OUTCOME DECLARATION
INTRO: On 12 October 2009, Ministers of participating INTERPOL and United Nations member countries gathered for a Ministerial Meeting during the INTERPOL General Assembly in Singapore to discuss the crucial role of the police in building sustainable peace and security and how to ensure that the growing demands for effective international policing in post-conflict environments will be met in years to come.
P1: At the conclusion of the Ministerial Meeting, the following Declaration was adopted:
P2: On the role of police in building sustainable peace and security and the challenges to effective international policing, we the participating Ministers:
P2A: Recognize the crucial function of the police in promoting sustainable peace and rebuilding post-conflict societies; and further recognize the soaring demands for police within United Nations peacekeeping operations.
P2B: Acknowledge that organized and serious crime, as well as corruption, pose considerable challenges in contemporary post-conflict environments where the rule of law is weak, dysfunctional or does not exist and state institutions are fragile; and further acknowledge that the threat posed by organized crime undermines not only national, but also regional and international security.
P2C: Recall that United Nations policing mandates have increasingly evolved from a traditional focus on monitoring, observing, and reporting, to a greater focus on building effective, responsible and durable host state policing capacity and institutions, and further recall that United Nations Police may be mandated to engage in interim policing and law enforcement or to provide close operational support to host state police and other law enforcement agencies.
P2D: Recognize that international policing in post-conflict environments can serve as a bridge from security and stability operations to development and the establishment of the rule of law; and further emphasize the importance of early host state ownership in order to ensure lasting peace and security.
P2E: While commending the work of existing training centers and academies to prepare police for deployment, acknowledge that, in addition to needing sufficient numbers of officers, there is an urgent need for officers having the necessary specialized skill sets and expertise required to effectively carry out policing tasks in the context of a United Nations peacekeeping operation in a conflict environment; and further acknowledge the ongoing efforts to develop international policing doctrine to provide a framework for selection, training and deployment standards.
P2F: While encouraging increased international cooperation and coordination in the delivery of training, commend the contribution of the police contributing countries (PCCs) in United Nations peacekeeping operations, and in particular, their efforts along with the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations to address issues related to sexual and gender-based violence in post-conflict environments, and noting the significant contributions to date, highlight the continuing need for increased participation of female officers in United Nations peacekeeping operations.
P3: On the partnership between the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations and INTERPOL in building sustainable security, we the participating Ministers
P3A: Acknowledge that effective responses to organized and serious crime in conflict environments require a comprehensive and multi-stakeholder approach developed in consultation with regional and international institutions, which is based on a thorough analysis of the problem at hand and on a common institutional platform and which is supported by concrete technical tools.
P3B: Recognize that the tools, databases, services, and expertise as well as the vital links to the global police community available through INTERPOL and the mission specific technical expertise of United Nations Police would assist host state police to more effectively fight organized and serious crime, secure borders and re-establish the rule of law in countries hosting United Nations peacekeeping operations.
P3C: Recall the history of ongoing cooperation between INTERPOL and the United Nations and welcome the conclusion of the supplementary agreement concluded between INTERPOL and the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations establishing a shared framework for cooperation and allowing for the elaboration of a common strategy to effectively assist host state authorities, police and other law enforcement agencies in combating organized and serious crime in the context of United Nations peacekeeping operations and thereby enabling United Nations Police and host state police to benefit from the tools, services, and technical expertise of INTERPOL.
P4: Given the vital role of police in building sustainable security in post-conflict environments and the importance of ensuring that police personnel are qualified and will have access to the tools required to meet the challenges they face in the field, including supporting the fight against organized and serious crime, we the participating Ministers decide to:
P4A: Underscore the need for every state to have effective police capacity in compliance with human rights principles and the rule of law.
P4B: Work towards developing consensus for an international policing doctrine in post-conflict environments which effectively prioritizes needs, as well as harmonizes and standardizes, inter alia, the knowledge and best practice built up by the United Nations and INTERPOL over the years.
P4C: Actively support the development of an international policing doctrine and its implementation, including the development of an Action Plan for International Police Peacekeeping, in close collaboration with states, the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations, and INTERPOL, no later than twelve months following the adoption of this Declaration.