A UN expert body has begun drafting the first articles of what might eventually be proposed to states as a draft treaty on the “protection of persons in the event of disasters.”
The International Law Commission consists of thirty-four legal experts elected by states to “promote the progressive development of international law and its codification.”
At the Commission’s 61st session in July, Special Rapporteur Eduardo Valencia-Ospina presented his second report on the topic and proposed wording for the first articles of the new instrument.
As discussed by the Commission’s drafting committee, the draft articles set out the intended scope of the instrument, which will look both to the needs and rights of persons affected by disasters. They also offer a definition of disaster similar to the one employed by the IDRL Guidelines. The draft asserts that states have a duty to cooperate, both among themselves and with actors such as the UN and the Red Cross/Red Crescent, in disaster response.
Commission members emphasized the importance of the IDRL Guidelines as a source of inspiration as well as their determination to ensure that their initiative would be complementary to ongoing efforts to implement the Guidelines.
At the request of the Commission, the IFRC offered written information to members on the role of the Red Cross and Red Crescent.