Work of the Office
Key Missions
2012: Mission to Ottawa
On 25-26 April, Special Adviser Francis Deng spoke at the second annual National Day of Remembrance and Action on Mass Atrocities, hosted by the Canadian All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Prevention of Genocide and Other Crimes Against Humanity in partnership with the Canadian Centre for International Justice in Ottawa, Canada.
While in Ottawa, Mr. Deng met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs and provided a briefing for government officials in the Stabilization and Reconstruction Task Force (START) of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade as well as for government officials from the Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes unit of the Department of Justice. Mr. Deng discussed the work of the Office, his approach to the mandate and lessons learned during his time as Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide.
2012: Mission to Kigali
On 5-6 April, Special Adviser Francis Deng participated in “The International Conference 18 Years after the Genocide: Testimonies and Reflections”, organized by the National Commission for the Fight against Genocide as well as the 18th Commemoration of the Rwanda Genocide at Amahoro Stadium in Kigali, Rwanda. The theme of this year’s memorial was “Learning from history to shape a bright future.” Events examined how good governance, justice, economic development and social welfare can prevent genocide and related crimes.
While in Kigali, Mr. Deng also held bilateral meetings with senior officials, including with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Chief Justice and the Executive Secretary of National Commission for the Fight against Genocide.
2012: Mission to Addis Ababa
On 2-3 April, Special Adviser Francis Deng took part in the meetings of the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel on the Sudan and South Sudan. The Panel is facilitating negotiations between the two countries on a range of outstanding issues, including security and the situation of Abyei. Mr. Deng also met with senior officials of the African Union, the Ethiopian Government, the United Nations Office to the African Union (UNOAU) and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, among others, on matters relevant to his mandate.
2012: Mission to The Hague
From 14-15 March, Special Adviser Francis Deng participated in an Advanced Workshop of the Genocide Prevention Advisory Network (GPANet) in the Hague, Netherlands. The workshop, entitled “Guiding Principles of the Emerging Architecture Aiming at the Prevention of Genocide, War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity”, was co-hosted by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. The workshop provided a forum for multilateral conversations among GPANet experts, government officials, United Nations officials and other experts from international, regional and non-governmental organisations. Discussions addressed preventive and mitigating policies to be considered by local, regional and international actors.
Special Adviser Francis Deng also briefed senior officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, namely from the Departments of Human Rights, Gender, Good Governance and Humanitarian Aid and of the United Nations and Financial Institutions. Mr. Deng spoke about the work of the Office, his approach to the mandate and current country situations of concern. He also held consultations with officials from the International Criminal Court, including the Offices of the President, the Prosecutor, the Deputy Prosecutor and the Registrar.
While in The Hague, Mr. Deng provided a lunch-time briefing for government officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, representatives from civil society organisations and academics.
2012: Mission to Washington
On 9 March, Special Adviser Edward Luck briefed the Genocide Prevention Task Force in Washington, D.C., which is co-chaired by Madeleine Albright and William Cohen, and jointly convened by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, the American Academy of Diplomacy, and the United States Institute of Peace. The Task Force is mandated to generate practical recommendations to enhance the US government’s capacity to respond to emerging threats of genocide and related crimes.
2011: Mission to Washington
On 15 December, the Special Advisers held consultations and briefings with the senior officials from the Organization of American States (OAS). They met with the Directors of the Departments of International Law, Democratic Sustainability and Special Missions, and Political Affairs, as well as with the Executive Secretary of the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights. The Special Advisers also briefed the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs of the OAS Permanent Council.
2011: Mission to the United Kingdom
On 10-13 December, the Special Adviser on the Responsibility to Protect held consultations and briefings in London with senior officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on the work of the Office and priorities for 2012. Facilitated by the United Nations Association-UK, Mr. Luck briefed five All-Party Parliamentary Groups on his work on furthering the conceptual, political and institutional/operational development of the Responsibility to Protect as well as the Secretary-General’s strategy for implementing the concept.
2011: Mission to Italy
From 21-24 November, the Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide held meetings with the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs and other senior government officials in Rome. The objectives of the meetings were to raise awareness about the mandates of the Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect and to discuss how to strengthen cooperation for implementation purposes.
2011: Mission to Vietnam
From 21-22 November, the Special Adviser on the Responsibility to Protect participated as a presenter in the 8th General Conference of the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific (CSCAP), which was hosted by Vietnam in Hanoi. The theme of the conference was “Dangers and Dilemmas: Will the new Regional Security Architecture help?”, stemming from the recommendations of the February 2010 report of the CSCAP study group on the Responsibility to Protect. Some 250 senior officials and security experts from the Asia Pacific region participated.
2011: Mission to Germany
On 9 November 2011, the Special Adviser on the Responsibility to Protect addressed the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the Bundestag in Berlin, which is responsible for monitoring and guiding the foreign policy of the Federal Republic of Germany. Mr. Luck spoke about his work on furthering the conceptual, political and institutional/operational development of the Responsibility to Protect as well as the work of the Office and its priorities for 2012.
2011: Mission to Southeast Asia
The Office organized a follow-up mission to Southeast Asia in October 2011, in line with its regional approach to raise awareness on conflicts that could lead to genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing or crimes against humanity, and to discuss early prevention and the principles of Responsibility to Protect with Member States in the region. Special Adviser Francis Deng held consultations with government officials and representatives of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR).
2011: Mission to Brussels
In June 2011, Special Adviser Francis Deng conducted consultations with European Union on developments regarding the establishment of the Joint Office and potential areas for operational cooperation. The Special Adviser participated in a discussion at the European Parliament’s Sub-committee on Human Rights, briefed the United Nations Working Group of the Council of the European Union’s Political and Security Committee, and discussed future plans with the Secretary-General of the European Union External Action Service.
A follow-up visit by Special Adviser Edward Luck in September 2011 included meetings with officials at the Department of Global and Multilateral Issues and the Crisis Management Planning Department of the External Action Service,
2011: Mission to Washington
In March 2011, Special Advisers Francis Deng and Edward Luck held consultations in Congress and at the Department of State, the National Security Council, and the Department of Defence. The mission included a visit to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Engagement with US authorities was mainly aimed a presenting developments regarding the establishment of the Joint Office and discussing progress on implementation by the US Administration of the December 2008 Genocide Prevention Task Force Recommendations. The Office also discussed concrete steps to further develop an operational partnership at the working level.
2010: Mission to South-East Asia
Cambodia Genocide Museum, 2010
(UN Photo / Mark Garten)
In November 2010, Special Adviser Deng undertook a mission to South East Asia, with visits to Cambodia, Singapore and Indonesia, where he met with government officials, ASEAN representatives and civil society organizations. All expressed support for the mandate and were keen to work closely with the Office on preventive strategies in the region. In Phnom Penh, the Office, in cooperation with a network of international NGOs, organized a training seminar for thirty-five representatives of civil society organizations on “A Framework for Genocide Prevention.” The Office also participated in a regional conference on early warning for the prevention of mass atrocity crimes, at which Special Adviser Luck was also a guest speaker.
2010: Mission to West Africa
The Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide undertook a mission to West Africa from 18 to 26 March 2010, which brought him and his Office to Guinea and Ghana. At the invitation of the Government of Guinea, the Office investigated the extent to which inter-ethnic tensions could be a threat to peace and stability in Guinea in light of recent developments and the potential for genocidal violence, especially in the election and post-election periods. Consultations were held with key actors in Conakry and the Guinée Forestière region, including religious leaders, councils of elders (from the four regions), civil society experts, women’s groups, ECOWAS and the UN Country team. The Special Adviser concluded that the risk of genocidal violence existed and was moderate. A report of his findings was shared with the Secretary-General and made public in June 2010. Francis Deng discussed the situation with the Transitional Government, including Prime Minister Jean Marie Doré and several of his ministers.