The Protection of Civilians (POC) Program, launched in December 2017, focuses on issues related to protection of civilians in the context of UN peace operations.
The POC Program seeks to support the UN Secretariat in analyzing the challenges facing peace operations mandated to protect civilians, and in adapting policy and practice to improve the delivery of POC mandates. It also provides a space to gather member states, UN officials from both HQ and field missions, and researchers, in order to build a common understanding of POC in the context of UN peace operations.
Through research, convening and outreach activities, IPI’s POC Program aims to:
IPI produces a variety of issue briefs and policy papers on specific POC challenges, policy issues and country-specific situations. It also convenes different types of forum of discussion in New York and in the field to gather lessons learned and best practices relating to POC.
After 20 years of POC work in UN peace operations, the project will now take stock of the progress made on the ground, both in theory and in practice, highlight remaining challenges, and provide policy recommendations for more tailored, more effective, and smarter POC strategies.
Topics for research in 2020 include the role and added value of the police component of peace operations in protecting civilians, the development of an accountability system for POC, the impact of protection challenges on exit strategies for peacekeeping operations, and the role of special political missions in POC. In addition, IPI plans to analyze community engagement strategies for POC, including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on people-centered approaches.
In lieu of in-person policy fora and workshops, IPI will rely on virtual convening of representatives from the UN, member states, and civil society, as well as experts, to discuss the main findings of the project’s research and to explore how to improve country-specific POC strategies and address challenges. Informal briefings for member-state representatives will also be organized virtually to disseminate and discuss POC policies, best practices, and challenges in the field.
On December 17th, IPI together with the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs cohosted a virtual policy forum on “The Accountability System for the Protection of Civilians in UN Peacekeeping.”Protecting civilians from violence is a priority mandate for most current UN peacekeeping operations. The UN has established a robust normative framework to guide and professionalize the […]
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Over the last two decades, UN peacekeeping operations have striven to protect civilians from physical violence. The protection of civilians (POC) is now based on a clear normative and policy framework, and its practical implementation relies on a number of innovative tools, tailored and multidimensional approaches, and the more proactive posture of peacekeepers. On a […]
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In contrast to recent transitions, the next wave of UN peacekeeping transitions is set to occur in contexts where civilians continue to face threats of physical violence. These transitions are likely to have major implications for the protection of civilians (POC), which should be a key consideration for the UN when planning these missions’ exit […]
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As the practice of the protection of civilians (POC) has evolved in peacekeeping missions, the UN has increasingly focused on “people-centered” approaches. As a result, community engagement has emerged as a core component of POC efforts. By engaging with communities, missions can build trust, gather information, and build a protective environment, ultimately improving their ability […]
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Community engagement has been recognized as a critical tool to strengthen people-centered approaches to peacekeeping and protection of civilians. Liaising with local populations enables peacekeepers to better identify protection needs, improve early warning, and design tailored and effective protection plans. It is also key to defuse tensions through mediation and dialogue. However, community engagement, when […]
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While most United Nations peace operations are expected to protect civilians from any source of physical violence, they also need to maintain the consent of the host-state to function. How the missions work with, despite, or even against the host state to implement their protection mandates while supporting the host state is the subject of […]
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“When a mission fails to protect civilians, that calls into question the credibility of the entire peacekeeping undertaking and the credibility of the United Nations,” said Valentine Rugwabiza, Permanent Representative of Rwanda to the UN. “We’ve seen that. This is what is at stake.”Geraldine Byrne Nason, the Permanent Representative of Ireland to the UN, agreed, […]
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How COVID-19 and measures to curb its spread have amplified the vulnerabilities of civilians caught in conflict and raised new challenges for protection actors like humanitarian workers, peacekeepers, and human rights defenders was the subject of a May 28th IPI virtual policy forum. Co-hosting the event with IPI were the United Nations Office for the […]
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Contemporary UN peace operations are expected to implement ambitious protection of civilians (POC) mandates while supporting host states through conflict prevention, peacemaking, and peacebuilding strategies. Reconciling these people-oriented POC mandates and the state-centric logic of UN-mandated interventions ranks among the greatest challenges facing peace operations today.This report explores how peace operations implement POC mandates when […]
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“Policing is about interaction, and if you are looking for lasting sustainable peace, then interaction, engagement, conversation, dialogue are very important. It is policing that enables this political process,” said Boniface Rutikanga, a former United Nations peacekeeper and now police adviser to the Permanent Mission of Rwanda to the UN.Mr. Rutikanga was speaking to a […]
Read morePrime Minister Abiy Ahmed and his government are wary of the interference, complaints, and demands made by…
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The International Peace Institute is an independent, international not-for-profit think tank with a staff representing more than 20 nationalities, located in New York across from United Nations headquarters. IPI is dedicated to promoting the prevention and resolution of conflicts between and within states by strengthening international peace and security institutions. To achieve its purpose, IPI employs a mix of policy research, convening, publishing and outreach.
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