BOOK REVIEW
TITLE:GHANA ARMED FORCES IN LEBANON AND LIBERIA PEACE OPERATIONS
AUTHOR:COLONEL (DR) EMMANUEL WEKEMKOTIA
PUBLISHER:LEXINGTON BOOKS, MARYLAND, USA, 2015 (ISBN: 9780739196496)
PAGES:240
REVIEWER:MR FESTUS AUBYN, SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW, KOFI ANNAN INTERNATIONAL PEACEKEEPING TRAINING CENTRE, ACCRA, GHANA
The specific roles of African Troop Contributing Countries (TCCs) areoften ignored in the discourse on United Nations (UN) and regional peace operations.In this highly readable book, Colonel (Dr) Emmanuel Kotia attempts to fill this gap by providing a comparative analysis of the tasks, experiences and challenges of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF)to global peace operations in two different contexts: Lebanon and Liberia.The most fascinating aspect of the book is that the author was an active participant at crucial stages in bothmissions. Hence, apart from engaging the literature, the author also brings to bear his own experiences and knowledge in Liberia and Lebanon to enrich the analysis.The comparative approach taken by the author will no doubt be received as a welcome addition to the literature on peace operations and more significantly, beguile military personnel of other TCCs especially in Africa to record for posterity the rich experiences of their countries in UN and regional peace operations.
The book is well written and presented in eightdifferent but interrelated chapters. Chapter one which is the introduction to the book is presented in three parts. The first part gives a background of the contribution of African states to peace operations since the deployment of formed troops to the UN Operations in the Congo (now DRC) in the 1960. The writer emphasized on the consistency and commitment shown by African states for contributing troops to UN and regional-led peace operations. The second part highlights the rich experiences of Ghana in UN peace operations since the 1960s, while the third part provides the theoretical, conceptual framework and methodological considerations of the book. The focus on King’s structural obstacles and intervention strategies; Alagppa’s framework analysis of regional institutions in conflict management; and conflict resolution theory in this chapter is particularly illuminating in understanding the dilemmas of third parties intervention in internal conflict. The broad range of methodological and theoretical insightswhich is discussed in this section is very remarkable because it is an aspect that most books of this nature lack.
In order to situate the context of Ghana’s contributions to the peace processes in Liberia and Lebanon, the second chapter examines the philosophical background of both UN and Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS) peace operations. Admittedly, even though the focus of the book does not necessary require the author to include the background of the African Union peace operations, its inclusion here added value to the book since its predecessor, the Organisation of African Unity was actively involved in the resolution of the Liberian conflict and others elsewhere on the continent. But more significantly, the overview of GAF’s participation in peace operations across the globe since 1960 to date in this chapter is not only enlightening but provides a firm background to the subsequent chapters which examines the UN operations in Lebanon on one hand, and the operations in Liberia under UN and ECOWAS on the other. The section on the philosophical background for UN peace operations traces the evolution of UN peace operations from its first mission, the UN Truce Supervision Organization established in 1948 to supervise the observance of truce in Palestine. The types of peace operations transiting from traditional to integrated and then to multi-dimensional peace operations is highlighted. The second section discusses the philosophy, goals and processes of the ECOWAS peace operations. The author traced the history of ECOWAS first as an economic regional bloc, until the intervention of ECOWAS in the Liberia conflict in 1990. The ECOWAS intervention of Liberia led to the subsequent adoption of an ECOWAS framework for peace and security, which serves as the basis for peace operations of the regional organization. In the third section, the author traces Ghana's participation to various peace missions globally from 1960 to date. This includes the deployment of GAF troops to the latest UN mission in South Sudan under UNSC resolution 2132. The author however concentrated on the deployment of formed troops but did not cover the deployment of Ghana contingents on observer missions. This can however be covered in subsequent revised editions.
The next chapterwhich is titled “Background and Geo-Politics of theLebanese War”provides an in-depth analysis of the geo-politics of Lebanon, highlighting the root causes and the politics of the Lebanese conflict. The author also discusses the conditions that led to the invasion of Lebanon in 1978,which led to the Camp David Accords, the processes leading to theestablishment of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and the palestinization of the conflict by Hezbollah.Kotia argues that Lebanon’s relative military insignificance is what has continued to make it such a volatile but crucial actor in that regional war, where various actors, mainly Syria, Iran, Israel, Hezbollah and Palestinians, believe they can wage surrogate battles. Having provided the background to the conflict in Lebanon, the fourth chapter examines the tasks, challenges and experiences of the GAF from 1979 to September 2014 in UNIFIL, under UN Security Council(UNSC) Resolutions 425 and 1701 adopted in 1978 and 2006 respectively. To better appreciate the context within which GAF operated, the author assessed the political milieu leading to the establishment of UNIFIL. He maintains that the GAF as part of UNIFIL effectively supervisedthe withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanese territory and monitored violations along the Lebanese/Israeli border.This chapter educates readers and scholars on the traditional type of peace operations under UNSC resolution 425 which UNIFILoperated from 1978 to 2006. The transformation of UNIFIL into a more robust mission with enhanced rules of engagement under UNSC resolution 1701 from July 2006 after the 33-day war in Lebanon is also analyzed in this chapter.
In chapter five, the author traces the history of Liberia from its independence on 16th July 1847 to the outbreak of the civil war in 1989, and blames it on the country’s unresolved ethnic and political differences. The socio-politicaldynamics of the conflictbefore the interventions of the ECOWAS Ceasefire Monitoring Group (ECOMOG), the United Nations Observer Missionin Liberia (UNOMIL) in the 1990s, and the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) in 2003 is also discussed. Just like Chapter four, the sixth chapteranalyzes the roles, challenges and experiences of the GAF in Liberia under both ECOMOG and the UN from August 1990. As an active member of ECOMOG, the author indicates that Ghana and the troops of GAF were instrumental in all the ECOWASand peace initiatives and the processes leading to the formation of the interim government in Liberia. He further cites the peacebuilding roles of the GAF in the areas of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR), and the electoral processes. The role of the GAF in the UN Mission in Liberia from 2003 after the relapse of war in Liberia is significantly covered in chapter six of the book.The author concludes the chapter by stating that:"GAF as part of the ECOMOG and UN forces helped to restore state authority inLiberia through conflict prevention, mediation, peacekeeping and peacebuildingmechanisms."Significantly, the author highlighted that it was during the ECOWAS peace operations in Liberia that the UN for first time partnered a regional organization for a peace operations as stipulated in the chapter 8 of the UN charter. Thus the UN partnered ECOMOG with the UN Observer Mission from 1993 to 1997 and this helped to change the context of peace operations globally.
The seventh chapter provides a comparative framework of the GAF operationsin both Lebanon and Liberia. This is the main chapter where the author compares and contrasts the operations of GAF in Lebanon and Liberia under certain thematic areas including, the background to the conflicts, peace initiatives, enforcement ofmandates, the disarmament process, security sector reforms, and the difficulties encountered.These themes are useful for the understanding of the nature of GAF involvement in the two peace operations. The depth of analysis coupled with the rich information contained in this chapter is highly informative, raising very interesting experiences of the GAF in both Lebanon and Liberia. In comparing the two operations, the author illustrated the shortcomings of traditional peace operations in dealing with inter-state conflicts incomplex situations in both Liberia and Lebanon, and indicated the need to develop new peace operation doctrinesthat can effectively deal with such types of conflicts. In addition, the author highlighted the similarities and differences of both operations
The eighth chapter summarizes all the chapters, the main conclusions of the book andhow GAF’s experience can be applied to global andregional peace operations. Based on the analysis and discussions in the preceding chapters, the author derived two main conclusions for the book. His first conclusion was that the United Nations (UN) was at the centre in the operations of both Lebanon and Liberia in which GAF participated. The writer justified this assertion because of the role the UN played in the Liberia conflict from 1993 which guaranteed a stable ceasefire as well as the deployment of the UN Mission in Liberia from 2003 to implement the comprehensive peace agreement. The author however conceded that ECOWAS was very instrumental from the deployment of ECOMOG in 1990 to the elections in 1997 which ushered in a new democratic government. Without ECOWAS the UN might not have played that important role and that the Liberia situation could have likened to the Somalia situation where they were abandoned by the international community. Indeed, it was ECOMOG that stabilized the security situation for the UN to deploy UNOMIL and UNMIL which eventually “rehatted” ECOWAS forces. According to the writer, although the role of the UN in Liberia cannot be understated, ECOWAS was more at the centre of operations than the UN. The second conclusion was that designing a clear mandate provides an important legal framework for any peaceoperations. Though this is difficult to achieve in practice due to the national and bureaucratic politics involved in mandate formulations, the author raises an important issue thatrequires policy attention as it affects most contemporary missions.
Recounting the experiences of GAF in both Lebanon and Liberia, the author also draws several valuable lessons for the UN, ECOWAS, policy-makers and Troop Contributing Countries. Among them include: the need to properly trained, resourced and prepare peacekeepers for peace enforcement operations; the need for peacekeeping forces, planners and policy-makers to be adequately informed of the environment and the conditions at the theatre of operations; the need to carefully consider the timing of withdrawals of drawdown of UN Forces after the peaceful resolution of conflict;and how to engender a more coherent and practical cooperation between the UN and regional organisations in peace operations. Undoubtedly, these are lessons which if well taken and implemented, will go a long way to help improve the conduct of contemporary peace operations globally.
The writer gave a glossary of words in the beginning of the book. A photograph section is designated by the writer in chapter four of the book. However, the pictures covered only the operations in Lebanon. Additional pictures on the Liberia operations could have used to create a balance. Nevertheless, the pictorial evidence gave an insight of some of the issues referred to in the text of the book for readers' understanding. The methodology used by the writer was based on both primary and secondary sources for gathering of information. The main primary source was based on the author's own experience as an active participant of both operations and interviews conducted by the writer in the mission area and with other practitioners and political actors in Ghana, Lebanon and Liberia. In addition, he carried out research at the Ghana Armed Forces. His secondary sources are based on references to books and journal research papers on the subject-matter. This methodology was justified based on the results that the book produced, as highlighted in the various fascinating chapters reviewed.
The book on 'Ghana Armed Forces in Lebanon and Liberia Peace Operations' is a theoretical and applied study of peace operations by the United Nations and a Regional Organization (ECOWAS). It presents a structured approach to the study of conflicts in two geographical areas in the world - the Middle East and Africa leading to the intervention of peace missions. This book also helps to correct the misconception that there should different approaches to peace operations in Africa as compared to the rest of the world. It is therefore recommended that the book should be read by all peacekeeping mission leaders - civilians, military, police and humanitarian actors for useful insights and lessons towards the management and resolution of conflicts in the world.
Dr Emmanuel WekemKotia has excellently presented a simple book for scholars and researchers in conflict, peace and security studies to use with ease. The book expands our understanding of the changing context in which national interests define TCCs contributions and firm commitment to peace operations. The book also serves as a model for analyzing peace operations and for drawing lessons that may shape the planning, conduct and management of future missions. The book is a must for all scholars of International Relations, International Security and International Politics to read.The printing of the book and the quality of writing are commendable. Generally, it is a very insightful and revealing book which all peacekeepers (military, police and civilians) and other stakeholders involved in the management and resolution of conflicts will find interesting and useful reading. I therefore recommend it as a useful reference material for TCCs, policy-makers,practitioners, military personnel, scholars and graduate students of international relations, politics, peace and conflict studies as well as security and defense studies.The book can also be considered as a textbook/reference for participants of the Multi-dimensional Peace Operations Training Courses at the Peacekeeping Training Centers of Excellence in Africa such as the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), National Defence College (NDC) in Nigeria, Kenya Peacekeeping School and the Ethiopia Peacekeeping Institute. The book can easily be adopted by any tertiary institution to formulate a course for a first degree or a post graduate course globally.
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