Over 2,300 shelters were damaged or destroyed during the February 2016 attack on the Malakal PoC site. © IOM 2016 Photo: Gonzalez
<strong>Lessons</strong> <strong>Learned</strong> <strong>from</strong> <strong>South</strong> <strong>Sudan</strong> <strong>Protection</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Civilian</strong> <strong>Sites</strong> - 7 Foreword by Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights <strong>of</strong> Internally Displaced Persons On 9 July 2011, <strong>South</strong> <strong>Sudan</strong> became the world’s newest nation, invoking feelings <strong>of</strong> hope, pride and stability among <strong>South</strong>ern <strong>Sudan</strong>ese who had suffered through decades <strong>of</strong> war, famine and hardship. Tragically, less than four years later, <strong>South</strong> <strong>Sudan</strong> is embroiled in another vicious civil war, internally displacing nearly 1.7 million people. Millions live under the constant threat <strong>of</strong> violence, with limited access to even the most basic services. When I was appointed to my current position as Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights <strong>of</strong> Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), only eight months prior to <strong>South</strong> <strong>Sudan</strong>’s independence, I rejoiced with the world community in the great optimism for the people <strong>of</strong> this new country. Only two and half years later, I was angered and saddened by the renewal <strong>of</strong> warfare in <strong>South</strong> <strong>Sudan</strong> in December 2013. I had undertaken an <strong>of</strong>ficial mission to <strong>South</strong> <strong>Sudan</strong> in November 2013, approximately a month before the outbreak <strong>of</strong> the armed conflict. I was struck by the absence <strong>of</strong> formal structures and systems for the protection <strong>of</strong> IDPs both on the part <strong>of</strong> the United Nations Mission in <strong>South</strong> <strong>Sudan</strong> (UNMISS) and the Government <strong>of</strong> <strong>South</strong> <strong>Sudan</strong>. I had urged that these be established as a matter <strong>of</strong> urgency but events took over in December 2013. I returned to <strong>South</strong> <strong>Sudan</strong> to undertake a working visit to address the situation <strong>of</strong> IDPs in the PoC sites in September 2015 and received positive responses <strong>from</strong> the leadership <strong>of</strong> the United Nations Mission in <strong>South</strong> <strong>Sudan</strong> (UNMISS), and the <strong>Protection</strong> Cluster. As established by the 1998 Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, the 2006 International Conference <strong>of</strong> the Great Lakes' Protocol, and the 2009 African Union Convention for the <strong>Protection</strong> and Assistance <strong>of</strong> Internally Displaced Persons, the primary duty to protect and provide assistance to IDPs rests with the national authorities. Consequently, the vast majority <strong>of</strong> IDPs in <strong>South</strong> <strong>Sudan</strong> today are seeking protection <strong>from</strong> the government itself, and yet its capacity to do so is severely constrained. Therefore, I am enormously proud <strong>of</strong> the action taken by UNMISS for having opened their gates to protect civilians fleeing the violence with nowhere else to turn. More than 100,000 people sought protection at UNMISS compounds within the first six months <strong>of</strong> the conflict, and this figure doubled after the long “fighting season” in 2015. It is an unprecedented achievement, in so far as conditions allow, for a UN peacekeeping mission to provide protection for 200,000 people within their bases. Alongside the peacekeeping mission, UN and relief agencies have proved indispensable by providing life-saving humanitarian services at both UNMISS <strong>Protection</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Civilian</strong> (PoC) sites and numerous IDP settlements throughout the country in which the majority <strong>of</strong> IDPs reside, including in host families and communities. This report takes a critical look at the protection <strong>of</strong> civilians in <strong>South</strong> <strong>Sudan</strong> and presents lessons learned during the first two years <strong>of</strong> the conflict. The research brings to light challenges <strong>of</strong> the protection <strong>of</strong> civilians in a volatile environment through the voices <strong>of</strong> more than 100 interviewees <strong>from</strong> UNMISS, humanitarian agencies and, most importantly, the IDP community itself. My sincere hope is that this report leads to an open discussion among key actors, improving the response and protection <strong>of</strong>fered to IDPs in UNMISS bases. Ultimately, the primary mandates <strong>of</strong> UNMISS and humanitarians are the same: the protection <strong>of</strong> civilians. It is critically important that both work together toward this common objective. I am pleased to provide the foreword to this report and trust it will be <strong>of</strong> practical assistance to UNMISS and UN and non-governmental humanitarian actors. I am appreciative to the Government <strong>of</strong> Switzerland and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) for their support, and, especially, to Michael Arensen for writing this important report. Dr Chaloka Beyani Chaloka Beyani is the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights <strong>of</strong> Internally Displaced Persons. He is also an Associate Pr<strong>of</strong>essor <strong>of</strong> International Law, a member <strong>of</strong> the Centre for the Study <strong>of</strong> Human Rights and Chair <strong>of</strong> its Advisory Board, and a member <strong>of</strong> the Centre for Climate Change at the London School <strong>of</strong> Economics and Political Science.
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