Article 52 - Dangerous or Humiliating Labour

Summary

The issue of unhealthy or dangerous work, together with the questionwhether prisoners of war may be used for demining, was the topic of fiercedebate at the Diplomatic Conference in 1949. The drafting of Article 52 wasclosely linked to that of Article 50. While the latter provides anexhaustive list of categories of labour that prisoners of war may becompelled to do, the present article prohibits their employment on labourwhich is unhealthy or dangerous, unless they volunteer. The third paragraphof Article 52 makes clear that demining activities are to be considereddangerous labour, while the second paragraph provides that prisoners of warmay not be assigned to labour which would be considered humiliating for amember of the Detaining Power’s own forces.