Humanitarian forensic science Cordner, Stephen
Australian journal of forensic sciences,
11/2018, Letnik:
50, Številka:
6
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Humanitarian forensic science is the application of the knowledge and skills of forensic medicine and science to humanitarian action, especially following conflicts or disasters. It sprouted from the ...experience of the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team and was shaped by International Humanitarian and Human Rights Law. It has been further developed by the International Committee of the Red Cross, especially since 2003. Since then, there have been many lessons learned. Forensic science has a humanitarian application as well as being a tool for justice. Identification of the dead is an essential component of the proper involvement of a forensic professional in dealing with human remains. Managing large numbers of deaths following a disaster or in a post-conflict environment, from the point of view of human identification, is a completely different exercise compared with everyday work. Meaningful forensic action in large-scale post-conflict or post-disaster settings may not be the exclusive preserve of forensic experts. Improving the capacity of a forensic system to identify the dead requires improvement of the forensic system generally.
On 3 October 2015, the Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Trauma Centre in Kunduz, Afghanistan was bombed during a US–Afghan joint military operation to retake the city. Even before that night, attacks ...on health-care facilities in war zones were already a worrying trend and a major concern for humanitarian organizations. Such attacks have led both MSF and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to launch campaigns1 addressing the need for greater protection of the medical mission in situations of armed conflict. Nonetheless, the scale and specific context of the attack on the Kunduz Trauma Centre have given rise to various specific investigations2 and provoked many more questions that this article will explore. The article will delve into the “many mistakes” scenario that has been presented by the US investigation in order to critically analyze whether these mistakes may originate from either incorrect or biased interpretations or implementation of international humanitarian law.
Résumé
La communication est l’un des principaux outils de lutte contre les épidémies de maladie à virus Ebola (MVE), pour deux raisons. D’abord, parce que l’application stricte des mesures de ...prévention véhiculées par la communication est le meilleur outil pour enrayer toute épidémie, ensuite, parce que lors de la vingtaine d’épidémies connues les équipes soignantes se sont fréquemment heurtées à l’incrédulité, voire à l’hostilité des populations. Pourtant, une revue de la communication impulsée depuis 2013 par l’OMS et déployée sur toute l’Afrique subsaharienne montre une série d’erreurs stratégiques et de réalisation. Lors de l’épidémie de 2013–2016 en Afrique de l’Ouest, la même communication, indifférenciée, a été proposée pour les pays épidémiques et ceux qui ne l’étaient pas. Une interdiction généralisée de la chasse a été promue, alors que 2 % des habitants d’Afrique subsaharienne vivent dans l’aire d’extension des chauves-souris réservoirs pour le virus Ebola et qu’il n’est pas prouvé que la chasse soit une voie majeure d’infection. En outre, la diffusion de messages inappropriés a contribué à jeter le trouble et à semer l’anxiété. Pour être efficace, la communication sur la MVE devrait être différenciée et s’appuyer sur des explications de la maladie, sa transmission et sa prévention.
The First World War cost over 60,000 Australians killed and 156,000 wounded. Little thought was given at the outset of the War to how information about casualties could be communicated quickly and ...sensitively to an anxious home front or the immense and lasting psychological damage that such carnage would produce. With the war over, efforts turned to a systematic attempt to find, identify and properly bury Australia's missing war dead. Not only was this effort motivated by the moral imperative 'To sanctify and hallow the memory' of this sacrifice, but also with a growing awareness of the importance in healing the mental anguish that would be the lasting legacy of the First World War. This paper looks in brief at the story of the effort to ease the psychological suffering of bereaved families, an effort that though at times beset by scandal and incompetence, is one that continues for the same motives to the present day.
Gerald Steinacher's revealing study of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) constitutes an important addition to our understanding of the successes and failings of the world's ...preeminent humanitarian organization during World War II. The work covers a critical period in the ICRC's history as the organization faced an existential challenge related to its actions and inactions during the war, including the ICRC's silence during the Holocaust, increased competition for the reins of power from national Red Cross committees, and a desperate effort to reclaim its humanitarian reputation after 1944. Despite the ICRC's early knowledge of Nazi mass murder, the leadership and committee as whole, with some dissenting voices, pursued a pragmatic political course governed by realist policy considerations and made a conscious decision not to publicly expose or condemn Nazi genocide in a pivotal meeting in October 1942.
The recently released updated ICRC Commentary on the Second Geneva Convention (GC II) recognizes significant changes in both the conduct of naval conflicts and interpretations of the governing law. ...One such significant change is the addition of cyber operations to the conduct of naval operations. Modern vessels increasingly utilize computer networks to control critical ship systems, but discussions of how potential cyber operations should be viewed under GC II are understandably limited. This article aids in addressing that gap by analyzing how cyber operations could have implications for certain provisions of GC II.
In March 2010, China launched a pilot programme of deceased donor organ donation in 10 provinces and cities. However, the deceased donor donation rate in China remains significantly lower than in ...Spain and other Western countries. In order to provide incentive for deceased donor organ donation, five pilot provinces and cities have subsequently launched a financial compensation policy. Financial compensation can be considered to include two main forms, the ‘thank you’ form and the ‘help’ form. The ‘thank you’ form is an expression of gratitude on behalf of the Red Cross Society of China for consenting to donation. The ‘help’ form is social welfare support for needy families.
This paper aims to reveal changes in the relief support of the Japanese Red Cross relief units dispatched to Burma during the Second World War, from the beginning of fighting in Burma to the Japanese ...withdrawal. Japanese Red Cross relief units began their relief support when Japan invaded Burma in February of 1942. Counterattacks by the British, Indian and Chinese armies from December 1942 caused an increase in the number of patients. There were also many cases of malnutrition and malaria due to the extreme shortage of medical supplies as a result of the Battle of Imphal, which began in March of 1944. Bomb raids became even more intense after the battle ended in July 1944, and patients were carried into bomb shelters and caves on a daily basis. Just prior to invasion by enemy troops, they were ordered to evacuate to neighboring Thailand. Nurses from the Wakayama group hid their identity as members of the Red Cross and evacuated, with 15 out of 23 dying or being reported missing in action.
