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Humanitarian Action and Peace-keeping Operations: Debriefing and Lessons

Publication series prepared under the direction of Nassrine Azimi
 

Report of the 1997 Singapore Conference organised by the Institute of Policy Studies, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and the National Institute for Research Advancement (NIRA) of Japan

This is the third work in a series of conferences held in Singapore on various aspects of United Nations peace-keeping operations, under the auspices of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) of Singapore and the National Institute for Research Advancement (NIRA) of Japan. The 1997 Conference focused on humanitarian action and peace-keeping operations and brought together key practitioners and scholars from the Security Council, interested governments, the International Committee of teh Red Cross (ICRC), other humanitarian NGOs, academia and the military.

The number and complexity of UN peace-keeping operations have increased dramatically since the end of the cold warm, a result of profound geo-political changes in many areas of the world. These changes have mainly triggered a shift from inter-state to intra-state conflicts, bringing in their wake a myriad of operational, legal and political questions, such as the very relevance and applicability of the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of the state. Furthermore, parties to recent conflicts rarely follow any central authority and have little or no regard for international and humanitarian law. On the peace-keeping and humanitarian side, parties have also changed and multiplied. All these factors have rendered humanitarian action far more complex, and dangerous for those involved.

This book vividly reports the many frank debates that took place at the Conference on four recent difficult United Nations peace-keeping operations - in Somalia, the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda and Liberia. It explores the relationship between humanitarian and military action, the issue of coordination with regional organizations and multinational forces, as well as the role and responsibility of United Nations Member States and, in particular, of the Security Council. Its findings will provide policy-makers, researchers and international affairs analysts with a sober assessment of past experiences, and it is hoped, with tools and lessons by which to guide future peace-keeping operations.

Humanitarian Action and Peace-keeping Operations: Debriefing and Lessons, Report of the 1997 Singapore Conference,  Publication series prepared under the direction of Nassrine Azimi, London: Kluwer Law International for UNITAR, 1997, 314 pages, ISBN 90-411-0724-X

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