Tag Archives: UN
26 November 2013
Citing mounting human rights abuses, sexual violence and other ‘horrors’, Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson called on the international community for immediate action to halt the rapidly deteriorating situation in conflict-wracked Central African Republic (CAR). ‘It is critical for the international community and this Council to act now’, Eliasson told the UN Security Council, proposing that a UN peacekeeping mission eventually replace the current African-led International Support Mission in the CAR.
‘We face a profoundly important test of international solidarity and of our responsibility to prevent atrocities (…) The situation requires prompt and decisive action’ he said, also stressing that humanitarian needs are escalating, while funding is woefully short, with a 195 million dollar appeal less than half funded.
He noted that the African Union and the Economic Community of Central Africa States both agree that there is an urgent need for the international community to act, and that a UN peacekeeping operation with a robust mandate will be eventually required.
Source: United Nations | Secratary-General | Ban Ki-moon | Deputy Secretary-General: Statements | New York, 25 November 2013 - Deputy Secretary-General's Briefing to the Security Council on the Situation in the Central African Republic
19 November 2013
A piece in the New York Times draws attention to the risks raised by the decision of the Security Council to authorise the United Nations Force Intervention Brigade in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to ‘neutralize armed groups’, contrary to prior passive peacekeeping forces. This brigade is comprised of 3,000 soldiers from South Africa, Tanzania, and Malawi.
It notes that the Congolese government walked out on peace talks with rebels, as a result of such one-sided support from the UN. Additionally, this authorisation could affect peacekeeping operations worldwide, as there are almost 100,000 peacekeepers stationed from the Western Sahara and Haiti, to Cyprus and Kashmir. Humanitarian aid organisations are considered such operations will put their workers at risk because armed groups will no longer distinguish soldiers and those that provide food and shelter to civilians during war. Furthermore, countries which traditionally send many troops to serve as peacekeepers, such as India and Uruguay, feel uneasy about this new direction, as prior peacekeeping posed little risk of casualties. A UN official, speaking anonymously, was concerned about the precedent which would be set by this authorisation and stated that the Security Council was ‘careful to say it was not a precedent, but every time you say that that’s exactly what you’re making.’
Source: New York Times | New U.N. Brigade’s Aggressive Stance in Africa Brings Success, and Risks
28 October 2013
On 28 October, the President of the International Law Commission (ILC) informed the 6th Committee of the General Assembly that the ILC had decided to include in its work programme the topic ‘Protection of the Atmosphere’, but that the work on the topic would proceed in a manner so as not to interfere with relevant political negotiations, including on climate change. Also, it will not deal with, but is also without prejudice to, questions such as liability of states and their nationals, the polluter pays principle, and common but differentiated responsibilities.
The report of the ILC on the work of its 65th Session, available on the UN website, indicates that the outcome of the work on the topic will be draft guidelines that ‘do not seek to impose on current treaty regimes’.
The President made his statement at the start of the consideration by the 6th Committee of the work of the ILC, which will continue in the next few weeks.
Source: United Nations | International Law Commission | Report of the sixty-fifth session (2013) | General Assembly | A/68/10
Source: United Nations | International Law Commission | Current Programme of Work | Protection of the atmosphere
23 October 2013
Delegations meeting on 21 October at the Sixth Committee of the General Assembly were unable to agree on whether steps should be taken to transform the ILC Draft Articles on the Responsibility of States into a Convention.
Some delegates considered that ‘a convention would create legal certainty’ and that ‘[f]urther codification of the articles would strengthen multilateralism’, but others insisted that ‘it [was] more important to preserve the authority of the articles in practice than to codify them in a convention that may not achieve universality’ and that ‘opening them up to negotiation might upset the delicate consensus that currently existed’.
In any case, ‘virtually all delegates agreed that the draft articles were a key contribution to the development of international law and being broadly used as reference by international and national tribunals and Governments’.
Source: United Nations General Assembly | GA/L/3463 | Sixty-eighth General Assembly | Sixth Committee | 15th Meeting (AM) | Noting Key Role in International Law, Sixth Committee Delegates Disagree over ‘Fate’ of Drafts on State Responsibility, Diplomatic Protection | 21 October 2013
23 October 2013
According to the Norwegian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, the United Nations has asked Norway to eliminate Syrian chemical weapons. According to news reports this follows up on an earlier request made by Russia and the United States.
The Jerusalem Post had a story on this 20 days ago, see here.
Source: The Washington Post | Norway mulls taking and destroying the bulk of Syria’s chemical arsenal