YouSaid · the spoken record

Grey-Johnson

lines on the record
32
first
2002-05-22
most recent
2005-03-30
sittings or episodes
4
sources
un-security-council

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  1. “The way certain conflict situations have erupted suggests that the Council should be more pro-active in its handling of emerging conflict situations. We must strengthen our early warning systems and our response capacities. Above all, the Council must be able to intervene to ward off conflicts before they flare up. Ways must be found to engage adversaries in dialogue and negotiation before they slide into violence. Finally, my delegation would like to see this exercise undertaken on a regular basis to afford us an opportunity to evaluate our efforts in order to improve our impact and effectiveness in mediating conflicts on the African continent.”

    2005-03-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5156 (2005) · source

  2. “Elsewhere in Africa, we have seen the tremendous promise that collaboration of this type with regional and subregional bodies holds for conflict resolution and peacekeeping. Perhaps this strategy should be employed more systematically, not only in resolving conflicts, but also in peace-building and conflict prevention. Post-conflict interventions need to be given more attention. Programmes for disarming, demobilizing and reintegrating combatants have to be better conceived, planned and resourced if they are to endure. In addition, consideration should be given to the need to evolve such programmes on a subregional basis, in recognition of the strong subregional dimensions of most conflicts in Africa.”

    2005-03-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5156 (2005) · source

  3. “It is important to ascertain what the countries in each of these three categories have in common, with a view to drawing lessons that would help us prescribe more effective antidotes to African conflicts. From the outset, we must acknowledge the important initiatives taken by the Council, the effects of which on conflict situations have been very positive. The measures taken to curb the proliferation of small arms and light weapons in West Africa stand out for special mention. My delegation hopes to see these measures strengthened even further, perhaps to culminate, ultimately, in an international convention binding on all States. The Council did collaborate well with the Economic Community of West African States in elaborating the small arms initiative. It did the same in mediating the situation in Liberia and Cote d'Ivoire.”

    2005-03-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5156 (2005) · source

  4. “It is important to undertake a special analysis of the antecedents and causes of these conflicts in order to identify the common strands, with a view to addressing the causal factors at the root. It is true that there has been an ongoing debate on the broad causes of conflict globally. What is now required is an effort focused specifically on the peculiarities of the African scene, from the Democratic Republic of the Congo to C6te d'Ivoire, to Sudan and elsewhere. Some conflicts have been satisfactorily resolved, as was the case in Angola and Mozambique. Others have been stuck in a "no-war/no-peace" state of limbo, while yet others keep raging on.”

    2005-03-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5156 (2005) · source

  5. “Mr. President, my delegation commends your initiative in convening this open meeting of the Council to discuss an issue of importance not only to Africa, but also to the membership of the United Nations. The African continent challenges the international system in many ways, not least through the many conflicts it has spawned over the years. Little wonder, therefore, that the Council has had to devote so much of its time to conflict, peace and security issues affecting Africa. It is therefore fitting that we pause to take stock and to decide on new ways forward. The fact that there have been such frequent eruptions of conflict on the African continent is really a matter of concern.”

    2005-03-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.5156 (2005) · source

  6. “When that happens, I hope that the appropriate response will be forthcoming in the form of emergency humanitarian assistance, development support, capacity-building programmes and so on. I sincerely hope that the forthcoming Security Council mission to Guinea-Bissau will afford us all another opportunity to reconsider the parameters of, and reassess our approach to, peace-building and conflict management and countries with severely weakened capacities. Let me seize this opportunity to commend the Representative of the Secretary-General and all the staff members of the United Nations in Guinea-Bissau for their commitment and dedication to service under very difficult conditions.”

    2003-06-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4776 (2003) · source

  7. “The United Nations Children's Fund has informed the Economic and Social Council's Ad Hoc Advisory Group that, out of a population of 1.2 million people, there were 1,000 deaths per month in Guinea-Bissau among children under five years of age. That is unacceptably high by any standard, but even more so under peacetime conditions. Why is the international community allowing this outrage to continue? Because it seems to want to punish a country it feels is not playing by the rules. But could it be that the country is not able to play by the rules? That is the question that must engage reflection on Guinea-Bissau. Hopefully, we shall eventually come to be of one mind on this issue and then begin the process of empowering a country in need, showing more of the carrot and less of the stick.”

    2003-06-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4776 (2003) · source

  8. “Yet, because the country was able to hold multi-party elections that were deemed to have been free and fair, the international system expects it to demonstrate similar strengths in other key areas in which it has still to build sufficient capacity. What is more, we penalize it for failing to perform to our expectations. It is in that way that Guinea-Bissau has suffered under an unofficial regime of sanctions over the last two to three years. Development support has all but slowed to a halt in the context of a severe economic crisis. The social situation remains dire, particularly as it relates to the plight of the vulnerable - children, women and the poor, who make up the majority of the population. The performance of one indicator alone is sufficient to illustrate the point.”

    2003-06-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4776 (2003) · source

  9. “Having participated in the work of the Advisory Group since its inception, I have come to experience and share the frustration of its members at the difficulty of bringing our work to a meaningful conclusion and with positive results in support of Guinea-Bissau's democratic transition. Although the temptation is to hastily place the blame for lack of progress at Guinea-Bissau's feet, we all know that in certain of our demands, we may be asking that the country shoulder certain responsibilities that are clearly beyond its strength to carry. Countries emerging from conflict are typically countries with severely reduced capacities - in governance, economic management, security and social protection. Guinea-Bissau falls perfectly into that category of countries.”

    2003-06-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4776 (2003) · source

  10. “The political culture that would allow for meaningful operation of a multiparty parliamentary system is still in the making and society finds itself at the rudimentary stages of maturation, making it difficult for the workings of a truly democratic system to take root. It is to the Security Council's credit that it has come to realize that in the matter of the transition of soft States from conflict to democracy there are many grey areas and phases fraught with all sorts of difficulty, through which the country in question has to be assisted, nurtured and guided. Hence the effort to concert with the Economic and Social Council to work out appropriate courses of action through the Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Guinea-Bissau to help the country come out of the woods.”

    2003-06-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4776 (2003) · source

  11. “My delegation intervenes in our capacity as Chair of the Group of Friends of Guinea-Bissau. Let me at the outset commend you, Mr. President, for convening this meeting to afford us yet another opportunity for reflection on the post-conflict phenomenon that the case of Guinea-Bissau has come to represent. This is a country that, to all intents and purposes, is still stuck in the transition to full democracy, even though some years back it was able to conduct multiparty elections that were deemed to have been free and fair. It is a country that is still in transition, because the structures and institutions that make for a functioning democracy, though provided for in law, are in reality extremely weak and unable to sustain the workings of a democratic system.”

    2003-06-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4776 (2003) · source

  12. “My delegation strongly urges the Iraqi authorities to cooperate fully and unconditionally with the Security Council and to comply with all the requirements put before it, not only in resolution 1441 (2002) but also in all the other resolutions that relate to the situation between Iraq and Kuwait. In particular, we call upon them once again to release the several hundred Kuwaiti prisoners of war they are holding and to return the Kuwaiti archives to where they rightfully belong, that is, in Kuwait. The voices that have appealed for patience and for the inspections not to be interrupted or rushed are many. We urge the Council to listen to those voices and to pay heed to their most reasonable appeal.”

    2003-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4709 (2003) · source

  13. “We are satisfied that the Council has taken those measures in authorizing, and continuing with, the inspections in Iraq. Just a few days ago the Council received reports from Mr. Blix and Mr. ElBaradei on the work of the inspectors in Iraq. Most members of the Council agreed that the Iraqi authorities were beginning to cooperate and that progress was being made. Such a development encourages us all to expect that, through the work of the inspectors, Iraq will be made to disarm itself of all weapons of mass destruction without having to suffer the pains of war.”

    2003-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4709 (2003) · source

  14. “Further, the Central Organ declared that "the territorial integrity of Iraq should be respected and all diplomatic means should be pursued by international community to ensure that the Iraqi Government complies fully with the provisions of resolution 1441 and that, in any case, any new decision on the matter should emanate from the UN Security Council after a consideration of the final report of the inspection team". The position taken by African Governments on the issue is clear and is fully consistent with the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations, Article 51 of which permits the use of force only "if an armed attack occurs", and even then, only "until the Security Council has taken measures necessary to maintain international peace and security".”

    2003-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4709 (2003) · source

  15. “In the declaration of the Central Organ of the Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution of the African Union on the Iraqi crisis, which was made at Addis Ababa on 3 February 2003, African Governments stated that "military confrontation in Iraq would be a destabilizing factor for the whole region and would have far-reaching economic and security consequences for all the countries of the world, and particularly for those of Africa".”

    2003-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4709 (2003) · source

  16. “Erroneous as that perception may be, it does not give much comfort in many quarters. Africa has one of the largest concentrations of Muslims in the world. In the Sahel alone there are more than 100 million Muslims. For those large numbers of Muslims in our communities to be made to feel that they are being singled out for attack by the international community, of which we are all a part, is an eventuality that all African Governments earnestly wish to pre-empt. Africa does not want war.”

    2003-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4709 (2003) · source

  17. “It is to be expected that recourse to war as a means of resolving the crisis will also naturally have a negative impact on the already weak economies of our countries, at a time when we can ill afford or sustain such an unwelcome outcome. The African economy is already showing signs of stress as a result of the uncertainties surrounding this looming conflict. War will certainly further frustrate the efforts being made by African Governments to tackle poverty and prevent conflict on the continent. The sparring that has been going on between the opposing forces on the subject of our debate is leading many to believe that the prophetic clash of civilizations is already upon us. In many parts of the Muslim world ordinary people believe that a war on Iraq is a war on Islam.”

    2003-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4709 (2003) · source

  18. “Already, it is on our soil and among our innocent people that terrorism has reared a good part of its ugly head. We cannot forget the terrorist attacks in Nairobi, Dar-es-Salaam and Mombasa that caused huge loss of life and extensive destruction to property. We shall surely be even more exposed if mismanagement of the Iraq issue leads to the provocation of terrorist attacks on member States. Our nations do not have the sophisticated security, detection and early-warning capacities that aid preventive actions in developed countries. Our systems are not so highly developed as to be able to easily anticipate and ward off terrorist attacks, nor is it so easy for us to quickly recover from such attacks.”

    2003-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4709 (2003) · source

  19. “The subject of today's meeting has engaged the whole world for a very long time now, and all peace- loving nations sincerely wish that it may be speedily brought to closure, peacefully and for the greater good of all. In striving towards that objective, the entire international community has a responsibility to ensure that the process is managed in such a way that does not unleash negative and destabilizing effects on our security, our economies, our societies and our political systems. Experience has taught us in Africa that when elephants fight it is we, the grass, who suffer. We are fully aware that just as we bore the full brunt of the conflagrations of the cold war, so also do we now stand to suffer if the impending conflict is not averted through proper management and a peaceful resolution.”

    2003-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4709 (2003) · source

  20. “My delegation is speaking in its capacity as Chairman of the Group of African States. At the outset, let me commend you, Mr. President, for convening this meeting at the request of the Non-Aligned Movement, which constitutes a sizeable chunk of the membership of the United Nations. As you are aware, the member States of the African Union together make up a significant bloc in the Non-Aligned Movement. It stands to reason that the position of the African Union on issues such as the one we are at present considering would be prominently reflected in the concerns of the Non-Aligned Movement on those issues. It is therefore our hope that those concerns will inform the decisions that the Council will, from our debate today, ultimately make on the burning question of Iraq.”

    2003-02-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4709 (2003) · source

  21. “Perhaps the Economic and Social Council should come up with innovative measures to replace the large pool of skilled manpower lost to African countries, not only as a result of conflict, but also as a consequence of the adverse economic conditions prevailing in many parts of the continent. Technical cooperation among developing countries may be one way to address the need. Another would be a focused programme of assisted voluntary return to bring back the many professionals and highly skilled people who have left the African continent and now live in the West. These were the few points I wanted to contribute to this discussion.”

    2002-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4538Resumption1 (2002) · source

  22. “Rather, they should be sustained well into peacetime and be adjusted as necessary to fit the prevailing circumstances and needs for sustainability in each country. Finally, post-conflict interventions must include strong capacity-building programmes. Typically, countries emerging from conflict are left with significantly weakened capacities. Institutions are destroyed and human resources are decimated. Perhaps the greatest damage done to a country in conflict is the erosion of its skills base through the brain drain - the flight of skilled people. Whereas physical infrastructure can be rebuilt in a relatively short period of time, replacing lost skills requires a lot of time. The absence of that vital input very often stalls recovery and frustrates development.”

    2002-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4538Resumption1 (2002) · source

  23. “It would appear that in many cases, we seem to be in a hurry to move out, once there are signs that the conflict may be coming to an end. The Central African Republic some years ago is a good case in point. I know that there are those who would be in a hurry to begin pulling the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) out of Sierra Leone, now that a smooth transition from conflict to democracy has been made in that country. That would be a grave error. Post-conflict Governments must be assisted with confidence-building measures, as well as with the requisite deterrents, to ensure that the situation does not slide back into chaos. Peacekeeping mandates should, therefore, not cease with the cessation of hostilities.”

    2002-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4538Resumption1 (2002) · source

  24. “It should strengthen its partnership with that intergovernmental organization, as well as with others, such as the Community of Sahel-Saharan States, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development and so on. It should show solidarity with them and increase their confidence and capacity to handle conflict in their respective areas. Equally, bilateral initiatives taken by certain States to address conflict situations in their neighbourhood deserve to be supported in concrete ways. For example, my country's peace programmes for Guinea-Bissau and for Cassamance in southern Senegal could be significantly bolstered, given the many resource constraints that we face, if systematic material and financial support of the United Nations were more forthcoming. Post-conflict support has been something of an enigma for the United Nations.”

    2002-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4538Resumption1 (2002) · source

  25. “The current situation in Madagascar, and the Security Council's reaction to it, is another good case in point. At present, there are many countries throughout Africa that are displaying all the signs of a flare-up. The United Nations must strengthen its ability to keep a close watch on those countries and to intervene in order to reduce, and eventually, diffuse the existing tensions. As part of its peacekeeping activities, the United Nations should seek to encourage and support initiatives by individual Member States to prevent or resolve conflicts. It is true that the United Nations supported the intervention of ECOWAS in Liberia and Sierra Leone.”

    2002-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4538Resumption1 (2002) · source

  26. “In this regard, arms manufacturers and exporters in the West should be held more to account and be made to be more selective, more judgmental and more responsive in their arms and ammunition transactions with African buyers. The time has come for United Nations peacekeeping to be more proactive so as to prevent conflicts before they flare up. At present the United Nations appears more equipped to react to conflict situations, much like closing the doors after the horses have left the stables. The case of Guinea a couple of years ago amply demonstrates this shortcoming. Although everyone knew for many months before it happened that Guinea was poised to fall victim to rebel attack, there were no perceptible efforts on the part of the United Nations to prevent that from happening.”

    2002-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4538Resumption1 (2002) · source

  27. “My Government has been drawing attention to this problem for a long time now and would sincerely wish that something be done without any further delay to address it. We firmly believe that the United Nations, perhaps along with ECOWAS, must take up this issue seriously. It must first begin by finding out who these people are, how many of them there are, where they came from, who recruited them and for what purpose. Then the United Nations should proceed to design appropriate interventions to have them effectively demobilized and eventually fully reintegrated into their various communities. These interventions should include a more concerted effort to deny them and the militias they fight for access to the arms that keep them in business.”

    2002-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4538Resumption1 (2002) · source

  28. “There is a need for the United Nations to formally recognize the existence of this group of actors in the various conflicts, with a View to designing and implementing appropriate programmes to address them as an important factor in our search for a durable peace in the subregion. At present nothing is being done to demobilize them, as was the case with the combatants in Sierra Leone. In fact, we have evidence to show that when the situation calmed down in Sierra Leone many of the mercenaries fighting with the RUF moved over into Liberia to join the various militias in the fighting that picked up recently in that country. When this conflict does come to an end, is it not likely that this army of mercenaries will move over to another country in the subregion to ply its trade?”

    2002-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4538Resumption1 (2002) · source

  29. “Accordingly, not only should the offices of the two Special Representatives of the Secretary-General in Monrovia and in Freetown be rationalized, but also moves should be made to incorporate the Guinean dimensions of the problem into present programmes. Perhaps the time has come for there to be one Representative office for the Mano River Union. An expanded mandate for UNAMSIL along those lines might best meet that need. On a related matter, I should like to address the issue of mercenaries in West Africa. A large number of mercenaries from all over the subregion have been involved in the conflicts in West Africa. They participated very actively in Sierra Leone and Guinea and are now back in Liberia.”

    2002-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4538Resumption1 (2002) · source

  30. “We also congratulate the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, as well as the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) and its dynamic leadership, for staying focused on the ground, despite the adverse odds and many challenges that they faced, and for prosecuting their mandate to a successful outcome in record time - a not-too- common occurrence in United Nations peacekeeping. I should very quickly like to raise a number of issues that might cut across some of the areas proposed for consideration at this meeting. Let me start with the situation in the Mano River Union. There is a need for the United Nations perspective on the Mano River question to be broadened in order to realistically address the problem.”

    2002-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4538Resumption1 (2002) · source

  31. “We also know that it is mainly for that reason that it has been decided to set up the United Nations Office for West Africa under the dynamic leadership of Ibrahima Fall, whom we wish well as he takes up his duties in Dakar. At this very moment, there is jubilation in Sierra Leone for the smooth conduct of presidential and parliamentary elections, signalling a full transition from conflict to peace and democracy. We extend our congratulations to the Government and people of Sierra Leone. The Security Council also deserves our commendation for the role it played in stabilizing the situation and in getting the warring factions to choose the political rather than the military route in the pursuit of their objectives.”

    2002-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4538Resumption1 (2002) · source

  32. “I congratulate you, Sir, for convening this important meeting, to allow us share our ideas with you on what the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council and the ad hoc Working Group might do severally and collectively, to more effectively address the problems of peace, security and development in Africa. They are the real challenges that face the continent and the ones on which we feel the United Nations must concentrate if it is to be of meaningful service to African countries. We must also recognize that the problems of peace and security and the problems of development are in fact two sides of the very same coin. That is why we are gratified that the Economic and Social Council and the Security Council have decided to come together to address themjointly.”

    2002-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4538Resumption1 (2002) · source