• More than 800 peacekeepers from India, including a woman officer, serving in the United Nations peacekeeping mission in South Sudan, have been awarded medals for their commendable work in the successful tour of duty in the country.

• The recipients included Major Chetna, the only female peacekeeper among the Indian troops in the mission. 

• As of October 2020, there were 2,340 Indian troops serving in the United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS), the second-highest troop contributor in the mission after Rwanda.

• The Indian battalion in Upper Nile State provides veterinary services to local communities in Malakal and also in far-flung places such as Kodok, Baliet, Melut and Renk. Their efforts have been widely appreciated. Major Chetna and her detachment of 21 ensure that troops have reliable electricity, functional accommodations and enough water supplies.

• Despite the harsh conditions, the Indian peacekeepers have been able to treat thousands of animals and train 226 Community Animal Health Workers, building local capacity in the vital husbandry sector.

What is UN peacekeeping?

• UN peacekeeping helps countries torn by conflict create conditions for lasting peace. Peacekeeping has proven to be one of the most effective tools available to the UN to assist host countries navigate the difficult path from conflict to peace.

• It is a unique global partnership. It brings together the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Secretariat, troop and police contributors and the host governments in a combined effort to maintain international peace and security.

• The first UN peacekeeping mission was established in May 1948, when the UN Security Council authorised the deployment of a small number of UN military observers to the Middle East to form the United Nations Truce Supervision Organisation (UNTSO) to monitor the Armistice Agreement between Israel and its Arab neighbours.

• In over 70 years, more than one million men and women have served under the UN flag in more than 70 UN peacekeeping operations. More than one lakh military, police and civilian personnel from 125 countries currently serve in 13 peacekeeping operations.

• In the early years, UN Peacekeeping’s goals were primarily limited to maintaining ceasefires and stabilizing situations on the ground so that efforts could be made at the political level to resolve the conflict by peaceful means. Those missions consisted of military observers and lightly armed troops with monitoring, reporting and confidence-building roles in support of ceasefires and limited peace agreements. Troops and police came from a relatively small number of countries and they were mostly men. 

• Over the years, UN Peacekeeping has adapted to meet the demands of different conflicts and a changing political landscape. Today’s multidimensional peacekeeping operations are called upon not only to maintain peace and security but also to facilitate the political processes, protect civilians, disarm combatants, support elections, protect and promote human rights and restore the rule of law.

• Peacekeeping has unique strengths, including legitimacy, burden sharing, and an ability to deploy and sustain troops and police from around the globe, integrating them with civilian peacekeepers to advance multi-dimensional mandates.

What are the duties of peacekeepers?

• UN peacekeepers (often referred to as Blue Berets or Blue Helmets) provide security and the political and peacebuilding support to help countries make the difficult, early transition from conflict to peace.

• While most peacekeepers are serving military or police, 14 per cent are civilians who perform a wide range of functions, from serving as the civilian leadership of the mission to working in the areas of political and civil affairs, human rights, elections, strategic communications, IT, logistics, transport and administration and more.

• Women peacekeepers today play an increasingly prominent role and are crucial towards improving the performance of the missions. They serve as police officers, troops, pilots, military observers, and other uniformed and civilian posts, including in command positions.

• With its expanded role and operations in some of the world’s most challenging environments, peacekeepers face considerable risks. Since 1948, more than 3,500 personnel have lost their lives serving in UN peace operations, including 943 killed by violence. 

International Day of UN Peacekeepers

• Every year, May 29 is observed as the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers. The day was established to honour the memory of the UN peacekeepers who have lost their lives in the cause of peace, and to pay tribute to all the men and women who have served and continue to serve in UN peacekeeping operations for their high level of professionalism, dedication and courage.

India’s role in UN peacekeeping

• Commencing with its participation in the UN operation in Korea in 1950, India has a long and distinguished history of service in UN peacekeeping, having contributed more personnel than any other country, as well as the first-ever all-female force that helped to bring peace to Liberia in the wake of that country’s brutal civil war.

• From 2007-2016, there were nine rotations of all-female police units from India, whose primary responsibilities were to provide 24-hour guard duty, public order management and conduct night patrols in and around the capital of Liberia, Monrovia, while assisting to build the capacity of local security institutions. Hailed as role models, these female officers not only played a vital role in restoring security in the West African nation but also contributed to an increase in the number of women in the country’s security sector.

• More than 2 lakh Indians have served in peacekeeping missions established around the world. According to a UN report, currently, there are around 6,700 uniformed peacekeepers from India, the vast majority of them in the Democratic Republic of Congo and in South Sudan.

• Medical care is among the many services Indian peacekeepers provide to the communities in which they serve on behalf of the UN. They also perform specialised tasks such as veterinary support and engineering services.

• India has also provided 15 Force Commanders to various missions, and was the first country to contribute to the Trust Fund on sexual exploitation and abuse, which was set up in 2016.

• Over 160 Indian peacekeepers have lost their lives while serving with the UN. 

India and UNMISS

• South Sudan became independent on July 9, 2011. The birth of the Republic of South Sudan is the culmination of a six-year peace process which began with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005.

• The Security Council determined that the situation faced by South Sudan continued to constitute a threat to international peace and security in the region and established the United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS) to consolidate peace and security and to help establish conditions for development.

• Last year, about 850 Indian peacekeepers in South Sudan were awarded the prestigious UN medal for their service and contribution to building peace in the strife-torn nation and supporting local communities. The Indian troops were praised for their efforts to support peace talks between the government and the opposition forces in the Upper Nile region and establishing the first-ever UNMISS base on the west bank of the Nile at Kodok.

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