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UN peacekeepers are deployed under extraordinary circumstances, often in situations where local populations face extreme risk, even after a conflict is over. The presence of the Blue Helmets can bring stability to the entire community in the area where they are deployed, and they have a 'duty of care' to protect the vulnerable.
UN military personnel are mainly responsible for fostering a safe and secure environment, but often they are called on to use their skills and equipment to undertake lifesaving humanitarian operations. If a hurricane strikes, if floods cause houses to collapse, or any other calamity jeopardizes the civilian population, Blue Helmets work with their local counterparts to help bring assistance.
In carrying out their life-saving duties, peacekeepers take account of the specific needs of all the people they serve, be they refugees seeking a safer life across borders, ex-combatants trying to rejoin society, victims of sexual violence still suffering the pain and shame of attacks, or traumatized children who were forced to take up arms.
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Former combatants at a demobilization ceremony in Casa Banana, Mozambique. United Nations Operation in Mozambique (ONUMOZ) Casa Banana, Mozambique, 21 May 1994, UN Photo/S. Santimano, 78603
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A Brazilian peacekeeper carries an infant to safety in Cité Soleil, Haiti following tropical storm 'Noel'.
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