Section 49p. 49

PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW COMPENDIUM VOLUME II

Chapter VI. Personal Property and Financial Resources

Art. 97. Internees shall be permitted to retain articles of

personal use. Monies, cheques, bonds, etc., and valuables

in their possession may not be taken from them except in

accordance with established procedure. Detailed receipts

shall be given therefor.

The amounts shall be paid into the account of every

internee as provided for in Article 98. Such amounts may

not

be

converted

into

any

other

currency

unless

legislation in force in the territory in which the owner is

interned so requires or the internee gives his consent.

Articles which have above all a personal or sentimental

value may not be taken away.

A woman internee shall not be searched except by a

woman.

On release or repatriation, internees shall be given all

articles, monies or other valuables taken from them

during internment and shall receive in currency the

balance of any credit to their accounts kept in accordance

with Article 98, with the exception of any articles or

amounts withheld by the Detaining Power by virtue of its

legislation in force. If the property of an internee is so

withheld, the owner shall receive a detailed receipt.

Family

or

identity

documents

in

the

possession

of

internees may not be taken away without a receipt being

given. At no time shall internees be left without identity

documents. If they have none, they shall be issued with

special documents drawn up by the detaining authorities,

which will serve as their identity papers until the end of

their internment.

Internees may keep on their persons a certain amount of

money, in cash or in the shape of purchase coupons, to

enable them to make purchases.

Art. 98. All internees shall receive regular allowances,

sufficient to enable them to purchase goods and articles,

such as tobacco, toilet requisites, etc. Such allowances

may take the form of credits or purchase coupons.

Furthermore, internees may receive allowances from the

Power to which they owe allegiance, the Protecting

Powers, the organizations which may assist them, or their

families, as well as the income on their property in

accordance with the law of the Detaining Power. The

amount of allowances granted by the Power to which

they o~e allegiance shall be the same for each category of

internees (infirm, sick, pregnant women, etc.) but may

not be allocated by that Power or distributed by the

Detaining Power on the basis of discriminations between

internees which are prohibited by Article 27 of the

present Convention.

The Detaining Power shall open a regular account for

every internee, to which shall be credited the allowances

named in the present Article, the wages earned and the

remittances received, together with such sums taken

from him as may be available under the legislation in

force in the territory in which he is interned. Internees

shall

be

granted

all

facilities

consistent

with

the

legislation in force in such territory to make remittances

to their families and to other dependants. They may draw

from their accounts the amounts necessary for their

personal

expenses,

within

the

limits

fixed

by

the

Detaining Power. They shall at all times be afforded

reasonable facilities for consulting and obtaining copies

of their accounts. A statement of accounts shall be

furnished to the Protecting Power, on request, and shall

accompany the internee in case of transfer.

Chapter VII. Administration and Discipline

Art. 99. Every place of internment shall be put under the

authority of a responsible officer, chosen from the regular

military forces or the regular civil administration of the

Detaining Power. The officer in charge of the place of

internment must have in his possession a copy of the

present Convention in the official language, or one of the

official languages, of his country and shall be responsible

for its application. The staff in control of internees shall be

instructed in the provisions of the present Convention

and of the administrative measures adopted to ensure its

application.

The text of the present Convention and the texts of

special agreements concluded under the said Convention

shall be posted inside the place of internment, in a

language which the internees understand, or shall be in

the possession of the Internee Committee.

Regulations, orders, notices and publications of every

kind shall be communicated to the internees and posted

inside the places of internment, in a language which they

understand.

Every

order

and

command

addressed

to

internees

individually must, likewise, be given in a language which

they understand.

Art. 100. The disciplinary regime in places of internment

shall be consistent with humanitarian principles, and

shall in no circumstances include regulations imposing

on internees any physical exertion dangerous to their

health

or

involving

physical

or

moral

victimization.

Identification

by

tattooing

or

imprinting

signs

or

markings on the body, is prohibited.

In

particular,

prolonged

standing

and

roll-calls,

punishment drill, military drill and manoeuvres, or the

reduction of food rations, are prohibited.

Art. 101. Internees shall have the right to present to the

authorities in whose power they are, any petition with

regard to the conditions of internment to which they are

subjected.

They shall also have the right to apply without restriction

through the Internee Committee or, if they consider it

necessary, direct to the representatives of the Protecting

Power, in order to indicate to them any points on which

they may have complaints to make with regard to the

conditions of internment.

Such

petitions

and

complaints

shall be transmitted

forthwith and without alteration, and even if the latter are

recognized to be unfounded, they may not occasion any

punishment.

Periodic reports on the situation in places of internment

and as to the needs of the internees may be sent by the

Internee

Committees

to

the

representatives

of

the

Protecting Powers.

Art. 102. In every place of internment, the internees shall

freely

elect

by

secret

ballot

every

six

months,

the

members of a Committee empowered to represent them

before the Detaining and the Protecting Powers, the

International Committee of the Red Cross and any other

organization which may assist them. The members of the

Committee shall be eligible for re-election.

Internees so elected shall enter upon their duties after

their

election

has

been

approved

by the detaining

authorities. The reasons for any refusals or dismissals shall

be communicated to the Protecting Powers concerned.

Art.

103.

The

Internee Committees shall further the

physical,

spiritual

and

intellectual

well-being

of

the

internees.

In case the internees decide, in particular, to organize a

system of mutual assistance amongst themselves, this

organization would be within the competence of the

Committees in addition to the special duties entrusted to

them under other provisions of the present Convention.

Art. 104. Members of Internee Committees shall not be

required

to

perform

any

other

work,

if

the

accomplishment of their duties is rendered more difficult

thereby.

© Compiled by RGL

49 of 163