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International Coalition for the Responsibility to Protect
Canada Roundtable 7 March: Ottawa, Canada PDF Print E-mail
Friday, 07 March 2008 07:18

Background:
Beginning in September 2007, the World Federalist Movement Institute for Global Policy (WFM-IGP) embarked on a new initiative: to build a global civil society network for the Responsibility to Protect. The initiative, supported by Human Rights Watch, International Crisis Group, Oxfam International and Refugees International, aimed to establish a global network with representation from both Northern and Southern NGOs. The R2PCS Project organized a series of consultative roundtables with NGOs worldwide, to 1) increase understanding of R2P and how it applies to conflicts in the region, 2) explore how to strengthen regional and international mechanisms to support R2P, and 3) forge partnerships with NGOs who are interested in joining in a core group in building an NGO network.

 Canada Civil Society Roundtable, 7 March: Ottawa, Canada

"Prospects for an International Network on R2P: Civil Society Consultations"

This one-day consultation with civil society organizations from Canada was chaired by Warren Allmand, President of WFM-Canada. Many of the NGOs were familiar with the R2P concept and therefore discussions were more focused on operational and logistical issues in building a network:
  1. There was a discussion on the breadth of the network and whether it should be a mass movement or a small group of select NGOs. Participants highlighted that a mass movement could generate "buzz" or energy around R2P, mobilize public opinion and ensure that governments do not dismiss their responsibility to protect civilians. However, there were concerns that R2P could be misused or oversimplified as it could be applied to issues not involving genocide, ethnic crimes, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
  2. Getting the message right on R2P is paramount: R2P knowledge is limited and what "invoking" R2P means still needs much clarification. R2P continues to be used too broadly (to encompass other human security issues like HIV/AIDS, global warming, and poverty) or too narrowly (emphasizing only military intervention).
  3. There was a question on whether an R2P network be engaged in advocacy and debate around responses to specific cases. It was suggested that for a network to be seen to be relevant it must not remain passive in the face of existing or emerging crises. Some have argued that R2P advocacy around specific cases would help strengthen the norm-building process. There are concerns with this model, however, as some NGOs (e.g. humanitarian organizations) may prefer to avoid affiliation with a network that would invoke R2P.
Outcomes and Next Steps:

The civil society roundtable showed overwhelming support for the idea of a global network. There was broad support for the network taking on a monitoring, and information dissemination role. It should also have an advocacy agenda, but questions remain about how far it should go in conflict-specific situations.

In order to facilitate the consultation process, all results will need to be shared with all members of the process. Preferably documents would be made available in a variety of languages.

These regional consultations should conclude with identifying organizations that could join a core Steering Group for the network.

A global conference on R2P or a network launch event could bring together the core steering group and also participants of the regional consultations interested in going forward with the network.

Report:

Full R2PCS report detailing challenges and outcomes is available at: Full report
 

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