Seminar on Civilian-Military Relations (July 22, 2008)
former events and activities
Seminar on Civilian-Military Relations
The Center for Civil and Military Relations (CCMR) of the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterrey, California, organized a seminar in Goma, province of North Kivu, from July 22-24 on the role of the armed forces in a democracy. 54 participants attended, including 30 civilians, 19 military personnel, and five police officers. The non-military participants represented the central Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the provincial government of North Kivu, the North Kivu parliament, and several NGO's and churches. Students and journalists also participated. The conference was opened by the Deputy Chief of Mission of the United States Embassy in Kinshasa, Mr. Samuel Brock, and the provincial Minister for the Interior, Mr. Charles Kalwahe.
Conference moderators were Col. Michael Mensch (U.S. Army, retired), and Marjor Jean-Philippe Pelletier (U.S. Air Force). The July program was a sequel to an earlier seminar held in February 2008. At the end of the seminar participants established a temporary commission on the civil-military relations. This commission is responsible of the execution of the action plan that all participants established and presented to the local minister of interior.
Established at NPS in 1994, the Center for Civil–Military Relations (CCMR) provides graduate level education to foreign civilian and military participants through resident and nonresident courses. Its programs assist foreign nations in resolving civil–military issues resulting from defense transformation, stability and support operations, combating terrorism, and other security challenges. CCMR is dedicated to strengthening democratic civil-military relationships and assisting nations to make integrated defense decisions.