Expanding the Responsibility to Protect the Displaced?

Refugee Rights News
Volume 3, Issue 2
July 2006

On June 28, 2006, the international spotlight focused on the issue of the protection of civilians in armed conflict in a special open session of the UN Security Council in New York. UN Under-Secretary for Humanitarian Affairs, Jan Egeland, started off the discussions, noting that in the sphere of protection of civilians in armed conflict “there are significant signs of progress.”

One of these signs of progress was the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1674 in May. The Resolution builds upon previous resolutions, such as Resolution 1296, which had identified the forcibly displaced as a group of particular concern and tasked the Secretary-General with identifying situations in which displaced populations might be harassed or where their camps might be infiltrated by armed elements. Such situations were recognized by the Council as potentially constituting a threat to international peace and security, opening the door to further action.

Resolution 1674 and the responsibility to protect

Resolution 1674, as Mr. Egeland noted, is a significant step towards strengthening Resolution 1296. Particularly important is the recognition of the responsibility to protect; Resolution 1674 reaffirms the commitments made at the World Summit relating to the responsibility of the international community to protect civilians from genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. As the body with the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, the Security Council has a particularly vital role to play. Its acceptance of the responsibility to protect is critical to ensuring that this responsibility is upheld in practice.

The displaced and peacekeeping

Of critical importance to the displaced is the recognition by the Security Council in Resolution 1674 of the important role that may be played by peacekeepers in relation to the situation of the displaced. In relation to camps for the displaced, Resolution 1674 encourages peacekeeping operations to take “all feasible measures to ensure security in and around such camps.” The Resolution also refers to the possible role of peacekeepers in ensuring humanitarian access and creating conditions for safe and dignified return.

Refugees and resolving conflict

Another area addressed by Resolution 1674 is the importance of engaging the displaced in resolving conflicts and rebuilding. The Resolution demands that all peace processes address the need to create conditions for the “voluntary, safe, dignified and sustainable return” of the displaced.

Intimately linked with creating peace in the resolution is the ending of impunity, which is also listed as a condition for resolving conflicts. The resolution draws attention to the range of possible mechanisms for this and asks states to take note of their responsibilities to prosecute under international law.

The way forward

As Jan Egeland noted in his June 28th presentation, the commitments set forth in 1674 are an important step, but the international community must do much more to ensure that crises are dealt with effectively.

The question, as he phrased it, was how to make this commitment reality on the ground. For this, he said, more efforts must be made to elaborate practical guidelines for peacekeepers to ensure that they are as effective as possible. More efforts were also needed, he urged, to ensure humanitarian access and offer the good offices of the international community as mediation.

An important issue, noted by many governments who spoke in the open session, was the potential role of the International Criminal Court. The government of Ghana noted that the Court could “contribute immensely to containing and combating crimes against innocent populations in conflict areas,” particularly calling on states to arrest indictees and citing the recent handover of Charles Taylor as a positive example. The government of Uganda also called for the arrest of indictees in the Lord’s Resistance Army.

The subject will stay on the agenda of the Security Council; the Secretary-General has been requested to submit another report in 18 months.