Canadian Involvement in International Conflicts

- Peacekeeping & Beyond -

UN Peacekeeping The UN has helped millions

of people worldwide through peacekeeping operations, and its social and economic agencies.

Canada has been a strong supporter of the UN; by 1999 Canadian peacekeepers had been involved in every UN operation since the start of these missions in 1956.

Peacekeeping – cont’ 1st time

“peacekeeping” used – in Suez Crisis of 1956• Lester B. Pearson’s

suggestion – won Nobel Peace Prize for this in 1957

Initially developed as a means to resolve conflict between states

Peacekeeping – cont’ Achieved by deploying

unarmed or lightly armed military personnel from a number of countries between the armed forces of the states that were formerly at war

In these circumstances – ceasefire in place and parties involved agreed to allow UN forces to be present

Peacekeepers NOT part of the conflict – they observed the ceasefire

Peacekeeping – cont’

With end of Cold war -dramatic shift in role of UN peacekeepers

a) More Missionsb) Peacekeeping

WITHIN states Often in civil war

situations Without borders -

often no clear area of conflict – fighting spread out throughout country’s territory Cyprus – UN buffer Zone in Blue

Peacekeeping cont’c) More Actors

Now other organizations such as NATO have become involved

d) Peace “Making” Peacekeeping no

longer simply standing between 2 armies to keep the peace

Increasingly a matter of creating a peace where none exists

UN - Africa Missions

Adobe Acrobat Required !

UN peacekeeping missions

UN peacemaking or peace-building in Africa

 

 

Peacekeeping cont’

Modern peacekeeping involves: Training and restructuring local

police forces De-mining Conducting elections Facilitating the return of

refugees Monitoring human rights demobilizing and reintegrating

former soldiers Promoting sustainable

democracy and economic development

e) Changing Role of Peacekeepers

Peacekeeping cont’

f) More Diverse Skills In order to respond to more

complex situation, peacekeepers require a more diverse set of skills – experts include:

• Regional & municipal administrators

• Judges and prosecutors to develop judiciaries or run courts

• Media, health, tax, and social policy advisors

• Child protection experts• Security experts• Facilitators and mediators• Experts to help with sewage

treatment plants or railways

Peacekeeping cont’

Armed intervention with the intention of protecting human rights within the confines of another sovereign state

Much debate re: the legality of intervening without consent in the affairs of sovereign states (sovereign – free from external control)

If state sovereignty not protected – could be seen as imperialism

g) Humanitarian Interventions

However: important not to have human rights violations and crimes against humanity

Canadian Peacekeeping Missions Korea: 1950-1953 Egypt: 1956-67; 1973-78; 1987-present Cyprus: 1963-92 Cambodia: 1972 Syria: 1978-present Persian Gulf: 1990-91 Bosnia: 1991-97 Somalia: 1993-96 Rwanda: 1994-95 Haiti: 1995-98; 2004 East Timor: 1999-2001 Ethiopia and Eritrea: 2000-03 Afghanistan: 2001-present

Korea Officially termed a police action by the

Americans, the Korean Conflict was a battle between communist North, and democratic South.• War broke out in the 1950s when North Korea

attempted to invade South Korea. It is called Canada's "Forgotten War." Sent three battleships from Victoria. Over 500 Canadians died in the United Nations'

struggle to repel the communist forces that invaded South Korea on June 25, 1950.

It took the Canadian government 40 years to recognize the efforts of the 27,000 Canadians.

Suez Crisis The Suez Canal links the Mediterranean

and Red seas. Originally privately owned by British and

French investors. In 1956 the Egyptian president took over

the canal. (nationalized)• This frightened neighboring Israel, as Egypt

threatened to bar ships to and from Israel.• Britain and France supported Israel.• The UN Security Council had called a halt to

hostilities, but Britain and France didn’t listen and sent in troops.

The Soviet Union supported Egypt and immediately gave them financial aid and missiles.

The US was mad at Britain and France for not asking permission to attack Egypt, but supported all efforts against the Soviet Union.

Canada’s Lester B. Pearson when to the UN and proposed that the UN Emergency Force be sent to the Suez Canal to separate and mediate the conversations between the rival armies.

With the arrival of the UNEF, the fighting between the combatants halted and a ceasefire was achieved.

1991 Gulf War August, 1990 – Iraqi army

invaded Kuwait with US/ UN involvement

became “Operation Desert Storm” – Gulf War

Canada cooperated with the US in the first Gulf War because it was a UN-sanctioned mission

Canadian ships and fighter planes were deployed to the area (more than 8,000 personnel)

Somalia - 1992 A drought-ridden

land, Somalia engaged in civil war, with no internationally recognized government, from 1991 until 2005

thousands died from starvation and war

Somalia – cont’ In 1992, the United States

organized an international military force to try to end the chaos - Known as “Operation Restore Hope”

Canada contributed 900 soldiers from its elite Airborne Regiment. The mission was a disaster.

The troops were unable to establish control and found themselves fighting the very people they had been sent to help.

Somalia – cont’ Some desperate

Somalis started stealing from the soldiers' supplies.

On March 4, 1993, Canadian soldiers found two Somalis on the grounds of their Belet Huen camp.

They shot at the pair, killing one and wounding the other.

Somalia – 1992 A few days later, a

teenager was caught breaking into the camp

Soldiers beat him to death.

One of these Canadian soldiers subsequently attempted suicide

A huge cover-up occurred, stretching all the way to the top ranks of the military

Clayton Matchee with Somali teen Shidane Arone

Kyle Brown,

“Somalia Affair” The military scandal that

ensued, magnified by a highly politicized and publicized enquiry, that greatly damaged the reputation amongst Canadians of their military

resulted in the disbandment of the military unit involved (Airborne Regiment), as well significant changes to the Canadian Forces

Ethnic Cleansing Ethnic Cleansing is a process in which the advancing

army of one ethnic group expels civilians of other ethnic groups from towns and villages it conquers in order to create ethnically pure enclaves for members of their ethnic group.

“In Germany they first came for the communists; and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a communist. Then they

came for the Jews; and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists; and I didn’t

speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics; and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Catholic. Then they came for me – and by that time there

was nobody left to speak up.” – Martin Niemoller

Genocide Genocide, as defined by the United Nations in 1948, means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, including:

(a) Killing members of the group (b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to

members of the group (c) Deliberately inflicting on the group

conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part

(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group

(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

Genocide – con’t What remains unclear

is the question of when institutionalized killing rises to the level of ethnic cleansing, or genocide.

The answer depends on whether events are seen through the eyes of victims or perpetrators.

More important is whether the international community recognizes genocide and whether it is prepared to act to stop it.

The Eight Stages of Genocide By Gregory H. Stanton

1. Classification

2. Symbolization

3. Dehumanization

4. Organization

8 Stages of Genocide

5. Polarization

6. Preparation

7. Extermination

8. Denial

Ethnic Cleansing Occurred in both Rwanda and former

Yugoslavia in 1990s Former Yugoslavia: ethnic Cleansing

created more than two million refugees and displaced persons during the war in Bosnia• This number increased with the expulsion of

Serbs from Croatia and with the ferocious atrocities committed by Serbs against the Albanian majority in Kosovo, prior and during (in spite of) NATO air strikes.

Former Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia – 1991 – 1999 The United Nations got

involved in September 1991 Canadian peacekeepers sent

in 1991 until 1997• Fought mostly in Bosnia • Secured Sarejevo airport

Also participated as part of NATO forces in bombing raids and as peacekeepers in Kosovo

CBC archives - Providing 'safe havens' in Bosnia http://archives.cbc.ca/IDC-1-71-579-3006/conflict_war/van_doos/clip8

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/world/2006/03/11/amanpour.serbia.milosevic.obit.cnn

Bosnia-Herzogovina 1992-1995 Yugoslavia has a long

history of conflict between a very diverse mix of ethnic and religious groups

When Soviet Union collapsed in 1989, fighting erupted between various ethnic groups, leading to independence for Slovenia and Croatia

When Bosnian Muslims declared independence, Yugoslav president Slobadan Milosevic attacked to support the Serbian minority

UN peacekeepers – 1992 Stripped area – Canadian sector

Former Yugoslavia As the Serbs forces advanced, they began to systematically eliminate Muslims (Mostly Albanians) and Muslim villages, in what became known as “ethnic cleansing.”

Over 200,000 Muslim civilians were murdered and 2,000,000 fled as refugees before NATO forces intervened to halt the genocide.

After agreeing to a cease-fire in Bosnia, the Serbs focused their attention and ethnic cleansing on Kosovo, which led to the NATO air war and the arrest of Milosevic on war crimes charges.

Rwanda – 1994 Rwanda is one of the smallest

countries in Central Africa, with just 7 million people, and is comprised of two main ethnic groups, the Hutu and the Tutsi.

Hutus account for 85-90% of the population

Tutsi minority (10-15%) was made the aristocracy of Rwanda during Belgian colonial rule and dominated Hutu peasants for decades

Following independence from Belgium in 1962, the Hutu majority seized power and reversed the roles, oppressing the Tutsis through systematic discrimination and acts of violence.

Rwanda – cont’ As a result, over

200,000 Tutsis fled to neighboring countries and formed a rebel guerrilla army, the Rwandan Patriotic Front

In October 1993 the first elected Hutu president of Burundi was assassinated, sparking conflict

A 2,500 U.N. peacekeeping force was sent to preserve a cease-fire while Rwandan and Burundi presidents met to work out a peace plan

Rwandan Genocide April, 1994 - Hutus began

an unprecedented killing spree, while the international community watched in horror and did nothing.

In July 1994, Tutsi rebels defeated the Hutus, stopping the genocide, which had claimed over 800,000 lives, more than 10% of Rwanda’s population.

Rwanda Canadian General

Romeo Dallaire was in charge of the mission

His hands were continuously tied by UN

Genocide may have been stopped if they had allowed him to intervene earlier

Rwanda

http://www.motherjones.com/commentary/fiore/2005/03/never.html

Land Mines Issue Anti-Personnel Land Mines

– major problem faced by people in war-torn countries

110 million anti-personnel mines in over 64 countries in the world

Internationally, 500 people die each week because of land mines & thousands maimed

cannot distinguish between the combat boots of a soldier and the footfall of an innocent child.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E45TH3xLpYwhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2O45evC6wis

Land Mines – cont’ Land mines cost only $5 to

buy – cost between $300-$1,000 EACH to remove

Estimates say would take 1,000 years to clear the world of land mines if no new mines laid

However – for every mine cleared, 20 more are laid

Only mine clearance technique known to be 100% effective – manually with metal detectors, prodders, and hand brooms

Land Mines – con’t most heavily mine-affected countries in the world,

according to a UN study, are: Afghanistan, Angola, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cambodia, Croatia, Eritrea, Iraq, Mozambique, Namibia, Somalia, Nicaragua and Sudan.

These 12 countries together account for almost 50 percent of the landmines currently deployed in the world and also suffer the highest number of landmines casualties.

Land Mines – con’t Top Land-mine

producing countries include China, Russia, and the USA

1996 – Canada’s Foreign Minister, Lloyd Axworthy – hosted an international conference on Land Mines

December, 1997 – over 120 countries signed the Anti-Personnel Land Mines Treaty in Ottawa

• Bans the use, production, transfer, and stockpiling of land mines

• USA HAS NOT SIGNED THIS TREATY

Countries that have signed in blue.

US Invasion of Iraq - 2003

Chretien’s government refused to support the US-led invasion because it was NOT sanctioned by the UN

Afghanistan - 2001 - present When USA was

attacked on September 11th, 2001, Canada became involved in Afghanistan as part of the NATO Alliance

Controversial re: whether we should remain there or not

UPDATE: MARCH 12th Mission ended

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PF0wVy9qiAs

UN Agencies Canada is among the top ten donors,

providing over US$600 million dollars a year in core and program funding to the UN System of funds, programs and agencies, such as:• UN Development Program, • UNICEF • World Health Organization,