Personal Reflections from the Field: Ethical Challenges in Peacekeeping and Humanitarian Interventions

Fletcher Forum of World Affairs, December 1999

12 Pages Posted: 27 Jun 2014

See all articles by David M. Last

David M. Last

Royal Military College of Canada - Department of Political Science

Date Written: 1999

Abstract

“Chaos and Intolerance Now Reign in Kosovo Despite UN’s Efforts. Hundreds of thousands of Albanians driven out by the Serbs have returned from refugee camps, and the Serbian and Gypsy minorities continue to be harassed and attacked. Justice is rare and court trials nearly nonexistent, so few are punished; robberies, apartment thefts, extortion and even murders take place with near impunity, some of it a function of organized crime.” Steven Erlanger, New York Times, 22 November 1999. I haven’t served in Kosovo, but I can imagine what is going on there. Having served with the UN in Cyprus, Croatia, Bosnia and West Africa and with NATO forces in Bosnia, I can sympathize with people trying to make tough choices to try to improve the situation there. From the stagnant hostility of Cyprus in 1993, to ethnic cleansing in Croatia and Bosnia in 1995, to post-conflict tensions in the Serb Republic in 1996 and 1998, I think I can say I have been confronted with some ethical challenges.

Keywords: Peacekeeping, militaty ethics, humanitarian intervention

JEL Classification: I31, N4, I38

Suggested Citation

Last, David M., Personal Reflections from the Field: Ethical Challenges in Peacekeeping and Humanitarian Interventions (1999). Fletcher Forum of World Affairs, December 1999, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2459216

David M. Last (Contact Author)

Royal Military College of Canada - Department of Political Science ( email )

P.O. Box 17,000, Station Forces
Kingston, ON K7K 7B4
Canada

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