UN stresses importance of protecting civilians

The United Nations Security Council, acknowledging that civilians rather not combatants frequently bear the brunt of modern warfare, on Friday adopted new guidelines designed to help deliberations on the protection of non-combatants. The document, which also acknowledged the impact of wartime hardships borne by civilians on any effort to achieve durable peace, reconciliation and development, was welcomed as a useful and practical tool by UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Kenzo Oshima. Briefing the Council prior to the adoption of the statement, he stressed how important it was that "decisive and timely action" was taken to end the suffering of millions of innocent victims of warfare, including women and children. He cited Sudan as an example, saying that the international community had been "dismayed by the recent pattern of attacks on civilians, humanitarian workers and facilities." Oshima welcomed the 10 March agreement by the government of Sudan and the rebel Sudan people's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) to establish an international verification mechanism to investigate attacks on unarmed civilians. "We await concrete results," he added. [see http://www.un.org] Ambassador Ole Peter Kolby of Norway, the Council’s current president, said the 15-member body had stressed the need, when considering ways to protect civilians in armed conflict, "to proceed on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the particular circumstances." The aide-memoire adopted by the Security Council identifies 13 core objectives for protecting civilians in conflict situations. These include: Access to vulnerable populations; separation of civilians and armed elements; justice and reconciliation; security, law and order; disarmament, demobilisation, reintegration and rehabilitation; small arms and mine action; training of security and peacekeeping forces; effects on women; effects on children; safety and security of humanitarian and associated personnel; media and information; natural resources and armed conflict; and the humanitarian impact of sanctions. The aide-memoire (intended to be a living document, updated regularly) also outlined specific issues for consideration under each of the objectives, and precedents established by past Council for improving protection of, and humanitarian access to, vulnerable populations. The aide-memoire would serve as a checklist for Council members when establishing, changing or closing a peacekeeping operation but - considering that, most frequently, civilians are caught in circumstances of dire need where a peacekeeping operation has not been established - it would also offer guidance for potential actions outside the scope of peacekeeping, according to the Security Council. For UN agencies, it would serve as a useful checklist in their daily work and as a reporting guide on the protection of civilians, both in the field and at headquarters level, Oshima said. In addition, the document would provide a useful framework for considering issues and concerns that cut across four related thematic areas: women, peace and security; children in armed conflict; conflict prevention; and the protection of civilians in armed conflict, Oshima stated. France's representative to the Security Council, Jean-David Levitte, spoke on Friday of how 95 percent of the victims of World War I were soldiers but now, 95 percent of the victims of war were civilians. This was a radical change in the conduct of war, and completely justified the Council's focus on protecting civilians, he said. Each of the primary objectives was of interest not just to the humanitarian wing of the United Nations but - because of the complex interaction between these issues and the conduct of conflict - they were also important for maintaining peace and security, United Kingdom ambassador Jeremy Greenstock told the Council. Oshima emphasised that the protection of civilians should be kept "high and firmly on the Security Council's agenda", especially given the recent escalation of violence in the Middle East and the conflict situations in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).