Aspen Institute Releases Report on Human Rights in Post-Conflict Peacekeeping Operations

6/11/2003

From: James M. Spiegelman of The Aspen Institute, 202-736-3849

NEW YORK, June 11 -- The Aspen Institute Justice and Society Program (J&S) released a report today examining post-conflict peacekeeping operations through a human rights lens. The report, Honoring Human Rights Under International Mandates: Lessons From Bosnia, Kosovo, and East Timor, looks at the status of human rights in those situations where, in the absence of a functioning national state, the international community itself is the governing authority.

"Since gross human rights violations often are at the heart of the original conflict, transitional administrations must seek to encourage and supervise the development of those institutions essential to the creation of a stable rights-respecting society," said Alice H. Henkin, director of J&S and editor of the report. She added: "Honoring Human Rights was written before the recent events in Iraq, but it is clearly relevant today and should be in the hands of the US, British and United Nations personnel who are en route to, or are already working in, Baghdad."

The publication offers a number of recommendations for future international operations, including post-conflict security, establishing the rule of law, the development of civil society, and addressing past abuses. Chapter titles include:

-- "Bosnia and Herzegovina: The Creeping Protectorate," by Claudio Cordone, who served as chief of the Human Rights Office at the United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo, while on leave as director of the Research and Mandate Program at Amnesty International;

-- "Kosovo: Unexpected Barriers to Building Peace and Security," by William O'Neill, the senior advisor on Human Rights to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Kosovo;

-- "East Timor: The Troubled Path to Independence," by Sidney Jones, former executive director of the Asia Division of Human Rights Watch, and currently the representative in Jakarta of the International Crisis Group.

Honoring Human Rights is the product of a group of 27 experts in human rights who participated in a three-day conference in New York in June 2001. They included individuals with wide-ranging field experience, UN officials, intergovernmental officers, and nongovernmental representatives.

Honoring Human Rights is the third in a J&S series of reports on human rights in post-conflict peacekeeping missions. The first publication, Honoring Human Rights and Keeping the Peace: Lessons from El Salvador, Cambodia, and Haiti (1995) focused on the early experiences of human rights work within peacekeeping missions. The second report, Honoring Human Rights: From Peace to Justice (1998), examined the relationship between human rights monitoring and institution building. Both earlier reports were preceded by an Aspen Institute conference where participants endorsed a set of recommendations addressed to the United Nations and to member states for future operations.

Honoring Human Rights Under International Mandates is available by contacting Ms. Nhu Vu at nhu.vu@aspeninstitute.org or 212-218-5010. The price of the report is $15 plus shipping and handling. Bulk orders of 10 or more are available at a discounted rate.

The Justice and Society Program convenes leaders from several disciplines and professions to help shape national and international policy regarding human rights, international law, transitional justice, and multilateral peacekeeping field operations.

The Aspen Institute is an international non-profit organization dedicated to informed dialogue and inquiry on issues of global concern. Founded in 1950, it has pursued its mission of fostering enlightened leadership through seminars, policy studies and fellowship programs. The Institute is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and has campuses in Aspen, Colorado, and on the Wye River on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Its international network includes partner Aspen Institutes in Berlin, Rome, Lyon and Tokyo, and leadership programs in Africa.