• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

SIERRA LEONE: Annan stresses need for UNAMSIL pullout to be gradual

ABIDJAN, 20 March 2003 (IRIN) - The UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) should be extended by six months and its peacekeepers withdrawn gradually because the country is still not capable of maintaining its security without international help, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan recommended on Monday.

"The overall political and security situation in Sierra Leone remained generally stable ... albeit volatile on the Liberian border," Annan said. "[However] developments over recent months have proved the prudence of pursuing a gradual drawdown of the Mission." Such developments, he said, included an attack on an army barracks east of the capital, Freetown on 13 January.

In his latest report to the Security Council on UNAMSIL, Annan said the first serious challenges to the country's armed and law enforcement forces had "exposed the existence of considerable shortcomings," adding that UNAMSIL's presence had given the general public the confidence that prevented a deterioration of the situation. "In these circumstances, I would like to recommend that the Security Council extend the mandate of UNAMSIL for a further period of six months, until 30 September 2003," Annan said.

"The efforts of the Sierra Leonean government, UNAMSIL and the Commonwealth Safety and Security Project to strengthen the capacity of the police have focused on increasing the size and capacity of the force by recruiting and training new cadets, improving policing skills and planning their deployment," Annan said. "In the recent days, UNAMSIL has discovered that the current level may be as low as 6,053." The projected strength is 9,500 staff by 2005.

On the army, Annan said restructuring had reduced its strength from 14,000 to 10,500. "Currently operations are hindered by the lamentable state of the army vehicle fleet and paucity of the communications system [yet] the situation at the Liberia border continues to pose a threat," he said. In addition, he said, the commencement of the indictments by the Special Court for Sierra Leone carried considerable security challenges and therefore the need to ensure police and prison authorities have the capacity to secure custody of those apprehended.

The report outlines several elements for lasting peace in the country, including preventing young people from feeling excluded, control over diamond mining and creating reintegration opportunities for ex-combatants. "Solutions to these issues are complex and will require time, resources and actions ranging from promoting economic revival and education to skills training," Annan said.

The Secretary General appealed to the international community to help end the conflict in Liberia, saying "the security of Sierra Leone cannot be fully ensured while the conflict in Liberia persists."

As at 20 March, UNAMSIL had 14,721 troops in Sierra Leone. It is expected to reduce the force to 13,000 in May this year and to 5,000 in 2004.

Themes: (IRIN) Conflict

[ENDS]

The material contained on this Web site comes to you via IRIN, a UN humanitarian information unit, but may not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its agencies. If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post any item on this site, please retain this credit and disclaimer. Quotations or extracts should include attribution to the original sources. All graphics and Images on this site may not be re-produced without the express permission of the original owner. All materials copyright © UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2003