Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Declaration 1999

Administered by Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet

Legislation au C2004Q00938 In force Prerogative Instrument

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as amended

made under subregulation 3 (1) of the

Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal Regulations

This compilation was prepared on 10 February 2003
taking into account amendments up to Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Amendment Declaration 2002 (No. 1)

Prepared by the Office of Legislative Drafting,
Attorney-General’s Department, Canberra

Contents

1 Name of declaration [see Note 1]

2 Definitions

3 Declaration

4 Name of operation

5 Geographical extent of hazardous area

6 Date when declared operation commenced

7 Eligible service with specified organisations

8 Period of participation by specified organisations

9 Qualifying period of service

10 When inspection visits count as humanitarian service

11 Ineligibility for an award of the Medal

Notes

1 Name of declaration [see Note 1]

This declaration is the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Declaration 1999.

2 Definitions

(1) In this declaration:

declared operation means the operation declared under section 3.

Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal Regulations means the Regulations set out in Schedule 1 to the Letters Patent dated 16 April 1999 given under the Great Seal of Australia, being the Regulations as amended from time to time.

Regulations means the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal Regulations.

specified hazardous area means the hazardous area specified in section 5.

specified organisation means an organisation specified in Schedule 1.

(2) Unless the contrary intention appears, a word that is used in this declaration and in the Regulations has the same meaning in this declaration as it has in the Regulations.

3 Declaration

The humanitarian aid operation arising out of the civil war in Rwanda during 1994, being an operation that satisfies the conditions mentioned in paragraphs 3 (1) (a) and (b) of the Regulations, is a declared operation.

4 Name of operation

For the purposes of the Regulations, the name by which the declared operation is to be known is ‘Great Lakes’.

5 Geographical extent of hazardous area

The geographical extent of the hazardous area of the declared operation is Rwanda and areas in adjoining countries in which a specified organisation is, or was, carrying on humanitarian service in relation to the declared operation.

6 Date when declared operation commenced

The date when the declared operation commenced is 1 May 1994.

7 Eligible service with specified organisations

The organisations service with which is eligible service are the organisations specified in Schedule 1.

8 Period of participation by specified organisations

The period within which each specified organisation participated in the declared operation, or, if the participation is continuing, the date when the participation commenced, is as specified in Schedule 1 in relation to the organisation.

9 Qualifying period of service

(1) The qualifying period of humanitarian service required to be given by a member of a specified organisation to be eligible for an award of the Medal is 30 days.

(2) The qualifying period of humanitarian service may be aggregated from several periods of service with 1 or more of the specified organisations.

(3) If a person gives humanitarian service as a member of 2 or more specified organisations, and a day of the service could be counted as a day of humanitarian service for more than 1 organisation, the day must be counted as 1 day of humanitarian service.

10 When inspection visits count as humanitarian service

(1) A person’s inspection visit is counted as humanitarian service if the person made the visit:

(a) as a member of a specified organisation; and

(b) within the period, or on or after the commencement date, specified in Schedule 1 in relation to the specified organisation.

(2) If the person makes the inspection visit as a member of 2 or more specified organisations, and a day of the visit could be counted as a day of humanitarian service for more than 1 of the organisations, the day must be counted as 1 day of humanitarian service.

11 Ineligibility for an award of the Medal

A person is not eligible for an award of the Medal if:

(a) the person’s qualifying service is qualifying service for an award of the Rwanda clasp of the Australian Service Medal because of a determination under subregulation 4 (2) of the Australian Service Medal Regulations; or

(b) the person (whether in the specified hazardous area as a refugee or resident) is a locally-engaged member of the staff of a specified organisation; or

Schedule 1 Specified organisations

(sections 2, 7 and 8)

Item	Organisation	Commencement date of participation	Period of participation
1	Adventist Development and Relief Agency		1 May 1994 to 31 December 1996 (inclusive)
2	Australian contingent to the International Committee of the Red Cross	1 May 1994
3	Australian contingent to the International Federation of the Red Cross		4 August 1994 to 6 November 1994 (inclusive)
4	Australian contingent to United Nations organisations serving in the specified hazardous area in relation to the declared operation	1 May 1994
5	Australian Lutheran World Service		1 December 1994 to 31 May 1995 (inclusive)
6	Australian Red Cross		10 December 1996 to 1 November 1997 (inclusive)
7	CARE Australia		4 May 1994 to 13 February 1997 (inclusive)
8	Church Missionary Society Australia Inc		17 July 1994 to 13 June 1996 (inclusive)
9	World Vision Australia	27 July 1994

Notes to the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Declaration 1999

Note 1

The Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Declaration 1999 (in force under subregulation 3 (1) of the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal Regulation) as shown in this compilation is amended as indicated in the Tables below.

Table of Instruments

`Title	Date of notification in Gazette	Date of commencement	Application, saving or transitional provisions
Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Declaration 1999	14 July 1999 (see Gazette 1999, No. S321)	14 July 1999
Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Amendment Declaration 2001 (No. 1)	29 June 2001 (see Gazette 2001, No. S229)	29 June 2001	—
Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Amendment Declaration 2002 (No. 1)	11 Dec 2002 (see Gazette 2002, No. S463)	11 Dec 2002	—

Table of Amendments`

ad. = added or inserted am. = amended rep. = repealed rs. = repealed and substituted
Provision affected	How affected
Schedule 1............	rs. 2001 No. 1; 2002 No. 1

Overview

The Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Declaration 1999 was enacted to address the need for recognising the service of individuals involved in humanitarian efforts in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide. The Declaration was made under the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal Regulations and was brought into effect on 14 July 1999. It was prepared by the Office of Legislative Drafting, Attorney-General’s Department, Canberra. The key policy objective of this declaration is to honour and recognise the service of individuals who participated in humanitarian aid operations in the Great Lakes region, particularly in Rwanda, during the civil war in 1994. It specifies the qualifying criteria, the organisations eligible for recognition, and the geographical extent of the operation for the purposes of awarding the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal.

Scope and Application

The Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Declaration 1999 applies to individuals who provided humanitarian service during the Rwandan civil war in 1994, specifically through specified organisations as detailed in the declaration. This legislation establishes the eligibility criteria for the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal, which is awarded to recognise service in the Great Lakes region, including Rwanda and adjoining areas. The declaration specifies the qualifying period of service, the organisations eligible for the medal, and the circumstances under which humanitarian service will be counted. Notably, individuals who served as locally-engaged staff or commercial contractors for the specified organisations are ineligible for the medal. The geographic scope of the hazardous area includes Rwanda and areas in adjoining countries where the specified organisations were involved in humanitarian service. The application of this declaration is national, applying across Australia to individuals who meet the eligibility criteria as outlined in the declaration. The legislation also allows for the amendment of the declaration through subordinate instruments, as evidenced by the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Amendment Declaration 2001 (No. 1) and the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Amendment Declaration 2002 (No. 1). These amendments have been incorporated into the current compilation, reflecting updates and adjustments made to the original declaration.

Key Provisions

The Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal (Great Lakes) Declaration 1999, made under the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal Regulations, outlines the conditions for awarding the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal for service in the humanitarian aid operation arising out of the civil war in Rwanda during 1994. This declared operation, known as the 'Great Lakes', is defined under section 3. The geographical extent of this operation is specified as Rwanda and areas in adjoining countries where specified organisations were involved in humanitarian service, as detailed in section 5. The declared operation commenced on 1 May 1994, according to section 6. This Act imposes several obligations and requirements on the parties involved. Specifically, service with organisations listed in Schedule 1 is considered eligible service, as per section 7. The qualifying period for humanitarian service to be eligible for an award of the Medal is 30 days, which may be aggregated from several periods of service, as outlined in section 9. Additionally, section 10 clarifies that inspection visits count as humanitarian service if they occur within the specified period. There are specific conditions under which a person is ineligible for an award of the Medal, according to section 11. These include instances where the person’s qualifying service is for an award of the Rwanda clasp of the Australian Service Medal, they are a locally-engaged member of the staff of a specified organisation, or they are, or are an employee of, a commercial contractor to a specified organisation. The declaration does not explicitly mention any offences, penalties, or consequences for breach, but it is reasonable to infer that failure to meet the eligibility criteria could result in disqualification from receiving the Medal.

Instrument: Declaration
Concepts: Definitions & Interpretation; Eligible service with specified organisations; Period of participation by specified organisations; Qualifying period of service; Reporting & Disclosure Obligations

Interactions

Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.

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