Chief Superintendent Douglas Coates was the Acting Police Commissioner of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) and was a casualty of the earthquake which took so many lives in January 2010. His participation in MINUSTAH was born of his commitment to the service of peace which coincidentally began in 1993 with his first United Nations peacekeeping deployment to Haiti. Prior to his third and final deployment back to Haiti, he was the Director of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police International Peace Operations Branch where he was responsible for recruiting, training and employing Canadian police officers in missions around the world. In 2007, he spent six months in Australia with the Australian Federal Police International Deployment Group to exchange lessons identified and lessons learned regarding the strategic direction and management of international policing.

Doug’s relationship with peacekeeping training began shortly after his first deployment. He served as an occasional lecturer on PPC training courses as early as the mid-1990s. His belief in lifelong learning and education was a hallmark of his character. His passion for this work followed him through every position he held and he eagerly took the opportunity to be seconded to the PPC as its Chief Operating Officer from 2004-06.

His understanding of multidimensional peace operations helped set the strategic direction for the PPC, and he was clear that police officers being deployed to peace operations had to be appropriately trained and vetted. This work was shaped by his conducting numerous UN mission assessments in Haiti, East Timor, Kosovo, Cote D’Ivoire, Bosnia Herzegovina and Guatemala. Throughout his secondment to the PPC, Chief Superintendent Coates focused on training and education in support of the UN Integrated Training Services development process on the Standard Generic Training Modules that would ensure common training standards across the spectrum of international policing. Similarly, he was also very committed to the standards required for Formed Police Units (FPUs), knowing that their value in missions was greatly enhanced if properly trained. He spent many hours in meetings discussing what training standards should be, and how these units could be made more useful in the service of peace.

While at the PPC, Doug had the foresight to understand the need for a capacity building program that would ensure that the PPC “could work itself out of a job” by enhancing the training and education offered by national training institutions, and by police forces and gendarmeries to police officers deploying to UN and African Union missions. Long before capacity building was considered relevant, and much before there was a clear appreciation of the importance of policing in peace operations, he was convinced that the long term sustainability of peace was dependent on the rule of law gaining a foothold in post-conflict fragile societies.

Doug was also a strong believer in the work of the IAPTC. He was an active member of the Executive Committee and participated in the annual conferences for a number of years. His objective was to increase the police presence at the conferences and he succeeded at doing so. His leadership of the Police Committee resulted in a growing network of police officers who communicated between meetings. Any who know the difficulty of getting IAPTC committee members to work between meetings will appreciate the success Doug had with his committee. They brought real issues forward at conferences because they had spent time between meetings discussing real issues!

“Rear Admiral Gboribiogha Jonah, Commandant of the National Defence College of Nigeria and President of the International Association of Peacekeeping Training Centres, presenting the IAPTC Peacekeeping Education and Training Award to Harvey Langholtz, Ph.D., Director of the Peace Operations Training Institute, 26 November 2009, in Sydney, Australia.”

Harvey Langholtz, Ph.D., Professor at the College of William and Mary and Executive Director of the Peace Operations Training Institute, was awarded the 2009 IAPTC Peacekeeping Education and Training Award for his work in developing a global e-learning programme on peacekeeping. Dr. Langholtz first conceived of the idea in 1993 while he served as a member of the US Delegation to the United Nations and represented his nation on the Special Committee for Peacekeeping Operations (C34). When he left the US Mission he founded a small not-for-profit organisation dedicated to providing distance learning on peacekeeping, and in the ensuing years organized the development of a global programme. Today the Peace Operations Training Institute offers 23 e-learning courses on peacekeeping in English, 19 in French, 2 in Portuguese, 19 in Spanish, and recently one in Arabic. The programme now provides 300 new enrolments each day, and has provided over 100,000 enrolments during each of the past three years to students in almost every nation on earth.

The Executive Committee, as a result of discussions in 2002, proposed to the 2003 Annual General Meeting that the secretariat continue to maintain a data base of attendance over the years; that all peace operations education and training institutions are automatically considered members of the IAPTC, and that there be no formal IAPTC membership; i.e. no established list of organizations and individuals. Those who participate in the annual meeting will be considered to comprise the current IAPTC membership and will therefore be able to participate in the members’ session at the annual meeting to consider IAPTC management and development issues.

The following is a list of organizations and institutions that have participated in IAPTC meetings to date.

Record:

1. First adopted at the 5th Annual Meeting held at the Pearson Peacekeeping Centre, Cornwallis Park, Nova Scotia 23-25 June 1999
2. Revised at the 7th Annual Meeting held at the United Nations University in Tokyo, Japan, 22-24 October 2001
3. Revised at the 11 th Annual General Meeting held at the Centre for UN Peacekeeping, New Delhi , India , 28 October 2005
4. Revised at the 14th Annual General Meeting held at the National Defence College in Abuja, Nigeria, 6-10 Oct 2008

1. Name and Purpose

1. The International Association of Peacekeeping Training Centres is an open and voluntary association of individuals, centres, institutions and programmes dealing with peacekeeping research, education and training.

2. The IAPTC promotes better understanding of peacekeeping, its goals, objectives and of the methods used in training for peacekeeping operations of all types. It will broaden contacts between and among various international organizations, peacekeeping training centres and institutions, Universities and other interested groups, thus leading to more effective peacekeeping.

3. The objectives of the Association are:
* to promulgate an understanding of training standards developed by the UN and other relevant organizations and to encourage their adoption;
* to educate ourselves about peace operations policy matters;
* to identify emerging training requirements flowing from relevant policy matters;
* to promote the exchange of experience among training institutions regarding different training methodologies;
* to create conditions that facilitate effective networking and cooperation (bilateral, regional, etc.);
* to promote an understanding of the different institutional perspectives and organizational cultures present among military, police and civilian components in peace operations;

2. Membership
1. Membership is open to individuals, agencies and organizations engaged in peacekeeping research, education and training.
2. Those participating in the annual conference shall be considered the current membership for the IAPTC.

3. Governance
1. All members shall be invited to participate and vote at the Annual General Meeting. The Annual General Meeting has ultimate authority over the programme and activities of the association.
2. The general direction of the work of the Association shall be the responsibility of the Executive Committee of the IAPTC. It shall consist of a troika Presidency from the organizations hosting the Annual Conferences. The term of office of the President shall be one year. The President will take office at the Annual General Meeting, and will be from the organization hosting that year’s Annual Conference. The Past-President will be from the organization that hosted the previous conference. The President-Elect will be from the organization that will host the next year’s Annual Conference. The Presidency shall rotate among the following regions: Africa, Americas, Asia and Europe.
3. The Executive Committee of the IAPTC will consist of eight members. They will be the three members of the Presidency, a senior representative from UNDPKO, the Director of the Secretariat and the Chairpersons of the Military, Civilian and Civilian Police Committees. The committee composition also provides for the inclusion of ex-officio members. It also includes the Upcoming Host as an observer.
4. The Secretariat shall be responsible for the continuing operation of the IAPTC under the guidance of the Executive Committee.

4. Meeting of Association Members
1. Resolutions of the Annual General Meeting and any special meeting of the members of the Association shall constitute the expression of the will of the members and shall establish policies to be implemented by the Executive Committee.
2. The membership of the Association shall hold an Annual General Meeting at the time of the Annual Conference. All action at the Annual General Meeting shall be by majority of those present and eligible, except in the case of amendments to the Articles of Association, which will be subject to the provisions of Article VIII.

5. Committees of the Association
1. The implementation of the Association’s programme, in accordance with the decisions of the Annual General Meeting, shall be the responsibility of the Executive Committee, such other committees and working groups that the Executive Committee shall deem necessary or appropriate to carry out its responsibilities.
2. The responsibilities of the Executive Committee shall be:
1. To recommend to the Annual General Meeting themes for future meetings;
2. To plan the annual conference, following the theme established during the Annual General Meeting.
3. To keep members of the Association fully informed of programme activities;
4. To oversee the operations of the Secretariat and the Presidency and the implementation of the Association’s programme and budget;
5. To appoint those committees and working groups that are necessary to implement the Association’s programme and to receive their reports as requested by the Executive Committee; and
6. To advance the concept, objectives and membership of the IAPTC

6. The Secretariat
1. The Secretariat will be headed by a Director who shall be a senior executive of the organization hosting the IAPTC Secretariat.

7. Host Organization Responsibility

1. The organization hosting the Annual Conference shall be responsible for all aspects of hosting the conference and shall follow the theme set out at the Annual General Meeting.

8. Amendments
1. Amendments to these Articles of Association may be proposed by the Executive Committee or by twenty-five members on petition. Proposed amendments shall be presented to the next Annual General Meeting of the membership and shall be adopted if approved by two-thirds of the members present and voting. On recommendation of the Executive Committee, amendments may be submitted to all members by mailed ballot after discussion at the Annual General Meeting and be adopted if approved by two-thirds of the membership.

9. Procedures

The Annual General Meeting shall follow procedures in accordance with the normal practices of parliamentary bodies.
10. Termination

In case of termination, the assets and obligations of the Association shall be dealt with in accordance with specific arrangements agreed with funding sources and the general provisions followed under the laws of the country where the IAPTC has a legal persona.

Overview

The International Association of Peacekeeping Training Centres (IAPTC) is an open and voluntary association of centres, institutions, and programs dealing with peace operations research, education, and training. It was initiated by Canada’s Pearson Peacekeeping Center (PPC) in 1995.

The IAPTC promotes better understanding of peacekeeping, its goals and objectives, and of the methods used in training for peace operations of all types. It is intended to broaden contacts between various international organizations, peacekeeping training centres and institutions, universities, and other interested groups, leading to more effective peace operations.
The IAPTC offers peacekeeping training centre personnel a forum for discussions relating to training without their having to deal with national interests (and sometimes restrictions). Each year, there is an Annual Conference with the host country or organization responsible for preparing the event, and developing the theme and agenda. In the past few years the IAPTC has taken account of the fact that some centres deal strictly with military aspects of peacekeeping, some with civilian, some with police, while others have a mixed program. The Annual Conference now includes both a broad multi-disciplinary agenda of interest to all centres as well as more specialized segments for the military, civilian, and police centres.
Since its inception in 1995 some 90 different centres, institutions, organizations, and agencies have participated in the IAPTC’s work. Participants have come from all regions of the world.

The Secretariat
The Pearson Peacekeeping Centre provided the original Secretariat of the IAPTC, supporting the host nation or organization of each Annual Conference as required, maintaining a database of participants, providing professional advice in relation to the annual conference themes, and maintaining the IAPTC web site. These duties, as of October 2005, have now been taken over by the Centre for United Nations Peacekeeping in New Delhi, India.

The Annual Conference
The aim of the Annual Conference is to provide its members with a forum for discussion of specific topical issues related to peace operations, and to provide a venue for the Association’s Annual General Meeting. There have been thirteen of these to date:

1. 1995 – Inaugural meeting hosted by the PPC in Nova Scotia, Canada
2. 1996 – Scuola Superiore S. Anna, Pisa, Italy
3. 1997 – Foundation for International Studies, Valletta, Malta
4. 1998 – Norwegian Institute of International Affairs, Oslo, Norway
5. 1999 – Pearson Peacekeeping Centre, Canada
6. 2000 – African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes, South Africa
7. 2001 – United Nations University, Tokyo, Japan
8. 2002 – CAECOPAZ, Buenos Aires, Argentina
9. 2003 – Wertheim Police Academy, Germany
10. 2004 – Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, Ghana
11. 2005 – Centre for United Nations Peacekeeping, New Delhi, India
12. 2006- CECOPAZ, Santiago, Chile
13. 2007- Folke Bernadotte Academy, Stockholm, Sweden
14. 2008 – National Defence College, Abuja, Nigeria
15. 2009 – Australian Defence Force and Australian Federal Police, Sydney, Australia
16. 2010 – Bangladesh Institute of Peace Support Operations Trg, Dhaka, Bangladesh
17. 2011 – US Army Peacekeeping & Stability Operations Institute (PKSOI), Carlisle, Pennsylvania (USA)

Interested in joining or learning more?

Contact IAPTC Secretary : dir.cunpk@gmail.com
IAPTC Secretariat : iaptc.cunpk@gmail.com