Actions taken:
The Republic of Poland and its national Red Cross society (PRC), having engaged for many years now in a partnership to promote, disseminate and implement international humanitarian law, recognize the importance of these activities on the national level. In this connection and in the perspective of future humanitarian challenges, the Republic of Poland PRC take upon themselves the commitment to collaborative work toward the broadest possible dissemination and effective implementation of international humanitarian law.
The agreement between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the ICRC, signed in September, 26th 2018, assumes jointly by the ICRC and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland a strategic dialogue, horizontal cooperation and support for the promotion and observance of international humanitarian law.
The 4th Report on the implementation and dissemination of international humanitarian law in the Republic of Poland for 2015-2018 has been already published. This Report contains information about activities already undertaken by Poland in the last 3 year period in the field of implementation and dissemination of humanitarian international law, which are the continuation of those already described in the previous editions of this Report. It also provides an extensive description of changes in both domestic law and the international law binding on Poland, as well as new initiatives taken by Poland in the area of international humanitarian law in the recent years.
Moreover, Poland has translated into Polish the text of Manual on the Protection of Cultural Property (published by UNESCO and International Institute of Humanitarian Law in San Remo in 2016), which is a practical guide to the implementation by military forces of the rules governing the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict. This Manual presents examples of the implementation of tasks for the protection of cultural goods during military operations, including tasks performed by the Polish Army as part of the mission in Iraq.
The Polish Red Cross in cooperation with the Government of the Republic of Poland actively engages in the promotion and dissemination of the principles of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and the norms of international humanitarian law. Among many activities there are:• “Exploring Humanitarian Law” (EHL) program, created by the International Committee of the Red Cross, implemented in Poland as a part of the cooperation with the Education Development Center (ORE – a unit subordinates to the Ministry of National Education) and financially supported by the Ministry of National Education. Based on the EHL program, an on-line course for teachers is organized, which aims to acquire knowledge about international humanitarian law of armed conflicts and practical skills related to conducting lessons through the use of materials available on the e-learning platform. In the years 2015-2019, there were four editions of the abovementioned course. Reports on their implementation indicate teachers’ interest in this form of development. In total, about 400 teachers of various subjects and specialists working with students in secondary schools were trained.• The Polish School of IHL, 5-day course on international humanitarian law, for three groups of recipients: students of law, political science and international relations, students of military schools, professionals, officers and representatives of the State Fire Service, Police, as well as employees and volunteers of the Polish Red Cross and other non-governmental organizations. The course is supported by a grant from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage and the State Fire Service. For each edition, an average of 30-35 participants are recruited. Knowledge in the field of IHL is passed on to participants in the form of lectures and in a practical part, through work on case studies. The lecturers are eminent theorists and practitioners from the military and civilian universities from all over the country. In the years 2015-2019 four editions of the course were held, 120 people were trained in total. Due to current challenges in the humanitarian sphere, since 2017, the School’s program has also been enriched with issues related to the phenomenon of migration and refugees.• The Commission for the International Humanitarian Law Dissemination, acting at the Governing Board of the Polish Red Cross, meets twice a year. It consists of: lawyers conducting research and teaching international public law; permanent representatives of the ministries of Defense, Foreign Affairs, Interior, Culture, Education, employees and volunteers of the Polish Red Cross. The long-term program of the Commission focuses on IHL publishing and training activities.• International Humanitarian Law classes, including at the Military Center for Civic Education, The War Studies University, NATO CIMIC, are held regularly every year. In addition, in 2017, training for journalists travelling on humanitarian missions for documentary purposes was organized and conducted. Issues regarding the legal status of journalists, the rights and obligations of journalists performing their profession during armed conflict (including situations of detaining and arresting journalists) and the most important rules and norms of international humanitarian law were discussed.• The competition of scientific thesis named of prof. Remigiusz Bierzanek, run by the Commission for International Humanitarian Law Dissemination, in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Every year, the new edition allows students and graduates of law, international relations and other related sciences to present their bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral theses to a wider group of specialists in order to gain their recognition and fight for the title of laureate. In the years 2015-2019, four editions of the competition took place, in which over 80 young scientists took part. In 2016, an additional category of postgraduate thesis was introduced, which is very popular among students of postgraduate studies at the Military Center for Civic Education.• IHL Library named of Marian Flemming, PhD, conducted by in the Headquarters of the Polish Red Cross. The library’s resources are about 5,000 items, books and articles, brochures, reports, magazines, conference reports in several languages, as well as a video sources with about 200 cassettes with recordings in three languages - Polish, English and French. The collections also include numerous photographs and slides of the Polish Red Cross and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement activities, as well as educational slides. The current activity focuses on acquiring new volumes and registering incoming publications and keeping their records.
