Instructor: Mba Mbulu Course Outline
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Title of Course: International Law 101 [Audio Version]
Class #8: The Legal Status of Combatants Struggling Against Alien Domination and Racist Regimes
Resolution 3103, The Legal Status of Combatants Struggling Against Alien Domination and Racist Regimes, was agreed to in 1973. It reaffirms that "the continuation of colonialism in all its forms and manifestations, as noted in General Assembly resolution 2621 (XXV) of 12 October 1970, is a crime and that colonial peoples have the inherent right to struggle by all necessary means at their disposal against colonial Powers and alien domination in exercise of their right of self-determination..." Click Here to find the Sections most relevant to Black People. Click Here to find Explanatory Notes as to its relevance to the struggle of Black People for self-government. Read all of the available information and be able to expound on the following questions and issues.
(1) This international document recognizes the legitimacy of struggles for self-determination. What does that mean to you?
(2) What is the importance of prisoner of war status? What is the difference between a prisoner of war and a criminal?
(3) Why could the issue of mercenary troops be important to Black People in the United States?
(4) Why do you think the issue of status of combatants was included in this course on international law?
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----1. The struggle of peoples under colonial and alien domination and racist regimes for the implementation of their right to self-determination and independence is legitimate and in full accordance with the principles of international law.
----2. Any attempt to suppress the struggle against colonial and alien domination and racist regimes is incompatible with the Charter of the United Nations, the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declarations of Human Rights and the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples and constitutes a threat to international peace and security.
----3. The armed conflicts involving the struggle of peoples against colonial and alien domination and racist regimes are to be regarded as international armed conflicts in the sense of the 1949 Geneva Conventions, and the legal status envisaged to apply to the combatants in the 1949 Geneva Conventions and other international instruments is to apply to the persons engaged in armed struggle against colonial and alien domination and racist regimes.
----5. The use of mercenaries by colonial and racist regimes against national liberation movements struggling for their freedom and independence from the yoke of colonialism and alien domination is considered to be a criminal act and the mercenaries should accordingly be punished as criminals.
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Throughout this document the struggle of peoples for self-determination is stressed and re-stressed, affirmed and reaffirmed, emphasized and re-emphasized. People have the right to use any necessary means to rid themselves of the yoke of colonialist and racist regimes. This course has repeatedly gone into detail on each of these issues.
Section 3 goes further, stating that "the armed conflicts involving the struggle of peoples against colonial and alien domination and racist regimes are to be regarded as international armed conflicts in the sense of the 1949 Geneva Conventions, and the legal status envisaged to apply to the combatants in the 1949 Geneva Conventions and other international instruments is to apply to the persons engaged in armed struggle against colonial and alien domination and racist regimes." In other words, when Black People oppose the United States for purposes of gaining their independence and establishing a self governing nation, Black People are not breaking any laws and can not be imprisoned as such. Therefore, the struggle of Black people in this country is not a matter of what the laws of the United States say, it is a matter of what international laws say. And, according to international law, Black People would be acting legally and white America would be acting illegally if attempts were made to keep Black People from realizing and actualizing their right to self-government.
Section 5, as applied to Black People in the United States, adds that, even if the United States took up arms against Black People who were seeking self-government, it can only use members of its regular forces to fight against Us. Otherwise, the United States would be breaking international law again and giving the struggle of Black People more legitimacy still. Mercenaries might be the only recourse the United States has when one considers that the prospects of internal discord and rebellious troops, both Black and white, could seriously hamper the effectiveness of the United States military forces.
Please review this information and give it some additional thought.