“There should be no mistake. Promoting the protection of civilians in armed conflict is no sideshow to the [Security] Council’s mandate for ensuring international peace and security; it is central to it. The ultimate aim of the Council’s work is to safeguard the security of the world’s people, not just the States in which they live. Clearly, faced with the disproportionate toll that modern conflict takes on civilians, the protection of individuals should be a primary consideration in the Council’s activities.”
Angelina Jolie, Special Envoy of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), addressed the 2019 United Nations Peacekeeping Ministerial meeting on the theme of “Uniformed Capabilities, Performance and Protection”.
Recent peacekeeping missions have proved that supporting the fight against impunity and strengthening the justice sector are effective in engaging politically with stakeholders, not only in post-conflict settings, but also during conflicts. This lays the foundation of a more sustainable peace even before it is achieved.
In northern South Sudan lies a city-like structure complete with housing, roads, and vital infrastructure, where approximately 120,000 people have taken refuge since 2013. But this is no ordinary city. This is Bentiu, the largest Protection of Civilians site in South Sudan, operated by our United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
The internally displaced persons living in the camp are given access to shelter, food, clean water, and essential services, including education. However, Bentiu also suffers from crime, as well as attempts by military members involved in the fighting to seek shelter in the camp, jeopardizing its civilian nature. The Mission has a a zero tolerance approach, and carries out targeted and random searches by the United Nations Police - UNPOL, along with robust military patrols to ensure security inside and outside the Protection of Civilians site.
Preparing to enter a United Nations Protection of Civilians site for 39,000 displaced people near Juba, South Sudan, Cynthia Anderson, a United Nations Police - UNPOL officer is leading a group of five officers in a surprise search operation: “We are looking in shelters for weapons and ammunitions, military uniforms, as well as home-brewed alcohol, all of which are prohibited,” says Ms. Anderson. “We do this to ensure the civilian nature of the camp, and to keep people safe.”
This is one of the seven Protection of Civilians sites established by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) to provide refuge to civilians who fled their homes after the conflict broke out in December 2013. Currently more than 200,000 people live in the camps, which are adjacent to United Nations bases and surrounded by protective fences guarded by military and police officers. Residents are allowed to leave, and with that comes the danger that some may re-enter with prohibited items, such as weapons, and that would have a destabilizing effect.
South Sudanese citizens who have sought shelter to UNMISS Protection of Civilians camps as a result of the conflict, say they feel safer after the searches.
“When the search is conducted by women police officers there’s a higher sense of trust, confidence, and security among people. The majority of the displaced civilians are women and children, and they feel safer to interact with us”, says Ms. Anderson.
The camps are a key element of UNMISS mandate to provide a protective environment for civilians, while the Mission works with the government to create the conditions for people to return to their homes.
A Brazilian peacekeeper serving in the Central African Republic has been selected to receive the United Nations Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award.
The first 120 soldiers of the Rwandan battalion of the UNMISS Regional Protection Force (RPF) arrived in South Sudan over the weekend. The arrival of a United Nations regional force in the country will enable the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) to free up additional peacekeepers to mount more “patrols along insecure roads,” Head of Mission David Shearer said earlier today in Juba.
The RPF was mandated by the Security Council with a maximum troop strength of 4,000 and will bolster the Mission’s capacity to deter violence and protect civilians in the South Sudanese capital. The Security Council authorized the force in the wake of the violence in July 2016. A Nepalese High Readiness company and over 100 Bangladeshi engineers have already arrived in the Mission area as part of the force. Mr. Shearer said the arrival of these contingents “marks the beginning of the phased deployment of the RPF in Juba.”
Some 600 additional Rwandan peacekeepers will arrive in next few weeks while the arrival of Ethiopian troops is imminent. RPF troops will be based in Juba and will operate, if necessary, in surrounding areas.
More than 5,000 internally displaced persons have left Bentiu, the largest Protection of Civilians site in South Sudan, to return to their homes, with the support of our United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and its humanitarian partners. The population of the camp has fallen from around 120,000 in January to 114,600 this month.
The increase in the number of people leaving Bentiu has been partly driven by the provision of services by United Nations peacekeepers and humanitarian partners outside the site: “We provide a range of services inside the camp, but we have now stepped outside and are delivering some of the same services to people who are returning home, helping them make the transition much easier,” said Head of UNMISS David Shearer.
Head of UN Peacekeeping, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, arrived in South Sudan today, to kickstart a three-day visit to advocate for a peaceful resolution of the conflict, along with greater cooperation with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and humanitarian actors. Mr. Lacroix will hold talks with government officials, political leaders, humanitarian actors and internally displaced person living in UNMISS Protection of Civilians sites.
“I look forward to having discussions with the President and members of the government to assess the security situation and the political process, and how we can help move that process forward,” said Mr. Lacroix upon his arrival in Juba.
Mr. Lacroix met earlier with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Deng Alor and the Minister of Cabinet Affairs Martin Lomuro and discussed the security situation and the peace process, including the initiative undertaken by the IGAD group of countries to revitalise the implementation of the peace agreement.
“It is very important that fighting should end for this peace process to have better chances of success.” stressed Mr. Lacroix.
South Sudan has been embroiled in more than three years of conflict that has taken a devastating toll on the people of South Sudan. The implementation of the peace pact signed in Addis Ababa in 2015 took a huge blow following renewed violence between government and opposition troops in the capital last year. The conflict has since spread to other regions, causing displacement of least 3.5 million people and human rights violations by all sides.
Mr. Lacroix also highlighted that the UNMISS Regional Protection Force (RPF), established by the Security Council last year, is in the process of being deployed to South Sudan:
“We already have some units deployed and we are looking forward to more troops arriving in South Sudan as soon as possible. We need the support of the government to expedite the process and facilitate the deployments,” said Mr. Lacroix.
Mr. Lacroix will also visit the northern city of Malakal, where UNMISS is protecting more than 30,500 people living in United Nations camps.
From children living in fear of cattle rustlers in South Sudan to families fleeing violent armed groups in the Central African Republic, trafficked small arms are devastating livelihoods and displacing communities.
We are working to save lives & build a safer, more secure world by helping prevent armed conflict & mitigating its impact. On the ground, our peace operations are deepening their support to governments on small arms control.
Does international peacekeeping protect civilians caught up in civil wars? Do the 16,000 United Nations peacekeepers deployed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo actually save lives, and if so how many? Did the 9,000 patrols conducted by the U.N. Mission in South Sudan in the past three months protect civilians there?
Have you seen our latest film with Goodwill Ambassador @davidbeckham? David’s own tattoos were marks chosen to represent happy or important memories, but millions of children worldwide bear marks of violence that they have not chosen.
It’s everyone’s responsibility to speak out against violence and act now. Watch the film, share and help #ENDviolence for good. #nofilter #foreverychild #tattoo #davidbeckham #beckham #tattoos
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