Prisoners
of war shall be allowed to send and receive letters and cards.
If the Detaining Power deems it necessary to limit the number of
letters and cards sent by each prisoner of war, the said number
shall not be less than two letters and four cards monthly, exclusive
of the capture cards provided for in Article 70, and conforming
as closely as possible to the models annexed to the present Convention.
Further limitations may be imposed only if the Protecting Power
is satisfied that it would be in the interests of the prisoners
of war concerned to do so owing to difficulties of translation
caused by the Detaining Power's inability to find sufficient qualified
linguists to carry out the necessary censorship. If limitations
must be placed on the correspondence addressed to prisoners of
war, they may be ordered only by the Power on which the prisoners
depend, possibly at the request of the Detaining Power. Such letters
and cards must be conveyed by the most rapid method at the disposal
of the Detaining Power; they may not be delayed or retained for
disciplinary reasons.
Prisoners
of war who have been without news for a long period, or who are
unable to receive news from their next of kin or to give them news
by the ordinary postal route, as well as those who are at a great
distance from their homes, shall be permitted to send telegrams,
the fees being charged against the prisoners of war's accounts
with the Detaining Power or paid in the currency at their disposal.
They shall likewise benefit by this measure in cases of urgency.
As a
general rule, the correspondence of prisoners of war shall be written
in their native language. The Parties to the conflict may allow
correspondence in other languages.
Sacks
containing prisoner of war mail must be securely sealed and labelled
so as clearly to indicate their contents, and must be addressed
to offices of destination.
