Are the Geneva Conventions still relevant 70 years after their adoption? Can laws forged in the wake of WWII - a conflict predominantly fought by state armed forces using conventional weapons - adequately regulate modern conflicts involving non-state armed actors, cyber operations and terrorist agendas - with the spectre of autonomous weapons using artificial intelligence on the horizon? Are the Geneva Conventions, agreed in an era of hope in multilateralism and collective security, bound to be cast aside in a time when the international rules-based order faces an existential crisis? Come along to our Great Debate, co-hosted by the Victorian IHL Advisory Committee and the Asia-Pacific Centre for Military Law, and hear two teams of heavy-hitting, quick-talking experts debate the relevance of the Geneva Conventions 70 years on.
The Affirmative Team:
Yvette Zegenhagen, National Manager, IHL at Australian Red Cross
Colonel Arun Lambert, CSC, Director of the Military Law Centre
The Negative Team:
Dr Jonathan Kolieb, Senior Lecturer in Law, Graduate School of Business and Law, RMIT University
Dr Carrie McDougall, Senior Lecturer, Melbourne Law School