A critical analysis of the role of international humanitarian law in protecting civilians in internal armed conflicts; a case study of the Democratic Republic of Congo, 1996-2005.

Abstract

This study analyses the concept of non-combatant immunity in an internal conflict as provided for in International Humanitarian Law and utilizes the Democratic Republic of Congo as the case study. The study notes that there has been a substantial development in the laws of armed conflict protecting civilians in internal conflicts and especially after the Second World War. This not only includes the Geneva conventions of 1949 and their two additional Protocols, but also through the jurisprudence of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia The study however, observes that in spite of these normative developments, numerous challenges still exist in the protection of civilians, one of these challenges has been highlighted by the case of DRC and this is the internationalization of internal conflict as a result of external actors in the conflict, in pursuit of resources. These actors not only complicated the conflict but also the concept of non?­ combatant immunity and hence predisposed civilians to grave violations and especially rape. Consequently, the study concludes that the era of absolute non-combatant immunity is not yet here, due to the difficulties in implementing the existing law and gray areas in IHL that need to be addressed