Catherine Barnes, Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC)
E-mail: cathbarnes@gn.apc.org
Preventing Armed Conflict:
Responses to the Secretary-General’s Report, In
Larger Freedom, and recommendations for the HighLevel Plenary Meeting
29 April 2005
The Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict welcomes the UN
Secretary-General’s report, In Larger Freedom, and strongly supports his observation
that: “The world must advance the causes of security, development and human rights
together, otherwise none will succeed. Humanity will not enjoy security without
development, it will not enjoy development without security, and it will not enjoy either
without respect for human rights.”1 We affirm the vital importance of fulfilling the
promise of the Millennium Development Goals and the need to develop a new global
consensus on peace and security based on recognition that threats are interlinked. We
believe that this consensus should be rooted in common dedication to promoting the
security of people: their physical safety, their socio-economic well-being, respect for
their dignity and identity as individuals and as members of communities, and the
protection and promotion of their rights and fundamental freedoms in their homes,
communities, countries and in the wider world. The equal participation of women and a
full integration of gender perspectives is necessary to achieve these goals.
1. Making the shift to prevention. Armed conflict is both a significant threat to
fulfilling security, development and human rights and, in turn, is partly caused by the
failure to fulfil these rights. Member States should affirm the ‘responsibility to prevent’
and commit to a plan to dedicate the necessary resources, institutional reforms and
policies to act to the fullest extent by all peaceful means to prevent violent conflict
from emerging, escalating or reoccurring. Governments and IGOs need to mainstream
prevention and constructive conflict management as fundamental goals of their
security institutions and instruments, as well as of their other policies and
programmes. The international community should increase the effectiveness of less
intrusive and less coercive preventive measures by devoting more commitment and
resources to them. Member States need to authorise the necessary changes to the
size and mandate of the Secretariat to truly achieve a culture of prevention.
2. Prevention and peacebuilding requires effective partnerships. Over recent
decades, civilians have bourn the brunt of wars and violent conflict. Men and women
all over the world have responded to these challenges with creativity and dedication.
Civil society organisations (CSOs) have a broad range of roles from relief and
development, to community-building and local conflict resolution, to advocacy and
civic action, to nonviolent accompaniment. CSOs have engaged in peacemaking by
promoting dialogue and peaceful resolution of conflict, as well as responding to the
rehabilitation, healing and reconciliation needs of survivors of conflict. They are often
effective in creating safe spaces where people from all parts of society can come
together and work in meaningful ways toward a better future. Many CSO actors are
close to the conflicts that they seek to address. This proximity affords them access to
information and insights that others may not have. In some situations, CSOs are
more acceptable to armed and opposition groups than representatives of
governments and IGOs, allowing them to play a positive role. Furthermore, civil
1
In Larger Freedom: Towards Development, Security and Human Rights for All. Report of the
Secretary-General. 21 March 2005. A/59/2005
society plays a significant role in building trust and strengthening networks so that
this ‘social capital’ can foster peace and development.
Governments have primary responsibility to protect civilians and prevent violence. Yet
the complexity, scale and diversity of conflict mean that no single entity, on its own,
can ensure peace. Comprehensive networks of relationships and actions are needed.
CSOs should be seen therefore as complementing partners with valuable contributions
to make in providing information and analysis, policy development and advocacy,
strategy design and programme implementation. Governments and IGOs should help
to strengthen civil society capacities by providing both practical support and
recognition of the legitimacy of CSOs, within a rights-based framework. CSOs active in
peacebuilding and conflict management should have formal status with UN and
Regional Organizations. There should be mechanisms to engage fully and
systematically with all inter-governmental deliberative bodies, including with the UN
General Assembly. There should be well-developed modalities for practical cooperation
across the range of tasks needed to promote security, development and human rights.
Governments, the UN, Regional Organisations and CSOs need to build their capacities
to work effectively together to respond to conflict and the conditions that give rise to
them. All need to recognise that sustainable solutions require the active participation of
local communities.
Cluster I – Freedom from Want
3. Mainstream conflict-sensitive approaches and pro-prevention strategies
into national strategies and all policy and planning frameworks. Poverty
eradication is essential to achieve human security and dignity. Furthermore, poverty
and violent conflict are often intrinsically interrelated. Many conflicts are deeply rooted
in social, economic and cultural disparities, especially in the context of unequal access
to economic and social power and resources. Violent conflict and war seriously erode
and impede development prospects. According to the Millennium Project report, of the
34 countries furthest from achieving the goals, 22 are emerging from conflict.
Prevention and sustainable peacebuilding are therefore necessary to achieve the
Millennium Development Goals; fulfilling the MDGs can, in turn, address some of the
root causes of conflict and promote human security. We therefore agree with the
Secretary-General’s call to governments to commit themselves to implementing the
development consensus and furthermore recommend the following:
a) Any comprehensive national strategy to meet the MDG targets should aim to
narrow divides between groups within the society and ensure the equitable
provision of services and infrastructure.
b) Common Country Assessments, UN Development Assistance Frameworks, and
Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers are important instruments to address the
structural causes of conflict. Conflict-sensitivity should therefore be included in the
policy development process for each country, regardless of whether it is or has
recently been associated with a crisis.
c) The UN and governments must ensure effective participation in the planning and
policy development process of those who will be affected by decisions, including
women, youth, minorities and indigenous persons, and those displaced by conflict.
d) All these principles should apply to the Consolidated Appeals Process (CAPs), the
Post-Conflict Needs Assessment and the Transitional Framework. These
frameworks should include protocols for assessing measures to promote human
security in order to strengthen a comprehensive approach to prevention and
peacebuilding. CAPs should explicitly include initiatives to promote ‘social
cohesion’ and ‘peacebuilding’. OCHA should be encouraged to further develop
flexible modalities, such as regional CAPS, in order to be proactive in responding
to emerging situations.
Cluster II – Freedom from Fear
4. UN Peacebuilding Commission and support office. We support the SecretaryGeneral’s proposal for this new body to mobilise resources and enable coherent and
sustained peacebuilding through information-sharing, planning and monitoring. The
Commission should proactively encourage Member States and others to request its
advice and assistance at any stage, including before violence has emerged, to reduce
risks by strengthening national capacities for peace. A senior UN official, representing
the Secretary-General, should serve as a leading catalyst for UN system coherence in
peacebuilding at all levels, including for risk-reduction oriented preventive
peacebuilding.
a) The Commission should have mechanisms to fully and systematically consult with
relevant CSOs – especially those from affected communities – to ensure that
strategies are responsive to the long-term needs of the society, in fulfilment of
international norms.
b) The peacebuilding support office should have a dedicated staff of highly qualified
men and women with extensive practical experience in working with conflict,
including in facilitating dialogue. It should have close cooperation with the
operational agencies of the UN, including in the development and human rights
fields, and regional organisations. It should engage proactively with CSOs,
especially those from the society to which peacebuilding support is offered, and
develop partnership agreements where relevant. The work of the office should
interlink with the range of other regional and in-country institutional mechanisms
for conflict-related matters.
5. UN Country Team’s roles in prevention and peacebuilding. The UN Country
Team should use its convening capacities to bring together different stakeholders to
analyse issues and develop strategies to proactively address problems that can lead to
tension. It can generate resources and provide programmatic support to help
implement necessary measures.
a) To do this effectively, there should be a focal point for prevention and
peacebuilding within the UN Country Team to channel effective information flows
and be a catalyst to help coordinate appropriate responses, possibly building on the
role of UNDP peace and development advisors. S/he should foster a framework for
engagement with local civil society and serve as a link between governments and
CSOs working on prevention and peacebuilding.
b) The Resident Coordinator / SRSG can establish advisory councils. Such bodies –
comprised of women and men from different social groups and possibly
representatives of government, local authorities and regional organisations –
could work toward the development of joint strategies to promote social cohesion
and human security. They would help to ensure that the overall strategy adopted
by international actors is sensitive to local needs. Ideally, these councils would
model multi-stakeholder dialogue-based approaches for working with tensions. In
larger countries, councils could be established in different regions, especially
conflict zones, to more effectively engage people outside the capital. In countries
at-risk of escalating conflict, these councils should funnel early warning
information, analysis and ideas, as well as strategies emerging from local
processes, into national and international deliberations. Where relevant, such
councils could serve as part of the architecture to promote implementation of the
terms of peace agreements through independent monitoring and mediation, as
well as providing advice on peacebuilding strategies.
6. Mobilising early response. Member States should support a more systematised
approach to collaboration between the UN, regional organisations and CSOs, both at
headquarters and in the field, in order to integrate early warning and early response
systems. Strategies should involve key stakeholders and experts to share information,
strengthen joint analysis, identify options and opportunities, and implement
strategies. Systems should draw on local knowledge, with CSOs involved in
generating ideas about how best to respond, including in ways that make best use of
their capacities. Systems could include formal arrangements for cooperation in
capacity building, data collection and analysis, and strategy development to ensure
that these mechanisms draw on the unique knowledge and capacities of all relevant
actors.
7. Preventive diplomacy and programmes. Although peaceful dispute settlement
is the most cost-effective and sustainable method, mechanisms at the national,
regional and international levels are unevenly-developed and often reactive to crises.
Greater priority is needed for non-military, non-coercive and cooperative forms of
early-stage preventive action. This can include facilitating de-escalatory dialogue and
agreements to address sources of conflict.
a) Increased priority, technical assistance and funding are needed for national
capacity building for conflict management. These can include commissions of
inquiry, national reconciliation commissions, and platforms for national dialogue to
address larger systemic issues; as well as systems to address specific cases
through alternative dispute resolution (mediation, ombudsman and adjudication
services) and state institutions, such as the legal system.
b) Measures to promote the peaceful settlement of disputes under Chapter VI of UN
Charter should be strengthened, with greater emphasis on preventive diplomacy
as specified in Article 34. This should include situations involving non-state actors.
c) UN Secretary-General’s good offices role and capacities for preventive mediation
and early stage dispute resolution should be strengthened by providing additional
resources. Staff experienced in conflict analysis and resolution can offer assistance
by: (a) conducting analysis and developing proposals; and (b) mediating /
facilitating dialogue at early stages of prevention, including through the use of
shuttle diplomacy and other formal and informal meetings with leaders of
government and opposition factions / militant groups. They should maintain links
with CSOs who have complementary capacities.
d) Increased resources are needed to provide access to expert assistance on key
disputed substantive issues and on confidence-building measures. They can study
the situation, elicit views and ideas from stakeholders, and offer advice on
principles, strategies and programmes to address challenges. There should be
mechanisms to provide strategically targeted funding and assistance to rapidly
implement initiatives and programmes to address key concerns and build
confidence.
8. Multifunctional Peace Operations. To enhance cooperation in impending crisis
situations, the UN should work with other relevant actors, including local and
international CSOs, to jointly analyse needs, formulate objectives and strategies, and
develop appropriate operational structures for effective cooperation. These capacities
can be enhanced through joint training, scenario planning, and evaluation.
a) To ensure that the mandate and concept of operation are appropriate to address
needs and build on local capacities, pre-deployment assessment missions should
actively involve the UN Country Team and include systematic processes of
consulting with CSOs (including those close to the potential or actual armed
parties) both inside and outside the country.
b) Mandates must include a commitment to gender equality. Gender experts and
expertise should be included at all levels and in all aspects of peace operations,
including in technical surveys and the design of concepts of operation, training,
staffing and programmes.
c) We support the Secretary-General’s proposal to create interlocking system of
peacekeeping capacities so the UN can partner with relevant regional
organisations and thus increase rapid response capacity. There should be coherent
and integrated mandates and leadership of peacebuilding and peacekeeping
efforts, which often need to happen simultaneously or overlap. Priority should be
given to establishing mechanisms for cooperation and clear channels of
communication among national, regional and international organisations working
on peace, possibly through the development of regularised multi-track forums.
d) This system should interlink with civilian peace services: teams of experts with
specialised skills who can be rapidly deployed in emerging crisis situations to
support local peaceful actors and, where necessary, provide a protective
accompaniment for local people. The UN should develop rosters of specialists and
work with existing services make shared lists, taking into account the importance
of cultural and gender differences as a key resource of such teams.
e) Peace operations must ensure the comprehensive protection of civilians and noncombatants, including from sexual violence and exploitation. The SecretaryGeneral’s ‘zero tolerance’ policy on the behaviour of peacekeepers should be
rigorously enforced and violators brought to justice.
f) Priority should be given to increase the basic safety of local peace actors,
including through human rights monitoring presences and protective
accompaniment, as well as unified international condemnation of all violators and
prompt action to prosecute those responsible.
g) Programmes for disarmament, demobilisation, reintegration and reconstruction
should be fully resourced and tailored locally to meet the specific needs of women
and men, girls and boys. Local communities must be actively involved in planning
and implementation programmes and help to ensure that these processes
enhance development and other peacebuilding tasks.
9. Peace processes. People in war-affected societies are the main stakeholders of
peace and should not be left out of peace processes between government and armed
groups. CSOs can engage in processes to identify and debate key issues that should be
addressed in the negotiating agenda and, as relevant, to deliberate substantive
measures to address them, using a range of modalities including multi-sectoral forums
convening diverse civil society groupings with opposing views. The UN should
encourage and support CSO involvement and ensure that there are mechanisms for
public participation in negotiations over substantive constitutional and policy matters
related to the future of the country. International mediators and special envoys should
be informed of relevant initiatives and the substantive ideas generated and, if
appropriate, participate in them. Resources, skills training, and advisors, as well as
opportunities to learn from peace processes elsewhere, should be provided to increase
the capacity to engage effectively. This can include training in negotiation and policy
formulation, as well as in the substantive issues that will be addressed in the talks.
Renewed efforts and practical commitments must be made by parties to conflict,
international mediators, and the donor community to ensure that women are
represented equally at the decision-making level in negotiations.
10. Weapons. Member States should commit themselves to the least diversion of the
world’s resources to weapons and military capacities (Art. 26, UN Charter), directing
resources to development and programmes to promote sustainable peace. They should
agree and comply with a proposed arms trade treaty for conventional weapons, fully
implement the programme of action on small arms and light weapons and other
measures for practical disarmament, and make significant progress in eliminating
weapons of mass destruction.
11. Private sector. Member states should develop integrated policies and strategies
to maximise positive contributions the private sector to prevention and peacebuilding
and to minimise potential negative roles in driving war economies. This can include
both measures for positive encouragement and by strengthening regulatory standards,
particularly to regulate conduct in at-risk areas and the behaviour of the extractive
industries and private security companies. The Security Council can develop ‘smart
sanctions’ on those who exploit or exacerbate armed conflict for their own profit.
12. Cultures of peace. Renewed attention and greater resources are needed
implement UN General Assembly Resolution GA/RES/53/243 and the Programme of
Action on a Culture of Peace. We appeal to the UN to ensure that intra- and interagency cooperation is maximised and for Member States to fully implement it through
adequate policies and funding.
13. Allocate more financial resources more effectively administered for
prevention, peace operations and peacebuilding. This should include funding
streams both for flexible rapid response initiatives and for longer-term processes of
conflict-sensitive development and peacebuilding. This should include joint appeals to
donors to support integrated programmes of CSOs and international organisations.
We support the creation of a voluntary standing fund for rapid implementation of
post-settlement peacebuilding activities.
Cluster III – Freedom to Live in Dignity
14. Responsibility to protect should be pursued in accordance with international
law and in a consistent manner, as articulated by the ICISS Commission and by
criteria advocated the Secretary-General. Any use of force is only justifiable as a last
resort. We note the primary responsibility to prevent, along with the responsibilities to
react and to rebuild.
15. Preventing the crime of genocide. Efforts and resources are needed to
implement Action Plan for the Prevention of Genocide. The new Special Advisor for the
Prevention of Genocide should be supported with the necessary staffing and resources
to be effective in fulfilling his important role.
16. Promote fulfilment of international norms and standards by strengthening
the UN human rights system. Member states should provide additional resources
and political support for the full and consistent compliance with all human rights
standards. The principal multilateral forum must be made more effective and should
have regular scheduled reviews of the human rights accomplishments, shortcomings
and capacity-building needs of all countries in respect of all human rights based on an
impartial, transparent and objective assessment. It must ensure the continued active
participation of NGOs and build on independent monitoring procedures. Assistance
should be offered to strengthen domestic mechanisms to implement international
standards and to promote rule of law generally, including by building on the work of
the OHCHR and through the proposed Rule of Law Unit in a peacebuilding support
office.
Cluster IV – Imperative for collective action: strengthening the
United Nations
17. Strengthen the capacities of the UN’s deliberative organs for leadership of
prevention and peacebuilding and effective engagement with civil society.
a) The General Assembly should be revitalised, as outlined by the SecretaryGeneral. Its substantive agenda should give prominence to developing and
agreeing a programme of action for prevention, including through the
development of Peace and Security Goals to complement the MDGS. It should
establish mechanisms to engage fully and systematically with civil society.
b) The Security Council should implement the recommendations of the Cardoso
Panel to strengthen the Council’s engagement with civil society. It should improve
the planning and effectiveness of the Arria formula meetings by lengthening lead
times and covering travel costs to increase the participation of actors from the
field. UN country staff should assist in identifying civil society interlocutors.
Security Council field missions should meet regularly with appropriate local civil
society leaders, international NGOs and perhaps others, such as business leaders.
Security Council should continue thematic seminars to discuss issues of emerging
importance to the Council that include presentations by civil society and other
constituencies as well as UN specialists, such as special rapporteurs. The Security
Council should convene independent commissions of inquiry after Councilmandated operations.
c) The Economic and Social Council should also be revitalised to strengthen its
leading role in development and economic cooperation and linking the normative
and operational work of the UN. ECOSOC should give prominence to promoting
structural prevention and human security as well as post-conflict peacebuilding. It
should cooperate closely with civil society to develop both thematic and situationspecific responses.
18. Strengthen cross-border and regional capacities. Many of the factors that
cause conflicts or that enable them to become deadly have global and regional
dimensions. The UN is mostly operational at either the country or global level, with
only limited capacities to address the cross-border dimensions of regional conflict
formations. Addressing these factors systematically requires integrated strategies.
Efforts should be made to develop or strengthen appropriate mechanisms that can
create strategies to address these concerns. These can take place under the auspices
of a regional organisation, under the UN, or as a joint instrument, depending on the
existing multilateral arrangements in the region. Where no such organisations exist,
the UN can convene relevant actors. Consistent with the subsidiarity principle, the UN
should fill in gaps in a complementary and additive manner. There should be a high
priority on engaging local and regional CSOs and networks and to explore mechanisms
for ongoing cooperation and partnerships. Where existing regional organisations are
more closed, the UN can open space for CSO involvement. Funding streams should be
available for (sub-)regional level initiatives.
19. Mainstream and integrate long-term / ‘deep’ structural prevention into the
work of ALL agencies, departments, and programmes. The mandates and policies of
all functional agencies, programmes and departments should contribute to prevention
and peacebuilding. Each should have a policy for engaging civil society on these
matters. Monitoring and reporting requirements should identify how they contribute
toward a ‘culture of prevention’ and efforts to work with CSOs. Human
resources should be developed through conflict resolution training along with
gender and human rights training to build capacities and enable reciprocal
mainstreaming. There should be increased strategic coordination across the
system. This should include fully integrating the knowledge and functions of
the human rights machinery with the peace and security machinery and the
work of the UN Development Group. Enhance institutional learning through
regular evaluations of how the UN as a whole system responded to specific
conflict situations, using inclusive and accountable evaluation practices that elicit
views from those in the conflict-affected society, among others.