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UN / PEACEKEEPING STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS
STORY: UN / PEACEKEEPING STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS
TRT: 02:37
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 12 JULY 2022, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, exterior UN Headquarters
12 JULY 2022, NEW YORK CITY
2. Various shots, Security Council
3. SOUNDBITE (English) António Guterres, Secretary-General, United Nations:
“Peacekeepers are facing terrorists, criminals, armed groups and their allies – many with access to powerful modern weapons, and many with a vested interest in perpetuating the chaos in which they thrive. The weapons they wield are not just guns and explosives. Misinformation, disinformation, and hate speech are increasingly being used as weapons of war. And the aim is clear: to dehumanize the so-called other, threaten vulnerable communities – as well as peacekeepers themselves – and even give open license to commit atrocities. Mr. President, for all these reasons, strategic communications is critical across the spectrum of our peacekeeping mandate and crucial to achieving our mission.”
4. Med shot, Jenna Russo, Director of Research, International Peace Institute
5. SOUNDBITE (English) António Guterres, Secretary-General, United Nations:
“Engaging in tailored two-way communication itself builds trust as well as political and public support. It strengthens the understanding amongst the local population of our missions and mandates – and in return, strengthens our peacekeepers’ understanding of the local population’s concerns, grievances, expectations, and hopes. It can create a safe space for reconciliation and peacebuilding to work and provide women, young people, and civil society with greater access to peace processes. But to be effective, it must be grounded in evidence, based on verified data, open to dialogue, rooted in storytelling, and delivered by credible messengers.”
6. Wide shot, Council
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Lieutenant General Marcos De Sá Affonso Da Costa, Force Commander, United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO):
“Now more than ever, an effective force depends on a stronger communication strategy. We operate in a country where successive surveys showed an overall poor perception amongst the population about the relevance of MONUSCO in improving their security. An anti-mission sentiment prevails in certain parts of the country that even prevent some of our deployments. Unfair speeches by several actors against the mission putting risk the safety of our peacekeepers. The extensive use of social media by armed groups and other spoilers undermines the confidence in the UN.”
8. Wide shot, Council
Speaking at the first ever Security Council high-level debate on strategic communications in peacekeeping operations, Secretary-General António Guterres today (11 Jul) said that in a context where “misinformation, disinformation, and hate speech are increasingly used as weapons of war,” strategic communications “is critical across the spectrum of our peacekeeping mandate and crucial to achieving our mission.”
Guterres told the Council that “peacekeepers are facing terrorists, criminals, armed groups and their allies – many with access to powerful modern weapons, and many with a vested interest in perpetuating the chaos in which they thrive.”
He said, “the aim is clear: to dehumanize the so-called other, threaten vulnerable communities – as well as peacekeepers themselves – and even give open license to commit atrocities.
The Secretary-General outlined concrete actions we are taking to improve strategic communications in peacekeeping, including adopting a Mission-wide approach across uniformed and civilian components to foster communication in the field.
He said, “engaging in tailored two-way communication itself builds trust as well as political and public support. It strengthens the understanding amongst the local population of our missions and mandates – and in return, strengthens our peacekeepers’ understanding of the local population’s concerns, grievances, expectations, and hopes. It can create a safe space for reconciliation and peacebuilding to work and provide women, young people, and civil society with greater access to peace processes. But to be effective, it must be grounded in evidence, based on verified data, open to dialogue, rooted in storytelling, and delivered by credible messengers.”
I his address to the Council, the Force Commander of the UN Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), Lieutenant General Marcos De Sá Affonso Da Costa, said, “now more than ever, an effective force depends on a stronger communication strategy. We operate in a country where successive surveys showed an overall poor perception amongst the population about the relevance of MONUSCO in improving their security. An anti-mission sentiment prevails in certain parts of the country that even prevent some of our deployments.”
He said, “unfair speeches by several actors against the mission putting risk the safety of our peacekeepers. The extensive use of social media by armed groups and other spoilers undermines the confidence in the UN.”
The Secretary-General outlined six concrete actions to improve strategic communications in peacekeeping, beginning with adopting a whole of mission approach across uniformed and civilian components for networked field communication.
Second, he said mission leaders must ensure that strategic communications are fully integrated into their planning and decision-making.
Third, guidance and training need to be provided to missions, including sharing best practices.
Fourth, the best tools need to be deployed to counter misinformation, disinformation and hate speech.
Fifth, he called for continuous monitoring of UN information campaigns, to evaluate their effectiveness.
And sixth, he called for better strategic communications to strengthen accountability and end misconduct – including combatting sexual exploitation and abuse.
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