| Geneva Conventions | ||||||||||||||||||
| Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War | ||||||||||||||||||
When one speaks of the Geneva Conventions, they are usually referring to the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, which was ratified in the aftermath of World War II. There were actually four Geneva Conventions. The First Geneva Convention was agreed to in 1864. The agreement provided for the protection of all medical facilities, their personnel and any civilians aiding the wounded. It also gives the Red Cross international recognition as a neutral medical group. The First convention was originally signed by 12 nations (The United States was not one of these). The United States signed the Second Convention, which occurred in 1882. The second convention extended the protection of the first convention to wounded combatants at sea and shipwrecked sailors. The Third Geneva Convention was convened in 1929 and resulted in specific protections for prisoners of war. The Fourth Geneva Convention was signed in 1949. This convention reaffirmed the requirements of the first three conventions and provided protections for civilians during wartime. Below are the requirements of the Geneva Conventions as they relate to the treatment of Prisoners of War (POWs): Part I - General Provisions Article 1 Part II - General Protections of Prisoners of War Article 12 Part III - Captivity Section I - Beginning of Captivity Article 17 Section II - Internment of Prisoners of War
Section III - Labour of Prisoners of War Article 49 Section IV - Financial Resources of Prisoners of War Article 58 Section V - Relations of Prisoners of War with the Exterior Article 69 Section VI - Relations Between Prisoners of War and the Authorities
Part V - Information Bureaux and Relief Societies for Prisoners of War Article 122 Part VI - Execution of the Convention Section I - General Provisions Article 126 Section II - Final Provisions Article 133
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