Regional Workshop on the Protection of Civilians - S. Rajaratnam ...

OPENING REMARKS
Opening Remarks
Associate Professor Mely Caballero-Anthony
Head
Centre for Non-Traditional Security (NTS) Studies and
Secretary-General
Consortium of Non-Traditional Security Studies in Asia
(NTS-Asia)
S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS)
Nanyang Technological University (NTU)
Singapore
Associate Professor Mely Caballero-Anthony expressed,
on behalf of the RSIS Centre for NTS Studies, a special
welcome and thanks to colleagues from the International
Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the co-hosts of the
<strong>Regional</strong> <strong>Workshop</strong> on the Protection of Civilians (POC).
She lauded the productive collaboration between the
Centre for NTS studies and the ICRC in bringing together
participants from various organisations, civil society and
the United Nations (UN). Associate Professor Caballero-
Anthony further extended a welcome to all participants
on behalf of RSIS and the ICRC.
This <strong>Regional</strong> <strong>Workshop</strong> is the culmination of a series of
workshops between the Centre for NTS Studies and the
ICRC, including a workshop on POC held in February
2010 where a preliminary discussion was undertaken.
Associate Professor Caballero-Anthony acknowledged the
diverse backgrounds of the participants, which included
academics and analysts, and extended to practitioners
in the field and policymakers from Southeast Asia and
beyond. She highlighted the role of practitioners and
policymakers, particularly members of the Association of
South East Asian Nations (ASEAN)-Institutes of Strategic
and International Studies network, in assisting with
the evaluation of the POC theme by providing useful
insights on the practical realities and the dynamics of
policymaking in the region.
Associate Professor Caballero-Anthony noted that
Southeast Asia is home to several ongoing internal conflicts.
These include the situation in Maguindanao, southern
Philippines; the communal violence in parts of Indonesia,
including the rising tensions in Papua; and the flare-ups
in Myanmar. As a consequence, an enquiry into the way
populations are protected during situations of violence is
deemed necessary. In addition, the legal and operational
procedures or frameworks which countries have set up
at the local, regional and international levels should
be examined.
Increasingly in Southeast Asia, disruptions to peace and
stability are categorised according to the implications
they will have on government responsibility and
accountability. For example, in southern Thailand,
the situation is categorised as that of internal conflict
rather than internal armed conflict due to the different
implications the latter will have on the nature and extent
of State obligations under international law.
Associate Professor Caballero-Anthony highlighted
that any assessment of POC should extend to the way
populations are protected not only in times of crises but
also in post-disaster situations. Attention should be paid
to the mechanisms in place to protect vulnerable groups
such as women, children and persons who have left their
places of origin.
Associate Professor Caballero-Anthony outlined the three
most pressing regional concerns related to POC: human
trafficking, sexual exploitation and abuse, and access to
domestic redress. Despite ratification by some Southeast
Asian countries of the Convention on the Elimination of
All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)
and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), it
is observed that implementation of these within domestic
legislation has been low and substantial reservations are
made to the provisions contained within the Conventions.
Some progress has been made in creating regional legal
mechanisms for the prevention of human trafficking,
but implementing mechanisms at the national level
remain few.
Southeast Asia is also home to many people who have
left their original places of residence such as refugees,
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REGIONAL WORKSHOP ON THE PROTECTION OF CIVILIANS