The right to humanitarian aid and human dignity. Observations against the background of the law on assistance to Ukrainian citizens in Poland

Abstract

Human dignity is an absolute value, as no one in particular needs to be convinced of this in principle. However, the real test of the defence of this value is in times of crises of various kinds. Humanitarian aid, in turn, is seen as a kind of panacea for these crises, not least in the context of protecting human dignity. This statement is particularly relevant today. This is because a key question arises as to whether Poland as a country has succeeded in implementing the right to humanitarian aid and has managed to protect the dignity of Ukrainian citizens during the period of full-scale war in their country. The answer to this question will be included in the authors' considerations. Thus, the aim of the study is to verify the theses that the authors seek to prove in their deliberations that the right to humanitarian aid is aimed at protecting the dignity of those directly exposed to danger as a result of wars and disasters, and in the case studied – the war in Ukraine. In addition, the authors seek to demonstrate that the Polish state, by adopting the law of 12 March 2022 on assistance to citizens of Ukraine in connection with the armed conflict on the territory of the country, has realised and continues to realise the obligation to protect human dignity and the right to humanitarian assistance. A theoretical-legal and dogmatic-legal method will be used to verify these theses.