Major Peter Waiaki is currently deployed as a Military Liaison Officer on UN duties (UNMISS) in South Sudan. He deployed mid-August 2016 and will end his mission the end of August 2017.
He wants to sincerely thank the DIILS staff for preparing him to face the challenges in South Sudan. The political, humanitarian and security situation on the ground there are unimaginable and tough to deal with, but some of the scenario training's have assisted him in his mission area. He is based at a strategic state (Unity State) where the opposition rebel leader and former First Vice President Riek Machar comes from and well over 120,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) are kept and administered. The state also has four abandoned oil fields. Clashes between government and rebel forces are daily occurrences in his area of responsibility and violation of human rights is rife.
The Military Liaison Officers tasks are to maintain liaison with the government forces and all the rebel forces command including the local authorities and report on violation of mandate and Human Rights and SOFA violations by the host nations forces and rebel groups.
It is a great experience working in a multinational environment and despite the challenges, the camaraderie and experience is quite rewarding.
The recent announcement by DIILS to include Peacekeeping is welcome news and will assist senior military officers deploying on UN missions in conflict areas around the world in their efforts to restore peace.