Both the 2022 Strategic Compass for Security and Defence and the 2023 Civilian Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) Compact state as one of the priorities the development and implementation of a human rights due diligence policy in compliance with International Human Rights Law (IHRL) and the International Humanitarian Law (IHL) standards. With the support of EU member states, the Civilian CSDP Compact stipulates that all civilian CSDP missions’ planning documents will include human rights impact and risk assessment strategies from 2024 on. This means that the missions commit themselves to ensuring conflict sensitivity and the do-no-harm approach throughout their activities, especially in providing security sector support to third parties.
The EU Human Rights and Due Diligence Policy (EU HRDDP) establishes a framework to ensure that the EU’s security sector support provided to third-party security forces and actors is consistent with IHRL and IHL. Additionally, it ensures that reasonable care is exercised during this process by identifying, assessing, and mitigating human rights and IHL violation-related risks.
The course on EU HRDDP will serve as guidance on further implementation of the policy. The theoretical modules on Human Rights and IHL and Risk Management and Due Diligence will be followed by a practical exercise on the HRDDP implementation. In it, the participants from various EEAS departments and civilian CSDP missions will gain knowledge of the practical implications of the EU HRDDP through real-life case studies and scenarios. This knowledge will enable them to develop sound implementation strategies for the policy and finally implement them in the field.
The course is organised by the Egmont Institute in coordination with the European External Action Service (EEAS) – Peace, Partnerships and Crisis Management Directorate (PCM) – and co-financed through EUCTI. It will take place between 22 and 25 April in Brussels, Belgium.
