Pakistan Mission to United Nations

Statement by Ambassador Dr. Maleeha Lodhi, Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations, at the Security Council Open Debate on Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict (23 May 2019)

We thank you, Mr. President, for convening today's open debate.

2019 marks the 70th anniversary of the 1949 Geneva Conventions and the 20th anniversary of the Security Council placing Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict on its agenda. It is therefore an important moment to review and reflect.

We appreciate the insightful briefings by the Secretary General and the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Mr. President,

The rules of conduct of hostilities in an armed conflict are clearly codified in the 1949 Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols. They are a milestone in establishing the legal framework to eliminate the concept of 'total war' and constitute the bedrock of international humanitarian law, governing protection of civilians and victims of armed conflict.

Yet, you would agree, we continue to witness international humanitarian law being relegated to a mere piece of paper whenever and wherever hostilities break, with women often bearing most of the brunt of these atrocities. The cardinal principles of distinction and discrimination between civilians and combatants, military necessity, and proportionality, continue to be violated, and warring parties continue to operate with impunity.

Whether it is plausible deniability or abuse, the grim reality is, when the beast of conflict roars, legal regimes fall silent.

Mr. President,

Violation of IHL triggers cycles of violence. It ostracizes and it divides. Today, targeted attacks, sexual violence, forced conscription, torture, indiscriminate killings and gross human rights violations are used cynically as tools of war in conflicts.

In Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir, the occupying forces continue to show utter disregard for human life by systematically violating the fundamental norms of international humanitarian law and by using civilians as human shields. Worse, perpetrators who commit such crimes are not only protected under black laws, but are honored by the military command.

Reports of the use of torture as an instrument of repression in Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir have been verified by the Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Executions and Torture, and by prominent rights groups in India. For example a recent evidence-based report draws attention, once again, to the culture of impunity and lists multiple cases involving chilling methods that are used to torture civilians.

Mr. President,

Civilians, who should be the primary subject of protection, have become the principal objects of attack.

According to the Secretary General's report on Protection of Civilians, last year alone, 22,800 civilians were killed, injured and maimed as a result of direct or indiscriminate attacks by parties to conflicts, 1.4 million people were made refugees, and a further 5.2 million were displaced internally.

Let me underscore five specific points in this regard:

• One, protection of civilians is a system-wide undertaking, but host countries bear the primary responsibility for protection of all civilians without discrimination.
• Two, protection of civilians, wherever mandated by the Council, should be a priority for UN peacekeeping operations. As one of the world's leading troop contributors to UN Peacekeeping, our well-trained and professional peacekeepers have protected civilians, provided them much-needed medical care, and rebuilt communities.
• Three, violations are neither inevitable nor insurmountable. They can be mitigated by consistent use of the entire range of national and international judicial and non-judicial means for promoting compliance with IHL and ensuring accountability.
• Four, lack of political will to fully respect humanitarian law and other applicable rules is the primary impediment to protecting civilians in armed conflict. Sustained pressure from those with influence over parties to conflicts can rectify this wrong.
• Five, the Security Council, as the primary body tasked with maintaining international peace and security, should focus on the root causes of emerging and longstanding conflicts, including Palestine and Jammu and Kashmir, and find inclusive political solutions. Inaction by the Council in cases of foreign aggression and occupation comes at a high human cost. But unfortunately, we continue to see legal and moral values sacrificed at the altar of political expediency.

  Mr. President,

  Let us be mindful that the spirit of the Conventions is to uphold human dignity even in the midst of war, and it is as important today as it was 70 years ago. Conventions are law and law must always be upheld. The goal of protection of civilians can best be achieved by preventing the outbreak of armed conflict in the first place. Anything short of that would be treating only the symptoms and not the disease.

  I thank you.