21 November 2024
This year marks the 75th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions. Do they address the realities of modern warfare? Are they to blame when violations occur? And do they really justify killing? In the latest episode of our podcast series ‘In and Around War(s)’, we delve into these frequently formulated questions by putting the Geneva Conventions on trial.
‘One of the worst things I saw written in a national newspaper was by a former general, who claimed the Geneva Conventions entitle you to kill people,’ says Andrew Clapham. ‘The Geneva Conventions provide protection—protection for prisoners of war, protection for civilians in occupied territory, and so on. Nowhere do they state you are entitled to kill combatants. That is a misperception that people overlay onto them to justify their behaviour.’
This episode was co-produced with Janet H. Anderson and Stephanie van den Berg from the Asymmetrical Haircuts podcast, who lead the discussion by presenting three charges against the Geneva Conventions. Acting as defenders are Andrew Clapham, Professor of International Law at the Graduate Institute, and Gloria Gaggioli, Associate Professor and Vice-Dean of the Law Faculty at the University of Geneva. The verdict is ultimately delivered by Francesco Romani, Research Fellow at the Geneva Academy.
All previous episodes, along with those from the current season can be found on the podcast page of the Geneva Academy website, as well as Soundcloud, Apple Podcasts, YouTube and Spotify.
The 2025 Latsis Symposium on Science for Global Development and Humanitarian Action, organized by ETH for Development, gave prominent space to human rights issues.
Geneva Academy
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UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferré
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Adobe Stock
This project addresses the human rights implications stemming from the development of neurotechnology for commercial, non-therapeutic ends, and is based on a partnership between the Geneva Academy, the Geneva University Neurocentre and the UN Human Rights Council Advisory Committee.
Adobe
This initiative wishes to contribute to better and more coordinated implementation, reporting and follow-up of international human rights recommendations through a global study on digital human rights tracking tools and databases.