Feature: "I want to do something for peace" -- Chinese peacekeeper

For Lt Col Qilin Dai, a Chinese officer working at the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations here in New York, being a peacekeeper is a mission of pride, but not without challenging moments.

In 2011, the 35-year-old hailing from China's Anhui Province served for one year as an equipment inspector for the UN mission in Liberia, responsible for reviewing equipment conditions for the peacekeeping troops and reporting back to the UN peacekeeping system at the headquarters.

At one point, he was ordered to visit the infantry battalion that Bangladesh contributed to the mission which was located near Liberia's border with Cote d'Ivoire, for equipment inspection.

"When we were driving back to camp, our UN convoy was running on the vast land covered by golden sands," he recalled. "All of a sudden, I felt the world so quiet. I could only hear the sound of cars rolling over sands. I couldn't help asking myself -- why am I here?"

"It was not a well-paid job, and I was so far away from my family..." he said, baring this "unforgettable" moment of revelation. "And then it dawned on me that I want to do something for peace."

On the International Day of UN Peacekeepers in May this year, Dai was awarded a UN medal for his contribution to UN peacekeeping operations.

Herve Ladsous, UN under-secretary-general for peacekeeping operations, who presented Dai with the medal at the ceremony, praised Chinese peacekeepers for their professionalism, discipline and good performance, adding that "China has become a very important contributor in recent years."

"It is the largest contributor among the permanent member countries of the Security Council," he noted.

China, as the world's largest developing country, has deployed more than 3,000 military and police personnel to UN peacekeeping missions worldwide, sending engineering, infantry, medical and police units to missions in South Sudan, Cyprus, Lebanon, and more, according to UN statistics.

In Zwedru, Liberia, where Dai used to serve, Chinese engineering peacekeepers were mandated with road repairing work. In some sections, they mended not just roads but also bridges which the locals later dubbed as "China Bridge," "Bridge of Friendship".

"Chinese peacekeepers have managed to help with infrastructure projects in countries they've been sent to," Dai said. "These are materialized contributions which can indeed benefit local people."

China's contribution to the UN peacekeeping operations shows its commitment to peace, security and stability around the world, Edmond Mulet, assistant secretary-general for UN peacekeeping operations, told Xinhua.

"There are so many conflicts now around the world, so many people in need, so many people suffering, children and women especially... And when you see that engagement from China, that means China is really concerned because of the plight and the problems these people are suffering," Mulet noted.

"The level of human solidarity, that sense of brotherhood that China is showing is really exemplary," he commended.

Since it started participating in UN peacekeeping operations in 1990, China has sent more than 30,000 peacekeepers in total, in addition to being a financial contributor and helping write mission mandates as a permanent member of the Security Council.

"For us, for the United Nations, for the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, China's contribution is more than important," Mulet said. "It's really extraordinary."

In the peacekeeping-themed photo exhibit on the wall outside the UN Security Council chamber at the UN headquarters, one photo tells the story of Chinese peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2008, when they worked on a road rehabilitation project to allow greater access to the Ruzizi One Dam Power Plant, the only source of electricity for the east of the country.

"I think the picture is a miniature of Chinese peacekeepers," said Dai, who is serving his two-year term as planning officer at the military planning service in UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations.

"As Chinese military personnel, we hope that war-torn countries would recover from their sufferings and restore peace and security. We will do what we can, as much as we can to help them with that," he added. Enditem