Protection of civilians in UN peacekeeping operations
On 19 January 2010, the Permanent Missions of Australia and Uruguay to the United Nations hosted a workshop on “Protection of Civilians in UN Peacekeeping Operations”. The workshop was attended by representatives from Member States (including representatives from the major troop and police contributing countries), staff in the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations and Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, UN agencies and non-governmental organisations.
The aim of the workshop was to provide a forum for the peacekeeping community, particularly the troop and police contributing countries, to provide their thoughts on the recommendations made in the DPKO/OCHA Jointly Commissioned Independent Study “Protecting Civilians in the Context of UN Peacekeeping Operations – Successes, Setbacks and Remaining Challenges”, based on their practical experience.
The workshop was divided into three sessions:
Session 1 – Overview of the DPKO/OCHA Independent Study
This session focused on the findings of the study and feedback from Member States.
Chairperson: HE Mr Gary Quinlan, Ambassador and Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of Australia to the UN
Panellists:
♦ HE Dr Augustine Mahiga, Ambassador and Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of the United Republic of Tanzania to the UN, and Team Leader of the Independent Study
♦ Mr Glyn Taylor, Senior Researcher and Author of the Independent Study
♦ HRH Prince Zeid Ra'ad Zeid Al-Hussein, Ambassador of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to the United States, Member of the Advisory Group on the Independent Study
Session 2 – Perspectives on the study from troop and police contributing countries based on lessons learned
This session focused on the experiences and lessons learned by troop and police contributing countries that have been tasked with implementing protection of civilians mandates in the field.
Chairperson: HE Mr José Luis Cancela, Ambassador and Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of Uruguay to the UN
Panellist:
♦ Mr Alfred Ndabarasa, Charge d’Affaires, Permanent Mission of Rwanda to the United Nations
Session 3 – Where to from here: how does the Secretariat plan to take forward the issue of protection of civilians?
This session focused on how DPKO and OCHA intend to progress work on protection of civilians over the coming months, to ensure that protection of civilians mandates are more effectively implemented in the field.
Chairperson: HE Mr Gary Quinlan, Ambassador and Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of Australia to the UN
Panellists:
♦ Ms Izumi Nakamitsu, Director of Policy, Evaluation and Training, UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations
♦ Mr Hansjoerg Strohmeyer, Chief of the Policy Development and Studies Branch, UN Office for the Coordinaton of Humanitarian Affairs
A summary of the workshop proceedings will be released in the coming weeks.
Relevant documents
Background note prepared for the workshop on Protection of Civilians in UN Peacekeeping Operations.