Article

Ending civilian suffering : the purpose, provisions, and promise of humanitarian disarmament law

Bonnie Docherty

• Austrian review of international and European law, Vol. 15, 2010, p. 7-44

English

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Through a comparative study of disarmament treaties, this article explores the evolution of the types of disarmament law and how they have progressed in response to heightened concerns for innocent victims of war. It defines security, hybrid, and humanitarian disarmament and examines the purposes of these types, showing how their objectives have moved from maintaining security to protecting civilians. The article analyzes three categories of provisions that are characteristic of a humanitarian disarmament treaty : absolute preventive obligations, civilian-centered remedial measures, and cooperative approaches to implementation. Finally it discusses the influence of the Mine Ban Treaty in the new millennium and concludes that this humanitarian approach to controlling weapons has become an established international legal practice.

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