This document summarizes a speech given by Ameerah Haq, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Timor-Leste and Head of the United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT). In the speech, Haq discusses recent experiences with transitions from peacekeeping to peacebuilding in Timor-Leste. She emphasizes that peacekeeping and peacebuilding are not sequential but complementary processes. She outlines how UNMIT supported peacebuilding in Timor-Leste following a 2006 crisis and discusses challenges of transition planning and implementation.

1. C i v i l - M i l i ta r y
w o r k i n g pa p e r s
2 0 11
‘TransiTions’ From PeacekeePing To Peacebuilding:
recenT exPeriences From Timor-lesTe
ameerah Haq
w w w.c i v m i l co e . gov. au

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Civil-Military Occasional Paper are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect
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iSBN: 978-1-921933-05-9
Published 2011.
Civil-Millitary working papers ii

3. absTracT
in this paper, representing the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations, i share
recent experiences from timor-leste where i serve as Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon’s Special
representative.today’s topic, transitions, is a timely one. in its history of over more than 60 years,
peacekeeping has gone through a series of surges and periods of consolidation. Following the most
recent surge of new peacekeeping missions in the early 2000s, we expect the next few years to
represent a period of consolidation and drawdown. Our mission in Chad will close at the end of
December; in timor-leste and liberia, transition planning is already underway, in others like Cote
d’ivoire, it is a little further on the horizon. in all transitions, we have to manage the departure of
peacekeeping missions in a way that helps consolidate and build peace. the topic is also timely as
UN Member States are in the midst of important policy debates in the Security Council as well
as the 4th and 5th Committees of the General assembly, on the interface between peacekeeping
and peacebuilding, the role of the Peacebuilding Commission and the Security Council, and on
allocation of resources across multiple instruments like peacekeeping operations or special political
missions, and development assistance. thoughts about the role of these instruments are evolving
and there is some way to go to make sure they all work together effectively.
key words: transitions, peacekeeping, peacebuilding, United Nations, Special representative of
the Secretary-General for timor-leste, Head of UNMit
ameerah Haq
Ms ameerah Haq has been appointed as the Special representative of the Secretary-General
for timor-leste and Head of the United Nations integrated Mission in timor-leste (UNMit)
on 2 December 2009. She most recently served as the Deputy Special representative of
the Secretary-General for Sudan as well as the UN resident Coordinator and Humanitarian
Coordinator for Sudan (2007–2009). Before that, she served as the Deputy Special representative
of the Secretary-General for afghanistan as well as the UN resident Coordinator and
Humanitarian Coordinator for afghanistan (2004–2007). She was formerly the Deputy assistant
administrator and Deputy Director of the Bureau for Crisis Prevention and recovery at UNDP
Headquarters in New york. She served as the United Nations resident Coordination and UNDP
resident representative in Malaysia from 1994 to 1997 and in the same capacity in laos from 1991
to 1994. Ms Haq worked in the regional Bureau for asia and the Pacific at UNDP Headquarters in
various capacities from 1980-1990. She is a graduate of Western College in Oxford, Ohio (USa)
and holds Masters Degrees in Community Organization and Planning from Columbia University
(USa) and Business administration from New york University (USa).
‘transitions’ From Peacekeeping to Peacebuilding: recent experiences from timor-leste 1

4. inroducTion
today’s topic, transitions, is a timely one. in its history of over more than 60 years, peacekeeping has gone
through a series of surges and periods of consolidation. Following the most recent surge of new peacekeeping
missions in the early 2000s, we expect the next few years to represent a period of consolidation and
drawdown. Our mission in Chad will close at the end of December; in timor-leste and liberia, transition
planning is already underway, in others like Cote d’ivoire, it is a little further on the horizon. in all transitions,
we have to manage the departure of peacekeeping missions in a way that helps consolidate and build peace.
the topic is also timely as UN Member States are in the midst of important policy debates in the Security
Council as well as the 4th and 5th Committees of the General assembly, on the interface between
peacekeeping and peacebuilding, the role of the Peacebuilding Commission and the Security Council, and on
allocation of resources across multiple instruments like peacekeeping operations or special political missions,
and development assistance. the way we think about the role of these instruments is evolving and we still
have some way to go to make sure they all work together effectively.
PeacekeePing/Peacebuilding nexus
i want to start by challenging the title of this session by emphasising that we should not be thinking in terms of
“transition from peacekeeping to peacebuilding”. Peacekeeping and peacebuilding are not alternatives to each
other nor are they two sequential phases of activity. Peacebuilding does not begin when peacekeepers leave,
or when we deploy something we call a peacebuilding office.
Peacebuilding is a national process whereby a country emerging from conflict builds long-term stability
and restores the social contract between the Government and its people. it is a national challenge and
fundamentally a political process. it entails a range of activities aimed at making peace self-sustaining and
reducing the risk of relapse into conflict.
Peacekeeping on the other hand, is one of several policy instruments that may support peacebuilding. it brings
a certain set of capacities to support peacebuilding in the critical early stages when risks are highest. that
includes facilitating political process, providing a security umbrella, and enabling others to channel support
where it is needed, as well as by undertaking certain tasks ourselves as we are mandated.
Department of Peacekeeping Operations and Department of Field Services sets out what we see as the three
main roles of peacekeepers in peacebuilding: we help governments to articulate priorities, we enable the work
of others, and we implement a number of tasks:
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5. Firstly, peacekeeping missions support consensus among national counterparts and the broader international
community, and guide overall strategy development and implementation vis-à-vis peacebuilding priorities.
Secondly, they enable other national and international actors to implement peacebuilding tasks, by providing
a security umbrella and political space for reconciliation efforts and economic recovery to develop, as well as
logistics support.
thirdly, they implement certain early peacebuilding tasks themselves, including engaging in capacity building,
in close collaboration with other partners. Which peacebuilding tasks peacekeepers take on depends on the
country setting, the mandate and the capacity of other actors to deliver.
i would like to illustrate how UN peacekeepers contributed to peacebuilding efforts in timor-leste following
the april-May 2006 crisis. the United Nations integrated Mission (UNMit) was established in august 2006
following the crisis that saw the collapse of the national police in the capital Dili, massive displacement of
people, and large-scale destruction of property. the Mission was mandated to, amongst other tasks, ensure,
through the presence of United Nations Police (UNPol), the restoration and maintenance of public security;
and to support timor-leste to consolidate stability, enhance a culture of democratic governance and facilitate
political dialogue. let us remember that timor-leste is a very young state, so it is perhaps not surprising
that democratic institutions and processes were not yet robust enough to deal with the challenge at hand.
However, since 2006, institutions have learned from the experience and are taking necessary measures to
prevent future relapses into violence.
UNMit’s peacekeepers provided critical support right after the crisis, helping lay the foundations for the
larger peacebuilding effort. UNPol, in partnership with the australian-led international security forces, played
an important role in reestablishing security, enabling a stable environment for political discourse. Before
the elections, UNMit played an important role by facilitating the signing of a Political Party Pact in which
political parties committed to non-violence and fair play. We created an environment for the presidential and
parliamentary elections of 2007. UNMit and UNDP, in an example of the mission’s integrated approach that
harnesses the collective work of different parts of the UN system, provided technical and logistical support for
those elections which led to a peaceful transfer of power.
today UNMit is concentrating on supporting state institutions, consolidating peace and ensuring that they are
self-sustaining. this includes helping national institutions to: maintain security and stability reinforce respect
for human rights, and address the long-term socio-economic needs of the people. i continue the Mission’s
good offices in various ways, including regular meetings with national leaders, political parties, and women’s
groups to discuss issues of importance. More recently, since april of this year UNMit has been providing
technical assistance to the newly established anti-Corruption Commission, including the development of a
legal framework for the Commission. While continuing to support police operations by the national police,
the United Nations is also working closely with key bilateral partners to strengthen institutions in the security
and justice sectors. For example, we are delighted to be working closely with australia to strengthen timor’s
police and justice systems.
‘transitions’ From Peacekeeping to Peacebuilding: recent experiences from timor-leste 3

6. TransiTion and bencHmarks
let me turn to the issue of transition and answer first what we mean by that term. transition refers to the
process of removing the international security umbrella that peacekeeping provides. it implies also removing
the human, financial and logistical support that comes with peacekeeping and which supports peacebuilding
also; hence the need to ensure planned and orderly transfer of ongoing responsibilities to national authorities
or others, including UN agencies or bilateral partners that are likely to stay in situ.
transition is firstly a political and strategic challenge. in some settings, host governments want to see
peacekeepers leave as soon as possible, even before security in the country is self-sustaining. there are other
settings in which host governments want the peacekeeping mission to stay as long as possible, partly because
of the international attention and support that it brings.
We have to get the balance right. the key is to identify the conditions under which drawdown and transition
can safely occur, without risk of a security vacuum and relapse into conflict. this is an art, not a science, and
requires a deep understanding of the regional and local context.
Benchmarks or similar targets jointly agreed by the Security Council and national counterparts can be useful
in navigating this process. they articulate aspects of an end-state in which it will be possible for international
security forces to leave without threatening the peace process.
Benchmarks have been developed in a number of missions including timor-leste, Cote d’ivoire, liberia, Haiti,
Chad and Sudan. Our experience is that they are most useful when they are developed together with national
counterparts and form a shared analytical framework for navigating decision-making about transition.
in contexts where such political consensus is lacking, the Council’s engagement with the host country is critical
to help establish agreement on the end-state of the mission. Our process for review and decision-making at
the strategic level, between the host governments, Security Council, UN needs to manage risk and ensure a
progressive handover of responsibilities, including in security that can still be reversed quickly if setbacks occur.
in timor-leste, the next national elections must be held by 2012. if they go well, and conditions continuing
as they are i am optimistic that they will, and stability reigns in the post-electoral period, this will be a major
indicator of peacekeeping and peacebuilding. it will be a sign that UNMit can successfully conclude its work
in December 2012. UNMit and the timorese authorities have established a jointly owned transition planning
and implementation mechanism which is guided by a high-level committee comprising the President, the Prime
Minister and members of his cabinet on the timorese side and myself and the Mission senior management
on the UN side. technical working groups are looking at substantive areas such as democratic governance;
police and the security sector; rule of law/justice/human rights; socio-economic development; mission support
and logistics; training for timorese UN staff; and the impact of the mission’s departure on the local economy.
the aim of this mechanism is to ensure that the activities currently carried out by UNMit and which will
be needed after 2012 can be effectively transferred to other institutions. international partners are being
consulted regularly throughout the process.
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7. imPlemenTaTion oF TransiTion
in addition, transition also faces important implementation challenges. transitions require strong leadership
and capacity for integrated planning. We have to map out the peacebuilding tasks that are being undertaken
and look at how they can be transferred to national or international actors. that process must involve national
counterparts as well as the donors and the UN. Handover of security and criminal justice tasks to national
institutions requires an intensive capacity development effort as well as putting in place agreements for
long-term capacity building beyond mission drawdown. We are looking at innovative models for progressive
handover of tasks on a district by district basis, for example in policing, which empowers the timorese to take
over responsibilities but offers the flexibility to re-engage if need be.
Where peacebuilding tasks shift from peacekeepers to the UN agencies or other actor’s resource mobilisation
becomes a major challenge. We need to plan for transition early enough to identify funding gaps and alert
donors early enough to enable adjustments in current programmes, agreement between UN agencies and the
government and the way ahead, and resource mobilisation without which programmes cannot continue.
in this context we welcome the growing focus on the World Bank as a strategic partner for peacekeeping.
this partnership needs to be strengthened and pursued more consistently in states emerging from conflict.
Ensuring continuing donor attention to peacebuilding after the withdrawal of a peacekeeping mission is one of
the main objectives of the Peacebuilding Commission and the Peacebuilding Support Office
transition is also a time of change inside the peacekeeping mission itself, with both national and international
staff worried about their own employment. We foresee a ‘full steam ahead’ approach until after the 2012
elections. thereafter, we expect quickly to draw down our budget from its current USD206 million and our
staffing complement of 2,000 international and 1,000 national staff. addressing such concerns transparently
is vital to ensure two things: first that the peacekeeping mission has the staff it needs up to the end of its
mandate and, second, that staff that have performed well have jobs to go to once a mission comes to a close.
We are on the case in timor, with innovations such as a comprehensive package for national staff to upgrade
their skills so that, once UNMit leaves, either the public or private sector – or perhaps the embassy of
australia in Dili – can have access to highly trained and motivated professionals who are, after all, the future of
timor-leste.
transition demands also clear communication, both vertically and horizontally, in meetings, town halls, on
the radio, and via tv and the internet. We are engaging in a major outreach campaign with all concerned to
explain what transition means, and what it does not.
all this means that transition is a major undertaking that requires dedicated professional staff. it requires
strong senior leadership and dedicated planning and support teams who have the right skills and can
see through a transition. We are over two years away from UNMit’s expected exit from timor-leste.
Our transition team is being put in place. it’s a race against time, one we hope to win in order to help
consolidate peace.
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8. inTegraTed Planning
across the UN system we are working hard to improve our capacity to transition in an integrated way. We
continue to make strides to improve integrated planning for our peacekeeping operations, including through
the integrated Strategic Framework. the iSFs are a valuable new tool for coordination with the UN agencies
On the implementation side, we have put a lot of emphasis on partnerships with UN actors. Joint assessments
and joint programmes with UNDP and others, for example in afghanistan, DrC, Haiti, liberia, and Sudan
have become a common feature of our implementation practice. yet, we continue to face challenges of
‘interoperability’ around joint programming and common services. DFS is leading an inter-agency working
group on support aspects of integration and Member States support for the UN’s proposals, as they are
outlined next year, will be important.
role oF member sTaTes
Member States and the wider international community have a major role in supporting transitions and long-
term peacebuilding. With regard to the actions of the Council and its members, Member States’ work in a
more coordinated manner is very welcome. More Member State coherence across the different governing
boards of the UN and World Bank, for example, facilitates our own coherence.
this is important because there are key areas such as economic revitalisation and restoration of basic services
where peacekeepers are not in the lead but rather play a supporting role. Without strong collaboration and
coordination with our partners in the UN agencies as well as the World Bank, bilateral and other partners we
will not be able to implement coherent peacebuilding and transition. Member States can also help by ensuring
that resources are focused on those priorities agreed on with our national counterparts. One key instrument
available to donors is providing pooled funding through trust funds and other mechanisms, which allows for a
better alignment of resources with agreed priorities.
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9. conclusion
to conclude, i would like to emphasise that while transitions and peacebuilding is ultimately a process that
must be led by the people and leaders of a given country, the engagement of the United Nations, Member
States and the wider international community is essential in ensuring its success. the United Nations is
committed to peacebuilding in post-conflict countries all over the world and i am charged with ensuring
success in timor-leste.
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