the human right to water and sanitation in emergency situations

- Part 2 - Definition of the right to water and sanitation in emergency situations
Where there might seem to be an ambiguity in the definition of “water installations”, Nikolai Jorgensen explains
that “Practice seems to indicate that the term does not include smallest elements of the fresh water
network, but only the largest entities in so far as they are vital to prevent starvation of the civilian population,
both by lack of fresh water itself and lack of fresh water for agriculture”. 82
The words used to designate acts likely to harm such objects are intended to cover all possibilities («it
is prohibited to attack, destroy, remove or render useless» such objects), including through pollution by
chemical or other agents 83 .
According to this rule, warring parties in international armed conflict must respect the following provisions:
- Imperative military necessity entitles a party to the conflict to destroy objects indispensable for civilian
survival, provided they are situated within the territory under its own control.
- Derogation may also be accorded if the destruction of the objects serves as sustenance solely for
members of the armed forces or in direct support of military action.
- Even in those cases, belligerents must abstain from any action that may be expected to reduce the
civilian population to starvation or deprive it of vital water supplies.
- Reprisals against objects indispensable for civilian survival are forbidden.
- It should be noted that none of these exceptions are foreseen in Additional Protocol II, Art. 14, applicable
in non-international armed conflict.
b) Prohibition of starvation as a method of warfare
In any armed conflict, warring parties are limited in the choice of their methods of warfare. Starvation of
civilians as a method of warfare (i.e. as a method used to weaken a population) is expressly prohibited
in both international and non-international armed conflicts (Additional Protocol I, Art. 54 and Additional
Protocol II, Art. 14) and may be considered a war crime. The importance of water for avoiding starvation
is obvious. The prohibition of starvation thus reinforces the right to water of populations affected by armed
conflict.
c) Prohibition of attacks on works and installations containing dangerous forces (dams and dykes)
Attacks on works and installations containing dangerous forces are prohibited. Such works and installations
include, in particular, dams and dykes (Additional Protocol I, Art. 56). An exception can be made if
the facility is used “in regular, significant and direct support of military operations”. In this context, it is worth
noting the stronger protection afforded to dams and dykes in non-international armed conflict. Article 15 of
Additional Protocol II does not include an exception based on military necessity 84 .
d) Protection of the environment
Water resources are an essential part of the natural environment. Some provisions of Additional Protocol I
establish protection for the environment during armed conflict, mainly Articles 35 and 55. Article 35 states
82/ Jorgensen (N.) The Protection of Freshwater in Armed Conflicts. In: Journal of International Law and International Relations,
Vol. (3) 2, pp. 57-96
83/ Sandoz (Y.), Swinarski (Ch.) and Zimmermann (B.) (eds.) Commentary on the Additional Protocols of 1977 to the Geneva
Conventions of 1949, ICRC and Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, Geneva, 1987, para. 2101, p. 655
84/ Whether the provision is more limited under Protocol 2, the scope of the provision does, in theory, still allow for the
possibility of bombing a dam where it is a military target and where the damage ensuing from destroying the dam would not
harm the civilian population
© ACF - THE HUMAN RIGHT TO WATER AND SANITATION IN EMERGENCY SITUATIONS
61