United Nations Infantry Battalion Manual - the United Nations

protection of civilians
this issue, the Security Council has introduced a strong accountability
framework, and has highlighted the necessity to prevent and respond to
such acts of sexual violence in order to contribute to the maintenance of
peace and security. Under resolution 1960, parties to armed conflict credibly
suspected of perpetrating sexual violence, can be named the Secretary-General.
This information can be used by the Sanctions Committees.
Where conflict-related sexual violence is taking place, military battalions
have a key role to play. Specifically, they will contribute by preventing the
occurrence of conflict-related sexual violence and reporting threats and
incidents through the appropriate chain of command. If there are specific
incidents that are brought to the attention of the battalion in relation
to sexual violence, the military should inform the nearest gender and/
or human rights officer in the mission so that the appropriate response/
action can be initiated. However, the military should not interrogate the
women or investigate the incident directly.
6.4.8 : Resources and Capabilities. Security Council resolution 1894 (2009)
has directed that protection of civilians activities should be given priority
in decisions about the use of available resources and capacity in peacekeeping
missions. Peacekeeping operations will always be faced with
resource and capability constraints. Therefore, Battalion Commanders, in
coordination with senior mission leadership, must be prepared to make
decisions on how to prioritize the use of certain key resources and capabilities
to fulfil the mission’s POC mandate. The DPKO-DFS POC Resources
and Capability Matrix will be useful in this regard.
6.4.9 : POC Strategy. Security Council resolution 1894 (2009) has also
requested all peacekeeping missions with a POC mandate to draft mission-specific
POC strategies. Battalion commanders and staff need to be
engaged in the early stages of the POC strategy development and revision
process, as the strategy will articulate the mission’s POC priorities based on
the risk assessment, key coordination structures and the roles and responsibilities
of relevant POC actors, including UN humanita ri an actors. The DPKO/
DFS Framework for Drafting Comprehensive Protection of Civilians Strategies
in UN peacekeeping operations provides a template and outlines a set
of practical reminders for the development for such strategies. These POC
strategies should be aligned with the vision and priorities set out by the
Integrated Strategic Framework and other planning documents6 .
6 For details on the Integrated Strategic Framework, please refer to the UN IMPP Guidelines:
Integrated Planning for Field Presence.
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