restoring law & order and crime prevention - Peace Operations ...

59mission area. For these important role assigned to the policecomponent, UNPOL has remained central feature in most of the UNpeacekeeping mission in the recent years. In fact, UN Police nownumber second only to the soldiers in UN peacekeeping operations. 444. Complexity of peacekeeping operations calls for the need ofcooperation, coordination and complementarities among variouscomponent of the mission for achieving the mission objectives. Acomparison between the role and functions of UN Police and theMilitary in the mission area would indicate that they have entirelydifferent role to play in the context and mandate of the mission. Whilethe main function of the UN Police component is to restore publicsecurity in the mission area, the main function of the Militarycomponent is to provide safe and secure environment. The UN policeoperates as individuals, are mostly unarmed or lightly armed and dealwith the local police or the civilian population in the mission areaguided by the Rule of Law and Human Rights concerns. In contrast, theMilitary operates as units, is heavily armed and deals with thecombatants, guided by Law of Armed Conflicts and human Rights laws.The missions of the Military and the UN Police component areapparently different but, none the less, complementary. Situations in themission area often demand simultaneous response by the UN Policeand the Military. Despite differences in the nature of role and functionsassigned the Military personnel deployed in the area can, to a greatextent, help the UN Police in achieving the larger mission objectives ofrestoring public security in the mission area which is not only valuable44The Responsibility to Protect, Report of the International Commission on Intervention and StateSovereignty. (2001) IDRC, Ottawa : e - ISBN At: http://www.idrc.ca/en/ev-28743-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html (last visited Dec. 30, 2009)