1 UN DDR in an Era of Violent Extremism: Is It Fit for Purpose? Edited by James Cockayne and Siobhan O’Neil ISBN: 978-0-692-45637-8 © United Nations University, 2015 COVER MILITIA MEMBER IN KISMAAYO, SOMALIA. UN PHOTO/STUART PRICE UN DDR in an Era of Violent Extremism: Is It Fit for Purpose? Edited by James Cockayne and Siobhan O’Neil Contents About this Collection 2 Acknowledgments 3 About the Authors 4 Preface 7 Executive Summary 10 Chapter 1 Introduction 14 Introduction 15 1. The changing conflict environment 16 2. The changing role of DDR in UN peace operations 22 3. A precarious peace operations environment 28 4. Building new DDR solutions 31 Clarifying DDR’s purpose in contemporary contexts 34 Chapter 2 DDR in the Context of Offensive Military Operations, Counterterrorism, CVE and Non-Permissive Environments 36 Introduction 37 The purpose and design of DDR 40 The new challenging context 41 New and old challenges for DDR in the current context 45 Conclusion and Policy Implications 59 Chapter 3 The Blue Flag in Grey Zones: Exploring the relationships between Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) and Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) in UN field operations 62 Introduction 63 The emergence and evolution of CVE and terrorist rehabilitation efforts 65 Cross Learning? 66 What implications for the UN? 74 Recommendations 77 Conclusion 79 Chapter 4 DDR and Detention in UN Peace Operations 80 Introduction 81 DDR and Detention 82 Peace operations detention scenarios 87 Challenges facing the UN 88 Risks posed by UN involvement in detention 96 The requirement for reflection 100 Recommendations 102 Chapter 5 DDR – A Bridge Not Too Far: A Field Report from Somalia 104 Introduction 105 Methodology 108 Overview of DDR Programming in Somalia 109 Who has been processed through the DDR programmes? 113 Key operational considerations and challenges for the current DDR programmes 117 DDR programming and services 129 Conclusions and Recommendations 135 Chapter 6 Conclusion 138 DDR at a crossroads 139 Somalia as a bellwether 140 Our proposal 143 Principled engagement: applying the UN Human Rights Due Diligence Policy 152 Conclusion 155 2 UN DDR IN AN ERA OF VIOLENT EXTREMISM: IS IT FIT FOR PURPOSE? About this Collection The United Nations University (UNU) is a global think tank established by the United Nations General Assembly. The mission of the UN University is to contribute, through collaborative research and education, to efforts to resolve the pressing global problems of human survival, development, and welfare that are the concern of the United Nations, its Peoples, and Member States. In carrying out this mission, the UN University works with leading universities and research institutes in UN Member States, functioning as a bridge between the international academic community and the United Nations system. The UNU Centre for Policy Research (UNU-CPR) was established in 2014 as part of a broader effort by UNU Rector David Malone to respond to the UN Secretary-General’s request to enhance UNU’s policy relevance in the fields of peace and security as well as global development. One of its core programmes focuses on the changing nature of violence and provides concrete insights into how humanitarian, development, and security actors need to adapt to reduce violence and its impact on society in the context of organized crime, terrorism, criminal violence, and rapid urbanization. This collection is the result of a collaboration between UNU-CPR and the DDR Section of the Office of Rule of Law and Security Institutions in the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations. The collaboration was coordinated by Mr Simon Yazgi, Chief of Section, Mr Chris O’Donnell of DDRS, and Mr James Cockayne, Head of Office at the UN for UNU and affiliated with UNU-CPR. The project was managed by Dr Siobhan O’Neil, and was made possible by the generous support of the Government of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. 3 Acknowledgments This research and the resulting report were made possible by the generous support of the Government of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. The editors wish to thank colleagues at UN University and the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations for their support in the research, drafting, and editorial process. Particular thanks go to Mr Dmitry Titov, Assistant-Secretary General in the Office of Rule of Law and Security Institutions, and his front office team, notably Zoe Mentel. Colleagues at UN University headquarters in Tokyo, notably Dr David Malone, Under-Secretary General of the United Nations and Rector of the University, and Sebastian von Einsiedel, Director of UNU’s Centre for Policy Research, also deserve our thanks. The project would not have been possible without the unfailing and tireless support of the UN DDR Section, notably its Chief, Simon Yazgi, and Chris O’Donnell. Sergiusz Sidorowicz went above and beyond the call of duty, as did Elena Temnova. We are deeply indebted to UN staff in Somalia and Kenya who facilitated Dr Felbab-Brown’s research visit. Appreciation for photo selection and editing is extended to Judith Levitt. Thanks are also due to the staff of the UNU Office in New York, including Leni Kinzli and Olivia Caeymaex; UNU-ONY’s intern, Nina Tekchandani; and two UNU/Columbia SIPA Junior Research Fellows, Franziska Seethaler and Juliette Faure, for logistical and editorial support. Finally, our thanks are due to the authors themselves – and to Desmond Molloy, an invaluable member of the team that developed this project – for their insights and their considerable patience throughout this sometimes difficult research and drafting process. 4 UN DDR IN AN ERA OF VIOLENT EXTREMISM: IS IT FIT FOR PURPOSE? About the Authors Mr James Cockayne James Cockayne is currently Head of Office for UN University at the UN, in New York. Previously James was Co-Director of the Center for Global Counterterrorism Cooperation (now the Global Center for Cooperative Security), where he led the Center’s work at the UN and in Africa. This involved close engagement with the UN counter-terrorism machinery, the Global Counterterrorism Forum, IGAD, ECOWAS and UN Member States. James was earlier a Senior Fellow at the International Peace Institute, and Director of the Transnational Crime Unit in the Australian Attorney-General’s Department. He is a director of the International Legal Foundation and has served on the Editorial Committee of the Journal of International Criminal Justice for a decade. He received an LL.M. from New York University, and LL.B. (Hons I) and B.A. (Hons I and University Medal) degrees from the University of Sydney. His next book, Hidden Power: Mafia States and the Strategic Logic of Organized Crime will be published in late 2015. Dr Siobhan O’Neil Dr Siobhan O’Neil is the UNU’s DDR project manager, running for UNU’s DDVE Initiative, a research and policy development process focused on improving the international community’s response to the threats posed by ex-combatants, terrorists, violent extremists, and foreign terrorist fighters in conflict settings and beyond. Prior to joining UNU, Siobhan worked as a consultant to the UN Mine Action Service. In 2014, Siobhan finished her PhD in international relations at UCLA, where her research focused on the conditions that foster the onset of strategic negotiations between states and the terrorist groups. Siobhan worked as a research analyst at the RAND Corporation on projects pertaining 5 ABOUT THE AUTHORS to counterinsurgency transitions, insurgent motivations, and civil-military coordination during a domestic chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive (CBRNE) attacks. Prior to her doctoral research, Siobhan worked in the security and intelligence fields, as an analyst for the New York State Office of Homeland Security, as deputy chief of the Intelligence Division of the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, and as the homeland security and domestic intelligence analyst for the Congressional Research Service (CRS). In addition to her doctorate, Siobhan has an MA in Homeland Security and Defense from the Naval Postgraduate School, an M.Litt. in International Security Studies from the University of St. Andrews, and a BA in Political Science and History from the College of the Holy Cross. Dr Vanda Felbab-Brown Dr Vanda Felbab-Brown is a senior fellow in Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution and co-director of the Brookings project on Improving Global Drug Policy: Comparative Perspectives and UNGASS 2016. Vanda is an expert on illicit economies and organized crime and international and internal conflicts and their management, including counterinsurgency and statebuilding. Her research focuses particularly on South Asia, Burma, the Andean region, Mexico, and Somalia, and she has conducted fieldwork in some of the most dangerous parts of the world. Vanda has an extensive publication list of books, policy reports, academic articles, and opinion pieces, including Aspiration and Ambivalence: Strategies and Realities of Counterinsurgency and State-building in Afghanistan (2013), Shooting Up: Counterinsurgency (2010); and Mexico’s High Wire Act: Organized Crime and Security Policies (forthcoming). Vanda is a frequent consultant for national, multilateral, and non-governmental organisations and a frequent commentator in U.S. and international media. She also regularly provides expert testimony to the US Congress. Prior to joining the Brookings Institution, Vanda was an Assistant Professor at the Georgetown University School for Foreign Service. She received her PhD in political science from MIT and her BA from Harvard University. Ms. Naureen Chowdhury Fink Naureen Chowdhury Fink is an international affairs analyst with progressive experience specializing in counterterrorism, countering violent extremism, and related security threats, including armed conflict, political violence, and instability, particularly in South Asia and West Africa. Naureen is currently Head of Research and Analysis at the Global Center on Cooperative Security. She previously worked as a Senior Policy Analyst at the International Peace Institute (IPI) and advised the UN Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate (CTED).