Peacekeeping is an intervention into an area of instability in order to facilitate the transition of that area back towards peace. It is one of the UN's most powerful and historically effective tools for deescalating conflict and protecting civilians. Peacekeepers can be civilians and are frequently police officers, but the majority of peacekeepers are armed military personnel.

Peacekeeping is not only performed by the UN. The African Union (AU) has several active peacekeeping missions, in addition to joint missions with the UN. The EU, NATO, member states such as France, and ad-hoc coalitions such as the 'Multinational Force' in the Sinai have also conducted peacekeeping missions of one form or another. 

While we acknowledge that sexual violence happens outside of peacekeeping, in many different peacekeeping contexts, and among civilians attached to missions, Mission Justice focuses on UN troops and police, an area where we believe our knowledge and expertise, and the specific nature of peacekeeping, mean our campaign can make a useful contribution.