Description
The concept of jus post bellum implies a need to act morally and ethically (as well as lawfully) once conflict is over and post-conflict reconstruction is underway. For that to be possible, essential critical infrastructure needs to be available or, if not, needs to be reconstituted to allow for a stable and secure society to once again emerge. In a practical sense, this means that jus post bellum has a clear link to jus in bello and the protection of critical infrastructure during conflict itself (this is why the fundamental principle of distinction sits at the heart of targeting elements of International Humanitarian Law/the Law of Armed Conflict). This paper focuses on a vital element of critical infrastructure – that of education. The Safe Schools Declaration and the International Guidelines at its core were developed to enhance the protection of education during conflict. They were launched in 2015 and have already been endorsed by 115 states globally. The author of this paper was also the author of the International Guidelines to Protect Education from Military Use during Conflict. He will focus on those Guidelines, the thinking that went into them and will also go through the six guidelines to amplify each in turn. The subsequent impact of the Safe Schools Declaration and its Guidelines will be summarised with a particular focus on the situations in states affected by armed conflict, both International (IAC) and Non-International (NIAC). Two states that will feature in the presentation at BISA will be Liberia and Ukraine. In the former, around 95% of schools were badly affected by the civil wars that ended in 2003. In Ukraine so far an estimated 2,000 schools have been affected. Finally, the jus post bellum consequences of these and other wars will be addressed.
