The Security Council met for an open debate on June 29, 2010, discussing “the Promotion and Strengthening of the Rule of Law in the Maintenance of International Peace and Security.” It was the first time since 2006 that the UN Security Council has debated this issue.
According to a report issued prior to the open debate, Mexico, instigator of the debate, hopes it will focus on three key areas: the promotion of rule of law in conflict and post-conflict situations, international justice and peaceful settlement, and the efficiency and credibility of sanctions regimes.
As outlined in the report, some of the key questions the Security Council hopes to address include:
- How can the Security Council develop a more enduring and sustained focus on issues of justice and rule of law?
- Should there be better coordination between the Security Council and relevant rule of law focused bodies (such as the Rule of Law Coordination and Resource Group and the Peacebuilding Commission)?
- How do new threats to peace and security such as piracy fit in the justice and rule of law framework?
- What can the Security Council do to support and strengthen national rule of law and security institutions, especially in the context of peacekeeping operations exiting a state?
- How to best wind down the ICTY and the ICTR? The approach taken will set the standard for future international justice mechanisms.
- Should the Security Council make better use of the ICJ?
- How to develop the Security Council’s institutional capacity for prevention of situations that threaten the peace?
The report also highlights that the Security Council also hopes to address issues surrounding the role of sanctions, follow up on earlier decisions on impunity-related issues, and decide whether the Security Council should take action following a letter from the ICC detailing Sudan’s failure to cooperate with the court.
One of the most significant hurdles to changing the Security Council’s stance on the rule of law is the member states’ different approaches to rule of law, international justice mechanisms, and sanctions. In the four years since the last rule of law debate in 2006, there have been a number of key developments. In June 2006 the Peacebuilding Commission was created, leading to greater attention to rule of law in post-conflict situations. In 2007, the Rule of Law Coordination and Resource Group was created to “maintain coherence in the different areas of the UN that dealt with rule of law” (2). Also in 2007, within the Department of Peacekeeping the Office for Rule of Law and Security Institutions was established. In June 2009, Judge Kimberly Prost of Canada filled the new position of Ombudsperson, an independent body allowing individuals and entities facing sanctions to present their cases.
Since the 2006 debate awareness of the overlapping roles of peacekeeping and peacebuilding has increased among Security Council members. Related to rule of law, the Security Council has made more frequent references to impunity in “thematic resolutions on women, peace and security; sexual violence; children and armed conflict; and protection of children” (3). Rule of law, impunity, and justice issues have also been highlighted more often in general statements, a trend that many hope will be solidified after this most recent debate.
