Introduction
In December 2013, a civil war broke out in the new nation of South Sudan. As the fighting erupted in the nation’s capital and spread through the country, tens of thousands of civilians fled from conflict-affected areas and sought refuge at bases of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). UNMISS opened its gates to those seeking protection and quickly prepared Protection of Civilians (POC) sites within and adjacent to its bases where people could take shelter from the violence. As of August 2015 – more than a year after the inception of the conflict – about 200,000 people were estimated to reside in these POC sites, and more are continuing to arrive.1 Although the mission has undoubtedly saved many lives by accepting these civilians onto its bases, the influx of people onto UN premises has presented unique challenges and placed a huge strain on the mission’s resources. UNMISS bases were not designed to house and protect such a large number of people over such a long period of time.2
In any environment where large numbers of people are housed together in a relatively small geographic area, criminal activity becomes a concern – and this may be particularly true within displaced communities that have experienced violence or trauma.3 Instances of theft, intercommunal fighting, substance abuse, and sexual violence are known to occur in camps for both internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees,4 where displaced people from different backgrounds are living in congested quarters, with limited ability to provide for themselves.5
UNMISS’s POC sites are no exception. Criminal activity, including physical assault and gender-based violence, are known to be perpetrated within the sites. However, it is extremely challenging for UNMISS to respond to this criminal activity. UNMISS is not specifically mandated or configured to address some of these issues, and there are complex questions of jurisdiction and responsibility that have no easy answers under international law. The complexity of the situation stems from the fact that the government of South Sudan does not have the ability or will to fairly prosecute alleged criminals within the sites, and the UN Security Council has not adjusted UNMISS’s mandate to directly address law enforcement issues on the premises.
Today, the vast majority of UN peacekeepers serve in missions with POC mandates, and several times in recent years mission sites have become refuges for displaced people seeking protection or assistance in the midst of conflict. The situation in South Sudan also has sparked concern that people may seek long-term refuge in UN bases again, in South Sudan or elsewhere. Formal guidance should be developed by the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) and the UN Department of Field Support (DFS) in consultation with the Global Protection Cluster (GPC). Guidance on maintaining civilian safety and security within POC sites, or other documents reflecting lessons learned from UNMISS, would help both UNMISS and other peacekeeping operations reduce threats to civilians seeking protection at its bases.
This policy brief examines current approaches to establishing safety and security, and outlines the most challenging internal security issues in UNMISS POC sites to inform future guidance. It focuses on the implications of the UN’s lack of judicial authority, the problems associated with indefinite detention, the difficulties of weapon confiscation, the organization of community watch groups, and the particular challenge of gender-based violence. In addition, it draws lessons from safety and security in other IDP and refugee settings that may offer insights for confronting similar challenges in POC sites.