Reprisal
Encyclopedia
- Not to be confused with a repriseRepriseReprise is a fundamental device in the history of art. In literature, a reprise consists of the rewriting of another work; in music, a reprise is the repetition or reiteration of the opening material later in a composition as occurs in the recapitulation of sonata form, though—originally in the...
, or with a reappraisal.
In international law, a reprisal is a limited and deliberate violation of international law
International law
Public international law concerns the structure and conduct of sovereign states; analogous entities, such as the Holy See; and intergovernmental organizations. To a lesser degree, international law also may affect multinational corporations and individuals, an impact increasingly evolving beyond...
to punish another sovereign state that has already broken them. Reprisals in the laws of war
Laws of war
The law of war is a body of law concerning acceptable justifications to engage in war and the limits to acceptable wartime conduct...
are extremely limited, as they commonly breached the rights of civilians, an action outlawed by the Geneva Conventions
Geneva Conventions
The Geneva Conventions comprise four treaties, and three additional protocols, that establish the standards of international law for the humanitarian treatment of the victims of war...
. It is not to be confused with retorsion
Retorsion
Retorsion Retorsion Retorsion (French rétorsion, from Latin retortus (influenced by Late Latin, 1585–95, torsi, a twisting, wringing), a phrase used in International Law is an act perpetrated by one nation upon another in retaliation or reprisal for a similar act perpetrated by the other nation...
s, as these constitute unfriendly acts generally permitted by international law.
Etymology
The word came from French, where it originally meant "act of taking back", for example, raiding back the equivalent of cattle lost to an enemy raid.International law
Reprisals refer to acts which are illegal if taken alone, but become legal when adopted by one state in retaliation for the commission of an earlier illegal act by another state. Counter-reprisals are generally not allowed.An example of reprisal is the Naulila
Naulila
Naulila is a town in Cunene Province in southern Angola, located on the Cunene River which separates Angola and Namibia.Naulila was the scene of fighting between Portuguese Angola and German South West Africa during the early stages of World War I. On October 19, 1914, a German military column...
a dispute between Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in October 1914. After three Germans were mistakenly killed in Naulilaa on the border of the Portuguese colony of Angola
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
(in a manner that did not violate international law), Germany carried out a military raid on Naulilaa, destroying property in retaliation. A claim for compensation was brought by Portugal. The tribunal emphasized that before reprisals could be legally undertaken, a number of conditions had to be satisfied:
- There had to be a previous act by the other party that violated international law.
- Reprisals had to be preceded by an unsatisfied demand for reparation or compliance with the violated international law.
- There must be proportionality between the offence and reprisal.
The German claim that it had acted lawfully was rejected on all three grounds.
After 1945, as a result of the general prohibition on use of force imposed by Article 2(4) of the UN Charter, armed reprisals in time of peace are no longer legal, but the possibility remains of non-armed reprisals (also known as countermeasure
Countermeasure
A countermeasure is a measure or action taken to counter or offset another one. As a general concept it implies precision, and is any technological or tactical solution or system designed to prevent an undesirable outcome in the process...
s) as well as belligerent reprisals during hostilities when the law of international armed conflict (LOIAC) is violated.
In the case of belligerent reprisals, apart from the three factors in the Naulilaa case, a warning must also be issued beforehand; once the other party has stopped violation of LOIAC, belligerent reprisals must also be terminated; and the decision to engage in belligerent reprisals must be taken by a competent authority. In the United States military, the lowest ranked commander who may authorize a reprisal is a general
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
in command of a theater
Theater (warfare)
In warfare, a theater, is defined as an area or place within which important military events occur or are progressing. The entirety of the air, land, and sea area that is or that may potentially become involved in war operations....
.
All four Geneva Conventions
Geneva Conventions
The Geneva Conventions comprise four treaties, and three additional protocols, that establish the standards of international law for the humanitarian treatment of the victims of war...
prohibit reprisals against, respectively, battlefield casualties, shipwreck survivors, prisoners of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
and civilian
Civilian
A civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation...
s, as well as certain buildings and property. An additional 1977 protocol extends this to cover historic monuments, works of art, and places of worship.
See also
- RetorsionRetorsionRetorsion Retorsion Retorsion (French rétorsion, from Latin retortus (influenced by Late Latin, 1585–95, torsi, a twisting, wringing), a phrase used in International Law is an act perpetrated by one nation upon another in retaliation or reprisal for a similar act perpetrated by the other nation...
- Collective punishmentCollective punishmentCollective punishment is the punishment of a group of people as a result of the behavior of one or more other individuals or groups. The punished group may often have no direct association with the other individuals or groups, or direct control over their actions...
- Laws of warLaws of warThe law of war is a body of law concerning acceptable justifications to engage in war and the limits to acceptable wartime conduct...
- Letter of marqueLetter of marqueIn the days of fighting sail, a Letter of Marque and Reprisal was a government licence authorizing a person to attack and capture enemy vessels, and bring them before admiralty courts for condemnation and sale...
(license to hunt enemy ships and retake lost ships from the enemy). - WarWarWar is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...