Jean Pictet

Jean Simon Pictet (born 2 September 1914 in Geneva, died 30 March 2002 in Meyrin) was a Swiss jurist, expert in international humanitarian law and senior staff member and Vice President of the International Committee of the Red Cross. He was the main architect of the 1949 Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocol I and Protocol II.^[1] He also proposed the Red Cross Movement’s seven Fundamental Principles, which were adopted at Vienna in 1965: Humanity, Impartiality, Neutrality, Independence, Voluntary Service, Unity and Universality.^[1][2] In 1989, an international humanitarian law competition for students was founded and named after him.

Life

After secondary education in Paris, Pictet completed his study of law at the University of Geneva, earning a doctorate in 1935 and then practiced law in Vienna and Geneva.^[3] In 1937 he began working as a legal assistant at the International Committee of the Red Cross. During the Second World War he wrote most of the ICRC's appeals on behalf of prisoners of wars and civilian victims of the war.^[4] and was one of the key staff of the Committee and worked directly with ICRC President Max Huber. Even before the war ended, he embarked on a project for a complete overhaul of the Geneva Conventions, in particular including the protection of civilians, despite Huber's pessimism about its prospects.^[4][5] 1946 he became Director in the Directorate and the ICRC. In 1966 he became Director General of the ICRC Directorate and thus held the highest office in the administration of the committee. From 1967 to 1979 he was a member of the ICRC (restricted to 25 Swiss citizens) and from 1971 to 1979 was the Vice President.

He was also responsible for directing the establishment of the general report on the work of the ICRC during the global conflict. He ran for the ICRC, the work and negotiations that led to the revision of the Regulations of the Red Cross International in 1952, and agreements with the League of Red Cross. He also chaired the conference of experts to prepare for the negotiation of the two Protocols Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 1977.

The four volume commentary on the Conventions under his general editorship is in constant use by those applying the convention. His short 1955 volume Les Principes de la Croix-Rouge (Red Cross Principles) was a decisive step in formulating common principles of the different organizations of the Red Cross Movement, and led to the unanimous adoption by the 1965 XXth International Conference of the Red Cross in Vienna, of the seven Fundamental Principles of the Red Cross. He was also involved in drafting the statutes of the Movement.^[4]

Jean Pictet was appointed lecturer at the University of Geneva and Professor of International Humanitarian Law at the Faculty of Law and Associate Professor 1974 to 1979. He also lectured at the Academy of International Law (1950) and the International Institute of Human Rights (1971, 1972, 1982). From 1975 to 1981 he was director and president of the Henry Dunant Institute, research center, training and teaching of the International Red Cross.

Jean Pictet was the main author of the commentary on the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and 1977 completed two additional protocols. He has also published the 1948 "Report of the International Committee of the Red Cross on its activities during the Second World War (1 September 1939-30 June 1947)" and later presented with the basis for publications in 1965 adopted seven principles of the International Red Cross - and Rothalbmond movement. Among his other works include several works on international humanitarian law and about the Native Americans.

1950 he taught at the Hague Academy of International Law in The Hague. In the years 1971, 1972 and 1982 he held lectures at the International Institute for Human Rights, from 1974 to 1979 he was Professor of international humanitarian law at the Law Faculty of the University of Geneva. From 1975 to 1981 he worked as director and later president of the Henry Dunant Institute. [2]

In his later years, his Rousseauian faith in humanity declined, and he emphasized the necessity of legal compulsion. He wrote several books on the conquest of North America from the Indians.^[5]

Honours

Pictet received honorary doctorates from the Universities of Leiden, Zurich, and Leuven, as well as several awards from the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, including posthumously in 2005 the Henry Dunant Medal, the highest award of the movement. The bilingual, international Jean-Pictet Competition, which focuses on international humanitarian law, was named after him.

Works

• Les principes de la Croix-Rouge. Geneva: ICRC. 1955. 
• The Geneva conventions of 12 August 1949: commentary published under the general editorship of J.S. Pictet. Geneva: ICRC. 1960. 
• Humanitarian law and the protection of war victims. Leyden: Sijthoff. 1975. ISBN 90-286-0305-0.  (Translation of Le droit humanitaire et la protection des victimes de la guerre.)
• Development and Principles of International Humanitarian Law (Nijhoff Law Specials, 2). The Hague: Kluwer Law International. 1985. ISBN 90-247-3199-2. 
• C. Swinarski (1985). Etudes et Essais sur le Droit International Humanitaire et sur les Principes de la Croix-Rouge en l'Honneur de Jean Pictet / Studies and Essays on International Humanitarian Law and Red Cross Principles in Honor of Jean Pictet. The Hague: Kluwer Law International. ISBN 90-247-3079-1. 
• L'épopée des peaux-rouges. Lausanne: Favre. 1988. ISBN 2-8289-0354-0. 
• La grande storia degli indiani d'America. Mondadori. 2000. ISBN 88-04-48399-7. 

Jean-Pictet Competition

The Jean-Pictet competition was founded in 1989 by Christophe Lanord and Michel Deyra. Originally, the competition was run only in French with four members in each team. In 1997, the competition was changed so that each team had three members. In 2000, an English-speaking round was introduced. From 2007 to 2009, a Spanish-speaking round was also included; however, this has since been discontinued.

Since 2000, nine of the Jean-Pictet champions have been teams from the English-speaking round, four have been from the French-speaking round. The Université Libre de Bruxelles has won the Jean-Pictet more than any other university, with four wins across 1989, 1998, 2006 and 2012. Three universities have won the Jean-Pictet Competition two years in a row: Barreau de Montréal in 1991 and 1992, Université catholique de Louvain in 2000 and 2001, and Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya in 2010 and 2011. In fact, there are more winners who have won two or more times than there are winners who have won only once. Universities from Belgium have won the Jean-Pictet Competition six times.

Table of Honours

Notes

External links

• Jean Pictet Competition
• Hommage à Jean Pictet
• The Man Who Wrote the Rules of War, 12 August 1999, The Guardian