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ANA POLAK PETRIČ CYIL 5 ȍ2014Ȏ
cooperation in disasters relief efforts include the UN General Assembly Resolution
46/182 (1992)11 as well as the establishment and the work of the UN Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Today, responsibility for coordination
of international response to disasters devolves to the UN Relief Coordinator, who also
acts as the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs in charge of the work
of OCHA. The role of the UN Secretary-General should not be overlooked, because
he plays a major part in humanitarian situations, especially by exercising his mandate
of good offices invoked on many occasions of humanitarian need and by repeatedly
acknowledging the necessity and desirability of a new legal instrument in the field of
expediting international humanitarian assistance.12
Compared to the bulk of ‘Geneva Law’ of international humanitarian law,
which regulates humanitarian assistance in times of armed conflicts, no similar body
of law has been widely recognized to alleviate the effects of disasters in peacetime.
States have not yet found the political will and consensus to adopt a universal,
comprehensive and overarching international legal instrument at the global and
multilateral levels that would deal with all key aspects of disaster relief, assistance
and the protection of persons in the event of natural disasters. International law is,
however, not silent on the topic. It encompasses a number of rules and provisions
included in various treaties and conventions, which although they apply to other areas
of law, such as human rights law, international humanitarian law, law of internally
displaced persons, customs and duties, communications, transport and privileges
and immunities, also cover specific aspects of disaster relief. In addition, two global
legally binding instruments, notably the Tampere Convention on the Provision of
Telecommunication Resources for Disaster Mitigation and Relief Operations13 and
the Framework Convention on Civil Defence Assistance,14 deal specifically with
international disaster relief. Although their provisions can significantly contribute
general aspects of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief and those that are country-specific, dealing
with assistance to the affected State. For the former, see for example UN GA Res. 2816 (XXVI) on
Assistance in cases of natural disaster and other disaster situations (1971), UN GA Res. 43/131 on
Humanitarian assistance to victims of natural disasters and similar emergency situations (1988), UN
GA Res. 45/100 on Humanitarian assistance to victims of natural disasters and similar emergency
situations (1990).
11 UN General Assembly Resolution 46/182 represents a basis for all subsequent UN General Assembly
resolutions in this field. Today, UN Member States devote annual attention not only to disaster relief
assistance per se, but increasingly also to questions of disaster reduction, preparedness, mitigation and
development. Other UN documents include the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005–2015: Building
the Resilience of Nations and Communities to Disasters, the Measures to Expedite International Relief
and the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement.
12 See for example, Humanitarian assistance to victims of natural disasters and similar emergency situations,
UN Doc A/45/587, paras. 41, 45; Strengthening of the Coordination of Emergency Humanitarian
Assistance of the United Nations, UN Doc A/55/82-E/2000/61; New International Humanitarian
Order, UN Doc A/40/348 and Add.1.
13 Available at:
14 Available at: