ians Military Reference Guide, will be addressed in the subse-
quent sections of the proposed integrated resource. The docu-
ment will explain the linkage of this framework to other PoC
typologies, such as those offered by UN DPKO and NATO. It
will also discuss linkages with other topical frameworks such as
countering violent extremist organizations, stabilization, Wom-
en Peace and Security, and the Responsibility to Protect (R2P).
Part 2: Understanding Civilian Risks
A sound understanding of civilian risks is essential for any pro-
tective efforts to be successful. This section will discuss infor-
mation gathering and analysis and describe four main contexts
in which civilians can be at risk including armed conflict, mass
atrocities, situations of poor governance, and violent instability.
Environmental factors such as geographical, political, military,
economic, social, informational, and infrastructural consider-
ations will also be addressed.
This section will explain potential dynamics and likely risk
types including sexual violence, impeded access to essential
needs, child risks, human trafficking, displaced persons, targeted
violence, predatory violence, collateral violence, terrorism, and
other risks. The section will consider vulnerabilities, threats and
resiliencies, and explain the importance of accounting for local
perspectives.
The section will identify different actors including vulnerable
populations, potential perpetrators, protectors, and others that
may enhance or undermine civilian protection. This section will
explain potential interests, roles, and means, and will highlight
the importance of host nation ownership of civilian protection.
It will examine early warning signs and indicators, and the sig-
nificance of exigent circumstances and triggering events. It will
identify potential indices, such as corruption and fragile state
data, and explain assessment mechanisms. Finally, the section
will conclude with a discussion of the challenges in understand-
ing civilian risks.
Part 3: Protecting Civilians
This section will discuss planning and preparation, including
the formulation of a PoC strategy that continuously entails
the prioritization of choices among ends, ways, and means. It
will explain the importance of direct and structural preven-
tion measures and specific multidimensional efforts including
humanitarian action, military operations, and the role of police
forces. Other topics will include human rights protection, child
protection, conflict-related sexual violence, and the protection
of cultural heritage. The section will include an explanation of
the likely challenges that will be encountered while protecting
civilians.
Part 4: Shaping a Protective Environment
This section will address the importance of formulating a com-
prehensive approach to PoC, messaging, and peacebuilding or
stabilization activities to address root causes and reduce griev-
ances that could result in conflict that threatens civilians. Other
topics include managing expectations, coordinating civil-mil-
itary activities, building host nation capacity, strengthening
resilience, building local communities, and capitalizing on the
potential of civil society. This section will explain the relevance
of good governance, the rule of law, a sustainable economy,
and social well-being. It will conclude with a discussion of the
potential challenges to shaping a protective environment.
Part 5: PoC Tradeoffs, Challenges, and Risks
This section will describe potential challenges to be encoun-
tered, such as when PoC objectives are pursued while counter-
ing violent extremist organizations, or when security is balanced
against the protection of human rights. Challenges will likely
include resource gaps, corruption, harmonization of different
protection actors, and constraints. One of these may be a lim-
ited ability to effect societal change when certain cultural traits
may be detrimental to civilian protection. Expectations regard-
ing such change will have to be managed and supplemented over
time with laws and policies, institutional reinforcement, posi-
tive public discourse, and training and education. Risks include
potential failure, conflict escalation, friction between the host
nation and international actors, and other problems.
References
The document will include an annotated bibliography of
PoC-related references that may be beneficial to the interested
reader.
Conclusions and Way Forward
The working group concluded that such a project would be
worthwhile, as many audiences would welcome a short, but
comprehensive multidimensional overview guide on the protec-
tion of civilians. The WG members felt that the guide should be
a collaboration, and not produced solely by a military orga-
nization such as PKSOI. Collaborative partners, including a
lead agency for the project, have to be identified. Such partners
could include US government agencies, research institutions,
NGOs, or academic institutions.
The group drafted a production timeline including half-day
sessions to be held in Washington DC and attended by others
in the community of interest who were not present at this event.
The timeline includes the drafting and review of three separate
drafts of the proposed guide, and it is reasonable to expect
publication by the next PSOTEW (April 2019) if the project
receives sufficient interest and support.
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