Document Type
Article
Journal Title
International Review of the Red Cross
Volume
922
First Page
60
Publication Date
2023
Abstract
The adoption of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
represents an important and (potentially) progressive development in the protection
framework under international humanitarian law (IHL). Article 11 of the CRPD
specifically obliges States to protect persons with disabilities from harm in
situations of risk, including armed conflict, consistent with IHL and human rights
law. The CRPD framework signals the need to address the traditional framing of
disability under IHL and to draw from human rights concepts in the CRPD in
order to inform the protection accorded to persons with disabilities in armed conflict.
This article is divided into four main parts: the first three address three main lines
of inquiry, while the fourth is forward-looking. The first part analyzes the framing
and construction of disability in IHL and the implications of such framing for the
protection of persons with disabilities. The second part analyzes fundamental IHL
rules in an effort to demonstrate how the framing of disability and the protection
framework of the CRPD can be used in the application of IHL. The third part
identifies some specific problem areas ripe for further disability scoping and
harmonization of the CRPD and IHL. Looking forward, the fourth part identifies
entry points for focused action and research aimed at bringing about the kind of
dynamic treaty practice envisioned by Article 11 of the CRPD.
Recommended Citation
Janet E. Lord,
Accounting for Disability in International Humanitarian Law,
922
International Review of the Red Cross
60
(2023).
Available at:
https://scholarworks.law.ubalt.edu/all_fac/1192