ABSTRACT

In times of armed conflict and insecurities, children are those who suffer the most. During 2021, the United Nations verified alarming trends and data on grave violations committed against children in times of conflict by State and non-state actors. This led the international community to reflect upon the need to reinforce the already existing regulations on protection of children during armed conflict through both binding and non-binding instruments. 

Having acknowledged the crucial role UN peace operations can play in the protection of children and of their respective rights, among the initiatives undertaken, the UN Security Council has since adopted multiple resolutions, calling for the inclusion of child protection provisions in UN peace operations’ mandates. Thus, it established what is known as the ‘child protection mandate’. Moreover, the protection of children in UN peace operations has been the object of a series of policies and guidelines adopted especially, but not only, at the UN level. The most significant being the 2017 Policy on Child Protection in United Nations Peace Operations. 

In recent times, law and policy makers have been paying a significant attention also to a specific and vital right for the physical, psychological and social development of children, i.e. the right to education, which lamentably finds itself subject to dire attacks in times of armed conflict. Therefore, aware of the potential UN peace operations and the relative personnel have in fostering the safeguard of such right when conflict occurs, key provisions on the protection of the right to education during UN missions were included in several leading resolutions, policies and training materials. This was the case for Security Council resolution 2601 (2021), on the facilitation, continuation and protection of education in armed conflict, which lays down crucial prohibitions for, inter alia, UN deployed personnel when coming into contact with schools, school-children and educational staff, in order to avoid any interference with children’s enjoyment of the right to education. 

The present work will firstly provide an overview of what UN peace operations are, as well as a brief description of the relative normative framework and founding principles. A mention of the different categories into which UN peace operations have developed in time will be made. Section two will then proceed to deal more specifically with the child protection mandate of UN peace operations, by first introducing what is meant by ‘child protection’ and then providing a description of its legal basis. Subsequently, the applicable legal framework to be observed by UN peace operations’ personnel when implementing the discussed mandate will be outlined, with a special focus on the 2017 Policy. Finally, section three will be entirely dedicated to the protection of the right to education in UN peace operations: after an introduction on how such right deeply links to the grave violations against children committed during armed conflicts and a description of its legal framework, the crucial documents on its protection during UN missions will be illustrated. The final section will conclude with an illustrative description of practical cases in which UN peace operations successfully ensured the continuation of education in times of conflict, thus upholding its tremendous value. This will serve to prove how the implementation by UN peacekeepers of both hard and soft law instruments developed in this regard is not only due, but also undeniably possible.

1. General overview of UN Peace Operations

Over the past seven decades, United Nations-led peace operations (henceforth: UN POs) have helped countries transitioning from crisis scenarios to a state of peace and stability, through the creation of conditions for sustainable development and political solutions.[1] Despite some shortcomings and problems related to it, empirical data show that this unique mechanism has been, on several occasions, successful in reducing the duration of the conflict locally (A. Ruggeri et al., 2017), halting battlefield hostilities between the belligerents. Furthermore, studies revealed that the presence of UN military and police personnel in conflict-affected countries greatly decreases violence against civilians by both governments and non-state actors (L. Hultman et al., 2013). 

The expression “UN peace operations” refers to field missions, in a given country during a designated time period, mandated by the Security Council (thereafter: UNSC) and operated under UN command (S. Sheeran, 2015). As a matter of fact, it is the UNSC’s primary responsibility to maintain international peace and security.[2] However, the General Assembly has a secondary competence to mandate peacekeeping forces, allowing the UN to effectively respond even when there are permanent members involved in the crisis to be faced (N.D. White, 2015). Peacekeeping functions are likewise carried out by the Secretary-General who, besides bringing to the Council’s attention anything that may threaten international peace and security, coordinates, directs and controls an established force and delegates its command. On the field, each mission functions on the coordinated action of military, police and civilian components. Specialized agencies, funds and programmes are also key actors for the success of the missions.[3] Such partners are required to engage in proactive interventions in the countries where peace operations are deployed and together they make up the UN Country Team (UNCT). 

Peace operations are not explicitly envisaged in the UN Charter, however the UNSC, in fulfilling its aforementioned primary responsibility, may resort to a range of measures that include the establishment of a UN PO. Thus, the legal basis for this tool is to be found in Chapters VI, VII and VIII of the Charter. The traditional peacekeeping can be said to be derived from Chapter VI, the latter being concerned with the Council’s peaceful settlement of dispute, and Chapter VII, which allows the Council to take military action to respond to “any threat to the peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression”.[4] Under Chapter VIII, regional organizations and arrangements can be involved in the effort to maintain international peace and security.[5] An additional component of the normative framework of UN POs is International Human Rights Law (hereinafter: IHRL), whose provisions apply in times of both peace and armed conflict. The main instruments under IHRL applicable to UN POs  are the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), the two Covenants of 1966, i.e. the “International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights” and the “International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights”, and all the relevant UN specialized human rights treaties.[6] Therefore, UN POs are required to be conducted in respect of human rights and should seek to implement them in the mission field. UN POs personnel are further expected to comply with the principles and rules enshrined in International Humanitarian Law (IHL), which applies only in times of armed conflict and regulates the means and methods of warfare as well as protects individuals who do not engage in hostilities or no longer do so. Legal sources under IHL are the four Geneva Conventions (1949), their two Additional Protocols (1977) and the treaties and conventions on the protection of cultural property and the environment during armed conflict, as well as the protection of victims of conflict. Moreover, a detailed illustration of the tasks to be conducted within the peace operation is contained in the UNSC mandate establishing the operation itself. Its content depends on the challenges the mission presents each time. Peace operations are further regulated by numerous other ad hoc agreements with the host State and Troop Contributing Countries (TCCs), such as, inter alia, the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA). With regard to the use of force, the Rules of Engagement (ROE) for the military, and the Directives on the Use of Force (DUF) for the police component, are instrumental for the mission. 

Since 1948, when the Security Council authorized what it can be considered the first peace operation, UN peacekeeping has evolved into a global and heterogeneous phenomenon: from the deployment of lightly armed troops, it has in time embraced a multidimensional nature and scope (United Nations, 2008). This is primarily due to the transition in the nature of conflicts from international to non-international armed conflicts (P. I. Labuda, 2014). Consequently, nowadays peace operations encompass: conflict prevention, which is directed at identifying and monitoring the potential causes of conflict; peacemaking, a diplomatic action undertaken to secure a ceasefire or a peace agreement when the conflict has erupted; peace enforcement, aimed at ending the hostilities through coercive measures, including the use of military force; peacekeeping per se, a peace support effort designed to assist the implementation of the ceasefire or peace settlement; and peacebuilding, designed to reduce the risk of a relapse into violence by addressing the underlying causes of the conflict.

Finally, three basic principles, interconnected and mutually reinforcing, govern UN POs, i.e. consent, impartiality and non-use of force except in self-defense and defense of the mandate. According to the principle of consent, UN POs are to be deployed with the host State’s consent, unless the threat to international peace and security derives from the State itself, thus requiring enforcement action. Such consent provides the operation the necessary freedom of action to implement the mandate. Impartiality means implementation of the mandate without favor or prejudice to any of the involved parties and it is crucial to uphold the mission’s credibility. Finally, the principle of non-use of force with the two aforementioned exceptions allows peacekeepers, when the situation requires so and under certain conditions, to resort to force at the tactical level, especially because the theater of operations often include the presence of militias and other criminal spoilers that pose a threat for the peace process. Nevertheless, force should always be a measure of last resort as well as precise, proportional and appropriate in its use (United Nations, 2008).

2. Child protection mandate of United Nations Peace Operations

2.1 - Introduction to child protection in UN POs

The promotion and protection of human rights are key components of UN POs (C. Michaelsen, 2016). This is reflected in the fact that the mandates of more than half of the current peace operations envisage human rights tasks.[7] And it goes without saying that human rights constitute a core function of these operations regardless of whether missions have an express human rights mandate. Additionally, in order to overcome the issue of mission mandates being too generic in formulation and, consequently, problematic to implement, “Protection of civilians” (POC) and “Child Protection” (CP) mandates were developed: in 1999, the UNSC passed its first resolution on the protection of civilians (S/RES/1265) and, for the first time, gave a peacekeeping operation the mandate to take necessary action to protect civilians under imminent threat of physical violence. In the same year, the UN Secretary General proposed to include CP provisions in peacekeeping mandates and to deploy child protection advisers. As a result, with resolution 1379 (2001), for the first time UNSC called for the inclusion of such provisions and advisers in the mandates of UN POs. 

‘Child protection’ is defined in the UN language as the prevention of and response to all forms of violence against children (UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1990), as well as the safeguard of their physical, mental and psychosocial needs, including in settings affected by armed conflict and other emergencies.[8] Such protection shall be guaranteed to all children without distinction on any ground. 

Child protection is imperative in peacekeeping missions, being a fundamental peace and security concern, as formally acknowledged by the UNSC in resolution 1261 (1999).[9] As a matter of fact, it is during armed conflicts that children need protection the most, being physically, mentally, and emotionally affected by armed violence.[10] Moreover, the need for a special safeguard is justified by children’s natural condition of vulnerability. Being still in the process of growing up and developing, they depend on their family, community and government structures for care and protection. However, child protection considerations should not be mainstreamed into peace operations exclusively when the threshold of armed violence is high. It is, indeed, a common mistake to overlook child protection’s issues in the peacemaking and peacekeeping process (I. Cohn, 1999). Sure enough, peace processes can be a common ground where discussing children’s issues generates the necessary political will to resolve or mitigate conflict. For instance, peace processes are the only opportunity to address the situation of child soldiers during the demobilization and reintegration phases. On this note, interestingly enough, of the several resolutions the UNSC adopted on children and armed conflict,[11] many of them mention incorporating child protection measures throughout peace processes.[12] Yet, it can be claimed that child advocates have failed to translate such intention into practice, having focused mainly on protecting children during the violence, with less attention placed on their protection and needs in the post-conflict scenario (A. Asokan, 2021).

2.2 - The legal basis for the child protection mandate

2.2.1 - Establishing the CAAC mandate: General Assembly resolution 51/77 (1996)

The UN ‘Children and Armed Conflict’ agenda can be traced back to General Assembly resolution 51/77 of 1997, which established the mandate of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict (SRSG-CAAC). The mandate aims at strengthening the protection of children affected by armed conflict and fostering international cooperation to improve their protection.[13] One of the most effective ways to ensure such protection in a peacekeeping scenario is for the SRSG-CAAC to ensure that principles and obligations on child protection are integrated into all operational decisions, activities and processes of UN peace missions. In this regard, an example of strong collaboration between the SRSG-CAAC, UN POs personnel and civil society is the “ACT to Protect Children Affected by Conflict”, a child protection-awareness global campaign launched in 2019 by the SRSG-CAAC in response to a rise in grave violations committed against children affected by war.[14] In the same year, the campaign was integrated into MINUSCA’s frame of action[15] in order to provide support to the Central African Republic’s authorities for the implementation of international agreements,[16] such as the Optional protocol to the UNCRC on the involvement of children in armed conflict, the Paris Principles, Safe Schools Declaration and Vancouver Principles.

2.2.2 - Establishing and implementing child protection in UN POs’ mandates: the relevant Security Council resolutions 

A further step towards the implementation of the discussed mandate was the adoption of several resolutions by the UNSC. With resolution 1379 (2001) and subsequent ones,[17] the UNSC called for the inclusion of child protection provisions in UN POs’ mandates and for the deployment of Child Protection Advisers (CPAs),[18] whose role will be dealt with later on. 

Among these resolutions, worth of mention is UNSC resolution 1612 (2015) which identified and condemned six grave violations committed against children in times of armed conflict, i.e. i) attacks on schools and hospitals; ii) killing and maiming; iii) abduction; iv) recruitment and use of children by armed forces and armed groups; v) sexual violence; vi) denial of humanitarian access for children. All UN POs personnel are required to monitor and report on these violations. As for the latest one, resolution 2427 (2018), it firmly acknowledges the role of UNPOs and political missions in the protection of children.[19] More specifically, the said resolution hailed the launch of a process aimed at providing guidance on how to incorporate child protection issues into peace processes.[20] Such process resulted in the 2020 ‘Practical Guidance for Mediators to Protect Children in Situations of Armed Conflict’, which highlighted how child protection language should be incorporated early on in peace processes. Therefore, resolution 2427 efficiently led to progress in prevention of violations against children. Moreover, many Member States enthusiastically welcomed the resolution’s focus on practical guidance and its links to Secretary-General’ conflict prevention agenda.[21] 

2.2.3 - Child protection mandate: authorisation to act or obligation for the mission?

To this date, child protection has been incorporated into the mandate of five UN POs: Mali (MINUSMA), DRC (MONUSCO), Central African Republic (MINUSCA), Darfur (UNAMID, now concluded) and South Sudan (UNMISS) and into four Special Political missions: Afghanistan (UNAMA), Iraq (UNAMI), Darfur (UNITAMS) and Somalia (UNSOM).[22] An interesting question that has been raised within the academia in reference to POC mandates of UN missions, which can be raised in relation to CP mandates likewise, is whether such a mandate creates obligations for the mission’s actors (M. Zwanenburg, 2016). The debate focused on the mission’s potential responsibility in case of failure in achieving its POC tasks. The majority believes that the discussed mandates do not set any legal obligations per se. Rather, they provide an authorisation to act for those called to implement the mandate itself. Nonetheless, the supporters of this view consider some provisions laid out in the mandates intended to be compulsory, e.g. the obligation to report grave violations against the protected group immediately. A different view on the issue is the one considering that UN POs create obligations to protect the vulnerable group(s), regardless of a specific task in the mandate. It can be concluded that UNSC resolutions are not treaties, thus breaching them does not amount to a non-performance of a treaty obligation. However, even though various opinions remain on this matter, it is widely agreed that, unlike the General Assembly, the Security Council has the power to create obligations binding upon Member States of the United Nations, in accordance with Article 25 of the UN Charter (T. Mori, 1997).

Most certainly, when failure to protect children occurs, it is challenging to establish precise responsibilities arising from the acts and omissions of the deployed UN POs’ personnel. This is particularly true given that the relationship between the obligations and responsibilities of the UN, those of the troop contributing countries (TCCs) and those of the individuals materially carrying out the mandate is still at the center of an ongoing debate (S. Wills, 2009). 

2.3 The applicable legal framework of child protection

2.3.1 - International Humanitarian Law 

In order for peace operations to operate within the legal framework of child protection, the UN peacekeeping forces must comply with child protection provisions derived from IHL in all the situations described in the 1999 Secretary-General’s Bulletin on the Observance of UN Forces of International Humanitarian Law.[23] A general protection, both during international armed conflict (IACs) and non-international armed conflict (NIACs), is afforded to children as members of the civilian population. For instance, during IACs, children benefit from all the provisions relating to the treatment of protected persons under the Fourth Geneva Convention and Additional Protocol I. In NIACs, children enjoy the fundamental guarantees relating to the treatment of persons taking no active part in the hostilities, as set forth in Common Article 3 to the four Geneva Conventions and in Additional Protocol II. Moreover, principles of special protection of children during conflict are laid down in Protocol I[24] and Protocol II.[25] IHL further foresees and elaborates on specific rights that all the parties to an armed conflict should provide children with.[26] Among them, the right to education is paramount for children’s cognitive development and safety, therefore it will be the focus of section three of the present work. 

2.3.2 - International Human Rights Law 

Under IHRL, peacekeepers’ observance and implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), hereinafter “UNCRC”, alongside with its optional protocols,[27] is instrumental for the safeguard of children. According to Article 1 of the UNCRC, “a child means every human being below the age of eighteen years”. This is the standard that every entity working under the UN must adhere to, irrespective of national legislation in the mission area or the legislation of the TCC/PCC. Article 19 UNCRC, following a comprehensive paradigm (J. Tobin, I. Chasmore, 2020), demands all ratifying States to take all appropriate means to ensure an effective protection, in order to prevent, repress and prosecute any form of children’s subjection to violence, abuse, neglect or exploitation in any context. Other main instruments relating to children under IHRL, to which UN POs personnel are bound, include: ILO Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (1999) which aims to secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour; as well as the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (1990), which replicates most of the UNCRC provisions and is legally binding on ratifying African States. 

The normative framework for child protection further encompasses International Refugee Law, whose main legal sources are The Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (1951) and its Optional Protocol (1977), and International Criminal Law. The latter, which applies to individuals, finds its main source in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (1998). The Statute, in articles 6, 7 and 8, specifically defines as international crimes against children the following conducts: the forcible transfer of children from one group to another as the crime of genocide; trafficking and enslavement of children as crimes against humanity; deliberate attacks on schools and conscription or enlistment of children under 15 years by armed forces and armed groups as war crimes.

2.3.3 - Policies and guidelines 

In addition to international legally binding instruments, the international community has developed a series of international guidelines related to child protection. Owing to the fact that they are guidelines, they provide minimum standards for how children should be treated. Among them, particularly noteworthy are the Guidelines for Protecting Schools and Universities from Military Use During Armed Conflict (2014) and the Safe Schools Declaration (2015), an inter-governmental political commitment to protect students, teachers, schools, and universities from the worst effects of armed conflict. Both instruments were promoted by the General Coalition to Protect Education from Attack (GCPEA) and have received support from States and high-level UN officials. Such non-binding instruments have played a role to foster compliance with international law in relation to the protection of education during armed conflicts and are meant to be used by all parties to armed conflict, States and armed non-State actors (ANSAs) alike, as well as by peacekeeping personnel for wide dissemination and implementation (A. Ferrelli, 2016).

2.3.3.1 - DPKO-DFS-DPA ‘Policy on Child Protection in United Nations Peace Operations’ (2017)

A landmark step towards including child protection issues within UN POs’ concerns, was the adoption of the 2017 Policy on Child Protection in United Nations Peace Operations (hereinafter: Policy), issued by the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO), Department of Field Support (DFS) and Department of Political Affairs (DPA). The purpose of the 2017 Policy is to reiterate the role of the three Secretariat Departments active in UN POs, i.e. DPKO, DFS and DPA, in the protection of all children affected by armed conflict in the UN missions. The Policy has been mentioned in the 2022 Annual Report of the Secretary General on Children and Armed Conflict (CAAC) as the main document of reference when incorporating child protection provisions in the mandates of UN POs.[28] 

Pursuant to the Policy, the observance of the provisions therein outlined is compulsory and the adherence of the UN POs to the international normative framework and standards for child protection is reiterated. Furthermore, particular emphasis is placed upon the idea that protection of children in UN missions is a shared responsibility. In other words, a plethora of actors within the operation, the UN, governments and NGOs, lead, monitor, report, and advocate in a coordinated frame of action. 

On top of this system, the Special Representative of the Secretary General / Head of the mission (SRSG/HOM), inter alia, assures that all operational decisions and procedures take child protection obligations and principles into account, as well as carries the overall responsibility for child protection planning, training, monitoring, reporting and dialogue with Parties to the conflict. For instance, as a result of the advocacy of Bintou Keita, SRSG/HOM of the UN Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC),[29] progress was recorded in the implementation of the DRC’s National Action Plan of 2018 aimed at fighting all forms of discrimination against women.[30] 

Moreover, the primary interface on child protection issues between the mission and external child protection actors is the Child Protection Adviser (CPA). The Policy codified the already existing role played by CPAs in implementing the child protection mandate of UN POs in mission settings.[31] The Adviser’s main tasks envisage: advising on child protection within the mission; representing the mission focal point for monitoring and reporting on six grave violations​; engaging in dialogue with parties to conflict for release of children associated with armed forces and armed groups and other violations; as well as mainstreaming of ​child protection among mission components.[32] For instance, the resolution establishing the UN Mission in the Congo (MONUC)[33] calls upon the Secretary-General to deploy a sufficient number of CPAs in order to “ensure consistent and systematic monitoring and reporting on the conduct of the parties to the conflict as concerns their obligations under humanitarian and human rights law”.[34] Illustrative in this regard is the CPA-led dialogue in the DRC, which resulted in the cessation of offending practices perpetrated against children by the national armed forces.[35] 

Other protection actors can be found within the other mission components. For instance, military force commanders must make sure that all military personnel under their command are aware of what actions can and cannot be taken to protect children. Within the police component, the UN Police Child Protection Focal Points ensure that child protection is integrated into the work of UN Police, for instance by providing guidance on child sensitive interviewing techniques. 

The Policy proceeds to describe child protection prohibitions and obligations for UN POs personnel in relation to the following acts: i) sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA); ii) child labour; iii) detention of children; iv) use of schools by peace operations. Each mission component should prevent, protect and support victims of such conducts.

To summarize, what can be inferred from the Policy is that child protection in UN POs is achieved primarily through the deployment of CPAs and the mainstreaming of child protection considerations into all mission activities. The Monitoring and Reporting mechanism (MRM), proposed by the Secretary-General and endorsed by the 2005 Security Council Resolution 1612 (SCR 1612), also plays a crucial role. The MRM is established when parties in a conflict-affected state are listed in the annexes of the Secretary-General’s annual report on CAAC, known as the ‘list of shame’, for committing grave violations against children. The mechanism includes the establishment of an action plan, which outlines the commitments to be undertaken by the offending party to cease practices that violate children’s rights, and possible delisting (T. Karimova et al., 2013). Interestingly enough, while in the past uniformed peacekeepers' contribution to the MRM was generally disregarded, in recent years much emphasis has been placed on their paramount role in relation to this mechanism (V. Falco, A. Wargo, 2020). This is due to the fact that UN military and police personnel are often the mission’s only components able to reach remote areas, or capable of guaranteeing their presence in key locations regarded as unsafe for civilian components. Thereby, they manage to provide early alarms on suspected violations and abuses against children to the mission’s Child Protection staff.

2.3.3.2 - Other relevant UN guidelines and policies

Child protection considerations have also been systematically integrated into other UN guidelines and policies specifically dedicated to children’s rights. For instance, the Paris Principles and Guidelines on Children Associated with Armed Forces or Armed Groups (2007) aim at preventing the use and exploitation of children in armed conflicts and at better protecting them in such contexts. These guidelines are particularly helpful in the design and implementation of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) programmes within the UN POs (O. Bamidele, 2012). On the same line, the Vancouver Principles on Peacekeeping and the Prevention of the Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers (2017), geared towards troop and police contributors operating under UN peacekeeping mandates, calls for the creation of child protection provisions and for appropriate training for peacekeepers. These initiatives represent an important step in raising the level of political commitment of States and armed non-state actors to ensure children are effectively protected in conflict (R. Burchill, 2017).

2.3.4 - National laws 

In conclusion, it is of tremendous importance for the deployed UN personnel to also familiarize with national laws of the State hosting the UN PO, including those pertaining to child protection. UN personnel are not empowered to change the host State’s legal system, but they can advocate to change the national laws and practices, given that all UN peacekeeping personnel must always uphold the highest international standards for protecting children. Moreover, it is within UN mission’s capability and duty, as established in the 2013 United Nations Human Rights Due Diligence Policy (HRDDP), to provide operational support, intelligence sharing and financial support to the host State’s security forces, as well as to exercise pressure on the host State’s entities to align with international human rights standards, refraining from collaborating with them if they commit grave human rights violations. 

Despite this largely articulated legal framework for child protection in UN POs, there are still serious gaps between the institutional progresses and the actual field impact (M. G. Smith et al, 2011). In 2021, the UN verified an overall number of 23,982 grave violations against children. A total of 19,165 children were victims or survivors of at least one of the following four grave violations: recruitment and use; killing and maiming; rape and other forms of sexual violence; and abduction.[36] Numerous attacks on education and episodes of military use of schools and universities were globally reported as well (GCPEA, 2022). 

3. Protection of the right to education in United Nations peace operations

3.1 - Introduction

3.1.1 - Education as a cross-cutting theme in all the six grave violations 

Armed conflicts, as well as terrorism, civil unrest and disasters caused by natural hazards pose a serious threat to the right to education of school-age children and university students. This analysis will solely focus on the impacts that armed conflicts cause on children’s right to education and what is UN POs’ role in the protection of such right. 

Firstly, the right to education is a cross-cutting theme in all the previously identified six grave violations against children that UN POs are continuously called to monitor and report, being gravely impacted by all of them as well as representing a safe haven for children affected by such violations. Given the fact that they interfere with education directly and detrimentally, all of the six grave violations can amount to education-related violations, intended as those acts which undermine the conditions necessary to exercise the right to education, hindering its fulfillment (British Institute of International and Comparative Law, 2008). 

Besides the attacks on education by the actors in the conflict, the use of schools and other education institutions by peacekeeping forces can be equally negative for children’s right to education. A study revealed that, since 2005, schools and universities have been used as bases and barracks even by peacekeepers in several countries affected by armed conflict (GCPEA, 2015). For instance, in 2013, a contingent of peacekeeping troops from Niger who were part of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) established a military base in a vocational training center, where they remained until December 2014. Likewise, in two cases dating back to late 2016 and early 2017, UN peacekeepers have occupied schools and set up military bases nearby educational facilities in the Central African Republic, interfering with the pupils’ right to education.[37] However, since then, no reports of military use of schools or universities by UN POs forces have been identified (GCPEA, 2022).

On a more positive note, schools are a fundamental component of building a protective environment free from grave violations. Indeed, simply holding the status of ‘student’ can protect a child from forced recruitment or from being a victim of other damaging behaviors. Moreover, schools provide children with physical protection, being learning environments free from exposure to landmines, forced recruitment and sexual violence. Basic skills, such as literacy and numeracy, as well as useful knowledge concerning health, nutrition, HIV and landmine dangers, can be crucial for children to protect themselves during conflict (J. Alexander et al, 2014).

Under this understanding, it must be a top priority in the UN POs’ tasks to prevent educational facilities from becoming battlefields and to protect educational environments and staff as a means of offering wider protection to children.

3.1.2 - The right to education’s legal framework 

The right to education during armed conflict is protected through a number of declarations and conventions. Indeed, the general obligation to realize the right to education is a continuous one, applying during both times of peace and armed conflict, and it is established generally in IHRL. The right to education was first enshrined at a universal level under Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) which recognises the right to access education and the right to receive a quality education. Although not legally binding, this provision represents the source of the right to education which was later codified in the ICESCR under articles 13 and 14 and the ICCPR under Article 18. Furthermore, the right to education is also protected by UNCRC. The treaty recognises education as a right for every child on the basis of equal opportunity. Notably, as one of the main international treaties guaranteeing the right to education for children, the UNCRC contains no provisions for derogation or suspension by States. The discussed right has also been reaffirmed in other UN treaties covering specific groups.[38]

As for IHL, this legal regime does not foresee a specific protection of the right to education. However, it contains several provisions which can have an impact on the protection and continuation of education during both IACs and NIACs. The foundational principle of IHL is the principle of distinction,[39] pursuant to which attacks may only be directed towards military objectives. Given that both students and educational staff are civilians under IHL, this provides them with protection from direct attack. This protection ceases, however, upon their direct participation in hostilities. Nevertheless, attacks against military objects are still subject to the principle of proportionality. Accordingly, the armed forces carrying out the operation shall refrain from it if the attack is expected to cause excessive damage to the right to education in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage anticipated. Moreover, during attacks, feasible precautions must be taken to avoid or minimize the harm to civilian students, staff and educational facilities.[40] This is required by the principle of precaution, deeply interlinked with the one of proportionality. Additionally, IHL sets out more specific rules relating to the protection of children and education. For instance, Article 24 of the Fourth Geneva Convention requires the Parties to an IAC to facilitate the education and maintenance of all children under the age of fifteen who have been orphaned or separated from family as a result of the conflict in all circumstances. Similarly, Article 4 AP II states that children shall receive an education in keeping with the wishes of their parents. 

Finally, under International Criminal Law, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court includes protection for educational institutions under Article 8, which covers war crimes.

3.2 - Key documents on the protection of the right to education during UN POs

Being attacks on schools one of the six grave violations that the UN POs are required to monitor, prevent and report on, protection of education must be a key priority within the agenda of UN peacekeeping. The rationale behind the necessity to keep the fulfillment of the right to education among the prime concerns of UN POs lies in the fact that education is an essential driver for peace and security, as acknowledged by the UNSC on several occasions. Most recently, in the 2020 Statement by the President of the Security Council on CAAC, besides reiterating the right to education’s contribution to the creation of a stable environment free from hostilities, a grave concern about the severe increase of attacks against schools in recent years was expressed.[41] Hence, the emphasis was placed on the resulting alarming number of children denied access to quality education.

Accordingly, a growing role has been recognised lately to UN POs in the safeguard of educational personnel and facilities in times of insecurities. Therefore, a broad range of documents mainstreaming the protection of education in the pre-deployment and in-mission training has been issued and will be now analyzed.

3.2.1 - UNSC Resolution 2601 (2021)

Security Council resolution 2601 (2021) is the first UNSC resolution “uniquely dedicated to the protection of classrooms and schools”.[42] Never before had the UNSC placed this issue at the center of a thematic resolution. The main points of the resolution can be summarized as follows: it restates the invaluable role that education plays for peace and security as “life-saving safe spaces”;[43] it calls upon Member States to protect schools and education facilities from attacks;[44] it further urges all parties to fulfill their obligation to facilitate the continuation of education during conflict.[45] Among other elements of the text, the UNSC requests key actors, including UN peacekeeping and political missions and UN country teams, to establish “appropriate strategies and coordination mechanisms for information exchange and cooperation relating to facilitating access to and the continuation of education as well as the protection and prevention of attacks against schools”.[46] Additionally, the previously mentioned role of the UN POs in the protection of children generally, and in the safeguard of the right to education specifically, is tackled in resolution 2601. Particularly, the crucial role of CPAs in leading the monitoring, prevention and reporting efforts in the operations is praised. Indeed, the resolution calls upon the Secretary-General to ensure that the necessity, number and functions of CPAs are incorporated into the preparation and renewal process of all UN missions. The resolution additionally reiterates the UNSC’s decision to continue to include specific provisions for the protection of children in the relevant UNPOs’ mandates.[47] In conclusion, the landmark resolution, among the child protection issues which the training of military, police and civilian peacekeepers must focus on, includes attacks on schools. It further demands the adoption of “appropriate comprehensive prevention and protection responses”[48] in order to halt the growing number of attacks on education. 

A first interesting follow-up to the analyzed resolution, within UN POs’ frame of action, is to be found in UNSC resolution 2605 (2021), which was issued only a month after resolution 2601. The resolution integrated into MINUSCA’s mandate the priority task “to mitigate and avoid the use of schools by armed forces, as appropriate, and deter the use of schools by parties to the conflict, and to facilitate the continuation of education in situations of armed conflict”;[49] additionally, it requested the mission “to assist the CAR authorities in ensuring that the protection of children’s rights is taken into account, inter alia, in the DDR and SSR processes, including through quality education provided in a safe environment in conflict areas, in order to end and prevent violations and abuses against children”;[50] finally, it condemned “the continued attacks as well as threats of attacks that are in contravention of international humanitarian law against schools and civilians connected with schools, including children and teachers” and it urged “all parties to armed conflict to immediately cease such attacks and threats of attacks and to refrain from actions that impede access to education”.[51] It can be concluded that the inclusion of these education-centered provisions in a UN PO mandate may be read as an awareness-raising step undertaken by the UNSC in the ongoing process of recognising the valuable role played by the right to education for the achievement of reconciliation and durable peace in UN POs. Consequently, what can be expected from the landmark resolution is that, in the future, other UN POs’ mandates will adopt a more sensible approach in relation to the protection of the right to education, through the inclusion of provisions specifically dedicated to the issue. 

3.2.2 - DPKO-DFS-DPA ‘Policy on Child Protection in United Nations Peace Operations’ (2017)

Another key document that has significantly contributed to the protection of the right to education within UN POs is the 2017 DPKO Policy. The document, implementing on UNSC resolutions 1998 (2011) and 2143 (2014), in paragraph 34, renews the obligation for all components of UN POs to abstain from “all actions that impede children’s access to education”. Here, the Policy refers not only to the despicable act of attacking schools to achieve military goals, but also to the more subtle use of school premises in operational settings, which interferes with the enjoyment of the right to education likewise. The Policy specifies that such provision particularly pertains to uniformed personnel, being more likely for them to commit such abuses. Furthermore, the Policy acknowledges that such actions pose a threat, not only to the physical integrity of school children, but to the right to education wholly considered. Albeit the document firmly prohibits such conducts,[52] under exceptional circumstances the occupation of school premises by UN POs is envisaged. In the said scenario, the Policy demands that such premises are vacated as quickly as possible to permit the restoration of education. Demilitarization of just-vacated schools is further deemed imperative.[53] 

The prohibition to interfere with children’s education was actually already included in the previous UN Infantry Battalion Manual (2012),[54] but the Policy elaborates further on the issue, adding emphasis on the repercussions upon the right to education. Furthermore, what can be noticed is how specific the Policy goes in describing the comprehensive measures to be put in place to preserve the safe character of schools. Among them, in paragraph 35, it mentions “the development, adoption and dissemination of mission-specific directives and standard operating procedures to protect schools [...]”. Lastly, under paragraph 37, the analyzed document imposes on UN POs’ military personnel to avoid as far as possible  “any presence at or in close proximity to schools”, as well as to abstain from establishing interactions with pupils and, in case of safety concerns, to opt for unarmed protection strategies.

3.2.3 - DPO-DPPA ‘Manual for Child Protection Staff in UN Peace Operations’ (2019)

Complementary to the 2017 Child Protection Policy is the 2019 Manual for Child Protection Staff in United Nations Peace Operations. The Manual serves as a training tool to build the capacity of child protection staff in UN POs in order to ensure the effective fulfillment of the CP mandate. The Manual includes a sample directive on the protection of schools and universities against military use to be filled out by the SRSG and sent to Force Commanders and Police Commissioners, when required by the situation.[55] Additional references to education are made throughout the Manual. For instance, stopping schools from being used for military purposes is indicated as an example of the SMART advocacy objectives.[56] Moreover, in the sample advocacy plan outlined in Table 10 of the Manual, it reads: “to persuade the host government to adopt a new law to protect schools from being used for military purposes, in accordance with the Safe Schools Declaration”. Thus, it is quite evident that the SSD, and consequently the Guidelines likewise, are an integral part of the UN PO training materials. 

3.2.4 - DPKO-DFS ‘PoC: Implementing Guidelines for Military Components of United Nations Peacekeeping Missions’ (2015)

Another reference document for deployed UN POs’ personnel concerning the protection of the right to education is the ‘Protection of Civilians: Implementing Guidelines for Military Components of United Nations Peacekeeping Missions’ of 2015. These guidelines are intended for military components in UN POs tasked with implementing mandates on the POC, however they also include security related CP scenarios. Particularly relevant is the section under the name: “Actions not to be carried out” where the prohibition to use schools for UN military operations is clearly stated.[57]

3.2.5 - Training materials 

Pursuant to para. 41 of the 2017 Policy, “DPKO, DFS and DPA shall ensure that specific training on child protection and respect for children’s rights are part of mandatory pre-deployment, in-mission and ongoing training for all United Nations peace operations personnel”. As a matter of fact, the most effective way to decrease the number of incidents relating to education is preventing them from happening through meticulous training of all the components of the UN mission that bear responsibilities for protecting children. Therefore, this paragraph will analyze the most relevant training materials containing education-related provisions. 

As for the UNDPKO ‘Specialized Training Materials on Child Protection for Peacekeepers – Trainers Guide’, which is a set of training modules aimed at introducing CP concepts and providing CP mission-specific tactical situations for discussion, slide 23 and 24 are dedicated to “Attacks against schools and hospitals”. An imaginary scenario about the use of a school during a military operation is described: the aim is to advise trainees on how to respond should they encounter host nation’s forces based in the school and who invite the peacekeepers to join them in a collective operation. The UN company commander is encouraged to advocate for the unit to “immediately vacate the school premises”; inform the peacekeeping mission’s CPAs of the situation; and collect and share certain relevant facts about the occupation.

Moreover, the first module of the ‘Specialized Training Materials on Child Protection for UN Police: Trainer’s Guide’ (2016) contains a case study describing a militia’s attack on a school and subsequent use of it as a base. The trainees are then encouraged to reflect upon what could be the consequences of the school attack on the students and what is the likely impact of the school attack on the town’s community. 

Further guidance on how to protect the right to education during a UN PO can be found in the ‘MRM Field Manual’ (2010), a guidebook meant to instruct the concerned actors on how to implement the MRM in relation to grave violations against children. On the assumption that the MRM is designed to trigger appropriate responses to such violations, among the  programmatic responses developed to enhance  the  protective environment  of  children during a UN PO, the manual envisages “developing  and  implementing programmes to  prevent  and respond  to attacks on schools and hospitals, such as the ‘Schools as Zones of Peace’ programmes implemented in Nepal”.[58] 

To conclude, in the ‘Reinforcement Training Package on Child Protection for the United Nations Military’ (2020), which provides guidance on how peacekeepers must interact with children, building a school is indicated as an example of outreach and community engagement activities.[59]

3.3 - Good practice examples

UN POs can actively support the right to education in four different ways:[60] firstly, building new schools in locations affected by destruction or in rural areas can bring education where it would not be otherwise provided for. The same goes for delivering learning materials and school supplies to enable pupils to receive quality education, which is, moreover, one of 17 Global Goals that make up the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (SDGs).[61] In this regard, UNMISS remarkably contributed to boosting education in several provinces of South Sudan, where many obstacles hinder the enjoyment of the right to education. For instance, in Aweil East County, students were used to outdoor learning, with the rainy season making learning conditions much challenging. In 2017, UNMISS, as one of its Quick Impact Projects, i.e. low-cost initiatives funded by UN missions and planned to respond to the needs of the local communities, gifted a secondary school with two new classrooms and an office in the Gogrial area of South Sudan. Particularly, the Project was carried out at the Karic Secondary School, in Kuac, and involved the construction of classrooms as well as the gifting of several desks and chairs. The initiative contributed to the continuation of education for children that complete primary school, avoiding them having to go far for their secondary school education. The project benefited approximately 450 students from the county and neighboring communities.[62] Similarly, in 2022, as part of the same project, new classrooms were built at Lietnhom Primary school, improving education for the thousand pupils therein studying.[63] Moreover, in the same year, UNISFA’s personnel[64] facilitated the opening of the first library to be ever created in Abyei, contributing to advance SDG 4. The new library hosts up to 1,500 students.[65]

Secondly, there have been many instances of peacekeeping personnel stepping in as teachers in schools located in the mission field, whenever a teaching shortage is recorded. For instance, in 2019, UNMISS personnel implemented a teaching program at Aweil Secondary School, where teachers abandoned their workplace due to low salaries.[66] In 2019, the same mission rehabilitated Ngolembo primary school, located in a remote area in Western Bahr El Ghazal, where in 2016 all school facilities were destroyed. South Sudan’s Minister of Education, Simon Athuai, claimed that the rehabilitation of the school is an example of UN POs’ commitment to ensuring the provision of quality education to children.[67] Moreover,   this is one of 32 similar projects implemented in the same area of the country mission between 2021-2022.

The third way by which UN POs sustain education in conflict-affected areas of intervention is by protecting students, i.e. creating a safe environment preventing them from being affected by dangerous situations arising from armed conflict. A clear example of this is MINUSCA intervention in the Ouandja-Kotto sub-prefecture, in CAR, where students were able to finally return to school after 16 years. The concerned area has been governed by militias since 2006. This led to many instances of forced recruitment of children and early marriage for girls, preventing them from accessing education. In October 2022, MINUSCA forces were deployed to the area to deter the armed groups. Furthermore, a MINUSCA donation of school supplies to more than 2,000 elementary and middle school students contributed to the restoration of schooling.[68] The same UN mission had already shown great effort to protect the right to education in the past, by issuing the 2015 directive on the protection of schools from military use by UN peacekeepers and on the vital precautions to be taken to secure educational facilities.[69] More specifically, the directive requests MINUSCA Force and Police not to use schools for any purpose, discouraging them from interfering with the security and education of children. The directive further provides guidance on the quick vacation and clearance of schools and university buildings previously occupied or used by the mission.[70] 

Lastly, educating prison detainees held in UN POs’ headquarters reiterates the idea that providing literacy programs in prison increases detainees’ prospects of social reintegration. Illustrative in this regard is MINUSMA initiative in the Timbuktu Remand and Correctional Center in Mali, where 60 detainees were given the opportunity to take literacy courses in French and English, as well as in the national languages of the region. The three-month literacy course has proved to significantly reduce the rate of illiteracy among prisoners who, after release, are ready to re-enter society with the necessary abilities to secure employment.[71]

An additional way in which UN POs have, on several occasions, protected the right to education is by establishing a dialogue with armed groups occupying schools or other educational facilities, in order to obtain their rapid vacation. For instance, following the 2010 presidential elections in Côte d’Ivoire, various military groups occupied approximately 30 schools and teachers’ homes to use them as shelters, observation posts, ammunition storage, and training base (UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 2011). In response, the Education Cluster[72] collected data on a variety of attacks on education and shared information with the UN DPKO. The latter then advocated with the responsible state actors and non-state actors to vacate the occupied schools. Positive results were achieved through direct discussions with armed forces about the right to education, as well as the illegality of occupying schools. Indeed, fear of potential repercussions and reputation concerns led some actors to leave the schools (GCPEA, 2011). This proved how dialogue and mediation efforts can still be effective. Likewise illustrative of the effectiveness of engaging in dialogues is when, in 2016, MINUSCA verbally requested the armed groups occupying some schools in the west of CAR to leave the buildings. Initially, the occupying forces persisted in their actions. However, MINUSCA issued a press release on 27 September 2016, condemning the actions and demanding them to: immediately vacate the schools, moving their checkpoints away from the school premises, and not to impede the functioning of schools. The UN mission further stated that, if the armed groups continued in their behaviors, it would have resorted to the use of force. As a result of the pressuring statement, five schools were vacated by the armed groups (GCPEA, 2017).

Conclusions 

In conclusion, we can surely affirm that the international community has made relevant progress to strengthen the protection of children affected by armed conflict within UN POs. This was essentially achieved by including child protection provisions in the mandate of several UN missions. In turn, such provisions have translated primarily into the deployment of Child Protection Advisers, the mainstreaming of child protection issues throughout all missions’ activities, the provision of adequate training on child protection to all mission’s components, and, finally, in the engagement of UN POs’ personnel in the implementation of the MRM. 

In this regard, from a soft-law perspective, the 2017 UN Policy has been instrumental to the heightening of standards for child protection in UN POs in general, and for the safeguard of the right to education in particular, by providing a clear frame of action for the UN deployed personnel. Moreover, a crucial development in the current legal framework of the right to education has been brought by UNSC resolution 2601 (2021). The landmark resolution has resulted in the integration in one of the most relevant UN POs’ mandate, MINUSCA’s, of the priority task to protect the right to education by mitigating and avoiding the use of schools by armed forces. Furthermore, the halt in the cases of military use of schools or attacks against educational facilities or personnel by UN peacekeepers has been persistent. Being very recent, it is yet to be seen whether and how TCCs will follow-up to this resolution. However, it can already be expected how it will pave the way for an increasing attention within the UN peacekeeping agenda toward this issue.

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[1] ‘Five ways that UN Peacekeeping partnerships drive peace and development’, United Nations Peacekeeping, accessed 11 March, 2023 via <https://peacekeeping.un.org/en/five-ways-un-peacekeeping-partnerships-drive-peace-and-development>. 

[2] United Nations, ‘Charter of the United Nations’, 1945,  art. 24, para. 1.

[3] For the  complete list, visit <https://betterworldcampaign.org/resources/briefing-book-2022/united-nations-programs-funds-agencies>.

[4] UN Charter, supra note 3, art. 39. 

[5] Ibid. art.  52, para. 1. 

[6] For a complete list, see https://www.ohchr.org/en/core-international-human-rights-instruments-and-their-monitoring-bodies 

[7] ‘Peace Operations and Human Rights’, Security Council Report, accessed 12 March, 2023 via <https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/monthly-forecast/2020-07/peace-operations-and-human-rights.php>. 

[8] ‘Child protection’, UNICEF, accessed 11 March, 2023 via <https://www.unicef.org/child-protection>. 

[9] UN Doc. S/RES/1261, 25 August 1999, para. 16. 

[10] UN Doc. A/51/306, ‘Promotion and protection of the rights of children: Impact of armed conflict on children’, 26 August 1996. 

[11] They can be found in the following link: <https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/un_documents_type/security-council-resolutions/page/2?ctype=Children+and+Armed+Conflict&cbtype=children-and-armed-conflict#038;cbtype=children-and-armed-conflict>. 

[12] For instance, para. 9 of UNSC resolution 2143 (2014) urges Member States and all the other concerned entities to “ensure that child protection provisions, including those relating to the release and reintegration of children formerly associated with armed forces or armed groups, are integrated into all peace negotiations and peace agreements”.

[13] About the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Children and Armed Conflict - the United Nations, accessed 13 March, 2023  via <https://childrenandarmedconflict.un.org/about/>. 

[14] ‘ACT TO PROTECT children affected by conflict’, Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary General for Children and Armed Conflict, accessed 20 March, 2023 via <https://childrenandarmedconflict.un.org/act-to-protect-children-affected-by-armed-conflict/#:~:text=In%20response%20to%20a%20rise,to%20protect%20children%20affected%20by>. 

[15] MINUSCA is the multidimensional UN peacekeeping operation established in the Central African Republic on 10 April 2014.

[16] ‘Central African Republic: Launch of the campaign “ACT to protect children affected by conflict’, reliefweb, accessed 20 March, 2023 via https://reliefweb.int/report/central-african-republic/central-african-republic-launch-campaign-act-protect-children>. 

[17] For a list of the most relevant resolutions, visit <https://peacekeeping.un.org/en/child-protection>. 

[18] UN Doc. S/RES/1379, 20 November 2001, para. 2.

[19] UN Doc. S/RES/2427, 9 July 2018, para. 33.

[20] Ibid., para. 22.

[21] ‘Security Council Seeks to Strengthen Protections for Children in Armed Conflict, Unanimously Adopting Resolution 2427 (2018)’, United Nations, accessed 21 March, 2023 via <https://press.un.org/en/2018/sc13412.doc.htm>. 

[22] ‘#ACTtoProtect children affected by armed conflict’, United Nations Peacekeeping, accessed 16 March, 2023 via <https://unpeacekeeping.medium.com/acttoprotect-children-affected-by-armed-conflict-921408667211>. 

[23] According to Section 1, para. 1.1 of the Bulletin: “The fundamental principles and rules of international humanitarian law set out in the present bulletin are applicable to United Nations forces when in situations of armed conflict they are actively engaged therein as combatants, to the extent and for the duration of their engagement. They are accordingly applicable in enforcement actions, or in peacekeeping operations when the use of force is permitted in self-defense.”

[24] Article 77 states that: " Children shall be the object of special respect and shall be protected against any form of indecent assault. The parties to the conflict shall provide them with the care and aid they require, whether because of their age or for any other reason".

[25] Article 4, entitled ‘Fundamental guarantees’, dedicates a paragraph exclusively to children. It stipulates that: "Children shall be provided with the care and aid they require".

[26] Such rights can be found at the following link: <https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/resources/documents/article/other/57jmat.htm>.

[27] Optional Protocol to the CRC on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict (2002); Optional Protocol to the CRC on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography (2002); Optional Protocol to the CRC on Communication Procedures (2011).

[28] UN Doc. A/76/871-S/2022/493, ‘Children and armed conflict: Report of the Secretary-General’, 23 June 2022, para. 293.

[29] The United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) took over from an earlier UN peacekeeping operation – the United Nations Organization Mission in Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) -  on 1 July 2010, in accordance with Security Council resolution 1925 (2010). 

[30] ‘DRC: Breakthrough in the Implementation of the National Action Plan in line with the UNSC Resolution 1325’, United Nations Peacekeeping, accessed March 16, 2023 via <https://peacekeeping.un.org/en/drc-breakthrough-implementation-of-national-action-plan-line-with-unsc-resolution-1325>. 

[31] The first Child Protection Adviser to assume the position was within United Nations peacekeeping operation in Sierra Leone, UNAMSIL, pursuant to Security Council resolution 1260 (1999).

[32] ‘Child protection advisers’, United Nations Peacekeeping, accessed March 16, 2023 via <https://peacekeeping.un.org/en/child-protection-advisers>. 

[33] As of 1 July 2010, MONUC was renamed the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO).

[34] UN Doc. S/RES/1355, 15 June 2001, para. 35. 

[35] ‘Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ending and Preventing the Use of Child Soldiers’, IHL in action, accessed 16 March, 2023 via <https://ihl-in-action.icrc.org/case-study/democratic-republic-congo-ending-and-preventing-use-child-soldiers>. 

[36] UN Doc. A/77/143, ‘Report of the Special Representative of the Secretary General for Children and Armed Conflict’,  27 July 2022, para. 3. 

[37] ‘U.N. peacekeepers, not just militants, occupied schools in CAR: rights group’, reuters, accessed March 21, 2023 via <https://www.reuters.com/article/us-centralafrica-violence-education-idUSKBN16U10T>. 

[38] For example, The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women; The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; and The Covenant Relating to the Status of Refugees.

[39] Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts (Protocol I), 8 June 1977, Article 48.  

[40] Ibid., Article 51(5)(b).

[41] UN Doc. S/PRST/2020/8, ‘Statement by the President of the Security Council’, 10 September 2020, p. 2. 

[42] ‘UN Security Council adopts resolution to protect classrooms from conflict’, Right to Education Initiative, accessed March 23, 2023 via <https://www.right-to-education.org/news/un-security-council-adopts-resolution-protect-classrooms-conflict>. 

[43] UN Doc. S/RES/2601, 29 October 2021, para. 3. 

[44] Ibid., para. 10.

[45] Ibid., para. 6.

[46] Ibid., para. 21.

[47] Ibid., para. 22.

[48] Ibid., para. 23.

[49] UN Doc. S/RES/2605, 12 November 2021, para. 24 lett. a)(v). 

[50] Ibid., para. 46. 

[51] Ibid., para. 54.

[52] Para. 34 of the 2017 Policy reads: “[...] United Nations peace operations personnel shall at no time and for no amount of time use schools for military purposes [...].

[53] Ibid., para. 36. 

[54] Pursuant to section 2.13 of the Manual: “schools shall not be used by the military in their operations [...]”.

[55] United Nations Department of Peace Operations, Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, Manual for Child Protection Staff in UN Peace Operations, 2019, annex 5b, available at <https://peacekeeping.un.org/sites/default/files/1._protection_-_4_manual_for_child_protection_policy.pdf>. 

[56] SMART is an acronym for: Specific; Measurable; Achievable; Relevant; Time-bound.

[57] United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations, Department of Field Support, Protection of Civilians: Implementing Guidelines for Military Components of United Nations Peacekeeping Missions, February 2015, p. 27, available at <https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/809878>. 

[58] Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary General on Children and Armed Conflict, MRM Field Manual, 2010, p. 48, available at <https://resourcehub01.blob.core.windows.net/training-files/Training%20Materials/034%20RTP-CP_Police/034-010%20MRM%20Field%20Manual.pdf>. 

[59] Reinforcement Training Package on Child Protection for the United Nations Military, p. 165, available at <https://resourcehub01.blob.core.windows.net/training-files/Training%20Materials/037%20RTP-CP_Military/037-002%20Child%20Protection%20Trainer's%20Guide%20(Full).pdf>. 

[60] ‘Four ways UN Peacekeeping supports education for peace | #EducationDay’, Medium, accessed March 24, 2023 via <https://unpeacekeeping.medium.com/four-ways-un-peacekeeping-supports-education-for-peace-educationday-718a09eed3f3>. 

[61] ‘Goal 4: quality education’, Sustainable Development Goals, accessed March 24, 2020 via <https://jointsdgfund.org/sustainable-development-goals/goal-4-quality-education>.

[62] ‘UNMISS Quick Impact Project helps boost education’, United Nations Mission in South Sudan, accessed March 24, 2023 via <https://unmiss.unmissions.org/unmiss-quick-impact-project-helps-boost-education>. 

[63] ‘New UNMISS-built classrooms in Aweil East set to improve education for hundreds at Lietnhom Primary School’, United Nations Mission in South Sudan, accessed March 24, 2023 via <https://unmiss.unmissions.org/new-unmiss-built-classrooms-aweil-east-set-improve-education-hundreds-lietnhom-primary-school>. 

[64] UNISFA is a peacekeeping mission for the Abyei region on the border of Sudan and South Sudan. 

[65] ‘At last, a school library is created in Abyei’, United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei, accessed March 24, 2023 via <https://unmiss.unmissions.org/new-unmiss-built-classrooms-aweil-east-set-improve-education-hundreds-lietnhom-primary-school>. 

[66] ‘In the absence of teachers, UN peacekeepers step in to teach at Aweil Secondary School’, United Nations Peacekeeping, accessed March 24, 2023 via <https://peacekeeping.un.org/en/absence-of-teachers-un-peacekeepers-step-to-teach-aweil-secondary-school>.

[67] ‘Children in Ngolembo receive a boost to their education, thanks to UNMISS’, United Nations Mission in South Sudan, accessed March 24, 2023 via <https://unmiss.unmissions.org/children-ngolembo-receive-boost-their-education-thanks-unmiss>. 

[68] ‘Retour de l’école à Ouandja-Kotto après 16 ans d’interruptio’, Mission Multidimensionelle Intégrée des Nations Unies Pour la Stabilisation En République Centrafricaine, accessed March 24, 2023 via <https://minusca.unmissions.org/retour-de-l%E2%80%99%C3%A9cole-%C3%A0-ouandja-kotto-apr%C3%A8s-16-ans-d%E2%80%99interruption>. 

[69] UN Doc. MINUSCA/OSRSG/046/2015, ‘MINUSCA directive on the protection of schools and universities against military use’, 24 December 2015.

[70] Ibid., paras. 3, 5, 6.

[71] ‘La MINUSMA humanise la prison de Tombouctou avec l’alphabétisation des détenus’, Mission Multidimensionnelle Intégrée des Nations Unis Pour la Stabilisation au Mali, accessed March 24, 2023 via <https://minusma.unmissions.org/la-minusma-humanise-la-prison-de-tombouctou-avec-l%E2%80%99alphab%C3%A9tisation-des-d%C3%A9tenus>. 

[72] The Education Cluster, established in 2007, is an inter-agency coordination mechanism for agencies and organizations with expertise and a mandate for humanitarian response within the education sector in situations of internal displacement.