On November 28-30 of this year, the state parties to the Geneva Conventions will join with the components of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement at an "International Conference" in Geneva to discuss solutions to some of the world's key humanitarian challenges. Getting a firmer grip on the increasing human toll of natural disasters around the world will be among their top priorities.
One critical tool for controlling the impact of disasters is stronger and more effective laws. Participants at the Conference will address this from three angles:
- Strengthening legal preparedness for international disaster response, including implementation of the IDRL Guidelines
- Enhancing disaster risk reduction at the community level through legislation
- Addressing regulatory barriers to the rapid and equitable provision of emergency and transitional shelter after disasters
Background papers on the three topics are available here.
A "draft-0" version of the proposed Conference resolution on these issues is also available here. While only official Conference participants are allowed to negotiate and vote on this resolution, the IFRC is happy to hear from anyone with suggestions to improve the text.
To help national societies and governments prepare to debate these topics at the 31st International Conference, the IDRL Programme team has prepared a consultation package. The pack includes background information and key advocacy messages for each of the three disaster laws sub-themes - it includes:
- Disaster laws discussion paper
- Fact sheets on each of the three sub-themes
- FAQ on the IDRL Guidelines
- Model pledges for each of the three sub-themes
The pack is available on the IFRC's public website here, and an extended version for national societies with presentation materials and detailed speaking notes is available on FedNet here. All materials are available in the four working languages of the International Conference (Arabic, English, French, Spanish), as well as in Russian.
The IDRL Programme team is available to answer any questions or provide any support to help Conference members prepare for a productive debate on these topics. Please contact us at idrl@ifrc.org