On 12 August 2024, the 75th Anniversary of the adoption of the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, the ICRC Regional Delegation in New Delhi organized a high-level panel discussion to launch a photo exhibition, themed on The Geneva Convention at 75: A Common Heritage of Humanity.

Ms Uma Sekhar, Additional Secretary, Legal and Treaties Division, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Government of India, delivered a special address to launch the photo exhibition and high-level panel discussion. Hon’ble Justice S Ravindra Bhat, a former judge of the Supreme Court of India, delivered the event’s keynote address. He focused on contemporary challenges facing IHL implementation today, including new warfare technologies such as autonomous weapon systems.

Kedir Awol Omar, Head of the Regional Delegation, delivered the welcome address.

Invited speakers for the high-level panel discussion saw representation from four major partner institutions of the Regional Delegation.

Ambassador Narinder Singh, Secretary General of the Indian Society of International Law (ISIL), provided a historical perspective on the Conventions, and highlighted the work of the International Law Commission in the domain of IHL.

H.E. Yong Zhu, Deputy Secretary General of the Asian African Legal Consultative Organization (AALCO), shared highlights of the ICRC-AALCO partnership and the collaborative work undertaken to advance knowledge and build capacity on IHL in the region.

Maj. Gen. P.K. Goswami (retd), Deputy Director General, United Services Institute of India (USI) shared the military perspective on implementation challenges faced by the armed forces, especially in dealing with non-State Actors.

Prof. D.S. Patnaik, Professor of Law and Registrar of the Jindal Global University (JGU), in his remarks, encouraged all relevant stakeholders to take this occasion as an opportunity to reflect upon how far a distance humanity has come in creating and operationalizing IHL, but also the long way that remains to go.

The presentations and discussions addressed a gathering of government officials, including from the Ministry of Defence, lawyers, policymakers, members of the armed and police forces, diplomats, representatives of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and influential academics, including alumni of the South Asia Training Session on IHL (SATS). This commemoration, organized as a standalone ICRC-led event featuring a carefully curated photo exhibition provided the Regional Delegation a platform to showcase the continued relevance of IHL in the 21st century and the work of the ICRC globally.

Click here to download photo exhibition