Two Rwandans are among the 64 military, police, and civilian peacekeepers, who lost their lives while serving under the UN flag – including 61 who perished last year – that will be honoured and awarded posthumously on Thursday, May 30, as the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers is observed.
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During formal ceremonies at UN Headquarters, Secretary-General António Guterres, will lay a wreath to honour all UN peacekeepers who have lost their lives since 1948, reads a related statement from his office.
Guterres will preside over a ceremony in the Trusteeship Council Chamber, at which Dag Hammarskjöld Medals will be awarded posthumously to the military, police, and civilian peacekeepers, who lost their lives serving under the UN flag.
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Among those to be honoured posthumously with the Dag Hammarskjold medal are two peacekeepers from Rwanda: Sergeant Eustache Tabaro who served with the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA); and Sgt Maj Francois Ngoga who was deployed with the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
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In 1948, a historic decision was made to deploy military observers to the Middle East to supervise the implementation of Israel-Arab Armistice Agreements, in what became the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization.
Since that time, more than two million peacekeepers from 125 countries have since served in 71 operations around the world. Today, some 76,000 women and men are serving in 11 conflict zones across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.
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6,000 peacekeepers
Today, Rwanda, a country which has worked with others to transform and enhance the concept of peacekeeping, is the fourth largest contributor of uniformed personnel to UN peacekeeping. According to the UN, it currently deploys nearly 6,000 peacekeepers to the UN peace operations in Abyei, Central African Republic, Haiti, and South Sudan.
Last year, Rwanda formulated a new national action plan of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 to be executed from 2023 to 2028.
On Thursday, the UN Secretary-General will also present the 2023 Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award to Major Radhika Sen, a military officer from India, who served with the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO).
Created in 2016, the Award "recognizes the dedication and effort of an individual peacekeeper in promoting the principles of UN Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) on women, peace and security”.
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In his message, the Secretary-General said: "Today we pay tribute to the more than 76,000 United Nations peacekeepers who embody humanity’s highest ideal: peace.
"Day in and day out, at great personal risk, these women and men bravely work in some of the most dangerous and unstable places on earth to protect civilians, uphold human rights, support elections and strengthen institutions. More than 4,300 peacekeepers have paid the ultimate price while serving under the UN flag. We will never forget them.”
The theme for 2024 International Day of UN Peacekeepers is "Fit for the future, building better together.”
The International Day of UN Peacekeepers was established by the UN General Assembly in 2002, to pay tribute to all men and women serving in peacekeeping, and to honour the memory of those who have lost their lives in the cause of peace.