Expert meeting “Incapacitating Chemical Agents' Law Enforcement, Human Rights and Policy Perspectives

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) convened a second expert meeting on so called “incapacitating chemical agents” from 24 to 26 April 2012 in Montreux, Switzerland.

The meeting, “Incapacitating chemical agents”: Law enforcement, human rights law and policy perspectives, brought together 31 government experts from 13 States, 15 independent experts and representatives from international organisations, and eight ICRC staff members with a wide range of legal, technical, medical, operational and policy expertise.

The ICRC has prepared this report as an additional tool for governments in understanding the complex challenges and risks posed by interest in using toxic chemicals other than riot control agents as weapons for law enforcement. It hopes the insights provided will assist in the development of appropriate and effective policy responses to these risks.

International Committee of the Red Cross 2013

The ICRC, established in 1863, works worldwide to provide humanitarian help for people affected by conflict and armed violence and to promote the laws that protect victims of war. An independent and neutral organization, its mandate stems essentially from the Geneva Conventions of 1949. Based in Geneva, Switzerland, it employs some 12,000 people in 80 countries; it is financed mainly by voluntary donations from governments and from national Red Cross and Red Crescent societies.