Protection of Persons Deprived of Their Liberty in Contemporary Armed Conflicts

Abstract

In the contemporary armed conflicts of today, deprivation of liberty has become a widely used method by both states and non-state armed groups. The conditions in which those vulnerable persons are detained by the parties of conflict are extremely severe and quite tragic. They are often held in conditions where they are unaware of the reasons for their detention and their rights, their communication with the outside world is banned and they have inadequate access to water, food and medical assistance. They are often subjected to extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearance, torture and ill-treatment, and cannot be protected. Although this is mostly due to the failure to comply with relevant legal norms, lack of knowledge of the law or lack of capacity and physical disabilities; the lack of detailed legal norms in noninternational armed conflicts compared to international armed conflicts is an important factor in the inability to protect their life, dignity and health. This study aims to address humanitarian law in terms of the ‘deprivation of liberty’ which is commonly applied by the parties to the conflict in the context of the Non-International Armed Conflicts which has become a fundamental characteristic of contemporary armed conflicts. Within this scope, whether the provisions on deprivation of liberty/detention in the law of Non-International Armed Conflicts provide adequate protection or not and the legal gaps in this respect will be examined. Additionally, in cases of detention, the areas of Humanitarian Law need to be improved alongside efforts and solution proposals to strengthen these areas will be included.

Keywords

• Non-International armed conflicts,Deprivation of liberty,Detention,Internment,Non-State armed groups

Günümüz Çatışmalarında Özgürlüğünden Yoksun Bırakılmış Kişilerin Korunması

Abstract

Günümüz silahlı çatışmalarında ‘özgürlüğünden yoksun bırakma’, hem devletler hem de devlet dışı silahlı gruplar tarafından oldukça yaygın kullanılan bir yöntem haline gelmiştir. Çatışma taraflarınca alıkonulan bu savunmasız kişilerin tutulduğu koşullar son derece ağır ve insani açıdan oldukça trajiktir. Bu kişiler çoğunlukla alıkonma sebeplerinden ve haklarından bihaber, dış dünya ile iletişimleri yasaklanmış, yeterli su, gıda ve tıbbi yardıma ulaşamadıkları koşullarda tutulmakta; sıklıkla yargısız infazlara, zorla kaybedilmeye, işkenceye ve kötü muameleye maruz kalmakta ve korunamamaktadır. Bunun sebebi çoğunlukla ilgili hukuk normlarına uyulmaması, hukukun bilinmemesi ya da kapasite eksikliği ve fiziki olanaksızlıklar olmakla birlikte; uluslararası silahlı çatışmalara oranla uluslararası nitelikte olmayan silahlı çatışmalarda bu hususlara ilişkin detaylandırılmış hukuki normların eksikliği bu kişilerin yaşamı, onuru ve sağlığının korunamamasında önemli bir etkendir. Bu çalışma günümüz çatışmalarının temel bir karakteristiği haline gelen Uluslararası Nitelikte Olmayan Silahlı Çatışmalar bağlamında İnsancıl Hukuku, çatışma taraflarının yoğun bir şekilde uyguladığı ‘özgürlükten yoksun bırakma’ hususu açısından ele almayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu kapsamda, Uluslararası Nitelikte Olmayan Çatışmalar Hukukunda özgürlükten yoksun bırakma/ alıkoyma kavramına dair hükümlerin kişilere yeterli koruma sağlayıp sağlamadığı ve bu husustaki hukuki boşluklar irdelenecek; alıkoyma durumlarında kişilerin korunması açısından İnsancıl Hukukun geliştirilmesi gereken alanları ile bu alanların güçlendirilmesine dair çabalar ve çözüm önerilerine yer verilecektir.

Keywords

• Uluslararası nitelikte olmayan silahlı çatışmalar,Özgürlükten yoksun bırakma,Tutukluluk,Enterne edilme,Devlet dışı silahlı gruplar

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