Joint UN-IPU Parliamentary Hearing

on Conflict Prevention and Peacebuilding

AM Meeting

keys to conflict prevention, peacebuilding spelt out as joint

United Nations, inter-parliamentary union hearing begins

 

With political will, material support, dialogue and conciliation, it was possible to prevent conflicts and spare the lives of many people, the opening session of the joint United Nations and Inter-Parliamentary Union hearing was told this morning.

Opening the two-day event, the theme of which is “Conflict prevention and peacebuilding:  reinforcing the key role of the United Nations”, Inter-Parliamentary Union President Pier Ferdinando Casini described conflict prevention as a matter of moral duty and common sense on the part of the international community, and insisted that no crisis, whether big or small, should be ignored.

He said recent efforts by the United Nations to strengthen the international community’s role in the resolution and prevention of conflicts included the creation of the Peacebuilding Commission, the Human Rights Council and the Democracy Fund.  The Organization had also renewed its efforts to tackle poverty and social exclusion, which were at the root of many conflicts.  However, the United Nations needed allies, and an important role, in that regard, could be played by parliamentarians and political leaders.  The hearing presented a great opportunity to examine the most important peacebuilding and conflict prevention issues, giving participants a chance to share recent experiences and explore ways for parliamentarians and the Organization to support each other.

The Inter-Parliamentary Union, an international organization grouping sovereign national parliaments, serves as the focal point for worldwide parliamentary dialogue, as well as promoting peace, cooperation and representative democracy.  It currently has more than 140 members, besides seven regional parliamentary assemblies that enjoy associate membership.

Haya Rashed Al Khalifa ( Bahrain), President of the United Nations General Assembly, said the joint hearing presented an important opportunity to develop understanding of the consequences of international decisions on national realities and to encourage better interaction among the players.  Nowhere was cooperation more important than in conflict prevention and peacebuilding.  “We are witnessing a new culture at the United Nations, where prevention is becoming more prominent than reaction.”

Emphasizing the importance of a high level of coordination to tackle potential conflict and strengthen human rights advocacy, she also stressed the important role of women in preventing and resolving conflicts, as per Security Council resolution 1325 (2000), and called for further efforts to mainstream women’s issues, and to increase their participation and access to elected office.  The Inter-Parliamentary Union was to be commended for its support of democracy and partnerships.  “We must continue to identify how efforts at the national level could complement action at the international level.”

Deputy Secretary-General Mark Malloch Brown, delivering a message from United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, said:  “Your voices offer a crucial perspective on international affairs and the United Nations, and I welcome your steadily growing engagement in our work.”  The Secretary-General’s recent progress report on the prevention of armed conflict testified to the fact that the culture of prevention was beginning to take hold at the United Nations, not only through efforts to resolve conflicts peacefully, but also through economic and social development.

The newly established Peacebuilding Commission had created a dedicated institutional mechanism to address the special needs of countries emerging from conflict, he said.  The challenge, now, was to make the most of that new capacity.  The United Nations would have to help States deal with the wide range of actors involved in peacebuilding, prevent gaps and overlap, placing a premium on coordination.  It must also ensure the effectiveness of its technical assistance in such key areas such as constitution-making, transitional justice, democratization and the rule of law.  Country ownership of peacebuilding efforts was essential, and the role of parliaments was crucial in that respect.

Speaking on his own behalf, Mr. Malloch Brown said that during the Secretary-General’s time in office, he had reached out to parliaments, civil society and business partners, in recognition that Member States and the executive branch could no longer stand alone.  The Secretary-General’s reform was not limited to that insight, however.  During his tenure, the United Nations, as a multi-stakeholder organization, had seen a dramatic increase in peacekeeping, with more than 90,000 peacekeepers currently taking part in operations around the world.

Other initiatives included measures to address terrorism, and the integration of peacekeeping with the security and development agenda, he said.  The Secretary-General had provided leadership on HIV/AIDS, environmental sustainability and limited energy resources, and bringing human rights to the centre of international attention.  In addition, the Millennium Development Goals had transformed global development efforts.

This morning’s interactive discussion on prevention of armed conflict was introduced by panellists Bayo Oji, Nigeria’s Minister for Justice; Angela Kane, United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs; and Elisabeth Rehn, Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Participants in the discussion highlighted the main findings of the Secretary-General's 54-page 2006 report on conflict prevention (document A/60/891), which urges Member States to more comprehensively address the primary sources of tension in vulnerable regions, promote country-specific actions, strengthen the norms and institutions for peace and to act in concert with all relevant actors, including parliamentarians and civil society.

Ms. Kane said the report’s core message was that, although substantive progress had been made, the international community still had a long way to go on the ground.  A mere fraction of the $18 billion spent on peacekeeping in the past five years had been devoted to crisis prevention, which entailed the challenge of tackling the sources of tension, as well as strengthening conflict resolution mechanisms and making them more accessible.  Addressing problems like environmental degradation, poverty and HIV/AIDS could reduce the danger of conflict.

Concerted global action was needed to regulate certain industries in order to prevent the trade in “blood diamonds”, illegal weapons and drugs, she said.  Much could be done at the national level by addressing poor governance, corruption and inequitable development.  It was also vital to strengthen mechanisms to promote peace, including global norms and mechanisms in international human rights and the responsibility to protect.

It was necessary to build on the comparative advantages of the United Nations and the Inter-Parliamentary Union in developing the relationship between the two organizations, she said.  Parliamentarians held many advantages, such as their particular role in advocacy work, in promulgating best practices, developing norms and standards, as well as their strong voice in representing their constituencies.

Mr. Ojo highlighted the role of the United Nations, particularly the International Court of Justice, in the peaceful resolution of the dispute between Nigeria and Cameroon over the Bakassi Peninsula.  Neighbouring States need not resort to armed conflict in settling their disputes.  Bloodshed could be avoided through good faith, political will and commitment on the part of national authorities, while the international community, under the leadership of the United Nations, must be proactive in facilitating dialogue between the parties.  Human rights should be the paramount factor in resolving disputes between States.

Ms. Rehn, noting recent changes in the nature of wars, said civilians were increasingly caught in the middle, particularly the most vulnerable groups, which included women, children and the elderly.  There was a need to protect women and enhance their role in conflict resolution and prevention, since men and women were affected differently by war.  Moreover, women’s bodies had become the “battlefields” in many conflicts.  Concrete steps must be taken to analyse existing gender gaps and prioritize women’s role in the peace process.  Parliamentarians must stress the importance of adopting national plans, as well as promoting and electing women to high-level positions.

Numerous speakers in the ensuing debate supported that position, stressing the need to promote the education of girls and women, to strengthen their participation in peace negotiations and to fight impunity for sexual abuse and exploitation and trafficking in human beings.  Parliamentarians had significant power in that regard.

Participants also stressed the role of parliamentarians in promoting dialogue and developing a common understanding of conflict prevention, with several speakers insisting that a systemic approach should be developed to bring lasting and sustainable peace to many countries around the world.  Working with regional and subregional organizations could strengthen those efforts, as could close ties among parliamentarians around the world, which had an important role to play in introducing appropriate preventive measures and allocating adequate resources for prevention programmes.

Speakers noted, in that connection, that with the cost of peacekeeping now exceeding $5 billion a year, a more reliable resource base should be allocated for peacebuilding as well.  Other issues discussed included the need to ensure the coherence of conflict-prevention efforts, to address the root causes of conflict and to promote human rights and democracy.  One participant cautioned that moving from peace-making to prevention should not be an excuse for inaction.  While “soft activities” must be promoted, they must not be allowed to obscure the need for action in places like Darfur.  The tragedy of Rwanda should not be allowed to happen again.

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For information media • not an official record