Press Conference on “Implementing the responsibility to protect”

Press Briefing on “Implementing the responsibility to protect” by Adama Dieng, Secretary-General's Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, and Jennifer Welsh, Secretary-General's Special Adviser on the Responsibility to Protect.

• Categories: Media / Press Conferences
• Video Length: 00:28:49
• Production Date: 8 September 2015
• Asset Language: English
• Personal Subject: JENNIFER WELSH; ADAMA DIENG
• Subject Topical: GENOCIDE; GENOCIDE PREVENTION; RESPONSIBILITY TO PROTECT
• MAMS Id: 1430585
• Parent Id: 1277315

Description

The Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, Adama Dieng, said that the Secretary-General’s remarks to the General Assembly constituted “a powerful call to action,” and outlined a way forward for the international community to combat atrocity crimes.

Jennifer Welsh, the Special Adviser on the Responsibility to Protect, recalled that the principle adopted in 2005 arose out of the failure to protect the populations of Rwanda and Srebrenica from crimes against humanity and war crimes.

“The principle is, at its core, a political commitment but is based on pre-existing legal obligations to protect populations from these crimes, to never allow them again,” she said.

She also highlighted the report of the Secretary-General, “A vital and enduring commitment: implementing the responsibility to protect,” noting there was an ambitious agenda that lay ahead.

“We know that in certain cases when there is concerted action, we can make a difference in addressing these kinds of situations,” she said. “And when we see in the news, on a daily basis, stark reminders of the consequences of either inaction or half-hearted action, it is imperative for the Secretary-General’s call to action in this report to be heeded.”