ITNUH, MANUH, MINUHA", exclaimed one representative of civil society in Haiti, referring to the French acronyms for the successive peacekeeping missions in that country. "We really don't understand the difference. And in any case, we have no war so what peace is the UN trying to keep?" Many civilians in Haiti were similarly perplexed when it was explained to them that the mandate of the UN Transition Mission in Haiti or UNTMIH, was to help professionalize the Haitian National Police, not to enforce law and order and not to guarantee public security.

Haitians are not alone in trying to understand UN peacekeeping in 1997. Countries that provide peacekeeping personnel or those where peacekeepers are stationed, are adjusting to the more versatile discipline that peacekeeping has become.

Peacekeeping's changing face
Peacekeeping today does not receive the press attention of the mid-1990s--peacekeeping is less visible, but it is constantly evolving and continues to be in demand. When pressed further, many of those same Haitians mentioned above acknowledged that UN peacekeepers and members of the International Civilian Mission to Haiti or MICIVIH, fielded jointly by the UN and the Organization of American States, had contributed markedly to gains in human rights and democracy in that country, and that the international community must remain engaged.

Traditional UN peacekeeping continues alongside multidimensional peacekeeping. However, the UN is increasingly undertaking missions with other regional and intergovernmental organizations, combining a range of activities not traditionally associated with peacekeeping. Sometimes the UN has set up a civilian mission that focuses on peacemaking and human rights. In many scenarios, upon instructions from the Security Council, the UN Secretariat develops a blueprint for action but the Council may decide not to field peacekeepers until conditions are appropriate. In several instances, the Council has decided to sanction action by "coalitions of the willing" outside the mantle of UN peacekeeping.

Peacekeepers continue to maintain cease-fires and monitor borders, as in the Golan Heights or between India and Pakistan. Peacekeepers are also called upon to assist with voluntary repatriation of refugees, monitor elections, oversee demobilization and promote national reconciliation, as in Liberia where the UN Observer Mission in Liberia (UNOMIL) and the Monitoring Group of the Economic Organization of West African States (ECOMOG) harmonized efforts to observe elections in July and bring an end to a vicious civil war. Peacekeeping can equally be the presence of UN civilian police, working with civil affairs officers and human rights monitors, alongside other regional organizations and a well-armed military force, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), as is the case in Bosnia and Herzegovina. And then again there is "muscular" or "robust" peacekeeping as in Eastern Slavonia, where heavily-armed UN peacekeepers lent weight to efforts by a UN Transitional Administrator to demilitarize and reintegrate a swathe of Serb-held territory in eastern Croatia, with the possibility of NATO back-up.

Drawing on Charter provisions on a role for regional arrangements in maintaining peace, peacekeeping is becoming less the exclusive preserve of the United Nations. In certain conflict areas, the UN is co-deployed with regional and other intergovernmental organizations, some of which are moving towards developing their own peacekeeping capacity. In Tajikistan and Georgia, the UN continues to work closely with the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. In 1997, a number of initiatives were under way to enhance peacekeeping capabilities of African nations. Regional partnerships hold promise but face structural, financial or planning limitations that are even more acute than those faced by the United Nations.

In March 1997, the Council authorized, for a specific purpose and duration, the Italian-led operation in Albania where a crisis had led to a breakdown of law and order, conducted outside the aegis of UN peacekeeping. In the late 1990s, the Security Council has given a green light to "coalitions of the willing" to undertake military action. Such action has been in the absence of consensus over intervention under the UN's auspices, and especially where traditional peacekeeping or enforcement action by the UN is not perceived to be politically or logistically feasible.

The Security Council is also noticeably more cautious about intervention where the commitment of the parties is in doubt, and the necessary political will and financial support may not be forthcoming. For example, the Secretariat has been engaged in planning for a possible mission in Sierra Leone. In the Great Lakes region, the Secretariat has developed contingency plans for three operations which have not been deployed. The Security Council, nevertheless, continues to support the good offices efforts of the Secretary-General's Special Represent-ative, Mohamed Sahnoun, appointed in 1997 to address the complex and inter-related problems of humanitarian assistance, refugees, displaced persons and their political fall-out.

At the request of the Government of the Central African Republic in July 1997, the Security Council authorized the continuation of the presence of the 800-man force stationed to implement the Bangui Agreements. MISAB or the Inter-African Mission to Monitor the Implementation of the Bangui Agreements was deployed in February with forces from Burkina Faso, Chad, Gabon, Mali, Senegal and Togo, and with France providing logistical support.

Looking beyond "tried and tested" peacekeeping
Traditional or classic peacekeeping, to be sure, will continue to have its place when parties share an interest in taking the steps towards a settlement consisting of, for example, a cease-fire and separation of forces.

The Organization can also expect to be tasked with multidisciplinary operations to implement comprehensive settlements arrived at in good faith on the basis of a lengthy political process. The most recent experience is the conclusion of the peace accords in Guatemala in December 1996 after 35 years of civil war. The UN Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA) had been in place as a civilian mission with a human rights-related mandate. The Security Council decided to set up MINUGUA as a peacekeeping mission from January-May 1997 to verify fulfillment of the cease-fire agreement, after which it reverted to a civilian mission, still known by the same name. Under expanded terms of reference, MINUGUA is to facilitate implementation of the peace accords--a detailed package of commitments on political, legislative, social, economic, agrarian, ethnic, military and public security issues.

Human rights guarantees and institutions are key ingredients in bringing stability to civilian populations emerging from conflict, especially where violations of human rights have been an integral part of the strife. Setting up the building blocks for peace has acquired a new urgency, be it as part of the peacekeeping, peacemaking or post-conflict peace-building process. Currently, the UN has 15 field-based human rights missions engaged in national and community-level work from Rwanda to Georgia to Guatemala. Human rights officers carry out activities aimed at reforming the penal code, the police, the justice system, monitoring violations, and by their presence, fulfilling an advisory and protection role.

Unquestionably, it is important to evaluate each situation individually knowing that Member States sometimes respond reluctantly faced with certain crises. In a rapidly changing world, conflicts will continue to arise that are on one level internal but which have serious international implications. The UN does not have the luxury of fielding a response that fits into a neat predictable "tried and tested" package or, failing that, of abdicating responsibility. In short, in the words of Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Bernard Miyet, inaction is not an option and there is, therefore, a need to strengthen the Organization's capacity for peacekeeping.

In certain cases, the UN has offered positive inducements to the parties to a conflict, providing tangible benefits for cooperation with the UN peacekeeping presence. Such incentives might include civic activities such as infrastructure improvement, medical help and even business loans and training. In Eastern Slavonia, assistance from the donor community was an important element in ensuring the parties' cooperation with UNTAES. A further aspect of more recent peacekeeping operations, also exemplified in UNTAES, has been the need for credible military capacity where there is a possibility of threats to the UN force and its mandate. UNTAES' deterrent capacity is widely credited as an important factor in its success.

A climate of reform
For several years now, energies in the UN Secretariat and Member States have been focused on making peacekeeping machinery more effective. Improving the Organization's capacity to ensure better management, shorter response time, greater efficiency and the process by which the UN establishes a field presence are central issues as the Organization steps up efforts to allow speedier deployment when faced with a crisis. The UN's precarious financial situation continues to cast a shadow over the advances being made in honing procedures to mount peace missions that can live up to demanding mandates and carry out multiple tasks.

Among the initiatives taken, the Rapidly Deployable Mission Headquarters, aimed at having a core advance team available to "set up shop" before peacekeepers arrive, is now awaiting funding in order to become operational. The logistics depot in Brindisi has simplified procurement of supplies for ongoing and new missions, rendering significant savings. Advance mission planning is a routine and valuable capability that can be drawn upon at short notice. Nearly 70 countries have earmarked 88,000 personnel and related equipment, committing themselves to Standby Arrangements. Within the context of Standby Arrangements, a commendable undertaking by a few Member States in 1997 is the Standby High Readiness Brigade or SHIRBRIG,which provides a rapid response structure which can be deployed within weeks. SHIRBRIG, which will bring countries together to consolidate training and advance preparation, is due to become operational in 1999. (See page 12 for related articles)

Media attention on peacekeeping has centred on the $2 billion shortfall in peacekeeping finances, and when and whether the United States would pay its arrears--which stood at just under $1 billion as of the end of October 1997. A provision by which a large portion of these back-dues would be paid was cut from an appropriations bill adopted by the US Congress on 13 November. Meanwhile, the outstanding debt owed by the UN to countries that contribute troops and equipment will be $800 million at the end of 1997.

An indispensable instrument
Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who formerly served as Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping, stated this year that "peacekeeping will remain an indispensable instrument of the United Nations". In his view, Member States must agree on the methods and provide the means to enable the UN to deploy peacekeeping missions rapidly; and mandates must be matched by adequate resources.

In his first annual report to the General Assembly as Secretary-General, Mr. Annan noted that identity politics are, at their worst, a "potent and potentially explosive force" resulting in the vilification of "the other", whether this is a different ethnic or tribal group, a different religion or nationality. These exclusionary trends have intensified in recent years and great care should be taken to confront and restrain them. In these times of transformation, he commented, "the policy-making process can easily get caught in transition traps, moments of discontinuity when taking the wrong step can have severe long-term consequences". The international community has an obligation "to strengthen the available multilateral mechanisms, among which the United Nations is a unique instrument of concerted action".

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