Text of media release carried by Australian Department of Defence website on 26 April
The parliamentary secretary [junior minister] for defence support, Dr Mike Kelly, will officially welcome delegates including distinguished international experts, senior United Nations officials and academics to the third International Forum for the Challenges of Peace Operations in Queanbeyan [near Canberra] tomorrow.
The Challenges Partnership comprises 17 countries that seek to improve the international community's effectiveness in responding to the significant challenges of peace operations.
The three-day forum, hosted by the Asia-Pacific Civil-Military Centre of Excellence on behalf of the Australian government, will be attended by more than 200 participants representing more than 30 countries.
The theme of this year's forum is the challenges of protecting civilians in multidimensional peace operations.
"The fact that civilians account for the vast majority of casualties in armed conflict zones is a disturbing characteristic of modern conflict," said Dr Kelly.
"Peacekeeping missions have become more complex over time. Although the United Nations has incorporated protection of civilians in mandates since 1999, missions have sometimes lacked the necessary means to implement protection measures,
"To be effective, peacekeeping missions must integrate a range of civil, military and policing capabilities to strengthen the rule of law and promote peace-building initiatives. The protection of civilians, especially women, children and other vulnerable groups, is essential to the credibility of peace operations," Dr Kelly said.
The role of the Asia Pacific Civil-Military Centre of Excellence, which will host the Challenges Forum, is to support the development of national civil-military capabilities to prevent, prepare for and respond more effectively to conflicts and disasters overseas.
"Australia has a proud history of supporting peacekeeping operations. Since 1948 more than 65,000 Australians have served in more than 50 United Nations and multilateral peacekeeping missions," Dr Kelly said.
"The commitment to host the third International Forum for the Challenges of Peace Operations signifies the government's ongoing commitment to global peace and security," he added.
The third International Forum for the Challenges of Multi-dimensional Peace Operations Forum is open to the media. The full programme is available on the Asia Pacific Civil-Military Centre of Excellence website: www.civmilcoe.gov.au.
Source: Australian Department of Defence website, Canberra, in English 26 Apr 10
