Monitoring Policy Making at the United Nations |
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Assessment on the Work of the Security Council during the month of August 1997 under the British Presidency Assessment on the Work of the Security Council
During the Month of August 1997
Under the British Presidency
IntroductionDuring August 1997, the Security Council held 7 formal meetings and its members met in informal consultations 12 times. The Council adopted three resolutions and issued three presidential statements. The President spoke to the press and also briefed non-members of the Council after each session of informal consultations. As in previous months, African issues were the focus of much of the Council's attention during August; but a number of other important subjects, including Cyprus, the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories and Albania, were also discussed.
African issues
Following initial discussion on the need for a resolution authorizing the operations of MISAB in the Central African Republic on 31 July, work began on a draft on 1 August. To aid Council members' consideration of the issue, the Permanent Mission of the Central African Republic circulated informally to Council members a report on the crisis in that country submitted by General Toure, Chairman of the International Monitoring Committee for the implementation of the Bangui Agreements. Discussion focused on the extent of authorization the Council should provide for MISAB, given that the operation had already been set up by a regional initiative. As a result of these discussions, the Council unanimously adopted resolution 1125 (1997) on 6 August, by which it approved the continued conduct of the operation by those States participating in MISAB and authorized Member States and those providing logistical support under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations to ensure the security of freedom of movement of their personnel. In the debate on the adoption of the resolution, Council members and other participating Member States commended the MISAB operation as a good example of regional peacekeeping efforts.
The first report of the member States of MISAB was circulated by the Secretary-General on 21 August, as provided for in operative paragraph 6 of resolution 1125 (1997). Council members discussed the report during informal consultations on 26 August. The improvement in the security situation in the Central African Republic, and in particular in Bangui, was noted, as well as the important effect the adoption of resolution 1125 (1997) had had on the political process. Several suggestions were made for additional areas which should be covered in subsequent reports. The President of the Council made a short statement to the press covering these points and calling for further logistical and financial support to MISAB.
On 12 August, the Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Mr. Hédi Annabi, briefed Council members during informal consultations on developments in Angola. In the light of the subsequent discussion, the President spoke to the press, inter alia, to express grave concern about those developments, to reaffirm the importance of the Lusaka Protocol, to express deep dissatisfaction that UNITA had not taken any significant steps towards fulfilling the demands of resolution 1118 (1997) and to recall the Council's readiness to impose measures unless UNITA met its obligations.
Following a report on 15 August 1997 by the Secretary-General (S/1997/640) that UNITA had failed to comply with its peace process commitments, members of the Council discussed the nature of the measures to be imposed on UNITA on the basis of proposals made by the Troika (Portugal, the Russian Federation and the United States). On 28 August, the Council unanimously adopted resolution 1127 (1997), by which it imposed measures against UNITA under Chapter VII of the Charter, although their implementation was delayed until 30 September 1997 to give UNITA a final opportunity to fulfil its obligations.
Following discussion of the continuing crisis in Sierra Leone on 31 July, Council members resumed consideration of this issue on 5 August. A presidential statement was issued on 6 August (S/PRST/1997/42), by which the Council regretted the breakdown of the Abidjan talks on 29 and 30 July; reiterated its call on the military junta to step down from power; and stated that, in the absence of a satisfactory response, the Security Council was ready to take appropriate measures to restore the democratically elected Government.
On 19 August, the Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Sierra Leone, Mr. Berhanu Dinka, informed Council members during informal consultations that, despite its lack of broad support in the country, the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council/Revolutionary United Front junta appeared to have no intention of stepping down. ECOWAS was continuing to consider its next action, including a tightening of sanctions and the possible use of force. Council members concluded that, while early action was necessary, it would be important to coordinate and consult with ECOWAS, and they mandated the President to contact ECOWAS members to that end. The President spoke to the press following the discussion on 19 August, and later briefed Council members on contacts with representatives of ECOWAS member States in New York and on the presidency's suggestion that ECOWAS inform the Council, through the presidency or the Secretary-General, on the measures it was likely to take before any final decisions were made. No information had, however, reached the presidency by the end of the month.
Council members discussed Liberia on the basis of a report of the Secretary-General (S/1997/643) in informal consultations on 20 August, at which the Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Mr. Annabi, was present. Council members expressed their satisfaction at the successful conduct of the elections in Liberia, and congratulated UNOMIL and ECOMOG again on the part they had played. There was strong support for a continued post-UNOMIL United Nations presence, and specifically the type of "peace-building" office proposed in the report of the Secretary-General, to help with rehabilitation, reconciliation and reconstruction. The President asked Mr. Annabi to convey this expression of support from Council members to the Secretary-General.
Council members continued to consider whether conditions in the Republic of the Congo were appropriate for the deployment of an intervention force. The technical survey team dispatched to Brazzaville and Libreville to help in this process returned in early August, and the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Mr. Bernard Miyet, briefed Council members during informal consultations on 8 August on the team's findings. He reported that while there had been some progress on the political track, the security situation remained too volatile for the Department of Peacekeeping Operations to recommend deployment. He suggested, following comments from Mr. Sahnoun, that Council members might contribute to the process by urging the parties to reach agreement on the settlement package under discussion in Libreville and to meet the Secretary-General's preconditions. There followed some discussion of the nature of the preconditions and how near they were to being met. There was, however, consensus that a presidential statement should be issued in support of the recommendations by Mr. Sahnoun and Mr. Miyet, which, after further work (including some proposals from the representative of the Republic of the Congo), was done on 13 August. The statement (S/PRST/1997/43) endorsed the Secretary-General's three conditions for the deployment of an appropriate force and called on the parties to fulfil those conditions.
Council Members were briefed on 26 August on further developments in the Republic of the Congo, including the deteriorating security situation and the continuing obstacles to progress in the political talks. The President spoke to the press following this discussion, stressing support for the appeal by the President of Gabon on 26 August for the resumption of negotiations. The President also reiterated the Council members' intention, as reflected in its 13 August statement, to take a decision on the deployment of a force once the Secretary-General had reported.
Council members were kept informed of progress on the establishment of the Secretary-General's team to visit the Democratic Republic of the Congo to investigate allegations of massacres and human rights abuses in the former eastern Zaire. Council members noted the appointment of the three team leaders in letters to the Secretary-General from the President on 6 August (S/1997/618) and 12 August (S/1997/634). It was with dismay, therefore, that Council members received a report from the Secretariat on 28 August that the investigative mission, which had arrived in Kinshasa a few days previously, had run into difficulties, with the Congolese authorities apparently setting further conditions on the team's activities. The President expressed members' concern in a statement to the press, and also welcomed the fact that Mr. Sahnoun would visit Kinshasa to try to clarify the situation.
With the next round of talks in the Arusha process scheduled for 25 August, Council members considered the continuing crisis in Burundi on several occasions during the month. Following a briefing on 14 August by Under- Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Mr. Kieran Prendergast, Council members discussed the deteriorating security situation, in particular the increased political tension, recent judicial executions and the regroupment policy. The Council President spoke to the press following informal consultations expressing members' concern at these developments and supporting former President Nyerere and Mr. Sahnoun's efforts towards political dialogue and participation in the 25 August talks. A reference was also made to the need for fair and impartial administration of justice and due legal process in Burundi.
Council members were updated on 21 August by Mr. Prendergast, who highlighted the deteriorating relations between Burundi and the United Republic of Tanzania on the eve of the Arusha talks. Responding to an appeal from the Secretariat, the President made a statement to the press calling for the Governments of Burundi and the United Republic of Tanzania to take steps to build confidence, and for all parties to attend and participate in the Arusha talks in a constructive and tolerant manner. The President also spoke to the representatives of Burundi and the United Republic of Tanzania to convey these points. On 27 August, Council members were briefed on the postponement of the Arusha talks. The President again spoke to the press about the need for the parties in Burundi to commit themselves to constructive dialogue as the only means to resolve the crisis in Burundi.
Council members' attention was once more focused on Rwanda on 27 August, when they were briefed on the massacre of Tutsi refugees at Mudende camp the previous week. There was widespread concern that this might mark the beginning of another cycle of violent attacks and reprisals. Speaking to the press after informal consultations, the President expressed members' condemnation of the killings and welcomed the decision by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to dispatch teams to screen Rwandan refugees in 10 African countries. Those countries were called on to cooperate fully with the activities.
During informal consultations on 27 August, Ismat Kittani, Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Somalia, briefed members of the Council on his recent assessment mission to the region, which included meetings with representatives of all the Somali factions and non-governmental organizations. He emphasized the need for greater coordination and unity of approach on the part of the international community and the need for a closer linkage between the provision of economic assistance and the political process. It was agreed that Council members would be able to discuss further the possibility of a renewed United Nations initiative once the Secretary-General was ready to make recommendations in the light of Mr. Kittani's mission.
Europe
On 5 August, a representative of the Department of Humanitarian Affairs updated Council members on the work of the Mine Action Centre of the United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina (UNMIBH). It was explained that, as an exceptional and transitional measure, the Secretary-General had decided that the United Nations would employ a number of demining experts who had already been trained by the Mine Action Centre until the end of the year, by which time it was expected that the Government would be in a position to take on this responsibility, in line with the conclusions of the Peace Implementation Conference held in London in December 1996. The representative of the Department also noted the urgent need for additional voluntary funding to support the work of the Mine Action Centre.
On 27 August, the Council unanimously adopted resolution 1126 (1997), in which it endorsed the recommendation of the Secretary-General that Judges Karibi-Whyte, Odio Benito and Jan of the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia should finish the Celebici case, which they had begun before the expiry of their terms of office.
On 19 August, Council members discussed in informal consultations the Secretary-General's report of 11 August on the United Nations Preventive Deployment Force (UNPREDEP). Following the discussion, the Council President made a statement to the press to the effect that Council members looked forward to the Secretary-General's recommendations in due course concerning the type of international presence which would be appropriate for the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia following the expiration of the UNPREDEP mandate on 30 November 1997.
Council members continued to follow closely the situation in Albania. On 14 August, following the expiry two days earlier of the United Nations mandate for the multinational protection force, the Council held a debate on the situation in Albania. In addition to Council members, a number of United Nations Member States, as well as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), took part. Following the conclusion of the debate, the Council President read out a statement (S/PRST/1997/44), inter alia, recognizing the role played by the multinational protection force and the Governments of the participating countries under Italian leadership in the full discharge of the mandate in assisting the Albanian authorities and the international organizations involved; and expressing the view that the Albanian people and their authorities bear the primary responsibility for the future of Albania and for restoring normal conditions in the country.
On Cyprus, the second round of direct talks between the leaders of the two Cypriot communities took place at Glion-sur-Montreux, Switzerland, from 11 to 16 August. During informal consultations on 20 August, the Special Adviser of the Secretary-General on Cyprus, Mr. Diego Cordovez, briefed Council members on the outcome of the talks. The President was subsequently authorized by members of the Council to make a statement to the press, inter alia, expressing the support of Council members for the continuing work of the Secretary-General and his Special Adviser and noting that the leaders of both Cypriot communities remained committed to the future of the process. He was also authorized to make certain other specific points.
The Middle East
During informal consultations on 8 August, Council members considered a letter dated 4 August (S/1997/609) from the Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations concerning Israeli economic measures against the Palestinian population. In a statement to the press, the President expressed their concern at the deteriorating situation in the Middle East; reaffirmed their condemnation of the bombings in West Jerusalem on 30 July, which reinforced the urgency of a return to negotiation; called on the parties to commit themselves unconditionally to preventing further violence and to enhancing security cooperation; expressed concern at recent actions and measures taken by Israel, including restrictions on the movement of persons and goods and the freezing of financial transfers, which threatened to impose serious hardship on the Palestinians; underlined the paramount importance of the resumption of the peace process and the need for the timely implementation of agreements reached; and pledged Council members' support for efforts to bring the parties back to the negotiating table.
