Published in Issue 13 - Generations: break point or fresh start?

The moral of “extreme urgency” in question

Droit et stratégies de l’action humanitaire Patrick Aeberhard et Pierre-Olivier Chaumet (dir.) Éditions Mare & Martin, 2019

Publisher’s note

This book is the result of the meeting between humanitarian field actors and legal practitioners from the Law Faculty at Paris 8 University. Physicians, journalists, lawyers, politicians and soldiers met at this university, which has the reputation of being very “avant-garde”, in order to debate the concept of access to victims, here and abroad. Their original goal was to contribute to the development of key points begun by French and international medical NGOs. These new rights, recognised over the course of several years, enabled the transition from the right to intervene to the right of access to victims (1988), ultimately resulting in the United Nations’ Responsibility to Protect (2005). Nevertheless, this international humanitarian law must continue to evolve in order to become more efficient. NGOs are largely responsible for this evolution.

Translated from the French by Juliet Powys

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