C-225/95
Additional protocol to the Geneva Conventions regarding the protection of victims of non-international armed conflicts.
C-225 / 95 . Additional protocol to the Geneva Conventions regarding the protection of victims of non-international armed conflicts.
Brief: The Colombian Constitutional Court stated that the international humanitarian law has been essentially the result of customary practices which are seen as part of the civilized peoples´ customary law. Therefore, most of the conventions on international humanitarian law should be understood as a simple codification of existing obligations and not, as an establishment of new principles and rules. For this reason, this Court has held that the rules of international humanitarian law are part of the ius cogens. Likewise, the Court maintained that the compliance with international humanitarian law is mandatory for all the parties who are involved in an armed conflict, and not only for the armed forces of the States that have ratified the conventions. It is not legitimate for an illegal armed group, or the State armed forces, to refuse to fulfil minimum standards of humanity by arguing that they have not signed international conventions. The normative force of international humanitarian law stems from the fact that it is universally accepted by civilized peoples and also because of the values contained in these international instruments
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