Items related to "Human Security Gateway: West Africa". Fri, 16 May 2008 0:30:19 +0000 Fri, 16 May 2008 0:30:19 +0000 robert_hartfiel@sfu.ca (Robert Hartfiel) Wed, 14 May 2008 15:47:41 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24369 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24369 « Grande campagne de miracle », « programme spécial de guérison divine », « soirée de délivrance et de prophétie » : de telles annonces fleurissent sur les murs des grandes métropoles africaines, témoignant de la visibilité croissante des manifestations pentecôtistes en Afrique subsaharienne. Depuis plusieurs années, l’expansion du pentecôtisme sur le continent suscite un intérêt grandissant. Pour beaucoup d’observateurs, la croissance de ce courant chrétien, qui se manifeste notamment par une pratique religieuse expressive et démonstrative, provoque une certaine méfiance. Un grand nombre d’idées reçues accompagne en effet le développement des Églises et des mouvements pentecôtistes : le phénomène serait entièrement nouveau, il serait massif et déstabiliserait les autres forces religieuses, il enfermerait les individus dans de nouvelles identités, il serait dirigé depuis les États-Unis, correspondrait à l’imposition d’un modèle américain et ferait le jeu de la politique états-unienne, etc… Pourtant, des études novatrices ont été conduites depuis une quinzaine d’années, tant par des chercheurs européens qu’africains. Elles permettent de dresser un état des lieux du pentecôtisme sur le continent en soulignant notamment, par ce biais, l’insertion de l’Afrique subsaharienne dans la globalisation. Elles soulignent également la pluralité du phénomène, représenté par des milliers d’Églises différentes et sa complexité. Elles insistent enfin sur l’ambivalence d’un mouvement qui contribue à la création de nouvelles sociabilités tout en renforçant l’individualisation, et entretient de multiples formes de relation au politique. SOURCE: Institut français des relations internationales Institut français des relations internationales Wed, 14 May 2008 12:51:54 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24354 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24354 Ce rapport contient des résumés sur les régions suivants: Afrique australe, Afrique de l’Est, Afrique de l’Ouest et Afrique centrale, et Afrique centrale, et aussi sur les thèmes suivantes: le double défi de la tuberculose et du VIH, circonsion masculine et préventions du VIH, epidémies latentes parmi les hommes ayant des rapports sexuels avec des hommes, la consommation de drogues injectables: un facteur croissant dans plusiers épidémies de VIH de L'Afrique Subsaharienne, et signes de changements vers des comportements à moindre risque. SOURCE: Nations Unies // Programme Commun Des Nations Unies Sur le VIH/SIDA Nations Unies // Programme Commun Des Nations Unies Sur le VIH/SIDA Wed, 14 May 2008 11:35:42 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24338 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24338 Le Rapport sur la gouvernance en Afrique est le fruit de larges travaux de recherche sur les pratiques de gouvernance entrepris dans 27 pays africains par la Commission économique pour l’Afrique (CEA), par l’intermédiaire d’instituts nationaux de recherche, qui ont recueilli, ensemble par échantillonnage, les opinions de plus de 50 000 ménages et de 2 000 experts. Les conclusions, soumises à la CEA entre 2002 et 2004, ont fait l’objet d’un processus rigoureux d’examens auxquels ont participé des experts nationaux et internationaux travaillant sur la gouvernance et les questions politiques et économiques. Ce rapport est la première grande étude de ce type initiée par les pays africains, qui vise à analyser de façon empirique les opinions des citoyens quant à l’état de la gouvernance dans leurs pays, tout en mettant en évidence les principaux déficits de capacité dans les pratiques et institutions de gouvernance et en recommandant des pratiques optimales et des solutions pour y faire face. On s’est attaché à assurer l’appropriation locale de l’ensemble empirique de résultats afin de renforcer l’efficacité et la légitimité de la prise de décisions et de l’effort de sensibilisation aux niveaux national et infrarégional. Les données ainsi générées peuvent être utilisées pour mesurer la performance des gouvernements et de toutes les principales parties prenantes dans leur réponse aux préoccupations exprimées par les citoyens et pour suivre la mesure dans laquelle le contrat qu’ils ont passé entre eux est respecté. Nous avons pris soin de ne pas être trop directif. Le Rapport sur la gouvernance en Afrique contient des recommandations qui découlent essentiellement des réalités propres aux pays, car, pour être durable, la gouvernance doit être replacée dans son contexte et internalisée. SOURCE: Nations Unies // Commission économique pour l'Afrique Nations Unies // Commission économique pour l'Afrique Wed, 14 May 2008 11:02:26 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24335 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24335 Le présent rapport fait la synthèse de la première grande étude continentale visant à mesurer et contrôler les « Progrès accomplis sur la voie de la bonne gouvernance en Afrique », entreprise par la Commission économique pour l’Afrique. Dans le cadre de cette étude, des enquêtes et des recherches ont été menées sur 28 pays. Les résultats complets et l’analyse de l’étude seront publiés en 2005 dans le premier «Rapport sur la gouvernance en Afrique ». La CEA a entrepris ce travail pour évaluer l’idée que les citoyens se font de l’état de la gouvernance en Afrique, pour rassembler des informations sur les meilleures pratiques et pour identifier les principaux besoins de la région en matière de développement des capacités. Le projet a identifié quatre tendances positives sur la voie de la création d’États compétents en Afrique: transitions démocratiques, ouverture politique, liberté d’expression et obligation comptable, et gestion économique. SOURCE: Nations Unies // Commission économique pour l'Afrique Nations Unies // Commission économique pour l'Afrique Thu, 08 May 2008 16:46:07 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24259 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24259 Le Tribunal spécial pour la Sierra Leone (TSSL) a été établi par un accord entre le gouvernement sierra-léonais et l’ONU en janvier 2002. Cette étude de cas cherche à produire une description générale et une analyse des politiques relatives à ce tribunal. Elle fait partie d’une série destinée à documenter et analyser les questions pratiques et de politique auxquelles les tribunaux hybrides se trouvent confrontés. Elle couvre ainsi : · un bref historique du conflit et de la nature des atrocités comprises en Sierra Leone · le contexte de l’établissement du TSSL · le cadre juridique et la jurisprudence de la cour · une description des chambres, du parquet et du greffe · la défense et les questions d’équité · la discrétion du parquet · les questions d’efficacité et de financement · la coopération de l’État · la portée et les perceptions publiques à l’égard du tribunal · le potentiel de legs · le TSSL et la Commission vérité et réconciliation Cette étude de cas vise à apporter une information générale, encore peu disponible à certains égards, dans le but de guider les décideurs politiques et autres intéressés dans l’établissement et la mise en oeuvre de mécanismes comparables. Des études de cas similaires ont été réalisées sur le Kosovo et le Timor-Leste. SOURCE: Centre International pour la Justice Transitionnelle Centre International pour la Justice Transitionnelle Wed, 07 May 2008 16:48:35 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24230 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24230 L’arrestation, au Tchad, des membres de l’association L’Arche de Zoé en 2007 a soudainement attiré l’attention sur une région d’Afrique où la France reste très influente. En vertu d’accords militaires avec N’Djamena et Bangui (République centrafricaine, RCA), Paris maintient une présence militaire de plus en plus contestée par les oppositions locales. En proie à des conflits armés internes, le Tchad et la RCA subissent en outre les conséquences de la crise du Darfour. Les forces de paix internationales en cours de déploiement font essentiellement appel à la France. Mais la difficile mise en place de la mission européenne Eufor révèle des divergences entre Paris et ses partenaires. SOURCE: Le Monde Diplomatique Le Monde Diplomatique Wed, 07 May 2008 15:02:48 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24223 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24223 Chaque fois que la situation des approvisionnements menace de se détériorer dans un pays ou une région donnée, des alertes spéciales attirent l'attention des gouvernements et organismes d'aide sur l’évolution de la situation et les éventuelles mesures d'urgence à prendre. Les Rapports spéciaux sont généralement le résultat de missions d'évaluation sur le terrain et présentent un état des lieux détaillé de la situation agricole et alimentaire. Ils sont publiés par le Système Mondial d'Information et d'Alerte Rapide de la FAO. Une Mission conjointe CILSS/FAO/FEWSNet/SIMA/PAM d'évaluation des marchés s'est rendu sur des marchés céréaliers clés du Bénin, du Niger et du Nigéria du 13 février au 9 mars, afin d'estimer les stocks actuels et le niveau des prix ainsi que le flux des échanges au sein des pays et entre eux, et d'analyser les implications pour la sécurité alimentaire des pays les plus vulnérables. SOURCE: Organisation des Nations Unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture // Système Mondial d'Information et d'Alerte Rapide Organisation des Nations Unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture // Système Mondial d'Information et d'Alerte Rapide Wed, 07 May 2008 10:55:58 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24188 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24188 Généralités: Les données fiables sur les conséquences obstétricales des mutilations génitales féminines sont rares. L’étude porte sur les effets des différents types de mutilations sur le devenir obstétrical des femmes. Méthodes: 28 393 femmes se présentant pour une naissance unique entre novembre 2001 et mars 2003 dans 28 centres d’obstétrique au Burkina Faso, au Ghana, au Kenya, au Nigéria, au Sénégal et au Soudan, ont été examinées avant l’accouchement pour vérifier si elles avaient subi des mutilations ou pas, et ont été classées selon le système de l’OMS : mutilation de type I, excision du prépuce, avec ou sans excision partielle ou totale du clitoris ; mutilation de type II, excision du clitoris, avec excision partielle ou totale des petites lèvres ; mutilation de type III, excision partielle ou totale des organes génitaux externes et suture ou rétrécissement de l’orifice vaginal (infibulation). Des informations prospectives sur les facteurs démographiques, sanitaires et génésiques ont été recueillies. Les participantes et leurs nouveau-nés ont été suivis jusqu’à la sortie de la mère de l’hôpital. Interprétation: Les femmes qui ont subi des mutilations génitales féminines ont une probabilité nettement plus élevée de complications obstétricales que celles qui n’en ont pas subi. Il semble aussi que le risque augmente avec l’ampleur de la mutilation. SOURCE: Organisation mondiale de la santé Organisation mondiale de la santé Tue, 06 May 2008 13:27:12 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24165 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24165 This article investigates the determinants of armed group organization and the downstream effects of organization on civil wars. It demonstrates that the interaction between geographical and technological factors influences the types of hierarchical organizations that armed groups develop. It then argues that variations in the types of hierarchies developed by armed groups have important consequences for principal-agent relations, which in turn affect groups’ overall level of military effectiveness. Using evidence from field research conducted in Liberia and Sierra Leone, the model’s plausibility is examined in comparative case studies of four armed groups that fought in those countries from 1989–2003. SOURCE: Center for International Security and Cooperation // Stanford University Center for International Security and Cooperation // Stanford University Tue, 06 May 2008 10:26:38 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24151 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24151 By its resolution 1793 (2007), the Security Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Integrated Office in Sierra Leone (UNIOSIL) until 30 September 2008 and requested me to submit by 31 January 2008 a completion strategy for UNIOSIL that included a 20 per cent staff reduction by 31 March, a continued mission at 80 per cent of the original strength until 30 June and the termination of the UNIOSIL mandate by 30 September 2008. The Council also requested me to submit specific proposals on the mandate, structure and strength of the post-UNIOSIL office in my report of April 2008. The present report provides an update on the progress made by the mission in implementing its mandate since my last report on Sierra Leone, dated 4 December 2007 (S/2007/704), presents further information on the completion strategy of UNIOSIL and sets out my proposals on the mandate, structure and strength of the post-UNIOSIL office. SOURCE: United Nations Secretary General Report United Nations Secretary General Report Mon, 05 May 2008 14:41:48 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24135 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24135 Since the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in August 2003, Liberia has moved from a state of tenuous post-conflict security to a steady but still fragile peace, with a high degree of collaboration amongst all actors shaping a reconstruction- and development-oriented policy agenda. In January 2006, the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Unity Party-led government replaced the former warlord-comprised National Transitional Government of Liberia (NTGL) and immediately set out to ensure promised reconstruction-oriented deliverables through a four-pillar policy framework of security; economic recovery; governance and rule of law; and infrastructure and basic services. The United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) and the United Nations Country Team (UNCT), comprising one of seven integrated missions presently in operation, have worked to support the new government of Liberia (GoL) in realising these aims. SOURCE: Institute for Security Studies Institute for Security Studies Fri, 02 May 2008 09:57:17 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24073 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=24073 On 28 January 2008, the EU launched the EUFOR Chad/CAR operation to deploy a force in support of humanitarian and police action for the United Nations mission in Chad and the Central African Republic (MINUSTAR). Three days later, the deployment was suspended due to the clashes between government and rebel forces around N’Djamena. Designed as the EU’s most ambitious military mission following the trial run of the Artemis DRC and EUFOR RD Congo operations, the current suspension is due to circumstantial causes, but also reveals a failure to correctly read the situation and reveals that poor quality intelligence was used. Since the missions were designed outside the framework of the cross–border conflict between Chad and the Sudan and the internal armed conflict in Chad, its failures in this regard became evident even as the mission was being launched. French forces efficiently evacuated the European residents in the region, but the impasse raises more questions about the capacity of France, Europe and the United Nations to evaluate their military missions and offer solutions to security problems in a continent which lacks other external suppliers of security. This ARI describes the context in which the intervention was devised, the context in which the concept of crisis management by MINUSTAR was created and the operational plan for EUFOR Chad/CAR, as well as the chronology of clashes on the ground and the options to be considered now that the mission has been suspended: to continue with the mission as soon as the clashes cease, or to review the steps taken so as to avoid making the mission part of the problem itself. SOURCE: Real Instituto Elcano Real Instituto Elcano Wed, 30 Apr 2008 13:02:36 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23999 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23999 Depuis plusieurs mois, une rébellion, composée essentiellement de Touaregs du Mouvement des Nigériens pour la justice (MNJ), a démarré dans le nord du Niger, en réaction à un gigantesque projet minier conduit, notamment, par le groupe français Areva. SOURCE: Centre Tricontinental Centre Tricontinental Wed, 30 Apr 2008 11:40:12 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23996 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23996 Depuis la première guerre du Golfe (1990-1991), les pays arabes du Proche-Orient et du Maghreb ont connu une succession de bouleversements qui, partout ailleurs, auraient déstabilisé bien des pouvoirs. Pourtant, la plupart ont réussi à maintenir des structures archaïques que ni la seconde guerre mondiale ni la décolonisation n’avaient fait disparaître. Une opposition efficace peine à émerger alors que les dirigeants tentent de se refaire une virginité aux yeux du monde. SOURCE: Centre Tricontinental Centre Tricontinental Wed, 30 Apr 2008 09:31:20 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23977 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23977 Le présent rapport est la mise à jour d’un précédent document publié en octobre 2005 et constitue une déclinaison régionale du rapport de la FIDH intitulé « L’antiterrorisme à l’épreuve des droits de l’Homme : les clés de la compatibilité », en apportant un éclairage sur la situation prévalant en Afrique sub-saharienne. Si la menace d’attentats terroristes en Afrique subsaharienne est avérée (pour exemples, les attentats terroristes à la bombe perpétrés le 7 août 1998 à Nairobi et à Dar es-Salaam), les leaders de la campagne internationale de lutte conte le terrorisme – au premier chef les États-Unis d’Amérique - considèrent surtout que cette partie du monde peut être un terreau fertile au recrutement de terroristes, une cache potentielle pour les terroristes, un lieu sécurisé pour l’acquisition illicite d’armes ainsi qu’un terrain privilégié pour les transactions financières opaques liées aux activités terroristes. Pour ces raisons, le Comité des Nations unies contre le terrorisme, créé par la résolution 13733 du Conseil de sécurité, appelle les États africains à ratifier les conventions internationales de lutte contre les actes terroristes et harmoniser leur droit interne en conséquence. Notamment, le Comité insiste sur la nécessaire criminalisation de l’acte terroriste et du financement du terrorisme dans leur législation pénale, ainsi que sur la mise en oeuvre de politiques d’asile et d’immigration plus strictes. Ainsi, sous pression diplomatique mais aussi politique et économique de la communauté internationale et parfois même par opportunisme sécuritaire, les États d’Afrique subsaharienne ont massivement ratifié les conventions internationales et régionales de la lutte contre le terrorisme, notamment la Convention de l’Organisation de l’unité africaine sur la prévention et la lutte contre le terrorisme. Par ailleurs, de nombreux États ont intégré dans leur droit interne des dispositions spécifiques de lutte contre le terrorisme. Si la lutte contre le terrorisme est légitime et nécessaire, l’analyse du cadre juridique régional et des législations nationales y afférentes démontre cependant les potentialités liberticides de certaines dispositions. En effet, au prétexte de lutter contre le terrorisme, nombre d’États ont adopté et appliquent des dispositions qui dérogent aux normes internationales de protection des droits de l’Homme qui les lient. D’autres prétendent lutter contre le terrorisme en s’affranchissant de tout cadre légal et ainsi de tout contrôle. En dépit du fait que la lutte anti-terroriste est une question sensible et, en conséquence, se caractérise par le manque de transparence des mesures prises par les États en la matière, le présent rapport présente de nombreux exemples de violations des droits de l’Homme dans le cadre ou au nom de la lutte contre le terrorisme en Afrique Subsaharienne. Il est pourtant nécessaire d’assurer « la compatibilité des législations anti-terroristes avec les droits de l’Homme et les principes démocratiques, pour le succès même de la lutte contre les auteurs d’actes terroristes », comme le soulignait M. Kofi Annan, ancien Secrétaire général des Nations unies devant les membres du Conseil de sécurité des Nations unies en janvier 2002. Loin de constituer un obstacle, la revendication d’une lutte anti-terroriste respectueuse des droits fondamentaux participe en effet tant de la recevabilité que d’une plus grande efficacité de celle-ci. Quelle que soit son origine, le terrorisme a pour effet et parfois comme objectif ultime d’annihiler les principes de démocratie, de liberté et d’humanité. Déroger à ces valeurs pour combattre ceux qui cherchent précisément à les détruire reviendrait à leur prêter main forte et à les conforter dans leur aversion des normes universelles qui fondent l’organisation de nos sociétés, qu’elles soient mondiales, régionales, nationales ou locales. Le respect des droits de l’Homme et la lutte antiterroriste sont compatibles. Il faut cesser de les aborder de manière antagoniste. A cet égard, la Commission africaine des droits de l’Homme et des peuples et la future Cour africaine des droits de l’Homme et des peuples devraient jouer un rôle important dans le contrôle de la conformité des mesures et pratiques des États dans le cadre de la lutte contre le terrorisme avec les dispositions internationales et régionales de protection des droits de l’Homme. SOURCE: Fédération internationale des ligues des droits de l’Homme Fédération internationale des ligues des droits de l’Homme Mon, 28 Apr 2008 10:49:58 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23926 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23926 There is growing agreement that separated children are best cared for in community settings, rather than in institutions. However, even in a community setting, there is a need for standards of care that allow for monitoring of children’s well-being. This is particularly pdfimportant in countries such as Sierra Leone which is recovering from a brutal civil war and suffering from poverty, malnutrition, and limited access to adequate medical care. Since the civil war ended in Sierra Leone, child fostering—whether informal or facilitated by humanitarian agencies and the government— has become the preferred solution for the estimated 800,000+ orphaned, abandoned, and vulnerable children. SOURCE: Tufts University // Feinstein International Center Tufts University // Feinstein International Center Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:35:00 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23897 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23897 Sustainable peacebuilding requires broad local participation in decision-making processes, training and capacity-building for local stakeholders, as well as the gradual handover of international responsibilities to local authorities. All of these measures relate and contribute to local ownership. While many international organizations endorse the principle of local ownership, much unclarity remains with respect to its practical and sustainable implementation in the field. The ZIF-research project on Local Ownership in Peacebuilding Processes - Approaches, Experiences, and Prerequisites for Success. An empirical study of peace operations in Kosovo (UNMIK) and Liberia (UNMIL) therefore aims to fill this gap in existing research on local ownership by clarifying the meaning of the concept and by exploring the practice of its actual implementation in the field. SOURCE: German Foundation for Peace Research // Deutsche Stiftung Friedensforschung German Foundation for Peace Research // Deutsche Stiftung Friedensforschung Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:26:15 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23896 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23896 Côte d’Ivoire continues towards peace one year after the ex-Forces Nouvelles (FN) rebellion leader Guillaume Soro was appointed prime minister by his former adversary, President Laurent Gbagbo, but violence could still return. All actors must focus on creating the political and security conditions necessary for the free and fair elections that, for the first time in the drawn-out peace process, appear possible within less than a year. However, the competition for the presidency, for which certain politicians appear ready to go to extremes, combined with the proliferation of armed groups and growth of impunity in recent years, present a potentially explosive environment. Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaoré, who is the facilitator and arbitrator of the peace process, as well as the UN Security Council, must assume their responsibilities to avert another descent into violence in this pivotal West African state. SOURCE: International Crisis Group International Crisis Group Thu, 24 Apr 2008 10:51:21 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23863 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23863 This paper unpacks the crisis in the Niger Delta of Nigeria with reference to its external dimensions by which is meant the involvement of international non-governmental organisations in the politics of local environmental governance. It takes as its point of departure the events (in the 1990s) that underpinned the international community’s engagement with an issue that could have been regarded as Nigeria’s domestic affair and follows with an assessment of the impact of internationalisation of the crisis on the major actors in the region. It is noted that the crisis in the Niger Delta has been predicated for over four decades on a number of complex issues in Nigeria’s geo-political landscape. The emergence of organized pressure groups (in the early 1990s) and their protestations against human rights abuses and environmental problems in the region added a ‘new’ dimension to the crisis. In tackling its thematic concern, this paper interrogates the involvement of the international civil society in the Niger Delta and concludes with an appraisal of the extent to which the internationalisation of the crisis engendered both attitudinal and policy shifts on the part of the main actors. SOURCE: Alternatives // Turkish Journal of International Relations Alternatives // Turkish Journal of International Relations Wed, 23 Apr 2008 17:09:59 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23851 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23851 Ce mémoire analyse la politique d'engagement de la France en Côte-d'Ivoire à travers deux grandes parties. Dans un premier temps, il étudie pourquoi l’intervention française en Côte d’Ivoire a été une nécessité, d’une part, en raison des liens existant entre les deux pays, et d’autre part, pour éviter une guerre civile qui aurait entraîné des milliers de morts et sans doute la partition du pays. Dans un deuxième temps, il explique pourquoi la politique mise en oeuvre par la France a montré ses limites, plaçant les forces françaises d’interposition dans un bourbier et mettant en danger les nombreux ressortissants résidant en Côte d’Ivoire. SOURCE: Institut d'études politiques, Lyon, France Institut d'études politiques, Lyon, France Wed, 23 Apr 2008 14:18:09 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23839 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23839 Le dernier rapport de l’International Crisis Group examine les conditions pour de nouvelles élections, qui sont prévues le 30 novembre 2008. Cependant, la convoitise du fauteuil présidentiel, pour lequel certains acteurs semblent prêts à tout, combinée à la présence de groupes armés et à l’impunité qui a prospéré au cours des dernières années, constituent un environnement potentiellement explosif. « Les contraintes financières et techniques sont une réalité mais elles sont aussi un argument facile utilisé par le gouvernement pour justifier l’accumulation des retards », explique Gilles Yabi, analyste senior à Crisis Group. « Ce sont bien les manœuvres des acteurs ivoiriens dans la perspective des élections qui menacent l’ensemble du processus de paix. » L’Accord politique de Ouagadougou (APO) du 4 mars 2007 aux termes duquel le chef de l’ex-rébellion des Forces nouvelles (FN) Guillaume Soro fut nommé au poste de Premier ministre par son adversaire d’alors, le président Laurent Gbagbo, a produit des résultats mitigés. La situation sécuritaire générale s’est améliorée. Mais le retard dans l’application de l’accord est considérable et aucun progrès décisif n’a été réalisé dans l’exécution des deux volets essentiels : l’identification de la population –recenser et inscrire les citoyens sur les listes électorales –, et le désarmement des ex-rebelles et des miliciens, leur réinsertion ou leur intégration dans la vie civile ou militaire. Il faut s’atteler maintenant à ces tâches qui sont les plus risquées et les plus politiquement sensibles. Le climat apaisé observé depuis un an est réel mais il ne doit tromper personne. Le nouveau report de la date prévue pour la première échéance électorale montre qu’il sera difficile d’amener tous les acteurs politiques à accepter que soient créées toutes les conditions d’un vote démocratique. Trois exigences sont fondamentales : le respect à la lettre de l’APO par ses signataires, la mise en place d’un plan de sécurisation consensuel des opérations d’identification et des élections et la définition d’une stratégie de prévention des violences avec l’aide du président burkinabè Compaoré – facilitateur et arbitre du processus de paix – et de l’Opération des Nations unies en Côte d’Ivoire (ONUCI). Compaoré devra exposer le cas échéant la mauvaise foi des fautifs et recommander des sanctions individuelles du Conseil de sécurité des Nations unies, dont le Burkina est actuellement membre. « La bataille pour influencer le processus électoral et la campagne présidentielle sera rude, risquant de faire retomber le pays dans une crise aiguë », avertit Daniela Kroslak, directrice adjointe du programme Afrique de Crisis group. « Mais l’enjeu est crucial pour la stabilité et l’avenir économique de toute l’Afrique de l’Ouest. » SOURCE: International Crisis Group International Crisis Group Wed, 23 Apr 2008 10:48:24 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23819 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23819 Following the completion of its year as a member of the Peacebuilding Commission, and against the backdrop of Denmark‟s extensive role along with Tanzania in negotiating the establishment of the PBC, the Permanent Mission of Denmark to the UN commissioned the CIC/IPI Joint Program on Peacebuilding as Statebuilding to undertake a strategic review of the body‟s performance. The purpose of this document is to take stock and to look forward. The PBC is a young body still finding its feet. We use as a framework for assessment the notion that three years is a credible timespan within which a new intergovernmental body should be fully functional. Thus, this report serves as a stocktaking, assessing progress to date by the PBC and making suggestions about how to continue to enhance its impact. To this end we interviewed senior officials of all PBC member countries, as well as UN and other stakeholders in New York, Burundi, and Sierra Leone. SOURCE: International Peace Research Institute // New York University Center on International Cooperation International Peace Research Institute // New York University Center on International Cooperation Tue, 22 Apr 2008 10:36:15 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23791 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23791 It’s bad enough that the international community has failed, five years in, to end the genocide in Darfur, and worse still that it reacted with no urgency when the Darfur crisis bled into neighboring Chad. With the root causes of conflict in each country still untended, this regional crisis is poised to deepen. The agreement signed on March 13 in Dakar, Senegal, between Chadian President Idriss Déby and Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir might have appeared a spot of good news for a part of the world that has been on a steady slide toward chaos. It wasn’t. Relations between Chad and Sudan are so volatile and international diplomacy so feeble that a non-aggression pact between the two countries is a warning sign for more conflict to come. These quarrelsome neighbors have signed four peace accords in the past two years, and in each instance fighting broke out shortly thereafter. This time, it took less than a week for the regimes to accuse one another of violating the Dakar Agreement, and just over two weeks for Darfur-based Chadian rebels backed by Khartoum to attack Chadian government forces in the strategic border town of Adé, where pitched gun battles left seven civilians dead and 47 wounded. SOURCE: ENOUGH Project ENOUGH Project Fri, 18 Apr 2008 15:22:45 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23742 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23742 L’adaptation aux changements climatiques passe par la participation des paysans et l’information. Dans cette optique, un projet de rechercheaction au Bénin vise à réduire la vulnérabilité des agriculteurs et à améliorer la sécurité alimentaire. SOURCE: Centre de recherches pour le développement international Centre de recherches pour le développement international Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:48:51 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23711 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23711 Which influences shaped the 1999 Sierra Leone peace agreement? The peace accord is remembered for the blanket, unconditional amnesty granted to all warring parties, which met with strong international condemnation. This Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue and International Center for Transitional Justice article tracks the discussions and influences that resulted in the Lome Accord. It finds that the amnesty was determined by the incontestable political and military realities of the time. Focusing particularly on issues of justice and accountability, it also assesses the impact of the accord in succeeding years. The civil war in Sierra Leone began in 1991, with rebels fighting as the Revolutionary United Front (RUF). The conflict was notorious for abuses inflicted on civilians by both the rebels and government-affiliated troops. During the signing of the peace accord the United Nations (UN) representative unexpectedly inserted a disclaimer; UN policy prohibited him from signing an agreement granting amnesty for serious international crimes. The implications of this disclaimer were left open. SOURCE: Governance and Social Development Resource Centre Governance and Social Development Resource Centre Thu, 17 Apr 2008 10:49:03 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23699 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23699 For two decades Joseph Kony’s Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) has plunged northern Uganda into a nightmare of atrocities, sadistic mutilations, child-kidnappings and sexual slavery, all in the name of establishing a Ugandan government based on the Bible and the Ten Commandments. After years of fighting and recent internal dissension, the elusive LRA consists today of little more than 800 individuals, including kidnapped children and young women abducted and given as rewards to loyal LRA commanders. At least half its fighters are believed to be children kidnapped from north Uganda, though many older fighters appear to be drawn by opportunities for looting or even commitment to the cause of Acholi rights. SOURCE: Global Terrorism Analysis // The Jamestown Foundation Global Terrorism Analysis // The Jamestown Foundation Thu, 17 Apr 2008 10:41:45 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23696 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23696 The restoration of Liberia’s economic and social infrastructure is essential for a peaceful future. InWEnt is supporting the rehabilitation of the road network by offering advanced training. Over 200,000 people lost their lives during 15 years of civil war in the West African country of Liberia. The UN negotiated a peace agreement in 2003; and some 16,000 members of the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) are keeping the peace today. When the presidential elections were held in 2005, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, a former World Bank economist, beat footballer George Weah. Nonetheless, Liberia’s economic situation remains dire. Approximately 85 % of the people do not have a job in the formal sector. With a per-capita income of less than $ 250 a year, the country is one of the world’s poorest. The electricity grid and water infrastructure have been completely destroyed. During the civil war, qualified people left the county. Many young Liberians never went to school. SOURCE: Development and Cooperation Development and Cooperation Thu, 17 Apr 2008 10:37:46 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23694 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23694 The present report was prepared pursuant to Security Council resolution 1795 (2008), by which the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI) until 30 July 2008 and requested me to keep it regularly informed and to report, no later than 15 April 2008, on developments in Côte d’Ivoire, in particular on the preparation of the electoral process. The report covers major developments since my report of 2 January 2008 (S/2008/1), as well as the findings of a technical assessment mission that visited Côte d’Ivoire from 3 to 12 March 2008. SOURCE: United Nations Security Council United Nations Security Council Thu, 17 Apr 2008 09:23:25 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23678 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23678 The contention that the Darfurian conflict is being 'exported' to eastern Chad via janjawid militia has received widespread coverage. However, this is a dangerous oversimplification of the ethnic and political dynamics of the region, and most especially neglects the importance of the political crisis in Chad. Khartoum and N'Djamena have been engaged in an on-again, off-again proxy conflict using one another's rebel movements since the Darfur conflict began in 2003, most intensively since 2005. Khartoum has attempted on multiple occasions to unify the Chadian rebel groups to destabilize or even overthrow the Déby regime. While Déby has survived two attacks on the capital, he has managed to hold on to power through repression and incentives to those who rally to him. This Working Paper provides the contextual and historical background for understanding the current Chad–Sudan conflict, its complex ethnic components, and the history of the Chadian rebel factions. The paper explains why the current international peacekeeping effort is unlikely to be successful without an accompanying diplomatic push to bring the Chadian opposition— both legal and armed—and the Déby regime to the negotiating table. SOURCE: Small Arms Survey Small Arms Survey Wed, 16 Apr 2008 16:02:48 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23658 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23658 À sa dixième réunion, le 18 septembre 2007, le Groupe de travail a examiné le rapport du Secrétaire général sur les enfants et le conflit armé en Côte d’Ivoire (S/2007/515), présenté par la Représentante spéciale du Secrétaire général. Le Représentant permanent de la Côte d’Ivoire a participé aux débats qui ont suivi. On retiendra de l’échange de vues entre les membres du Groupe de travail les points exposés ci-après. SOURCE: Nations Unies // Assemblée générale Nations Unies // Assemblée générale Wed, 16 Apr 2008 14:46:12 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23650 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23650 Dans son rapport à mi-parcours, le Groupe d'experts sur la Côte d'Ivoire affirme que les refus opposés à l'Opération des Nations Unies en Côte d'Ivoire ( ONUCI ) par les autorités ivoiriennes afin d'inspecter des sites placés sous le contrôle de la Garde républicaine compromettent sérieusement l'efficacité de la surveillance de l'embargo sur les armes et matériels connexes. SOURCE: Nations Unies // Conseil de sécurité Nations Unies // Conseil de sécurité Wed, 16 Apr 2008 14:00:08 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23633 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23633 The Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children traveled to Sierra Leone in February 2008 as part of its Displaced, Out-of-School Youth Initiative, a three-year global research and advocacy project that seeks to increase attention and support for quality programs for displaced young people. The purpose of the week-long visit was to assess young people’s needs, what services appear to be working, gaps in programming for young people and what more is needed. The delegation, comprising one staff member and two board members, spent time in the capital, Freetown, and in the east, in Kenema and Kono districts, the region most impacted by the war. The delegation met with nongovernmental organizations, UN agency staff and young people in and out of school. SOURCE: Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Children Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Children Mon, 14 Apr 2008 14:38:27 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23600 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23600 The present report is submitted pursuant to Security Council resolution 1778 (2007), by which the Council requested me to report to it every three months on the security and humanitarian situation in eastern Chad, the north-eastern Central African Republic and the region, including movements of refugees and internally displaced persons and progress made in creating security conditions conducive to their voluntary return. The report covers major developments since my report of 17 December 2007 (S/2007/739), including the deployment of the United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT), the European Union-led military force (EUFOR Chad/Central African Republic) and the Police tchadienne pour la protection humanitaire (PTPH). SOURCE: United Nations Secretary General Report United Nations Secretary General Report Mon, 14 Apr 2008 13:10:56 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23595 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23595 The region of the Greater Horn of Africa has turned into one of the largest and most violent conflict regions in the world. Five international peacekeeping operations are desperately struggling to contain the situation. In Somalia, the few troops of the AU mission AMISOM are hardly able to leave their barracks. UNMEE, the UN mission tasked to monitor the cessation of hostilities between Ethiopia and Eritrea has just been forced by the government of Eritrea to withdraw its Blue Helmets from its territory. At the border between Chad, CAR, and Sudan, the joint EU/UN Mission EUFOR Chad/RCA is well behind schedule. And the new AU/UN Hybrid Mission in Darfur, UNAMID, is suffering from an even worse delay in its deployment. SOURCE: Center for International Peace Operations Center for International Peace Operations Thu, 10 Apr 2008 13:25:03 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23550 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23550 Following the March 2007 Ouagadougou Peace Accord, some of Côte d’Ivoire’s inter-nally displaced people (IDPs) have started to return home, either spontaneously or in a few cases assisted by the government and humanitarian agencies. Some tens of thousands of IDPs are believed to have returned, from over 700,000 counted in just five government controlled regions in 2005. While the political atmosphere remains generally positive and all the parties involved continue to support the implementation of the Ouagadougou agreement, the new unity government has struggled to abide by the road map for peace and meet the deadlines set out in the Accord and its supplementary agreements. Delays in the implementation of the plan were due to the lack of funding, the limited capacity of national institutions and the need to balance political and military aspirations over the sensitive issue of dismantling both pro- and anti-government militias and integrating them into the regular army. The June 2007 attack against the Prime Minister, Guillaume Soro, ex-rebel leader of the Forces Nouvelles underlined the continuing fragility of the peace process. While this cur-rent peace agreement has enabled some displaced people to return or resettle, the overall situation needs to improve further, especially in the west of the country, before IDPs can voluntarily return to their areas of origin or resettle in another area of the country in safety and with dignity. SOURCE: Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre Thu, 10 Apr 2008 11:11:45 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23535 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23535 While the Chad/Cameroon oil pipeline is being officially touted as beneficial development for the people in Cameroon, the Bagyeli have seen a myriad of negative consequences and few if any positive effects. The Bagyeli are foragers living in the rainforest of Cameroon near the terminus of the pipeline. For the Bagyeli, the pipeline has meant a loss of their habitat and a decline in the foodstuffs they rely on. Through the in-migration of people seeking employment and the increased impoverishment of the Bagyeli, there has been an increased risk of HIV infection as well as an increase in other diseases. As more areas in Chad and Cameroon, as well as other regions of the world, are being opened for oil exploration, the impacts this has on indigenous peoples’ health must be understood and acted upon. SOURCE: Washington State University Washington State University Fri, 04 Apr 2008 15:27:51 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23433 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23433 Par sa résolution 1777 (2007) du 20 septembre 2007, le Conseil de sécurité a prorogé le mandat de la Mission des Nations Unies au Libéria (MINUL) jusqu’au 30 septembre 2008 et m’a prié de suivre les progrès dans le sens de la réalisation des objectifs clefs détaillés dans mon rapport du 8 août 2007 (S/2007/479) d’ici au 20 mars 2008. Le présent rapport rend compte des principaux faits survenus au Libéria, notamment les progrès accomplis dans le sens de la réalisation des objectifs clefs en ce qui concerne la consolidation de la phase de retrait de la MINUL, ainsi que le plan de retrait des effectifs. SOURCE: Nations Unies // Conseil de sécurité Nations Unies // Conseil de sécurité Fri, 04 Apr 2008 13:46:21 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23423 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23423 This article investigates the determinants of armed group organization and the downstream effects of organization on civil wars. It demonstrates that the interaction between geographical and technological factors influences the types of hierarchical organizations that armed groups develop. It then argues that variations in the types of hierarchies developed by armed groups have important consequences for principal-agent relations, which in turn affect groups’ overall level of military effectiveness. Using evidence from field research conducted in Liberia and Sierra Leone, the model’s plausibility is examined in comparative case studies of four armed groups that fought in those countries from 1989–2003. SOURCE: Center for International Security and Cooperation // Stanford University Center for International Security and Cooperation // Stanford University Fri, 04 Apr 2008 11:03:24 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23412 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23412 An analysis of the imagery on postage stamps suggests that regimes in Sudan and Burkina Faso have pursued very different strategies in representing the nation. Sudan’s stamps focus on the political center and dominant elite (current regime, Khartoum politicians, and Arab and Islamic identity) while Burkina Faso’s stamps focus on society (artists, multiple ethnic groups, and development). Sudan’s stamps build an image of the nation as being about the northern-dominated regime in Khartoum (whether military or parliamentary); Burkina Faso’s stamps project an image of the nation as multi-ethnic and development-oriented. SOURCE: African Studies Quarterly African Studies Quarterly Fri, 04 Apr 2008 10:43:32 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23410 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23410 This article is an examination of American foreign policy towards Sierra Leone in 1999 and 2000. Hopefully it will contribute to the literature of Sierra Leone while shedding theoretical light on types of humanitarian intervention. It seeks to answer two questions about American policy: First, why did the Clinton White House become involved in this particular West African civil war? Secondly, what factors led the U.S. to give financial and logistical help but not military aid? These types of limited interventions have usually been ignored by American foreign policy scholars. To understand Sierra Leonean decision making, it examines four key policy decisions using primary interviews with Clinton officials and looking at internal documents from the White House, Defense and State Departments. I contend that a theory of international institutional agenda setting can best describe American policy. This argument explores how constructivist norms (i.e. human rights and sovereignty) are transmitted, magnified or mitigated by international institutions. By bringing neo-liberal institutional literature back into constructivism we can show how ‘institutional identity’ influences and shapes state policy preferences-- not only in decisions to intervene but in shaping the size and scope of UN peacekeeping mandates. SOURCE: African Studies Quarterly African Studies Quarterly Thu, 03 Apr 2008 13:54:41 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23400 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23400 More than a decade of civil war in Liberia came to a close on 18 August 2003 with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in Accra, Ghana. The CPA called for, among other things, the establishment of a National Transitional Government in Liberia (NTGL) and the implementation of a disarmament, demobilization, rehabilitation, and reintegration (DDRR) programme for the country’s estimated 38,000 ex-combatants. Established by Security Council resolution 1509 of 19 September 2003, the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) was charged with the task of keeping the peace while the DDRR programme was planned and implemented.1 The programme began December 2003, and its DD component officially ended on 31 October 2004. SOURCE: Small Arms Survey Small Arms Survey Wed, 02 Apr 2008 11:13:53 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23329 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23329 In August 2007, the process of collecting nationwide input to Liberia’s Poverty Reduction Strategy whose main objective is to reduce poverty in the country was initiated. This strategy aims to integrate a human rights based approach in programmes or policies by the government in order to promote the fulfilment of all human rights be they economic, social, cultural, civil or political. This report combines 2 quarterly reports covering the period May to October 2007 and endeavours to draw attention to areas where violations of economic and social rights may have led to violations of civil and political rights violations thereby reinforcing the concept of the indivisibility and interdependence of human rights. Good examples of this were reports from Montserrado County where in three cases parents attempted to sell their children so as to buy food. In Diahn Town, Grand Gedeh County, due to the poor condition of the school, children were unable to attend school and parents preferred to have their children work on the family farms rather than contribute towards rebuilding the school. SOURCE: United Nations Mission in Liberia United Nations Mission in Liberia Tue, 01 Apr 2008 16:49:02 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23321 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23321 Le présent rapport est soumis en application du paragraphe 14 de la résolution 1233 (1999) du Conseil de sécurité, dans lequel ce dernier m’a prié de le tenir périodiquement informé de l’évolution de la situation en Guinée-Bissau et des activités du Bureau d’appui des Nations Unies pour la consolidation de la paix en Guinée-Bissau (BANUGBIS) et de lui présenter un rapport à ce sujet. Par la suite, au paragraphe 11 de sa résolution 1580 (2004), il m’a prié de lui rendre compte par écrit tous les trois mois. Le présent rapport porte sur les événements qui se sont déroulés depuis mon rapport précédent (S/2007/715), daté du 6 décembre 2007; on y trouvera les progrès réalisés par la Guinée-Bissau pour mobiliser des ressources. SOURCE: Nations Unies // Conseil de Sécurité Nations Unies // Conseil de Sécurité Tue, 01 Apr 2008 15:38:07 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23312 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23312 This study seeks to explore current practices in the pursuit of justice within a situation of active hostilities prior to a peace agreement, drawing on recent experiences in Afghanistan, Colombia, the DRC, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Uganda, and the former Yugoslavia. In dealing specifically with the complex questions that arise from the exercise of criminal justice during conflict, the paper addresses considerations which govern the decisions of the international Prosecutor, in particular regarding the question of the timing of indictments. The paper also takes a thorough look at the view of various constituencies on the question of delivering justice in the context of ongoing conflict, such as the interests of victims, governments, the Security Council and other UN actors, regional organisations, humanitarian organisations, traditional leaders, and mediators. Finally, the paper highlights the challenge of conducting an investigation in a situation of ongoing conflict and elaborates on steps that can be undertaken to preserve justice options for the future. Throughout the paper, reference is made to the experience of the International Criminal Court which, at the moment, only has active investigations operating in contexts of ongoing conflict. SOURCE: Peace Justice Conference // International Center for Transitional Justice Peace Justice Conference // International Center for Transitional Justice Tue, 01 Apr 2008 14:42:16 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23303 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23303 Addressing questions of justice for massive past human abuses is often cited as one of the most difficult challenges of peace negotiations. But despite the apparent difficulties, many peace agreements have in fact included a variety of measures for accounting for past abuses. While these have rarely included an explicit commitment to prosecutions and punishment for wrongdoers, many have left open that possibility, avoiding a blanket amnesty, while also committing to non-judicial measures such as truth commissions, reparations for victims, or screening the security forces for those implicated in past abuses. The range of policy options has received greater attention in recent years as the field of “transitional justice” has rapidly developed and become part of the lexicon of international relations, and of peacemaking more generally. In addition, developments in the arena of international law have made clear that a blanket and unconditional amnesty for serious international crimes (crimes against humanity, serious war crimes, genocide) are not acceptable. The United Nations has established clear guidelines for its representatives, indicating that they may not sanction such amnesties. Meanwhile, the potential for indictments emerging from international courts, or hybrid courts such as the Special Court for Sierra Leone, has considerably changed the dynamics around peacemaking in some contexts. SOURCE: Peace Justice Conference Peace Justice Conference Tue, 01 Apr 2008 12:12:18 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23285 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23285 On 28 January 2008, the EU launched the EUFOR Chad/CAR operation to deploy a force in support of humanitarian and police action for the United Nations mission in Chad and the Central African Republic (MINUSTAR). Three days later, the deployment was suspended due to the clashes between government and rebel forces around N’Djamena. Designed as the EU’s most ambitious military mission following the trial run of the Artemis DRC and EUFOR RD Congo operations, the current suspension is due to circumstantial causes, but also reveals a failure to correctly read the situation and reveals that poor quality intelligence was used. Since the missions were designed outside the framework of the cross–border conflict between Chad and the Sudan and the internal armed conflict in Chad, its failures in this regard became evident even as the mission was being launched. French forces efficiently evacuated the European residents in the region, but the impasse raises more questions about the capacity of France, Europe and the United Nations to evaluate their military missions and offer solutions to security problems in a continent which lacks other external suppliers of security. This ARI describes the context in which the intervention was devised, the context in which the concept of crisis management by MINUSTAR was created and the operational plan for EUFOR Chad/CAR, as well as the chronology of clashes on the ground and the options to be considered now that the mission has been suspended: to continue with the mission as soon as the clashes cease, or to review the steps taken so as to avoid making the mission part of the problem itself. SOURCE: Real Instituto Elcano Real Instituto Elcano Mon, 31 Mar 2008 14:51:25 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23255 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23255 Three inter-related factors make Sierra Leone in general and its extractive sector in particular worthy of examination. First, since the formal declaration of peace in 2002 the country has emerged as a model of liberal peacebuilding. The UN deployed one of its largest ever peacekeeping operations at a total cost of $2.8 billion. Official development assistance to Sierra Leone (multilateral, bilateral and UN agencies) amounted to $US1.2 billion between 2003 and 2006 (DACO, 2006: 7) and in 2006 the country’s $1.6 billion debt was forgiven (ICG, 2007: 8). In 2007 the country experienced its second successful post-conflict national election resulting in a transition of power to the opposition All People’s Congress. SOURCE: Annual Convention of the International Studies Association Annual Convention of the International Studies Association Mon, 31 Mar 2008 11:36:06 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23242 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23242 This study contributes to what is currently known about the experiences of girls in fighting forces as distinct from those of boys. It is meant to assist policymakers in developing policies and programs to help protect and empower girls in situations of armed conflict and postwar reconstruction. Within the context of Northern Uganda, Sierra Leone and Mozambique girls in the fighting forces have suffered major human rights violations, especially gender-based violence. The rights of these girls are under threat from their own governments, armed opposition forces, and, occasionally, by members of their communities and families. At times, girls are discriminated against by local groups and officials, governments and international bodies that are unwilling to recognise their presence, needs and rights during conflict, post-conflict, demobilisation and social reintegration. Yet, within the fighting forces, girls carry out a number of diverse roles, including as fighters. Current approaches to understanding the role of girls in conflict, where girls are understood only to be captive "wives," "sexual slaves" or "camp followers", are limited and inaccurate. Among the key findings is that social reintegration, especially of girl-mothers and young women who were girls when they were taken and who return with babies, is particularly difficult and these girls and their children are at high risk. Girls and young women in most of the study areas were also clear that access to education and training in skills would be the most meaningful contribution that national and international agencies could make in assisting their reintegration. SOURCE: International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development Fri, 28 Mar 2008 14:52:35 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23222 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23222 To end the civil war in Sierra Leone the government and the Revolutionary United Front signed a peace agreement allotting former rebels four ministries in a 18 member cabinet, as well as making former rebel leader Sankoh chairman of the Commission for the Management of Strategic Resources. In recent years we have seen a number of such ‘power-sharing’ agreements among war-shattered states, for example in Burundi, Rwanda and Sudan. Based on the perception that all parties shall participate in postconflict decision making, former rebels are included in government. Despite atrocities and brutal violence during war, combatants are not only included in future political institutions, but also exempted from facing charges for this violence. Albeit normatively dubious, these power sharing agreements are viewed as the only feasible way to stop war killings. A fragile peace is ‘bought’ by giving rebels and wrongdoers from all parties, power. This paper looks at the peace negotiations and signed agreements aimed at terminating the Sierra Leonean civil war. From the Abidjan Accord in November 1996 through the 1999 Lomé Agreement, the RUF rebels gained substantial concessions and promises of power. The final agreement gave them access to cabinet posts, amnesty and control over diamond resources. Still, the RUF chose to violate the Lomé Agreement. However, power sharing was among the most important issues during negotiations, and the agreement initiated developments that eventually led to peace. Thus, power sharing contributed indirectly to terminate the civil war in Sierra Leone. SOURCE: Annual Convention of the International Studies Association // Norwegian University of Science and Technology // International Peace Research Institute Annual Convention of the International Studies Association // Norwegian University of Science and Technology // International Peace Research Institute Fri, 28 Mar 2008 12:07:48 -0700 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23206 http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/showRecord.php?RecordId=23206 Après trente ans de stabilité, de prospérité et de parti unique sous la poigne de fer de Félix Houphouët-Boigny, la Côte d’Ivoire n’en finit pas de régler ses querelles de succession. Trois présidents se sont succédé depuis 1993 qui – à travers le concept de l’ivoirité – ont attisé l’attitude xénophobe des populations du sud du pays contre celles du nord, souvent issues de l’immigration burkinabé et malienne. La constitution a été amendée pour empêcher les candidats qui ne seraient pas issus de parents ivoiriens de se présenter, ce qui mit notamment l’ancien Premier ministre Alassane Ouattara sur la touche lors des élections de 2000. SOURCE: Groupe de recherche et d'information sur la paix et la sécurité Groupe de recherche et d'information sur la paix et la sécurité