Section 3Sec./Art. 3

Definition of Terms. For purposes of this Act, the term:

(a) Armed conflict means any use of force or armed violence which gives rise, or may give rise, to a situation to which the 1949 Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols, including their common Article 3 (Conflicts not of an International Character), apply. It does not include situations of internal disturbances and tensions, such as riots, isolated and sporadic acts of violence or other acts of a similar nature.

(b) Distinctive signals mean any of the distinctive signals specified in Chapter III of Annex I to the Protocol Additional to the 1949 Geneva Conventions, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts (Protocol I), being the signals of identification for medical units and transport, namely: the blue light signal, the radio signal and electronic means of identification.

(c) Emblem means the Red Cross, Red Crescent, and Red Crystal emblem.

(d) Indicative use means the use of the emblem showing that a person or an object is linked to an institution of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. The emblem shall be small in size.

(e) Perfidious use means the use of the emblem by a person with intent to appeal to the good faith of an adversary in order to deceive and make the latter believe that the person is entitled to receive or is to be conferred the protection provided for by the rules of international humanitarian law.

(f) Protective use means the visible sign of the protection conferred by the 1949 Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols on medical personnel and medical units and transports in time of armed conflict. The dimensions of the emblem shall therefore be as large as possible.

(g) Red Crescent, when used to signify a heraldic emblem, means an emblem depicting a red crescent moon on, and completely surrounded by, a white background, as illustrated in Article 4, Chapter IV of Annex I of Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions.

(h) Red Cross, when used to signify a heraldic emblem, means an emblem depicting a red cross with branches of equal length on, and completely surrounded by, a white background, formed by reversing the colors of the Swiss Confederation, as illustrated in Article 4, Chapter IV of Annex I of the Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions.

(i) Red Crystal, when used to signify a heraldic emblem, means any emblem depicting a red frame in the shape of a square on edge, and completely surrounded by, a white background, as illustrated in Additional Protocol III to the Geneva Conventions.

PART 2

RULES IN THE USE OF THE RED CROSS, THE RED CRESCENT,

AND THE RED CRYSTAL EMBLEMS