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13 March 2024
Duration: 1 hour 44 minutes

The Role and Impacts of Human Rights in UN Peace Operations: New Research on Current Practice

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The GCSP is pleased to host the presentation of a new study drawing on a year of empirical research and case study findings from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Yemen, South Sudan, Mali, Afghanistan, the Great Lakes, Horn of Africa and elsewhere. This ambitious report, ““UN Peace Operations and Human Rights:  A Thematic Study” examines the contributions of the UN’s human rights work within different types of UN peace operations, including peacekeeping missions, special political missions (SPMs), special envoy and regional offices. Led by the United Nations University Centre for Policy Research and Center for Civilians in Conflict on behalf of the Effectiveness of Peace Operations Network (EPON) and supported by the Government of Switzerland Federal Department of Foreign Affairs and current UN Security Council member – the findings offer unique insight into practical examples of this work and its impacts. The study examines how the UN’s human rights engagement contribute to the overall impact of UN peace operations, including the protection of civilians (POC) and, conversely, how peace operations contribute to better human rights outcomes. Its findings provide a comparative, empirically backed assessment of the ways different types of UN presences advance human rights while contributing to overall mission objectives. Its authors believe these can offer guidance for the path forward through these challenging times, particularly at a moment of unprecedented geopolitical fracture and a “significant global retrenchment of human rights.”

This study contributes to the Secretary-General’s Our Common Agenda Report conclusions and aims to support the adoption by 193 Member States of a “Pact” with strong human rights, IHL and protection language at the Summit of the Future this 22-23 September 2024 in New York. With the support of civil society partners, Member States are expected to reach agreement on the Pact in five areas, including International Peace and Security. This highly anticipated event will mark a milestone in reforms needed for a strengthened multilateral system amidst historically unprecedented challenges.

The event will also feature a similar study led by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), “Operational Insights: Mapping Human Rights Activities in UN Peace Operations and their Expected Impact in Host Countries” which focuses on the role of human rights divisions in various UN Peacekeeping Operations and Special Political Missions, their contributions to operational strategies and their expected outcomes for advancing human rights in host countries.

 

Welcome

  • Ms Annika Hilding-Norberg – Head of Peace Operations and Peacebuilding, GCSP

 
Opening Remarks

  • Mr Damiano Angelo Sguaitamatti – Deputy Head, Humanitarian Diplomacy Section, Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA)

 
Panel Introduction

  • Ms Wendy MacClinchy – Director, UN Program, Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC)(Moderator)

 
Expert Panel

  • Dr. Prof. Charles T. Hunt – Senior Fellow, United Nations University Centre for Policy Research; Senior Research Associate, Institute for Security Studies; Professor of Global Security, RMIT University (EPON study lead author)
  • Mr Matthias Behnke, Chief Africa II (West and Central), United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
  • Hassatou Ba Minté, Head of the Africa Desk of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)
  • Ms Abigail Gérard-Baldé – Researcher, Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC)
  • Dr. Claudia Pfeifer Cruz – Researcher, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI)

 
Closing Remarks

  • Representative of the Permanent Mission of Kingdom of the Netherlands to the UN

Featuring