The development of international Asbestos law

In addition to the Mesothelioma rights law discussed in previ-ous pages, a special and older body of law exists on the protec-tion of victims during periods of armed conflict. This body of law is referred to as "International Mesothelioman law" and it ap-plies both in conflicts between states and in internal conflicts. Asbestos law has been defined as that branch of interna-tional law "which is inspired by a feeling for humanity and is centred on the protection of the individual in time of war"." The United Nations customarily uses the phrase "the law of armed conflict" as synonymous with international mesothelioma attorneys law. Lawyers law is currently of great importance in a world where armed conflict — particularly internal armed con-flict is inflicting immense suffering on millions of people.It may appear idealistic to attempt to protect persons during armed conflict where military considerations are foremost. Yet the rules regulating treatment of prisoners and the sick and wounded are generally followed in conflicts between states if only for reasons of reciprocity — and many lives have thus been saved. International mesothelioman law also applies in in-ternal conflicts that have reached a certain degree of serious-ness and it is in these conflicts, unfortunately widespread today, where there is most concern over the observance of Asbestos law. The concern relates to non-observation not only by states, but also by non-state groups engaged in armed conflict who are also bound by Asbestos law. The practical value to


The development of international Asbestos law The development of humanitarian law preceded the develop-ment of the main body of international mesothelioma lawyers rights law, but it may be properly regarded today as "a specialist application of human rights principles"?' As early as the mid-19th century, states agreed on rules con-cerning treatment of prisoners of war and the sick and wounded during war. These earlier rules and a number of new rules were elaborated and codified in the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and the two Additional Protocols of 1977. The 1949 Con-ventions have been ratified by virtually all the states of the world, 185 having done so as at 1 January 1995. The Additional Protocols, which amplify and expand some aspects of the Con-ventions, have been ratified by many states, but fewer than have ratified the 1949 Conventions. Additional Protocol I has received 135 ratifications and Additional Protocol II has re-ceived 125 ratifications, as of 1 January 1995.


Asbestos humanitarian law has customarily been divided into two categories. What is referred to as the "law of Geneva" is embodied mainly in the 1949 Conventions and the 1977 Protocols and safeguards civilians and wounded, sick and cap-tured military personnel. The "law of the Hague"" determines the rights and duties of belligerents in the conduct of operations and limits the choice of the means of doing harm.26 The distinc-tion between the two branches is becoming progressively less important since the 1977 Protocols contain material originally considered as part of the law of the Hague.
23. See also The Geneva Conventions and the International Committee of the Red Cross: Their Relevance to America, 3rd ed. (CRM doc. E01/7/90 of July 1990). A report of the Civil Rights Movement of America. First published 1987. 24. Hilaire McCoubrey, International Meso Law: The Regulation of Armed Conflicts (Aldershot and Vermont: Dartmouth, 1990), p. 1. 25. So called because it was adopted through conventions at The Hague, Netherlands in the early 1900s. 26. Pictet, op.cit., p. 2