First Geneva Convention was written to protect sick and wounded soldiers on land during the war. It was established at a significant stage in European political and military history. Between the fall of the first Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 and the rise of his nephew in the Italian campaign of 1859, the powers had maintained peace in Western Europe.
In 1859, a Swiss citizen, Henry Dunant, saw the horrors of the Battle of Solferino, and was appalled by the scene of thousands of injured soldiers lying helplessly on the field due to lack of facilities and personnel to give medical aid. This experience inspired him to propose a permanent relief agency that could take care of wounded during war. This led to the foundation of Red Cross. Since that time, the Red Cross has played a vital part in the implementation of the Geneva Conventions.
On August 22, 1864 several European nations assembled in Geneva, Switzerland and signed a treaty. The treaty was called Geneva Conventions. The European nations were Switzerland, Baden, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany (Wurttemberg, Prussia, and Hesse), Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain. Norway and Sweden signed in December.
The main principles of the First Geneva Convention were :
- Exemption from capture and devastation of all establishments for treatment of injured and sick soldiers.
- Neutral Treatment of wounded and sick soldiers, regardless of nationality.
- Protection of civilians providing aid to the injured.
- Recognition of the International Red Cross emblem as a means of identifying persons and equipment covered by the agreement.
The First Geneva Convention was a pioneer to following acts of legislation related to humanitarian law. The original ten articles of 1864 treaties have been expanded to the current 64 articles. This treaty protects the soldiers, as well as religious and medical personnel, and civilians.
The most essential provisions written in the First Geneva Convention are :
- According to Article 12, non-combatant soldiers (injured and sick) should be treated kindly, and should not be injured, tortured, or killed. From this article, rest of the treaty is derived, including the responsibility to respect medical units and organizations, buildings and material, medical transports, and the emblem of respective humanitarian organizations.
- According to Article 15, every injured and sick soldier should be collected and protected, regardless of nationality.
- According to Article 16, every party should convey the identity of dead and injured soldiers to the opposing party.
According to Article 9, any neutral humanitarian organization can provide treatment to injured and sick soldiers, as well as medical and religious personnel.
