During the mid-1990s, peacekeepers found themselves deployed in internal conflicts, in which the civilian population frequently became the target of attacks. Missions like UNAMIR in Rwanda and UNPROFOR in the former Yugoslavia were faced with systematic attacks on civilians that peacekeepers were ill-prepared to address. These conflicts, as well as those in Somalia, Sierra Leone and Timor-Leste, witnessed armed groups targeting civilians, including the use of sexual violence as a tactic of war and grave violations of children’s rights.
As a result, the Security Council placed the protection of civilians on its agenda and developed an architecture of resolutions that strengthened the role of peacekeepers to protect. Mandates and rules of engagement were clarified to ensure that peacekeepers had the authority to act. The Council also passed resolutions to establish frameworks to address children in armed conflict and conflict related sexual violence.
States always have the primary responsibility to protect their populations. Peacekeepers first role is to support governments to uphold their protection responsibilities through advice, technical and logistical support and capacity building. Peacekeeping missions also seek, through political good offices and mediation, to take a preventive approach to protecting civilians. As a last resort, however, many peacekeepers are authorized to act to physically protect civilians.
More than 95% of peacekeepers today are mandated to protect civilians
This including protecting children and protecting against conflict-related sexual violence.The vast majority of peacekeepers today serve in missions with mandates that prioritize the protection of civilians. The High-level Independent Panel on Peace Operations found that protecting civilians is a core obligation of the whole UN, not only peacekeeping. This work finds its most visible expression, however, in the work of blue helmets. This challenging mandate is often the yardstick by which the international community, and those whom we endeavor to protect, judge our worth as peacekeepers.
How do we protect the people affected by a conflict?
Modern peacekeeping has a number of tools to support the protection of civilians:
- Political leaders engage with governments and other actors to mitigate and prevent conflict;
- civilian experts, including Child Protection Advisers, Women’s Protection Adviser’s and Protection of Civilians Advisers, engage in a range of activities, including demobilizing child soldiers, persuading armed groups to stop sexual violence and coordinating military operations to protect civilians;
- our military and police personnel bring unique skills to provide security and stability;
- experts in strengthening the rule of law and human rights further ensure the establishment of a protective environment.
A challenging mandate
As might be expected of any organization that serves as a last resort in times of conflict and crisis, peacekeepers face challenges and constraints, particularly in protecting civilians. Even large peacekeeping missions deploy relatively few personnel compared to the size of the territory and population. MONUSCO, for instance, has more than 17,000 troops deployed yet operates in a country with a population of more than 82 million people spread out over more than 2.3 million square kilometres (a ratio of a single troop for every 4,800 people and 135 square kilometres). This is compounded by the fact that many countries where peacekeepers are deployed suffer instability, often with poor infrastructure and limited local security services. For peacekeeping missions, meeting these challenges requires careful planning and strategy to protect the greatest number of people as effectively as possible. It also requires ensuring that the host government, the population and the international community understand the importance of peacekeepers but also their very real limitations.
“We should not forget that our peacekeepers – civilian, police, men and women, military personnel – are saving lives every day. They are protecting civilians and they are helping peace processes be implemented… It is important to recognize the added value of peacekeeping and what we bring to the societies and nations that are destabilized.” - Under-Secretary-General Jean-Pierre Lacroix
25 Years of Protecting Civilans
Over the past 25 years, the POC mandate has become a cornerstone of UN peacekeeping operations, shaping how missions prevent and respond to violence against civilians. To commemorate this 25-year journey, we are sharing a collection of personal stories and reflections showcasing POC efforts on the front lines. This Profiles in POC series will be progressively published on this page, tracing the evolution of the mandate from its inception in 1999 to the present day. From field operations in conflict-affected areas to strategic decision-making at the UN Security Council, the stories capture the breadth of contributions from those advancing the POC mandate, share their perspectives, and honour their commitment to protecting civilians and promoting peace amidst some of the world’s most challenging conflicts.
First Resolutions for POC: Putting Protection on the Security Council Agenda
Elissa Golberg - United Nations Security Council
When Canada arrived at the Security Council in 1999, the international community was still reeling from the atrocities of the 1990s. The focus of UN missions at the time was on protecting humanitarian convoys and aid, rather than people, derided by some as enabling "the well-fed dead". Elissa, then a desk officer for the Canadian foreign ministry based in Ottawa, saw a need to do better.
With dogged determination, Elissa and her colleagues set to work, leading to Security Council resolutions 1265 (1999) and 1296 (2000) – which put the protection of civilians on the Council agenda. With those texts, the Council acknowledged its role in preventing and addressing violence against civilians, including its intention to authorize UN peacekeeping missions to use force to protect civilians when necessary. These resolutions, which Elissa played a key role in drafting, provided the foundation for POC at the UN.
Looking back over the last 25 years, Elissa reflects: "The fact that nearly every single peacekeeping operation since then has had a POC mandate is remarkable. So is the systematic inclusion of POC in military training and doctrine. Also the understanding that all actors in the UN system have a role in protection. POC is embedded. Expectations have risen."
Looking forward, to sustain the progress, Elissa's advice to UN personnel is clear: "Be bold, be brave. Give the Secretary-General and the Security Council your best advice." And while it may seem daunting these days given the current geopolitical climate, Elissa reminds us that, "POC was meant to address a screaming lacuna, but we knew it was not a panacea. We can't stop every attack, but every effort matters. Strengthening POC is a profoundly practical and doable agenda.”
Commanding with Will: Creative Leadership in a Time of Crisis
General Patrick Cammaert - MONUC
When General Cammaert arrived in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2005, the region was, in his own words, “in flames”. Civilians were under constant threat, and militias wreaked havoc everywhere. Before Cammaert was deployed to command the Eastern Division in MONUC, Secretary-General Kofi Annan had one message for him: “General, I want you to take action. Good luck.” That was it. No detailed guidelines, just a mandate to protect civilians under threat of physical violence.
Coming straight from New York, where he’d served as Military Advisor to the Department of Peacekeeping Operations for a couple years, Cammaert had a clear perspective. “Something had to be done to protect these civilians. People in New York understood that. It was the “how” that was unclear. The POC mandate was still quite new, and few had the experience or the answers, so we had to define it.” To Cammaert, a mandate is only as strong as the will and leadership behind it. “It always comes down to these two crucial elements. Will is political, leadership is personal, and both are essential for success”.
Cammaert knew the first thing to do was restore confidence in the UN. Immediately after the division established its headquarters, Cammaert and his troops moved around non-stop, engaging in risky cordon and search operations. “We had a will to implement the mandate using force if we had to, according to the Rules of Engagement,” recalls Cammaert. “We quickly disarmed 18,000 militias in the Ituri District by taking them by the ear and saying: “You disarm, or we’ll make you disarm.” It sent a strong message that the UN was serious and capable of taking action. “We warned them: don’t mess with the UN or you’ll pay the price.”
Cammaert’s approach was not just about brute strength. It was about smart tactics and creativity. When his division did not have the necessary strength or capabilities, they resorted to innovative strategies, using the available materiel to distract and confuse the armed groups, so they couldn’t predict the UN’s movements. “We had to be creative,” says Cammaert. “That’s how we succeeded, by thinking outside the box. Creativity is crucial for POC, but it’s more stifled today.”
On a trip to a different region, Cammaert and his team met with local elders. They complained that the UN wasn’t doing enough or patrolling correctly. He compared the situation to New York, where you could call 911 in an emergency. There was nothing like that in DRC. So, the Mission did something about it – they launched Operation Night Flash, setting up "Community Alert Networks" (CANs), where locals could alert the UN to trouble using phones or signals like church bells, whistles, etc. and the UN would urgently deploy quick reaction forces to deter the threat. Within six months, over 70 villages and hamlets were connected. During such an operation, units were using illumination mortar rounds, lighting up the night sky after being alerted, to scare off attackers.
For Cammaert, protecting civilians wasn’t just part of the Mission’s mandate – it is the “raison d’être” of peacekeeping. “POC, in fact, is why you’re there. You drop everythingwhen people are being killed, tortured, raped... You cannot be everywhere, but wherever you are deployed, you must protect civilians.”
One Incident at a Time: Using Dialogue to Break Cycles of Violence
Cecile Mbary née Mandza - MINUSCA
Years of ongoing violence have claimed countless lives in the Central African Republic. It’s a vicious cycle: one group attacks, the other retaliates, and the conflict continues. Cecile, a Community Liaison Assistant with MINUSCA, works every day to break this cycle through dialogue and finding peaceful solutions to protect civilians.
One particular instance stands out in her mind. She recalls one day being alerted to a tragedy: an elderly father and his nine-year-old daughter on their way to the hospital were killed by members of another ethnic group, a husband and wife. Seeking revenge, an armed group captured the perpetrators to kill them. Cecile knew she had to act fast to stop more bloodshed.
MINUSCA first received the alert from one of their focal points in the village. The focal point had attended a training by the Mission, so they knew what to look for and what to do. Fortunately, the local priest had negotiated to bring the abductees to the safety of the parish – but the arrangement wouldn’t last long. Cecile’s goal was clear: she had to get them out safely and make sure they faced justice the right way – not through more violence.
Cecile immediately left for the village, together with police and military colleagues. She met with the mayor and explained the situation. “The mayor was deeply upset. She explained how much her community had suffered because of the group the father and daughter belonged to”, says Cecile. “I empathized but reminded her: killing never brings peace. We must prevent more violence.” After some convincing, the mayor agreed to help her.
News of Cecile’s arrival spread fast through the village. “The leader of the armed group asked to speak with me,” Cecile describes. “I was placed in a room with him, along with my colleagues from the Force and Police. I might have been scared, but knowing they were protecting me, I felt safe doing my job.” The leader was grieving, listing all the people from his community who’d been killed. “I listened carefully and showed that I understood his pain. I told him we couldn’t just focus on how many people had been killed. Too many lives had been lost on both sides. To end the violence, we must join forces to protect the communities.”
In the end, her words got through to him. “He agreed to let me take the abducted individuals into my custody, otherwise, they would have been killed on the spot,” says Cecile. “I assured him I would relay his grievances and recommendations for peace to the Mission. Choosing the right words, showing sensitivity, and making him feel heard were key to gaining his trust and saving two lives that day.” Cecile and her colleagues brought the individuals back to the MINUSCA field office, and they were handed over to law enforcement authorities.
That day, Cecile’s ability to talk things through and connect with people on a personal level prevented another round of violence, breaking the cycle, at least temporarily.
Beyond that incident, Cecile went on to protect many more civilians from the threat of physical violence in her role as a CLA, continuing her vital work to this day.
From Revenge to Resolution: Defusing Communal Conflicts
Muhiedin Hemiar - UNAMID
Muhiedin didn’t just work in Darfur – he was from there. His deep ties to the region meant he knew the people, including key local leaders. Those connections became vital one day in 2016 when a friend came to him with troubling news.
The friend, a schoolteacher in Khartoum and a tribal focal point, had just learned that his elder brother had been killed by members of a neighboring tribe in South Darfur. The attackers had stolen his brother’s cattle and killed him on what they saw as their original homeland. Working in Civil Affairs with UNAMID, Muhiedin understood what would happen next: “This is a trigger for fighting, they will retaliate,” he thought.
In fact, his friend’s tribe had already started mobilizing. Muhiedin knew that if this continued, it would escalate into a much larger conflict. He urged his friend to take control of the situation by speaking directly to his tribesmen. “You are one of the wisest people in the tribe,” Muhiedin told him, “And you can protect your community by resolving this peacefully. It’ll be far better for your family and your tribe. If you seek revenge, all their lives will be at risk.” His friend listened. He called his family back in the village and made a plea: “Please, don’t act yet. Stop the mobilization, bury the dead body, and do not seek revenge until I arrive.”
It wasn’t just about stopping the violence; it was also about showing leadership. In these tribes, there was a question of bravery, according to Muhiedin. If his friend didn’t go in person, the tribe might think he was opting out of avenging his brother due to a lack of courage. “You need to be there to explain why it’s better not to retaliate, not only for your family but for the entire community,” Muhiedin declared.
Time was the essence. Muhiedin had seen similar situations escalate before and knew the importance of acting fast and being resourceful. In his role as a Civil Affairs Officer, it was his official duty to facilitate conflict resolution. Normally, he would contact local interlocutors to assess the level of tension and, if necessary, UN peacekeepers would be dispatched to the area to defuse the situation. But this time, he knew his friend had to be the one to go. Muhiedin arranged for him to travel on UNAMID flights from Khartoum to South Darfur.
The next morning, his friend reunited with his family and community. His presence and explanations were crucial. He talked to them about what he’d discussed with Muhiedin the previous day: the dangers of escalating the conflict and the wider consequences if they chose violence. He explained that seeking revenge would only lead to more loss on both sides and urged them to go through legal channels instead. His words convinced them. Instead of retaliating, the community brought the case to traditional justice measures, and through a family compensation system, accountability was achieved for the death.
Thanks to Muhiedin’s quick intervention and his friend’s leadership, a major conflict was averted. The tribe chose the path of peace, preventing the situation from spiraling out of control. Reflecting on the incident, Muhiedin explains, “It wasn’t just about stopping one fight. It was about protecting the wider population from violence. If we hadn’t acted that fast, the situation could have spiraled into violent clashes, with the potential for hundreds, if not thousands, of casualties.” This was just one of the many times Muhiedin and his colleagues intervened to prevent communal clashes in Darfur, efforts that were often invisible precisely because they worked.
Bridging Divides: Uniting for Peace
Hiroko Hirahara - UNMISS
South Sudan gained independence in 2011, but just two years later, a civil war broke out, dividing the nation and displacing millions. People fled their homes and took refuge in UNMISS compounds. In Bentiu, the capital of Unity State in the north, a Protection of Civilians (POC) site was created, eventually sheltering over 113,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs).
Hiroko arrived in Bentiu as Head of Field Office in 2016. She was determined to make a difference, but the challenges were immense. Bentiu’s population was divided, with government supporters on one side and opposition supporters on the other. Even families were split by the conflict. Most of the civilians who had sought refuge in Bentiu’s POC site supported the opposition. Violence was rampant, and Hiroko often questioned what the Mission could do to help.
“Day after day, I spoke, negotiated, and even argued with the state governor and the leaders of the opposition until we arrived at an eventual degree of mutual understanding and developed trust,” Hiroko recalls. For years, the peace process seemed stuck, and Hiroko’s team, including the mission’s police faced constant struggles to maintain stability in the POC site.
But in September 2018, things changed. The presidents of Sudan and Uganda brokered a peace agreement, and the exhausted people of Bentiu began peacebuilding efforts of their own. Hiroko and the UNMISS team in Bentiu supported these local efforts, knowing that even small steps towards peace were crucial. One thought lingered in the back of everyone’s mind: ‘If this does not go well, there will be no second chance.’.
Then, on December 15, Hiroko received surprising news from the state governor. "Hiroko," he whispered, "I’ve just received word that the opposition governor will be returning from Sudan soon. He wants to hold a joint peace march together with us." Hiroko was skeptical but hopeful. She contacted the opposition commanders to see if it was true, and they confirmed the plans. Now the state governor and the state opposition leaders added, “we’re counting on the support of UNMISS.” Hiroko and colleagues immediately got to work.
The talks between the factions went smoothly, leading to an agreement that 600 opposition supporters, led by their governor, would arrive in Bentiu on Christmas Eve. Even more remarkable, they would be escorted from the border by government soldiers rather than their own.
When Christmas Eve arrived, thousands of IDPs who hadn’t dared to step outside the POC site for years poured into the streets of Bentiu. They waved cheerfully at the government soldiers they once feared, who beamed and waved back. Local women sang jovial songs and danced their traditional dance in the streets. The youth, filled with joy, cried: “Thank you, UNMISS! Thank you, mama Hiroko!” Every peacekeeper in Bentiu was mobilized that day, and Hiroko saw many of them – who had been protecting those civilians inside the POC site 24/7 for years – become emotional, some even close to tears.
At a meeting held at the POC site, leaders from both sides asked for forgiveness and committed to working together for peace. Suddenly, a military commander scanned the crowd and spotted Hiroko. “Today, we must also thank UNMISS and the woman who heads its field office here in Bentiu,” he declared. For Hiroko, it was a moment of deep validation. “I realized that this was the moment that made all of our work worth it; this was the moment that people on both sides finally understood – even just a little – the work that the UN undertakes.”