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http://www.mediaforfreedom.com/ReadArticle.asp?ArticleID=8190
At a time when Canadian operations in Afghanistan are drawing media headlines and national attention, the long-standing Canadian experience in peacekeeping is apt to be ignored. This is unfortunate because the Canadian Forces have a proud tradition of UN peacekeeping that still provides an excellent model for future contributions to peace. This is the first of two articles on the past, present, and future of Canadian peacekeeping.
By Walter Dorn
Peacekeeping has a place of pride in the Canadian national identity. Canadians feel that their country is a traditional and natural leader in this international endeavor. Is this view justified? An answer to this question requires a probe of Canadian attitudes to see if they match Canada's historical and present contributions.
For many Canadians, peacekeeping conjures up images of heroic actions in tragic circumstances: a soldier rescuing a child during a firefight or extracting a hapless person from a minefield; a medic mending the wounds of an aging refugee; a pilot flying in desperately-needed supplies while under fire from the ground; or soldiers patroling in no-man's land to keep combatants apart. Peacekeeping is about protecting people in mortal danger, providing hope in almost hopeless situations and bringing peace and stability to faraway war-torn lands. It is about self-sacrifice and world-service.
These notions of courage and service resonate with the Canadian public. The support for peacekeeping has been so strong for so long that peacekeeping has become a celebrated part of what Canada is as a nation and even who Canadians are as a people. Though some commentators, such Liberal-leadership hopeful Michael Ignatieff, bemoan the "peacekeeping paradigm," it remains an important part of the Canadian national identity.
The evidence of this national embrace of peacekeeping is extensive.
Almost 90 per cent of Canadians believe that Canada should provide troops for peacekeeping upon UN request. The public appreciates the life-affirming role played by its soldiers on their behalf. Peacekeeping symbols appear on the national currency; a female soldier, sporting a UN blue beret and looking vigilantly through binoculars, appears on the Canadian ten dollar bill (2001 issue) under the bilingual banner "AU SERVICE DE LA PAIX/ IN THE SERVICE OF PEACE." The Canadian dollar coin (1995 issue) has an image of the National Peacekeeping Monument in the nation's capital. Memorials and monuments to peacekeepers can be found in several cities. Calgary opened a Peacekeepers' Park in 2004 and Manitoba dedicated a "Peacekeepers Cairn" near its Legislature. Even lakes have been named after peacekeepers.
The enthusiasm for peacekeeping is shared by many of the soldiers and civilians who have served in the operations. They formed the Canadian Association of Veterans in United Nations Peacekeeping with two dozen branches across Canada. Over 125,000 Canadian military personnel have served in UN peacekeeping operations (PKOs), more than 10 per cent of the UN total.
When the 1988 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to UN peacekeepers, some 80,000 Canadian military personnel shared in the honor, but not the prize money; that went to create the Dag Hammarskjold Medal for the families of peacekeepers who died on duty. Over 115 Canadian soldiers have made the supreme sacrifice in peacekeeping.
Many Canadian soldiers who survived (or thrived on) tough peacekeeping assignments have gone on to write their stories of adventure, achievement and tragedy. Canada's most famous soldier at present, Lt. Gen. Roméo Dallaire, received the sympathy of the entire nation as he described the horrifying predicament he faced as Force Commander of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda: he did not have the resources or political backing to intervene to stop the Rwandan genocide. He blamed himself, in part, for the slaughter of some 800,000 people in the summer of 1994. Among the Canadian population, he is a hero, with large crowds drawn to his public lectures.
The level of public and political support for peacekeeping has not always been so high. In the early days, peacekeeping was as contentious as it was unknown--even the term peacekeeping did not enter the public lexicon until the late 1950s. In fact, the first Canadian contribution to a UN mission caused a cabinet crisis in 1947.
The origins of Canadian Peacekeeping
Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King learned in 1947 that Canadian personnel had been sent to Korea as part of the United Nations Temporary Commission on Korea to help supervise an election there. He admonished his external affairs minister, Louis St. Laurent, telling him that there was going to be a war in Korea and he wanted Canada to have nothing to do with it.
King had been prime minister during most of the interwar period and World War II, yet he still harbored a deep streak of isolationism. He wanted to keep Canada away from the fires of conflict in a turbulent world dominated by great powers. St. Laurent, an ardent internationalist, and several of his cabinet colleagues threatened to resign if Canada withdrew from the UN's Korea Commission, so there was little the aging King could do. The next year St. Laurent, who had declared "the UN's vocation is Canada's vocation," became prime minister. For him, the lessons of the League and World War II were clear: the rule of law and order, and justice in the world depended on a strong UN strongly supported by its members.
Canada sent a large contingent of troops to Korea in 1950 to fight in a UN "police action" to protect the elected South Korean government. While this was "enforcement," not peacekeeping, it does demonstrate the country's support for the UN.
In Kashmir, Canada had its first opportunity to lead a PKO. Unfortunately Brigadier Harry Angle, who was made chief of the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan in March 1950, died in a plane crash several months later. Angle remains Canada's highest ranking officer to die in a PKO.
Canada Proposes Peacekeeping Forces
Canada's greatest achievement in peacekeeping was made during St. Laurent's tenure, assisted by an equally dedicated external affairs minister, Lester B. Pearson. Known at the UN as one of the "wise men," Pearson was an idealist who was also practical. He served as president of the UN General Assembly in 1952 and when the Suez Crisis broke out in 1956, had his shining moment.
Canada's two "mother countries," Britain and France, had conspired with Israel to seize control of the Suez Canal after Egypt's President Gamel Abdel Nasser had nationalized it. The rest of the world, including the United States, deplored this invasion as "colonial aggression" in the age of decolonization. Pearson understood the dangerous predicament of the embarrassed great powers and came up with a novel concept. He suggested that "the UN send an international force to the area, position itself between the warring parties and bring an end to the hostilities." The operation was to be "a truly international peace and police force ... large enough to keep these borders at peace while a political settlement is being worked out."
The General Assembly enthusiastically adopted this idea and Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld, after some initial hesitation, developed a brilliant plan for what was to become the UN's first peacekeeping force. The United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) was the beginning of a new generation of PKO. Interpositional forces like the UNEF were different from previous peacekeeping missions, because their purpose was to separate fighting forces, not just observe them. The forces were allowed to impede movement (using checkpoints and gates) and often to take charge in buffer zones. Also, in these operations, contributing nations would send preformed units (usually battalions) instead of individual soldiers and the forces were equipped with small arms and light weapons, unlike the unarmed military observers. The basic principles of peacekeeping, laid out in Hammarskjöld's plan to the General Assembly for UNEF, have guided "traditional" peacekeeping operations ever since.
The new UNEF missions were:
Under the operational control of the Secretary-General;
Recruited from Member States other than the permanent members of the Security Council (i.e., China, France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom and the United States were excluded due to their Cold War strategic involvement in most disputes in the world);
Paid for by the United Nations, except for the salaries of troops, which would continue to be covered by the contributing states (but the UN would pay states a contribution for each soldier);
Impartial, i.e., the forces would not seek to influence the military balance; and
Use force only in self-defence.
Canada was in a good position to help establish the peacekeeping force that Pearson had proposed in 1956. A senior Canadian officer was already in the Middle East, commanding the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) that had been created in 1948 to observe the ceasefire and armistice after the first Arab-Israeli War. Canadian Major-General ("Tommy") E.L.M. Burns had already gained familiarity with the political leaders in the region. UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld appointed him UNEF commander, with responsibility to organize the operation. With St.Laurent's eager backing, Canada rapidly deployed soldiers for administration, signals, transport, and reconnaissance, as these were desperately needed for the mission start-up.
Canada rejoiced when Foreign Minister Pearson won the Nobel Peace prize in 1957, largely because of his UNEF initiative. He became known in Canada as the "Father of Peacekeeping," though he was, more accurately, one of the "founders of peacekeeping forces," with Dag Hammarskjöld and UN Under-Secretary-General Ralph Bunche.
For Canada, the discovery of a new role for itself and the UN at the height of the period called the "golden age" of Canadian diplomacy, saw the emergence of a popular enthusiasm for peacekeeping that has been a prevalent part of Canadian foreign and defence policy ever since. Keeping the peace in the Middle East continued to occupy much of Canada's and the world's attention for decades to follow. The wars there provided fertile ground for the establishment of new PKOs, though these have not brought about a lasting peace in the region. There was dismay and alarm in Canada when President Nasser ordered UNEF out of Egypt in 1967, evidenced by front page headlines, such as the Toronto Telegram's "Nasser Boots Out Our Troops." The opposition leader John Diefenbaker called it a "loss of face" for Canada.
At a time when Canadian operations in Afghanistan are drawing media headlines and national attention, the long-standing Canadian experience in peacekeeping is apt to be ignored. This is unfortunate because the Canadian Forces have a proud tradition of UN peacekeeping that still provides an excellent model for future contributions to peace. This is the first of two articles on the past, present, and future of Canadian peacekeeping.
By Walter Dorn
Peacekeeping has a place of pride in the Canadian national identity. Canadians feel that their country is a traditional and natural leader in this international endeavor. Is this view justified? An answer to this question requires a probe of Canadian attitudes to see if they match Canada's historical and present contributions.
For many Canadians, peacekeeping conjures up images of heroic actions in tragic circumstances: a soldier rescuing a child during a firefight or extracting a hapless person from a minefield; a medic mending the wounds of an aging refugee; a pilot flying in desperately-needed supplies while under fire from the ground; or soldiers patroling in no-man's land to keep combatants apart. Peacekeeping is about protecting people in mortal danger, providing hope in almost hopeless situations and bringing peace and stability to faraway war-torn lands. It is about self-sacrifice and world-service.
These notions of courage and service resonate with the Canadian public. The support for peacekeeping has been so strong for so long that peacekeeping has become a celebrated part of what Canada is as a nation and even who Canadians are as a people. Though some commentators, such Liberal-leadership hopeful Michael Ignatieff, bemoan the "peacekeeping paradigm," it remains an important part of the Canadian national identity.
The evidence of this national embrace of peacekeeping is extensive.
Almost 90 per cent of Canadians believe that Canada should provide troops for peacekeeping upon UN request. The public appreciates the life-affirming role played by its soldiers on their behalf. Peacekeeping symbols appear on the national currency; a female soldier, sporting a UN blue beret and looking vigilantly through binoculars, appears on the Canadian ten dollar bill (2001 issue) under the bilingual banner "AU SERVICE DE LA PAIX/ IN THE SERVICE OF PEACE." The Canadian dollar coin (1995 issue) has an image of the National Peacekeeping Monument in the nation's capital. Memorials and monuments to peacekeepers can be found in several cities. Calgary opened a Peacekeepers' Park in 2004 and Manitoba dedicated a "Peacekeepers Cairn" near its Legislature. Even lakes have been named after peacekeepers.
The enthusiasm for peacekeeping is shared by many of the soldiers and civilians who have served in the operations. They formed the Canadian Association of Veterans in United Nations Peacekeeping with two dozen branches across Canada. Over 125,000 Canadian military personnel have served in UN peacekeeping operations (PKOs), more than 10 per cent of the UN total.
When the 1988 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to UN peacekeepers, some 80,000 Canadian military personnel shared in the honor, but not the prize money; that went to create the Dag Hammarskjold Medal for the families of peacekeepers who died on duty. Over 115 Canadian soldiers have made the supreme sacrifice in peacekeeping.
Many Canadian soldiers who survived (or thrived on) tough peacekeeping assignments have gone on to write their stories of adventure, achievement and tragedy. Canada's most famous soldier at present, Lt. Gen. Roméo Dallaire, received the sympathy of the entire nation as he described the horrifying predicament he faced as Force Commander of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda: he did not have the resources or political backing to intervene to stop the Rwandan genocide. He blamed himself, in part, for the slaughter of some 800,000 people in the summer of 1994. Among the Canadian population, he is a hero, with large crowds drawn to his public lectures.
The level of public and political support for peacekeeping has not always been so high. In the early days, peacekeeping was as contentious as it was unknown--even the term peacekeeping did not enter the public lexicon until the late 1950s. In fact, the first Canadian contribution to a UN mission caused a cabinet crisis in 1947.
The origins of Canadian Peacekeeping
Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King learned in 1947 that Canadian personnel had been sent to Korea as part of the United Nations Temporary Commission on Korea to help supervise an election there. He admonished his external affairs minister, Louis St. Laurent, telling him that there was going to be a war in Korea and he wanted Canada to have nothing to do with it.
King had been prime minister during most of the interwar period and World War II, yet he still harbored a deep streak of isolationism. He wanted to keep Canada away from the fires of conflict in a turbulent world dominated by great powers. St. Laurent, an ardent internationalist, and several of his cabinet colleagues threatened to resign if Canada withdrew from the UN's Korea Commission, so there was little the aging King could do. The next year St. Laurent, who had declared "the UN's vocation is Canada's vocation," became prime minister. For him, the lessons of the League and World War II were clear: the rule of law and order, and justice in the world depended on a strong UN strongly supported by its members.
Canada sent a large contingent of troops to Korea in 1950 to fight in a UN "police action" to protect the elected South Korean government. While this was "enforcement," not peacekeeping, it does demonstrate the country's support for the UN.
In Kashmir, Canada had its first opportunity to lead a PKO. Unfortunately Brigadier Harry Angle, who was made chief of the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan in March 1950, died in a plane crash several months later. Angle remains Canada's highest ranking officer to die in a PKO.
Canada Proposes Peacekeeping Forces
Canada's greatest achievement in peacekeeping was made during St. Laurent's tenure, assisted by an equally dedicated external affairs minister, Lester B. Pearson. Known at the UN as one of the "wise men," Pearson was an idealist who was also practical. He served as president of the UN General Assembly in 1952 and when the Suez Crisis broke out in 1956, had his shining moment.
Canada's two "mother countries," Britain and France, had conspired with Israel to seize control of the Suez Canal after Egypt's President Gamel Abdel Nasser had nationalized it. The rest of the world, including the United States, deplored this invasion as "colonial aggression" in the age of decolonization. Pearson understood the dangerous predicament of the embarrassed great powers and came up with a novel concept. He suggested that "the UN send an international force to the area, position itself between the warring parties and bring an end to the hostilities." The operation was to be "a truly international peace and police force ... large enough to keep these borders at peace while a political settlement is being worked out."
The General Assembly enthusiastically adopted this idea and Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld, after some initial hesitation, developed a brilliant plan for what was to become the UN's first peacekeeping force. The United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) was the beginning of a new generation of PKO. Interpositional forces like the UNEF were different from previous peacekeeping missions, because their purpose was to separate fighting forces, not just observe them. The forces were allowed to impede movement (using checkpoints and gates) and often to take charge in buffer zones. Also, in these operations, contributing nations would send preformed units (usually battalions) instead of individual soldiers and the forces were equipped with small arms and light weapons, unlike the unarmed military observers. The basic principles of peacekeeping, laid out in Hammarskjöld's plan to the General Assembly for UNEF, have guided "traditional" peacekeeping operations ever since.
The new UNEF missions were:
Under the operational control of the Secretary-General;
Recruited from Member States other than the permanent members of the Security Council (i.e., China, France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom and the United States were excluded due to their Cold War strategic involvement in most disputes in the world);
Paid for by the United Nations, except for the salaries of troops, which would continue to be covered by the contributing states (but the UN would pay states a contribution for each soldier);
Impartial, i.e., the forces would not seek to influence the military balance; and
Use force only in self-defence.
Canada was in a good position to help establish the peacekeeping force that Pearson had proposed in 1956. A senior Canadian officer was already in the Middle East, commanding the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) that had been created in 1948 to observe the ceasefire and armistice after the first Arab-Israeli War. Canadian Major-General ("Tommy") E.L.M. Burns had already gained familiarity with the political leaders in the region. UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld appointed him UNEF commander, with responsibility to organize the operation. With St.Laurent's eager backing, Canada rapidly deployed soldiers for administration, signals, transport, and reconnaissance, as these were desperately needed for the mission start-up.
Canada rejoiced when Foreign Minister Pearson won the Nobel Peace prize in 1957, largely because of his UNEF initiative. He became known in Canada as the "Father of Peacekeeping," though he was, more accurately, one of the "founders of peacekeeping forces," with Dag Hammarskjöld and UN Under-Secretary-General Ralph Bunche.
For Canada, the discovery of a new role for itself and the UN at the height of the period called the "golden age" of Canadian diplomacy, saw the emergence of a popular enthusiasm for peacekeeping that has been a prevalent part of Canadian foreign and defence policy ever since. Keeping the peace in the Middle East continued to occupy much of Canada's and the world's attention for decades to follow. The wars there provided fertile ground for the establishment of new PKOs, though these have not brought about a lasting peace in the region. There was dismay and alarm in Canada when President Nasser ordered UNEF out of Egypt in 1967, evidenced by front page headlines, such as the Toronto Telegram's "Nasser Boots Out Our Troops." The opposition leader John Diefenbaker called it a "loss of face" for Canada.