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Written statement submitted by the Republic of Lithuania for the UN Security Council Open VTC on Peace Operations and Human Rights.

We commend Germany as the President of the Security Council for the month of July for convening this important and historic debate. We also thank all the briefers for their valuable insights and contributions to the debate. Lithuania aligns itself with the statements on behalf of the European Union.

In January 2015, as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council at the time, Lithuania organized an Arria-formula meeting on the human rights component in the UN peace operations. We are delighted to see this very topic addressed in a formal UNSC debate. This is a significant and long needed step forward in bringing discussions on the human rights dimension within UN peace operations to the formal setting of the UNSC. 

UN peace missions operate in increasingly diverse contexts due to the continuously evolving nature of conflicts, diverging intent and interests of state and non-state actors, as well as internal and external pressures on Governments. Yet, one thing is abundantly clear: today’s conflicts are often rooted in social, political, economic, and cultural inequalities and human rights issues are at the heart of many conflicts. Multi-dimensional aspect is the reason why human rights teams in peacekeeping operations are extensively important. We need not only to maintain existing human rights teams in UN missions in Mali, Central African Republic or Sudan, but also to ensure that such human rights teams working in each and every peacekeeping operation on the ground.  To address the topic of today’s debate, Lithuania would like emphasize three points: I) human rights as a key element to conflict prevention and peacebuilding strategies; II) human rights training of peacekeepers; III) protection of women.

Firstly, promotion and protection of human rights is directly linked to the concept of conflict prevention. Many of the worst human rights violations and abuses are at the root of conflict situations, and impunity as well as armed confrontation fuel new cycles of violations. When egregious violations of human rights take place, conflict becomes inevitable. Any effort to build a lasting peace must incorporate actions to repair the effects of violations, protect from new abuses, and enable the population to exercise their fundamental rights and freedoms. In such a context, protection and promotion of human rights should be seen as a key aspect for the success of the UN peace operations. At the same time, human rights are powerful advocacy tools for the peace missions, as they are instrumental in addressing the root causes of conflict and setting a country on the path toward a sustainable peace through dialogue with national actors. MINUSCA is a good example, how local community engagement allows mission to have consistency in ensuring integration of human rights into the national peace and political processes.  

Secondly, all peacekeepers should be fully apprised of the international human rights law and its applicability in their daily tasks. Human rights work cannot remain sole responsibility of the human rights component within the peace operation, but rather should become an integral part of duties of the entire mission staff. While we acknowledge that both pre-deployment and in-mission training programs have improved significantly over the last couple of years, we need to prioritize further human rights training of peacekeepers at the institutional level. When looking at the training field, human rights is one topic in a long list of peacekeeping-related topics. A more substantial reflection process on human rights training programs for peacekeeping is needed, alongside with a political will to prioritize and adequately resource the training field.

Thirdly, in today’s conflicts, women and girls suffer human rights violations in a disproportionate way. Awareness of gender issues in modern conflicts is crucial for peacekeepers in order to fulfil their roles and to perform their deployment tasks properly. Women should not to be seen only as victims rather have to be recognized more often as agents of change and more often included into decision-making processes. Moreover, improving their social, economic and political conditions should be an integral part of protection strategies, alongside their active participation in conflict prevention and resolution. It is also about addressing structural gender related vulnerabilities. In order to overcome many gender equality and gender mainstreaming remaining challenges, it is important to expand cooperation between peace operation, local government, and local organizations and civil society.  We have an example of MONUSCO productive cooperation with authorities of Democratic Republic of Congo in combating sexual violence and ensuring accountability for the crimes. By addressing specific issues, we create positive environment for broader changes.

Finally, we would like to note that the challenges to the staff of the UN peace operations, both uniformed and civilian, are enormous and with the arrival of COVID-19 a new dimension has been added. We are pleased to see that the COVID-19 pandemic in most of the missions is managed rather successfully. Yet, despite relatively low infection rates, the situation on the ground has certainly not become any easier. We would like to express our appreciation to all the staff of the UN peace operations who continue their dedicated work under very difficult circumstances.

New York, 7 July 2020