.1 Major Findings of the Study 122 References 130 Bibliography 131 l f ist of igures Fig. 3.1 ICRC offices in Sri Lanka 2007–2012 (Source Compiled from the ICRC Annual Reports 2007–2012) 84 Fig. 4.1 ICRC staffs in Sudan 2003–2013 (Source Compiled from the ICRC Annual Reports 2003–2013) 109 ix l t ist of Ables Table 3.1 ICRC spending and staff in Sri Lanka (2006–2014) 85 Table 3.2 ICRC emergency appeal funds (2007–2009) 86 Table 3.3 ICRC relief operations in Sri Lanka 2006–2014 (no. of persons) 86 Table 3.4 ICRC detention visits in Sri Lanka (2006–2013) 87 Table 3.5 Red Cross Messages (RCMs) and tracing services in Sri Lanka 87 Table 4.1 ICRC Spending and staff in Sudan 2003–2013 108 Table 4.2 Detention visits in Darfur 111 Table 4.3 RCMs and Tracing Services in Darfur 112 Table 4.4 Emergency aid in Darfur (beneficiaries in persons) 114 xi