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Original text
The undersigned, Plenipotentiaries of the Governments represented at the Diplomatic Conference, which met in Geneva from 21 April to 12 August 1949 in order to revise the X E Hague Convention of 18 October 1907 3 For the adaptation to the Maritime War of the principles of the Geneva Convention of 1906, have agreed as follows:
The High Contracting Parties undertake to respect and ensure compliance with this Convention in all circumstances.
Apart from the provisions which shall enter into force from the time of peace, this Convention shall apply in the event of a declared war or any other armed conflict arising between two or more of the High Contracting Parties, even if the State Of war is not recognized by one of them.
The Convention shall also apply in all cases of occupation of all or part of the territory of a High Contracting Party, even if such occupation does not meet any military resistance.
If one of the Powers in conflict is not a party to this Convention, the Powers that are party to this Convention shall nevertheless remain bound by it in their mutual relations. They shall also be bound by the Convention to the said Power, if it accepts and applies the provisions thereof.
In the event of an armed conflict not of an international character and emerging in the territory of one of the High Contracting Parties, each Party to the conflict shall be required to apply at least the following provisions:
An impartial humanitarian agency, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, will be able to offer its services to the parties to the conflict.
The Parties to the conflict shall endeavour, on the other hand, to bring into force through special agreements all or part of the other provisions of this Convention.
The application of the foregoing provisions shall not affect the legal status of the Parties to the conflict.
In the event of war operations between the land and sea forces of the Parties to the conflict, the provisions of this Convention shall apply only to the forces on board.
The forces landed will be immediately subject to the provisions of the Geneva Convention of 12 August 1949 1 To improve the lot of the wounded and sick in the armed forces in the field.
The Neutral Powers shall apply by analogy the provisions of this Convention to the wounded, sick and shipwrecked, to the members of the health and religious personnel, belonging to the armed forces of the Parties to the conflict, who shall be received or Interned on their territory, as well as the deaths raised.
Apart from the agreements expressly provided for in Art. 10, 18, 31, 38, 39, 40, 43 and 53, the High Contracting Parties may conclude other special agreements on any matter which they deem appropriate to resolve in particular. No special agreement shall prejudice the situation of injured, sick and shipwrecked persons, as well as members of health and religious personnel, as regulated by this Convention, or restrict their rights Grants.
The injured, sick and shipwrecked, as well as the members of the health and religious staff, shall remain for the benefit of such agreements as long as the Convention is applicable to them, except as expressly provided for in the aforementioned Agreements or in subsequent agreements, or other more favourable measures taken against them by any of the Parties to the conflict.
Injured, sick and shipwrecked persons, as well as members of health and religious personnel, shall in no case be given partial or complete renunciation of the rights granted to them by this Convention and, where appropriate, the special agreements referred to in this Convention To the previous article.
This Convention shall be applied with the assistance of and under the control of the Protecting Powers responsible for safeguarding the interests of the Parties to the conflict. For this purpose, protective Powers may, outside their diplomatic or consular staff, designate delegates from among their own nationals or among nationals of other Neutral Powers. Such delegates shall be subject to the approval of the Power to which they will carry out their duties.
Parties to the conflict will facilitate, to the greatest extent possible, the task of representatives or delegates of the Protecting Powers.
The representatives or delegates of the Protecting Powers shall under no circumstances exceed the limits of their mission, as set out in this Convention, in particular taking into account the pressing security requirements of the State With whom they perform their duties. Only urgent military requirements may permit, on an exceptional and temporary basis, a restriction of their activity.
The provisions of this Convention shall not preclude humanitarian activities which the International Committee of the Red Cross, as well as any other impartial humanitarian agency, will undertake for the protection of the wounded, sick and Shipwrecked persons, as well as members of health and religious personnel, and for the assistance to provide them with the approval of the Parties to the conflict concerned.
The High Contracting Parties may, at any time, agree to entrust to a body with all guarantees of impartiality and effectiveness the tasks assigned by this Convention to the Protecting Powers.
If injured, sick and shipwrecked persons, or members of health and religious personnel, do not benefit from, or benefit from, the activity of a Protecting Power or a Designated Agency in accordance with the paragraph First, the Detaining Power shall require either a neutral State or such an organization to assume the functions of the present Convention in respect of the protective Powers designated by the Parties to the conflict.
If protection cannot be assured, the Detaining Power shall require a humanitarian agency, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, to carry out the humanitarian tasks vested in the Powers of the Powers Shall accept, subject to the provisions of this Article, the offers of services originating from such an organisation.
Any Neutral Power or any body invited by the Power concerned or offering for the above-mentioned purposes shall, in its activity, remain conscious of its responsibility to the Party to the conflict for which the persons protected by the Convention, and shall provide sufficient guarantees of capacity to carry out the functions in question and to fulfil them impartially.
There shall be no derogation from the foregoing provisions by particular agreement between Powers of which one would be, even temporarily, vis-vis the other Power or its allies, limited in its freedom to negotiate as a result of the Military events, particularly in the event of an occupation of all or an important part of its territory.
Whenever it is mentioned in this Convention of the Protecting Power, such reference shall also refer to the bodies which replace it within the meaning of this Article.
In all cases where they deem it useful in the interests of protected persons, in particular in the event of disagreement between the Parties to the conflict on the application or interpretation of the provisions of this Convention, the Protecting Powers Lend their good offices for the resolution of the dispute.
For this purpose, each of the Protecting Powers may, on the invitation of a Party or spontaneously, propose to the Parties to the conflict a meeting of their representatives and, in particular, the authorities responsible for the fate of the injured, sick and Shipwrecked, as well as members of health and religious personnel, possibly in an appropriately chosen neutral territory. The Parties to the conflict will be required to respond to the proposals that will be made to them in this regard. The Protecting Powers may, where appropriate, propose to the approval of the Parties to the conflict a person belonging to a neutral power, or a person delegated by the International Committee of the Red Cross, to be called to Participate in this meeting.
Members of the armed forces and other persons referred to in the following article who will be at sea and who will be injured, sick or shipwrecked shall be respected and protected in all circumstances, on the understanding that the term "shipwreck" Will be applicable to any shipwreck, regardless of the circumstances in which it occurred, including forced landing or fall at sea.
They shall be treated and treated humanely by the Party to the conflict which shall have them in its power, without any distinction of adverse character based on sex, race, nationality, religion, political opinion or any other criterion Similar. Any infringement of their lives and of their person and, inter alia, the fact of completing or exterminating them, subjection to torture, carrying out biological experiments on them, and leaving them in a premeditated manner without any interference is strictly prohibited. Medical or non-medical care, or to expose them to risks of infection or infection created for this purpose.
Only medical emergency reasons will allow priority in the order of care.
Women will be treated in all special ways due to their gender.
This Convention shall apply to shipwrecked, injured and sick at sea in the following categories:
Any warship of a belligerent Party may claim the surrender of the injured, sick or shipwrecked, who are on board military hospitals, hospital ships of relief societies or individuals, as well as ships of Trade, yachts and boats, irrespective of their nationality, provided that the condition of the injured and sick allows them to be surrendered and that the warship has facilities to ensure that they are adequately treated.
If injured, sick or shipwrecked are being collected on a neutral warship or by a neutral military aircraft, it will have to be provided, when required by international law, that they cannot take part in the War operations.
In view of the provisions of Art. 12, the wounded, the sick and the shipwrecked of a belligerent, who fell to the power of the enemy, will be prisoners of war and the rules of the law of the people concerning the prisoners of war will be applicable to them. It will be up to the sensor to decide, depending on the circumstances, whether to keep them, to direct them to a port in their country, to a neutral port, or even to an opponent's port. In the latter case, prisoners of war thus returned to their country would not be able to serve for the duration of the war.
The injured, sick or shipwrecked who will be landed in a neutral port, with the consent of the local authority, shall, unless otherwise agreed by the Neutral Power with the belligerent Powers, be kept by the Power Neutral, when required by international law, in such a way that they cannot take part in war operations again.
The costs of hospitalization and internment will be borne by the power of the injured, sick or shipwrecked.
After each fight, the Parties to the conflict shall take all possible measures without delay to seek and collect the shipwrecked, injured and sick, to protect them from pillage and ill-treatment and to provide them with care Necessary, as well as to find the dead and prevent them from being robbed.
Whenever circumstances permit, the Parties to the conflict shall conclude local arrangements for the evacuation by sea of the wounded and sick from a besieged or encircled area and for the passage of health and religious personnel and Health equipment to this area.
The Parties to the conflict shall record, as soon as possible, all the elements necessary to identify the shipwrecked, the injured, the sick and the dead of the opposing party in their power. This information should, if possible, include:
As soon as possible, the information referred to above must be disclosed to the information office referred to in s. 122 of the Geneva Convention of 12 August 1949 1 On the treatment of prisoners of war, which will transmit them to the power of these prisoners, through the Protecting Power and the Central Prisoners of War Agency.
The Parties to the conflict shall establish and communicate by the means indicated in the preceding paragraph, the acts of death or duly authenticated death lists. They shall also collect and transmit, through the same office, half of the double identity plate or the plate itself, if it is a simple plate, wills or other documents of importance to the Family of deceased, sums of money and, in general, all objects of intrinsic or emotional value found on the dead. These objects, as well as the unidentified objects, will be sent in sealed packages, accompanied by a declaration giving all the details necessary for the identification of the deceased owner, as well as a complete inventory of the package.
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The Parties to the conflict shall ensure that the disposal of the dead, individually to the extent that the circumstances permit, is preceded by a careful examination and, if possible, medical of the bodies, with a view to seeing death, to establish Identity and accountability. If a double nameplate is used, half of the plaque will remain on the body.
If the dead are landed, the provisions of the Geneva Convention of 12 August 1949 1 To improve the lot of the wounded and sick in the armed forces in the field will be applicable to them.
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The parties to the conflict will be able to use the charitable zeal of the commanders of merchant ships, yachts or neutral boats, to take on board and care for the injured, sick or shipwrecked, and to collect the dead.
Vessels of all kinds who have responded to this call, as well as those who spontaneously receive injured, sick or shipwrecked, will enjoy special protection and facilities for the execution of their assistance mission.
Under no circumstances will they be captured for the purpose of such transport; but, unless otherwise promised, they remain exposed to the capture for violations of neutrality they may have committed.
Military hospital ships, that is, ships built or developed by the Powers, especially and solely for the purpose of rescuing, treating and transporting the wounded, sick and shipwrecked, shall not be able to Be attacked or captured, but shall at all times be respected and protected, provided that their names and characteristics have been communicated to the Parties to the conflict, ten days before their employment.
The characteristics that must be included in the notification will include the gross tonnage recorded, the length of the stern at the bow and the number of masts and chimneys.
The settlements on the coast " and entitled to the protection of the Geneva Convention of 12 August 1949 1 For the improvement of the fate of the wounded and sick in the armed forces in the field shall not be attacked or bombarded by the sea.
Hospital ships used by National Red Cross Societies, officially recognized Emergency Societies, or individuals will enjoy the same protection as military hospital ships and will be free of capture, if The party to the conflict on which they depend has given them an offering commission and, as far as the provisions of s. 22 relating to the notification will have been observed.
Such ships shall carry a document of the competent authority stating that they have been subjected to its control during their armament and at their departure.
Hospital ships used by National Red Cross Societies, officially recognized Emergency Societies, or individuals from neutral countries, will enjoy the same protection as military hospital ships and will be exempt If they have been under the direction of one of the Parties to the conflict, with the prior consent of their own Government and with the authorization of that Party, and in so far as the provisions of Art. 22 concerning the notification will have been observed.
Protection under s. 22, 24 and 25 will apply to the hospital shuttles of all ages and to their lifeboats, in any place they operate. However, in order to ensure maximum comfort and safety, the Parties to the conflict shall endeavour not to use, for the transport of the injured, sick and shipwrecked, over long distances and on the high seas, than hospital ships with more than 2000 gross tons.
Under the same conditions as are provided for in Art. 22 and 24, vessels used by the State or by officially recognized Emergency Societies for coastal rescue operations will also be respected and protected to the extent that they are. Operational requirements will allow this.
The same shall apply, to the extent possible, for the fixed coastal installations used exclusively by these vessels for their humanitarian missions.
In the case of a battle on ships of war, the infirm will be respected and spared as much as possible. These inpatients and their equipment will remain subject to the laws of war, but cannot be diverted from their jobs as long as they are necessary for the wounded and sick. However, the commanding officer who has the power to do so will have the power to dispose of them, in the event of urgent military necessity, by ensuring in advance the fate of the wounded and sick who are treated there.
Any hospital ship in a port that falls to the enemy's power will be allowed to leave.
Ships and boats referred to in s. 22, 24, 25 and 27 will provide relief and assistance to the injured, sick and shipwrecked, regardless of nationality. The High Contracting Parties undertake not to use these ships and boats for any military purpose.
These ships and boats will not interfere in any way with the movements of the combatants.
During and after the fight, they will act at their peril.
Parties to the conflict shall have the right to control and visit vessels and vessels referred to in s. 22, 24, 25 and 27. They may refuse the assistance of such vessels and vessels, require them to move away, impose a determined direction, settle the employment of their T.S.F. and any other means of communication and even retain them for a maximum period of time. Seven days from the time of boarding, if the seriousness of the circumstances required it.
They may temporarily put on board a Commissioner, whose exclusive task will be to ensure the execution of the orders given under the provisions of the preceding paragraph.
As far as possible, the parties to the conflict will write to the hospital ship diary, in a language that is understandable to the hospital ship commander, the orders they will give them.
Parties to the conflict may, either unilaterally or by special agreement, place on board their hospital vessels neutral observers who will observe the strict observance of the provisions of this Convention.
Ships and boats designated under s. 22, 24, 25 and 27 are not assimilated to warships for their stay in a neutral port.
Commercial vessels that have been converted to hospital ships will not be decommissioned for the duration of the hostilities.
The protection due to hospital ships and the infirmaries of vessels will only be able to stop if it is used to commit, apart from their humanitarian duties, acts harmful to the enemy. However, protection will cease only after summing up, in all appropriate cases, a reasonable period of time and which would have remained without effect.
In particular, hospital ships will not be able to own or use a secret code for their broadcasts by T.S.F. or any other means of communication.
It shall not be considered to be such as to deprive the hospital ships or the infirm of vessels of the protection due to them:
The religious, medical and hospital staff of the hospital ships and their crew will be respected and protected; they will not be able to be captured during the time they are serving these ships, whether or not there are injured and sick on board.
Religious, medical and hospital personnel assigned to the medical or spiritual service of persons designated in art. 12 and 13, which falls within the power of the enemy, shall be respected and protected; he may continue to perform his duties as long as necessary for the care to be given to the wounded and sick. It will then have to be returned as soon as the commander-in-chief who has it in his or her capacity will be able to do so. On leaving the ship, he will be able to carry the objects that are his personal property.
If, however, it is necessary to retain some of this personnel as a result of the health or spiritual needs of the prisoners of war, all measures will be taken to disembark as soon as possible.
Upon landing, the selected personnel will be subject to the provisions of the Geneva Convention of 12 August 1949 1 To improve the lot of the wounded and sick in the armed forces in the field.
Vessels chartered for this purpose shall be permitted to transport equipment exclusively for the treatment of the wounded and sick of the armed forces or for the prevention of diseases, provided that the conditions of their journey are reported to the The opposing power and agreed upon by it. The opposing Power shall retain the right to reason, but not to capture or seize the transported material.
In agreement between the Parties to the conflict, neutral observers may be placed on board these vessels to control the material carried. To this end, this material must be easily accessible.
Sanitary aircraft, that is, aircraft used exclusively for the evacuation of the wounded, sick and shipwrecked, as well as for the transport of personnel and sanitary equipment, will not be the object of attack but will be Shall be respected by the Parties to the conflict during their flights at altitudes, hours and in accordance with itineraries specifically agreed between all Parties to the conflict concerned.
They will ostensibly bear the distinctive sign provided for in Art. 41, next to the national colours, on their lower, upper and lateral faces. They shall have any other signs or means of recognition fixed by agreement between the Parties to the conflict either at the beginning or in the course of hostilities.
Unless otherwise agreed, the overflight of enemy territory or occupied by the enemy shall be prohibited.
Sanitary aircraft will be required to obey any warning of landing or landing. In the event of landing or landing, the aircraft, with its occupants, will be able to resume its flight after possible control.
In the event of an accidental landing or landing on enemy territory or occupied by the enemy, the wounded, sick and shipwrecked, as well as the crew of the aircraft will be prisoners of war. Health personnel will be treated in accordance with art. 36 and 37.
The health aircraft of the Parties to the conflict may, subject to the second paragraph, fly over the territory of the Neutral Powers and land or land in the event of necessity or to make a stopover there. They shall notify the Neutral Powers in advance of their passage to their territory and obey any summons to land or amerrir. They shall be immune from attacks only during their flight at altitudes, at hours, and in accordance with a specific itinerary agreed between the Parties to the conflict and the neutral Powers concerned.
However, the Neutral Powers may lay down conditions or restrictions on the overflight of their territory by the health aircraft or their landing. Any such conditions or restrictions shall be applied equally to all Parties to the conflict.
The injured, sick or shipwrecked, with the consent of the local authority, on a neutral territory by a health aircraft, shall, unless otherwise agreed by the neutral state with the parties to the conflict, be kept by the State Neutral, when required by international law, so that they cannot again take part in the operations of the war. The costs of hospitalization and internment will be borne by the Power on which the injured, sick or shipwrecked are dependent.
Under the control of the competent military authority, the emblem of the red cross on a white background will appear on the flags, armbands and all material relating to the Sanitary Service.
However, for countries which already employ a distinctive sign in place of the red cross, the red crescent or the lion and the red sun on a white background, such emblems shall also be accepted for the purposes of this Convention.
The staff referred to in s. 36 and 37, will wear a moisture-resistant armband attached to the left arm and equipped with the distinctive sign issued and stamped by the military authority.
This staff, in addition to the identity plate provided for in s. 19, will also carry a special identity card bearing the distinctive sign. This card will have to withstand the humidity and be of such dimensions as it can be put into the pocket. It will be written in the national language, with at least the names and names, the date of birth, the rank and the number of the person concerned. It shall establish in what capacity it is entitled to the protection of this Convention. The card will be equipped with the photograph of the holder and, in addition, either his signature or fingerprints, or both. It will bear the dry stamp of the military authority.
The identity card shall be uniform in each army and as much as possible of the same type in the armed forces of the High Contracting Parties. Parties to the conflict may be guided by the model annexed as an example to this Convention. At the beginning of hostilities, they will communicate the model they use. Each identity card will be established, if possible, in at least two copies, one of which will be retained by the original Power.
In no case shall the personnel mentioned above be deprived of their badges or their identity card or of the right to wear the armband. In case of loss, he shall have the right to obtain duplicate copies of the card and the replacement of the insignia.
Ships and boats referred to in s. 22, 24, 25 and 27 will be distinguished in the following manner:
All hospital ships will be recognized by flying their national flag and, in addition, if they are nationals of a neutral state, the flag of the Party to the conflict under the direction of which they have placed themselves. A red-cross white flag should be flown at the top mast as high as possible.
The lifeboats of the ships-hospitals, coastal lifeboats and all the small boats used by the Health Service will be painted white with dark red crosses clearly visible and, in general, the modes The above identification for hospital ships will be applicable to them.
The above vessels and vessels mentioned, who wish to ensure at night and in times of reduced visibility, the protection to which they are entitled shall, with the consent of the Party to the conflict in power of which they are located, take, with the consent of the Party, The measures necessary to make their paintings and distinctive emblems sufficiently apparent.
The hospital ships which, pursuant to s. 31, shall be held provisionally by the enemy, shall return the flag of the Party to the conflict in the service of which they are located, or whose direction they have accepted.
The coastal rescue boats, if they continue, with the consent of the occupying Power, to operate from a occupied base, may be allowed to continue to bear their own national colours at the same time as the red cross flag, When they are removed from their base, subject to prior notification to all Parties to the conflict concerned.
All the stipulations of this article relating to the emblem of the red cross also apply to the other emblems mentioned in art. 41.
The Parties to the conflict shall, at all times, endeavour to reach agreements with a view to using the most modern methods available to them, in order to facilitate the identification of vessels and vessels referred to in this Article.
The distinctive signs provided for in Art. 43 may be used, in peacetime as in war, only to designate or protect the ships mentioned therein, subject to the cases which would be provided for by another International Convention or by agreement between all the Parties to the conflict concerned.
The High Contracting Parties, whose legislation would not be sufficient now, shall take the necessary measures to prevent and repress at all times any misuse of the distinctive signs provided for in Art. 43.
Each Party to the conflict, through its Commanders in Chief, shall have to provide for the details of the implementation of the foregoing Articles, as well as any unanticipated cases, in accordance with the general principles of this Convention.
Reprisal measures against the injured, sick, shipwrecked, personnel, ships or equipment protected by the Convention are prohibited.
The High Contracting Parties undertake to disseminate as widely as possible, in peacetime and in time of war, the text of the present Convention in their respective countries, including the incorporation of the study into the programmes Military training and, if possible, civil, in such a way that the principles are known to the entire population, including the fighting armed forces, health personnel and chaplains.
The High Contracting Parties shall communicate through the Swiss Federal Council and, during the hostilities, through the Protecting Powers, the official translations of this Convention, as well as the laws and regulations That they may be amended to implement them.
The High Contracting Parties undertake to take all necessary legislative measures to establish appropriate criminal sanctions to be applied to persons who have committed, or given the order to commit, any of the serious offences to the Present Convention as defined in the following Article.
Each Contracting Party will have an obligation to search for those who have committed, or have ordered, to commit, either of these serious offences, and they will have to refer them to their own courts, irrespective of their Nationality. It may also, if it prefers, and under the conditions laid down in its own legislation, deliver them for judgment to another Contracting Party interested in the prosecution, provided that that Contracting Party has held against those People with sufficient loads.
Each Contracting Party shall take the necessary measures to stop acts contrary to the provisions of this Convention, other than the serious offences defined in the following article.
In all circumstances, the accused will benefit from procedural and self-defence guarantees which will not be lower than those laid down in Art. 105 et seq. Of the Geneva Convention of 12 August 1949 1 On the treatment of prisoners of war.
The serious offences referred to in the preceding article shall be those that involve any of the following acts, if committed against persons or property protected by the Convention: intentional homicide, torture or treatment Inhuman, including biological experiments, intentionally causing great suffering or serious harm to physical integrity or health, destruction and appropriation of property, not justified by Military necessity and executed on a large scale in an unlawful and arbitrary manner.
No Contracting Party may exempt itself, or exempt another Contracting Party, from the liability incurred by itself or another Contracting Party as a result of the offences provided for in the preceding Article.
At the request of a Party to the conflict, an investigation shall be initiated, depending on the manner in which the parties concerned agree, on any alleged violation of the Convention.
If an agreement on the investigation procedure is not reached, the Parties will agree to choose an arbitrator, who will decide on the procedure to be followed.
Once the violation is found, the Parties to the conflict will put an end to it and reprimand it as soon as possible.
This Convention shall be established in English and French. Both texts are equally authentic.
The Swiss Federal Council will establish official translations of the Convention in the Russian and Spanish languages.
This Convention, which shall bear the date of this day, may, until 12 February 1950, be signed in the name of the Powers represented at the Conference which opened in Geneva on 21 April 1949, as well as the unrepresented Powers Conference taking part in X E Hague Convention of 18 October 1907 1 For the adaptation to the maritime war of the principles of the Geneva Convention of 1906, or the Geneva Conventions of 1864 2 , 1906 3 Or 1929 4 , to improve the lot of the wounded and sick in the armies in the field.
This Convention shall be ratified as soon as possible and ratifications shall be deposited in Bern.
The deposit of each instrument of ratification shall be a record of which a certified copy shall be furnished by the Swiss Federal Council to all the Powers on behalf of which the Convention has been signed or the notified accession.
This Convention shall enter into force six months after at least two instruments of ratification have been deposited.
Thereafter, it shall enter into force for each High Contracting Party six months after the deposit of its instrument of ratification.
This Convention replaces the X E Hague Convention of 18 October 1907 1 For the adaptation to the maritime war of the principles of the Geneva Convention of 1906, in the relations between the High Contracting Parties.
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On the date of its entry into force, this Convention shall be open for accession by any Power on whose behalf this Convention has not been signed.
The accessions will be notified in writing to the Swiss Federal Council and will have effect six months after the date on which they are received.
The Swiss Federal Council will communicate the accessions to all the Powers on behalf of which the Convention has been signed or the notified accession.
The situations under s. 2 and 3 shall give immediate effect to the ratifications filed and to the accessions notified by the Parties to the conflict before or after the commencement of hostilities or occupation. The communication of the ratifications or accessions received from the Parties to the conflict will be made by the Swiss Federal Council by the quickest route.
Each High Contracting Party shall have the right to denounce this Convention.
The denunciation shall be notified in writing to the Swiss Federal Council. The latter shall communicate the notification to the Governments of all High Contracting Parties.
The denunciation will have effect one year after its notification to the Swiss Federal Council. However, the notified denunciation while the denouncing power is involved in a conflict will have no effect as long as peace has not been concluded and, in any event, as long as the release and Repatriation of persons protected by this Convention shall not be completed.
Denunciation shall be valid only with regard to the denouncing power. It will have no effect on the obligations that the Parties to the conflict will remain bound to fulfil in accordance with the principles of the law of the people as they result from the established practices between civilized nations, the laws of humanity and the requirements of the Public consciousness.
The Swiss Federal Council shall register this Convention at the United Nations Secretariat. The Swiss Federal Council shall also inform the United Nations Secretariat of all ratifications, accessions and denunciations that it may receive on the subject of this Convention.
In witness whereof, The undersigned, having deposited their respective full powers, have signed this Convention.
Done at Geneva, on 12 August 1949, in the English and French languages, the original to be deposited in the archives of the Swiss Confederation. The Swiss Federal Council will transmit a certified copy of the Convention to each of the signatory states, as well as to the States which have acceded to the Convention.
(Suivent signatures)
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Annex| For members of health and religious personnel attached to the armed forces on the sea |
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The dry stamp of military authority issuing the card
