UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY: FOURTH COMMITTEE
24 October, 2011
Comprehensive review of the whole question of peacekeeping operations in all their aspects
Statement by Mr Will Nankervis
Counsellor
Australian Mission to the United Nations
on behalf of Canada, Australia and New Zealand (CANZ)
Madam Chair,
I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the CANZ group of countries – Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
I would like to thank Under-Secretaries-General Hervé Ladsous and Susana Malcorra for their informative presentations which describe many of the successes we’ve seen in UN peacekeeping throughout the last twelve months and also importantly identify some of the challenges that remain. In particular, I’d like to take this opportunity to welcome Mr Ladsous to his new post.
Madam Chair,
Our recent collective efforts to improve peacekeeping have been driven by the New Horizons reform agenda. CANZ is pleased to learn that DPKO and DFS will be providing Member States with a second progress report on New Horizons. This report will provide a good opportunity to assess how effective these reform efforts have been in producing tangible and effective results in the field.
Madam Chair,
Multidimensional peacekeeping places significant demands on deployed UN forces – in no case more so than in the complex task of protecting civilians.
CANZ has been very pleased at the progress towards developing pre-deployment scenario-based training modules for peacekeepers on protection of civilians, including modules to assist peacekeepers to respond to sexual violence in conflict. We encourage their distribution to troop and police contributing countries as soon as possible. We also encourage the Secretariat to develop guidelines that will assist in more clearly articulating the responsibilities of uniformed peacekeepers.
Civilian components of peacekeeping missions also play a vital role in protecting civilians. Joint Protection Teams and civil affairs officers play a critical part in ensuring peacekeeping missions understand the needs of local communities which, invariably, are best placed to provide an early warning of potential threats to their safety. Such information from the local community can help ensure a timely UN response to defuse or avert threats.
CANZ also believes the Framework for Drafting Comprehensive Mission Strategies is an important tool to assist missions develop a comprehensive approach to protection of civilians, helping missions to consider risk analysis and mitigation measures, early warning and crisis response mechanisms. The resources available to protect civilians are finite and, therefore, require careful management and prioritisation. Expectations need to be managed. We also need to be able to better assess what results are being achieved on the ground. Benchmarks to help measure progress in implementing peacekeeping mandates, including progress indicators on protection of civilians, could assist in this regard.
Peacekeepers face increasingly challenging and complex security situations that require responses that are both rapid and appropriate. CANZ encourages the Secretariat to develop further guidance on operational readiness, deterrence and the use of force. We also support the need for further dialogue on this issue.
Madam Chair,
Peacekeeping missions are often a small part of a longer term effort to build sustainable peace in post-conflict societies. The International Dialogue on Statebuilding and Peacebuilding, which brings together international donors and the g7+ group of fragile states, has emphasised the importance of security to achieving effective development and long-term peace. The 2011 World Development Report also draws clear linkages between security and development, and provides recommendations to prevent countries relapsing into conflict. We would therefore argue that there is scope for greater coordination between institutions such as the Peacebuilding Commission, the Security Council, UN system entities and international financial institutions such as the World Bank, to ensure some of these lessons are heeded.
Peacekeeping missions are continuing to support current and future electoral processes in Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire, the DRC and Timor-Leste. This support reminds us that peacekeepers often also serve as early peacebuilders, providing vital support to the establishment of security, political processes and restoration of state authority. It is critical that all actors coordinate effectively on early peacebuilding tasks undertaken within a peacekeeping mission. Such planning and coordination must be guided by the host nation to ensure strong national ownership and responsiveness to local needs. CANZ welcomes the development of the strategy on early peacebuilding tasks for peacekeepers.
Police and civilian peacekeepers are often integral to peacekeeping operations. CANZ believes the recommendations provided in the Report of the Senior Advisory Group on Civilian Capacities and the recent Secretary-General’s report on this subject are worthy of thorough and detailed consideration. We look forward to working with Member States to progress these recommendations.
The last twelve months have also provided opportunities for us to reflect on the progress of women in the peace and security field as we celebrated the tenth anniversary of Security Council Resolution 1325. As we look forward to the next 5-10 years, it is clear that significant work remains to ensure that women’s participation in peacekeeping operations is increased, that reform efforts in post conflict societies are gender responsive (including through supporting women’s participation in political processes) and that every effort is made to prevent and respond to conflict-related sexual violence. We therefore look forward to the development of the DPKO Forward Looking Gender Strategy on Gender Mainstreaming and Implementation of UNSCR 1325.
Madam Chair,
Peacekeeping missions today need the resources and capabilities to deal with 21st century challenges and mandates. We encourage further analysis of the tools and skills that could assist peacekeepers in meeting current challenges in a meaningful and cost effective manner. For example, information, with contextual analysis, is a mission-critical enabler that improves situational awareness. Also, aviation assets provide enhanced mobility, reach and flexibility in any response. However, these are all too frequently in short supply and, as such, CANZ welcomes the work underway to examine the helicopter force generation challenges.
The most valuable resources to a peacekeeping mission are its people and the important skills and capabilities they bring to each mission. CANZ would like to draw the attention of this committee to comments made by the outgoing force commander in Sudan, Major General Obi, to the Council in July this year when he said that efforts to standardize infantry units in terms of personnel and equipment made it easier for a force commander to appreciate what was available and helped in mandate implementation. These comments reinforce the value of efforts underway to develop capability standards. CANZ welcomes the ongoing work on these initiatives.
In our view, efforts to improve the capabilities of peacekeeping missions also rely heavily on partnerships and the different comparative advantages that Member States, regional organisations and international institutions can bring to specific missions. Bilateral and multilateral capacity building partnerships are important, as are efforts to support new and emerging troop and police contributing countries. In this respect, CANZ is pleased to note the work of the ASEAN Defence Ministers plus Experts Working Group which is working with the UN Office of Legal Counsel and other experts, with the objective of giving military legal officers the expertise and skills necessary for UN field missions.
As we said at the outset, training remains a key tool for preparing peacekeepers to deploy to peacekeeping missions. However, CANZ continues to have concerns about the direction of many different peacekeeping training programs which often seem out of step with the standards that are being set by the Department of Peacekeeping Operations. CANZ encourages DPKO to continue to work closely with Member States, peacekeeping training institutes and regional organisations, to ensure that the development of peacekeeping training programs align with the standards being set by the UN.
CANZ believes it is essential that the UN system continue its work to implement the UN Comprehensive Strategy on Assistance and Support to Victims of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse by UN Staff and Related Personnel. Since the adoption of the Strategy four years ago, there has been slow progress on its implementation. We believe that overall protection from sexual exploitation and abuse will not be achieved without the whole UN system – humanitarian, development and peacekeeping personnel – working together. We look forward to further updates from the Secretariat on progress in the implementation of the Strategy before the C-34 2012 substantive session.
Madam Chair,
The last twelve months have demonstrated that the peacekeeping partnership is under increasing pressure. Sustained effort is required from all of us to ensure this doesn’t have a detrimental impact on operations in the field.
Regular consultations between all stakeholders involved in peacekeeping, including the Council, host nation and troop and police contributing countries, are required. The Security Council and UN Secretariat have a responsibility to ensure that expectations about what peacekeeping missions are equipped to do are well understood. This helps ensure that UN peacekeeping is viewed as a credible, effective and worthwhile investment in the eyes of the international community and those they are deployed to protect.
Cost effectiveness and efficiency will assume greater importance in the current global fiscal climate. The Global Field Support Strategy remains an important driver in securing economies of scale to improve the cost-effective delivery of support to operations. We welcome the ongoing engagement on and transparent approach to this issue.
CANZ also recognises that it is critical that UN missions have sustained political support. Our combined experiences in the Group of Friends on Haiti and the Core Group on Timor-Leste have demonstrated to us the value these informal coalitions provide to peacekeeping missions throughout their life cycle. We recommend consideration be given to how similar informal mechanisms may assist other peacekeeping missions.
Madam Chair,
Key to our efforts to improve UN peacekeeping is strengthening the unique partnerships. Shortly after the New Horizons paper was released two years ago, CANZ welcomed the focus on partnership in planning, managing and executing UN peacekeeping operations. We think that the importance of partnership is just as true today, as we examine the many challenges UN peacekeeping continues to face.
In closing, CANZ wishes to remember those that have made the ultimate sacrifice as peacekeepers. We pay tribute to those brave men and women that serve the cause of peace.
Thank you.