Aust signs onto Kigali principles

Australia has joined 37 other nations in endorsing the Kigali Principles, a set of measures for protection of civilians from violence during peacekeeping operations.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said the 18 non-binding principles cover key issues, including vigilance in reporting human rights abuses, early identification of threats and use of force if deemed necessary.

The principles came out of the 2015 conference in Rwanda, location of the 1994 genocide in which an under-resourced UN force was unable to prevent the murder of as many as a million civilians.