Schools and Armed Conflict HUMAN A Global Survey of Domestic Laws and State Practice RIGHTS Protecting Schools from Attack and Military Use WATCH Schools and Armed Conflict A Global Survey of Domestic Laws and State Practice Protecting Schools from Attack and Military Use Copyright © 2011 Human Rights Watch All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America ISBN: 1-56432-794-9 Cover design by Rafael Jimenez Human Rights Watch 350 Fifth Avenue, 34th floor New York, NY 10118-3299 USA Tel: +1 212 290 4700, Fax: +1 212 736 1300 [email protected] Poststraße 4-5 10178 Berlin, Germany Tel: +49 30 2593 06-10, Fax: +49 30 2593 0629 [email protected] Avenue des Gaulois, 7 1040 Brussels, Belgium Tel: + 32 (2) 732 2009, Fax: + 32 (2) 732 0471 [email protected] 64-66 Rue de Lausanne 1202 Geneva, Switzerland Tel: +41 22 738 0481, Fax: +41 22 738 1791 [email protected] 2-12 Pentonville Road, 2nd Floor London N1 9HF, UK Tel: +44 20 7713 1995, Fax: +44 20 7713 1800 [email protected] 27 Rue de Lisbonne 75008 Paris, France Tel: +33 (1)43 59 55 35, Fax: +33 (1) 43 59 55 22 [email protected] 1630 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Suite 500 Washington, DC 20009 USA Tel: +1 202 612 4321, Fax: +1 202 612 4333 [email protected] Web Site Address: http://www.hrw.org July 2011 ISBN: 1-56432-794-9 Schools and Armed Conflict A Global Survey of Domestic Laws and State Practice Protecting Schools from Attack and Military Use Summary and Recommendations ....................................................................................................... 1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 17 Protecting Education Buildings from Attack ................................................................................ 17 Protecting Education Institutions from Military Occupation ......................................................... 18 Methodology ................................................................................................................................... 21 Terminology..................................................................................................................................... 24 I. Implicit Protection from Attack: Protections for “Civilian Objects” ............................................... 26 International Humanitarian Law ................................................................................................ 26 Domestic Law and State Practice................................................................................................ 27 II. Explicit Protection from Attack: Criminalizing Deliberate Attacks on Education Buildings ............ 33 International Humanitarian and Criminal Law ............................................................................. 34 Early Protections ................................................................................................................. 34 International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia ..................................................... 35 Special Panels for Serious Crimes in East Timor ................................................................... 37 International Criminal Court ................................................................................................ 38 Domestic Law and State Practice................................................................................................ 39 III. Protecting Education Buildings from Military Use ...................................................................... 46 International Humanitarian Law ................................................................................................. 47 General Protections for Education during Military Occupation ............................................. 49 Education Buildings as Cultural Property ............................................................................. 50 Human Rights Law ..................................................................................................................... 50 Domestic Law and State Practice................................................................................................ 52 Countries with Explicit Prohibitions or Explicit Restrictions on the Use of Schools ................ 52 Countries with Implicit Restrictions on the Use of Schools ................................................... 57 Countries that Do Not Use Schools, Regardless of Any Obligation ....................................... 60 Other State Practice ........................................................................................................... 60 Countries with a Constitutional Right to Education ............................................................... 65 Appendix: Laws and State Practice by Country ................................................................................ 66 Albania ..................................................................................................................................... 66 Argentina ................................................................................................................................... 67 Australia ................................................................................................................................... 68 Azerbaijan ................................................................................................................................. 70 Bangladesh ............................................................................................................................... 71 Belgium ..................................................................................................................................... 73 Bosnia and Herzegovina ............................................................................................................ 74 Brazil ......................................................................................................................................... 76 Bulgaria ..................................................................................................................................... 77 Burundi ..................................................................................................................................... 79 Canada ..................................................................................................................................... 80 Chile .......................................................................................................................................... 83 China......................................................................................................................................... 85 Colombia .................................................................................................................................. 86 Czech Republic ......................................................................................................................... 89 Democratic Republic of Congo .................................................................................................. 90 Ecuador .................................................................................................................................... 92 El Salvador ................................................................................................................................ 93 Estonia ...................................................................................................................................... 95 Fiji ............................................................................................................................................ 96 Finland ..................................................................................................................................... 98 France ...................................................................................................................................... 99 Germany .................................................................................................................................. 100 Greece ..................................................................................................................................... 102 Hungary ................................................................................................................................... 104 India ........................................................................................................................................ 105 Ireland ..................................................................................................................................... 109 Israel ....................................................................................................................................... 110 Italy .......................................................................................................................................... 113 Japan ........................................................................................................................................ 115 Jordan ..................................................................................................................................... 116 Latvia ...................................................................................................................................... 118 Lithuania ................................................................................................................................