Establishing Safety and Security at Protection of Civilians Sites
Despite the recent signing of a peace agreement to end more than a year and a half of civil war, South Sudan remains plagued by insecurity. The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) is protecting about 200,000 displaced people at its bases. Many U.N. peacekeeping missions have briefly sheltered civilians at their bases at […]
Stimson’s Alison Giffen Joins State Department As Senior Peacekeeping Advisor
(Washington, D.C.) The Stimson Center announced today that Co-Director of the Future of Peace Operations program Alison Giffen will join the U.S. State Department’s International Organizations Bureau as the Senior Peacekeeping Advisor. The Center also announced the appointment of Lisa Sharland as a Visiting Fellow for the Future of Peace Operations program. Sharland will join […]
Alison Giffen quoted in 100 Reporters on UN Sex Crimes
Activists in New York called Wednesday for the lifting of immunity for United Nations peacekeeping staff accused of sex crimes, saying the current system was permitting human rights abuses in conflict zones around the world. The campaign by the organization AIDS-Free World, dubbed “Code Blue,” coincides with the suspension of a UN staff member last month, who had given […]
Reconciling Security Sector Reform and the Protection of Civilians in Peacekeeping Contexts
By Aditi Gorur and Fairlie Chappuis: The war in the Democratic Republic of Congo directly resulted in the deaths of 860,000 people, mostly civilians, over the period 2007–2010. The vast majority of these deaths occurred at the hands of rebels, demobilized combatants or state security forces. It was therefore entirely appropriate that in 2009 the […]
In South Sudan, U.N. Peacekeepers’ Biggest Challenge: Staying Neutral
JUBA, South Sudan—South Sudan is in crisis. Following the outbreak of a civil war almost a year ago, the country has been devastated by widespread violence that is both politically and ethnically motivated. The international community’s ability to stop the violence rests in large part on the shoulders of the United Nations Mission in South […]
Aditi Gorur op-ed in World Politics Review on crisis in South-Sudan
JUBA, South Sudan—South Sudan is in crisis. Following the outbreak of a civil war almost a year ago, the country has been devastated by widespread violence that is both politically and ethnically motivated. The international community’s ability to stop the violence rests in large part on the shoulders of the United Nations Mission in South […]
The African Union’s New Focus: Reducing Sexual Exploitation And Abuse In Peacekeeping
Today marks the fifteenth anniversary of United Nations (U.N.) International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. As we recognize the vulnerability of women and girls to sexual violence during times of conflict, in the failed state of Somalia African troops are confronting Al-Shabaab and other armed opposition groups who pose a threat to […]
“Will They Protect Us For The Next 10 Years?” Challenges Faced By UN Peacekeeping Mission
The United Nations faces an unprecedented challenge in South Sudan. The country has been devastated by the civil war that broke out in December 2013, just two and a half years after South Sudan gained its independence from Sudan. It is alleged that armed actors on both sides have committed horrific abuses against civilians based […]