A civilian is a person not involved in military or police activities. The term is also used to refer to an area or population that is not influenced by military actions or controlled by a government. Civilians are important for society, and it is crucial to protect them during times of conflict.
The protection of civilians is one of the most important goals of international humanitarian law. It is a core principle of the Geneva Conventions, which are universally accepted as the minimum standard for preserving humanity in armed conflict. Unfortunately, the international community continues to struggle with this issue and many civilians are being killed or injured in armed conflicts around the world.
In political and strategic terms, the distinction between civilian and combatant has long been a point of contention in many countries. Some of this debate has centered on the need to control military forces through an executive branch rather than a legislative branch (which would require a constitutional declaration of war). In the United States, the constitutional distinction between the President and Congress has helped to shape the definition of civilian control in the War Powers Clause of Article I.
A number of laws, treaties and international conventions have been established to address the protection of civilians in armed conflict. One of the earliest was the Declaration on the Protection of Civilian Populations from Military Attack, which was adopted by the League of Nations in 1915 and later expanded by the Additional Protocols to the Geneva Conventions of 1949.
Several international organizations have been created to monitor and enforce these rules, and they have played a key role in preventing the worst abuses. These organizations include the International Committee of the Red Cross, which provides direct assistance to civilians affected by armed conflict and other situations of emergency. The organization is also a key provider of humanitarian aid.
The ICRC has made it clear that it is essential to respect and protect civilians in armed conflict. It calls on all governments to ensure that their troops respect international humanitarian law, and it urges them to comply with the provisions of the Conventions and their related standards for civilian protection.
Civilian in the policy-relevant sense of the word may not comprise a single profession like military officership, but it is a group with specialized knowledge and skills that complements and enhances those provided by professional military advice. This expertise is valuable in the policymaking arena, and it should be valued by civilian leaders as much as professional military leadership is valuable to their enterprises. This does not mean that senior military officers cannot and should not oppose policy guidance they feel is unwise in their own professional judgment. In fact, such dissent is an important part of the broader civil-military relationship and a vital component of effective civilian control of the military enterprise.