Defence Forces Review 2008

Short Biographical Statement
11. Comdt Mark Hearns joined the Defence Forces in 1983 and has served most of his
commissioned career in the Eastern Command / Brigade. His overseas service includes
two tours of duty with the Irish Battalion in UNIFIL (1990 and 2000), one year with
the European Commission Task Force to Russia (1992), fifteen months with the OSCE
Mission to Georgia (1995 – 97), four months at the Headquarters of the International
Security Assistance Force in Kabul, Afghanistan (2002) and six months with the Irish
QRF in UNMIL (2004). His educational qualifications include a BA degree in Italian
and Sociology and Political Science at UCG (1986 – 89), a Post Graduate Diploma
in Russian Studies at Dublin University (1990 – 93). In 2001 he completed a MA
in International Relations at Dublin City University and wrote his dissertation on
developments in the Russian media. He has lectured on Ethnicity and Nationalism and
on National Security and International Order at Dublin City University.
12. Comdt Damien Coakley was commissioned into the Infantry Corps in 1992. He has
served in a number of Infantry appointments and currently holds the appointment
of Coy Comd Sp Coy 4 Inf Bn. He has previously served for a number of years in
the Military Police Corps as a Staff Officer in the Directorate of Military Police
in Defence Forces Headquarters. Comdt Coakley served in the Lebanon in 1997
with the 81 Inf Bn UNIFIL and as the Military Police Officer with the 87 Inf Bn
in 2000. He also served as the DCO with the International Military Police Coy,
SFOR Sarajevo in 2002. He holds a Diploma in Military Studies, a BA (Hons) from
University College Galway, a Diploma in Public Relations from the Public Relations
Institute of Ireland and an MBS (Hons) from University College Cork. He lives in
Cork, is married and has one daughter.
13. Colonel Colm Doyle retired from the Defence Forces in 2007 after 42 years service.
He holds a MA in International Studies from UL and is currently on the Board of
Directors of the Irish Peace Institute. He was a former Bn Comdr with UNIFIL,
an UNMO with UNTSO and Head of the ECCM in Bosnia. He was also a Special
Representative in Bosnia in 1992 and has appeared as a prosecution witness with
the ICTY in The Hague. From 2004 to 2006 he was Chief of Staff of the Military
Division, UNDPKO NY. Prior to his retirement Col Doyle was CMC.
14. Robert C. Johansen, former rapporteur for the UNEPS project, is Acting Director
and Senior Fellow at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies and Professor
of Political Science at the University of Notre Dame. He is author of The National
Interest and the Human Interest: An Analysis of U.S. Foreign Policy (Princeton
University Press) and numerous articles on normative international relations, the
United Nations, the maintenance of peace and security, and global governance.
He has held visiting research appointments at Princeton and Harvard. His research
focuses on efforts to increase compliance with the prohibitions of war crimes,
genocide, crimes against humanity, and crimes against the peace.
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