23 Jan 2006: Statement: Launch of ISS/ippr Research Project: Operationalising the Responsibility to Protect in Africa

The Institute for Public Policy Research and the Institute for Security Studies launch a major new research project:
`Operationalising the Responsibility to Protect in Africa`

Media Release: 23 January 2006

 

The overarching theme of this new research project is to think through how the ‘Responsibility to Protect’ principles - as set out by the International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty (2001) and reaffirmed at the 2005 UN World Summit - could be operationalised in Africa. The continuing human rights abuses in Darfur show how much still needs to be done to make a reality of these principles in many parts of the continent. In essence, this project is designed to answer the question - how should we deal with Darfur and with Darfur-style situations in the future? This project will set out new policy proposals for strengthening national, regional and international responses to conflicts and large-scale human rights abuses on the continent.

 

Four key areas will be addressed:

• Direct prevention (focused on those non-violent policy instruments that are available in circumstances when large-scale human rights abuses appear imminent or are already underway)

• Enhancing African capacity for effective military intervention (focused on what role the international community can play in supporting African Union interventions on the continent)

• Rethinking the legitimising framework for intervention (focused on how interventions can be authorised, particularly when the UN Security is hamstrung by national interests)

• Strengthening political will for intervention in Africa (looking at how pressure can best be applied on key decision-makers)

The project will involve a number of high-level symposia in the UK and Africa as well as an expert roundtable on Darfur in Addis Ababa. A number of expert papers will be published throughout 2006, as well as a collection of essays on Darfur, and the publication of a major ISS/ippr report at the end of the project in early 2007.

 

This project is supported by the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ford Foundation, Foreign Affairs Canada and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

 

We do not pretend to have all the answers to these difficult questions and we would very much like to hear from those who are also working on these issues. Please don`t hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions or thoughts on this research project.

 

We look forward to hearing from you.

 

For more information please contact: Cecile Aptel, Senior Researcher, Institute for Security Studies, Tel: +27 (12) 346 9500, Email: [email protected] or James Lorge, Research Fellow, Institute for Public Policy Research Tel: +44 (0) 20 7470 6161, Email: [email protected]