Managing Fighting Forces: DDR in Peace Processes by Kelvin Ong - HTML preview

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Notes

 

1.   The first edition of the Integrated Disarmament and Demobilization Reintegration Standards (IDDRS) document was released in 2006, and available in printed and CD-ROM formats. The latest version of the IDDRS document, which may contain changes that do not appear in the CD-ROM version, can be found at the UN DDR Resource Centre, http://www.unddr.org.

2.   Numbers are significant; the cost of a DDR program can be extremely high. Estimates for the DDR support for fighters range from $1,000 to $1,500 per person, not counting administration and logistics cost.

3.   The 2003 Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict goes further and stipulates state parties "shall take all feasible measures to ensure that persons below the age of 18 do not take a direct part in hostilities and that they are not compulsorily recruited into their armed forces."

4.   Participation in DDR programs often confers considerable financial and other support on ex-combatants, support that is not available to others affected by the conflict, such as the internally displaced and refugees. Often criticized as unfair, DDR programs provide some form of upfront cash assistance (often as an incentive to encourage disarmament), psycho-social support, training, and promise of short or longer-term employment.

5.   See Paul Collier, Breaking the Conflict Trap: Civil War and Development Policy (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2003).