Rikhye, Indar Jit 1920-2007

OBITUARY NOTICE—

See index for CA sketch: Born July 30, 1920, in Lahore, India (now part of Pakistan); died of respiratory failure, May 21, 2007, in Charlottesville, VA. Military leader and author. Initially an officer in the Indian army, Rikhye later served as a commander for United Nations peacekeepers and was founding president of the International Peace Academy. Born at a time when India was still under British rule, he joined the 6th Duke of Connaught's Own Lancers, a famous fighting force better known as the Bengal Lancers. During World War II, he saw action in the Middle East and Italy. After the war, as India won its independence, Rikhye continued his rise up the ranks of the Indian Army and saw action in the Kashmir territory. In 1957, as a lieutenant colonel, he led forces in the Gaza Strip after the Suez crisis and was acting commander of U.N. forces before being sent to the Congo. During the early 1960s, Rikhye was an advisor to the U.N.'s secretary general. After retiring as a major general in 1967, he continued with his association with the U.N. in New York City until 1969. By this time, he had come to believe that the United Nations was not all that effective a peacekeeping force, and so he became president of the International Peacekeeping Academy, an organization that trains military and political personnel in the skills of peace negotiations. He retired from the post in 1990. Rikhye, who also was chair of the United Nations Symphony from 1975 to 1979, wrote several books about diplomacy and military peacekeeping. Among these are Preparation and Training of United Nations Peacekeeping Forces (1964), The Sinai Blunder (1978), The Theory and Practice of Peacekeeping (1984), and The United Nations and the Aftermath of the Gulf Crisis (1992).

OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Los Angeles Times, May 26, 2007, p. B10.

New York Times, May 28, 2007, p. A17; June 1, 2007, p. A2.

Washington Post, May 25, 2007, p. B7.