YouSaid · the spoken record

Landgren

lines on the record: 355
first: 2009-05-05
most recent: 2023-11-14
sittings or episodes: 20
sources: un-security-council

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“Not only with the Government, but with Liberians in every walk of life, I have found a welcome and an openness that has made living and working in that country a rare privilege. I would like to thank the Peacebuilding Commission, an invaluable dialogue partner, and all UNMIL's international partners. Finally, my heartfelt respect and gratitude goes to my colleagues across the United Nations, in particular the national, international and volunteer personnel in the field, without whose support, day after day, none of this work would have been possible.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“As I prepare to step down as Special Representative of the Secretary-General in July, I would like to thank Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Council for the trust shown in asking me to head three peace operations in succession - in Nepal, Burundi and Liberia - over some six and a half years. It has been an extraordinary privilege. Today is six years to the day since my initial briefing to the Council (see S/PV.6ll9), whose tremendous engagement has never wavered. Sadly, Burundi and Nepal are both in the headlines, each meriting our deep collective reflection on the pace and impact of post-conflict stabilization. I want to thank the Government of Liberia, and Ambassador Marjon Kamara personally, for our productive relationship.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“For its part, the international community, including the United Nations, must consider how to frame its own support, including its peacekeeping presence, in the post-Ebola context in order to build on positive developments and opportunities that arose from the crisis and to prevent a reversal in Liberia's gains. After 12 years of providing support to Liberia, UNMIL remains a reassuring presence to Liberians and investors alike, a deterrent to potential violence and a mentor and standby support to the Liberia National Police. As shown in Paynesville, the country continues to harbour flashpoints of intercommunal disputes and community dissatisfaction related to land and concessions. And those are among potential triggers that can adversely affect the political climate.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“In that regard, with the resumption of the quadripartite and associated bilateral processes, the cooperation between Liberia and Cote d'Ivoire is encouraging. With presidential elections anticipated in both Guinea and C6te d'Ivoire this October, there is a particular need to maintain strong cooperation across the subregion. Domestically and within the diaspora, Liberia's next presidential election, in 2017 - apolitical milestone - is already hotly debated. Much will be at stake in 2017, and the political environment is increasingly intense.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“Other efforts towards transparency include the Open Government Partnership and the Liberia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative. All can contribute to greater confidence in the State and improved service-delivery to its citizens. Ebola threatened to deepen Liberia's long-standing societal divisions, still not healed from years of conflict. Reconciliation remains a work in progress. As the Secretary-General said recently, "Justice is essential We have to address past violations to secure a stable future." The national dialogue about social exclusion and about the crimes of the past, remains muted at best. Liberia's stability also depends on that of the subregion. A recent border shooting incident reminds us of the potential for tension along the border with C6te d'Ivoire.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“Along with the existing and plannedjustice and security hubs, the county security councils can strengthen coordination between security agencies and local authorities. There will of course be challenges for local authorities in getting the councils to operate effectively in the early period, but that will improve as support grows for deconcentrated services and operations. There are promising developments in addressing corruption, with the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission undertaking major investigations in respect of State-owned enterprises. Steady political will is needed to support those processes, particularly as investigations move into higher levels of Government. Audits by the General Audit Commission, including of the National Ebola Task Force, have drawn attention to financial-management weaknesses.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“Now is the time to address factors that contributed to Ebola's spread, in particular weak social-service delivery, the lack of accountability and overly centralized Government. Liberia's extractives- based, enclave economy also proved highly vulnerable to the shock of Ebola, compounded by the sharp drop in global prices for iron ore and rubber. The Government's early steps towards security transition at the county level, as part of the security transition plan, are part of a historic reform in deconcentrating service delivery; and, over the last two months, more county security councils have been activated. They are intended as an early warning mechanism and a forum for local dispute-resolution.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“The LNP have also joined the effort, which has been supported by the United Nations and Liberian and international non-governmental organizations. The school will reopen next week. Ebola highlighted Liberia's underlying fragility. Beyond the public health crisis, Liberians were angered by the Government's initial slow response and by the rising cost of basic commodities, while the use of the Armed Forces and the introduction of a State of emergency also fuelled fears, as I described (see S/PV.7260) to the Council on 9 September last year. It is remarkable that, eight months later, it is Liberia, among the three affected countries, that appears poised to be declared Ebola-free. Liberians came together and showed themselves resilient.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“The President also instructed that the LNP's dormant Change Management Committee be reconstituted, a benchmark from the transition plan ambitiously set for this past March. Those are steps towards professionalizing and depoliticizing the LNP, as UNMIL has consistently advocated. On Armed Forces Day in February, keynote speaker and former Minister Kofi Woods called on the AFL to return to West Point, Monrovia, to engage in civic works, as an act of reconciliation. At the request of elders and other representatives of the West Point community, unarmed AFL soldiers have worked alongside community volunteers to rebuild and transform the public school, which had been used as an Ebola treatment centre before being badly damaged during the disturbances last August.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“The Paynesville disturbances left civilians and police officers injured and resulted in significant property damage, including to five police posts, one of which was destroyed. UNMIL, which placed a formed police unit on standby and remained in close touch with the LNP, conducted its own response review and proposed to the LNP a joint review of how the situation was managed. On 1 May, President Johnson-Sirleaf dismissed three senior LNP officers, including some who had been the subject of complaints of serious misconduct and abuse of power. Their replacements, nominated by the Minister of Justice, came up through the ranks of the LNP. One benefitted from the management-training programme at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration in 2014, facilitated by UNMIL and funded by Irish Aid.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“On 1 June, UNMIL's Bangladeshi engineers will start refresher training for the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) on explosive remnants of war (ERW), following previous training by the United Nations Mine Action Service. That will equip the AFL to take over responsibility on 1 July for ERW in 11 of Liberia's 15 counties. UNMIL and the AFL will continue to work closely on the hand-over in the remaining four counties. On 16 April, a riot broke out in the Red Light area of Paynesville, just east of Monrovia, when a motorcyclist died following a confrontation with the National Police. In a single 12-hour period, three motorcyclists died in encounters in Monrovia allegedly involving members of the security forces. That fresh tension followed previous complaints of police brutality.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“On 21 April, Liberia became the tenth African country to ratify the Arms Trade Treaty. In March, the Liberian National Commission on Small Arms, together with UNMIL, delivered a first tranche of training on arms marking and registration for more than two dozen staff from a broad cross-section of the security agencies - the armed forces, the national security agency, the executive protection service, the Liberia National Police (LNP) and the immigration service - ahead of the June timeline envisaged in the security transition plan. I hope to see the Government's weapons-marking process begin by the end of this month, and the new draft standard operating procedure, containing minimum standards for weapons-marking, to be formalized this week.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“The plan recognizes that a successful security transition requires a whole-of-Government undertaking, with sustained political will at the highest levels. I have urged the Government to include the justice and security sectors in post-Ebola recovery planning. Liberia's draft economic stabilization and recovery plan acknowledges the need for greater resilience in the security sector, but foresees the financing of security needs as coming primarily from the national budget. With the security transition plan currently estimated at $76 million through June 2016 alone, this may prove difficult. The United Nations commends Liberia for meeting its initial benchmarks under the security transition plan. Since the report of the Secretary-General went to print, further benchmarks have been met.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“Progress against its benchmarks and timelines is being monitored by ajoint implementation group chaired by the Minister ofJustice and co-chaired by the UNMIL Special Representative, the Minister of Finance and Development Planning, the Minister of Defence, the United States Ambassador and an associate justice of the Supreme Court. While the security transition plan targets Liberia's assumption of tasks currently still performed by UNMIL, it also addresses gaps across the security sector in areas such as achieving greater operational effectiveness, improving management skills, reducing corruption and increasing public confidence through stronger oversight, accountability and professionalization.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“Even as Liberia launches its post-Ebola recovery, the Government has taken steps towards full assumption of its security responsibilities by 30 June 2016, as mandated by the Council. On 6 March, the Liberian National Security Council endorsed the Government of Liberia Plan for UNMIL Transition, in line with resolution 2190 (2014). This important plan was developed under the leadership ofthe Minister ofJustice with UNMIL support, and through consultations with national security agencies, ministries, the legislature, the judiciary and civil society.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“Ms. Landgren: As I speak to developments that have occurred since the period covered by the report of the Secretary-General that is before the Council (S/2015/275), all of Liberia is anticipating this Saturday, 9 May. If no new case has been confirmed by then, the World Health Organization expects to declare Liberia Ebola-free. After almost 14 months spent under the cloud of Ebola, this will be joyful news for the country. And last week, on 30 April, the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response in Liberia closed its doors, transferring residual tasks to the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) and United Nations agencies. Liberians and their Government, with support from the United Nations and international partners, have gotten firmly ahead of the epidemic. Now all Liberians must remain vigilant.”
2015-05-05 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7438 (2015) · source
“UNMIL has pledged to provide its full support and continues to review the range of capabilities we can bring to ending this latter-day plague, which must be stopped in its tracks and stopped soon.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“United Nations Headquarters continues to engage with Member States to secure an EVD-specific treatment centre and medical evacuation arrangements for United Nations personnel, the diplomatic community and front-line international EVD responders. From our own organization, we are seeking a decision to provide danger pay to our personnel in recognition of the severe stress and uncertainty of the unprecedented situation, which is, understandably, not captured within the existing United Nations regulations. This epidemic of unprecedented scale would challenge any Government and any society. Even as Liberia and its partners respond, the disaster continues to grow - a tragedy for a country that has seen so much hardship.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“In that connection, let me mention that in addition to reorienting our activities, UNMIL and the United Nations more broadly have advocated at the highest levels to prevent the international isolation of Liberia and its neighbours affected by the Ebola epidemic. The Mission is also seeking support arrangements for front-line international responders and the diplomatic community to enable them to stay and operate in Liberia. That includes access to UNMIL's shuttle flights between Monrovia and Accra, which were reactivated on 7 September, and access to UNMIL's medical facilities for routine medical care.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“UNMIL and the United Nations country team partners continue to benefit from a close and consultative relationship. Five weeks ago, I began bringing together a few leaders of the international health partner agencies on the front lines, including Doctors Without Borders and the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with a small number of United Nations colleagues, including the WHO leadership, to brainstorm around Ebola responses on a scale not foreseen by any existing protocols. Responding in that context is beyond any of us acting alone, and we will do everything we can to maintain those close links on the ground.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“UNMIL retains a civilian presence in each of Liberia's 15 counties, where we have always worked closely with local authorities. Since March, when Lofa county became the epicentre of the outbreak in Liberia, UNMIL has provided coordination support to county superintendents, county health teams and county EVD task forces. In discussion with several superintendents and county health teams, I have found insightful thinking, planning and initiatives around the basic measures of preventing the spread of Ebola. So far, however, many superintendents have received only $2,300 from the central Government. We understand that more funding may be on the way. Meanwhile, UNMIL has turned its ever-useful quick impact projects programme towards rapid Ebola support.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“We have played a large role in the logistics of the EVD response, both in the planning and the delivery of operations. UNMIL leads an interagency crisis logistics team comprising the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Food Programme, UNICEF and the International Committee of the Red Cross, which conducts logistics planning, inventory management, stock control, distribution and coordination at the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare. That team links closely with UNMIL logistics to deliver supplies throughout the country. In support of Government outreach efforts, UNMIL has engaged in nationwide communications on EVD education and prevention measures. That is done through traditional communicators, UNMIL radio programming in 17 Liberian languages, and the printing of over 150,000 flyers, among other things.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“Our military and police continue to provide operational advice and support to national counterparts, including embedding liaison officers within the joint command centre with Liberian military, police and immigration personnel. UNMIL has worked closely with the Ministry of Justice and the judiciary to address the extremely high rates of pre-trial detention, helping to alleviate some overcrowding in Liberia's major prisons, which is an added concern within the Ebola context. The Mission is not directly enforcing the quarantining of communities or counties, but is monitoring all security operations under the state of emergency. UNMIL's own security posture is kept under constant review to best place the Mission in its protection-of-civilians mandate.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“Given the reduced activity of the Government and other national actors, some of UNMIL's work, as originally conceived, has slowed in the areas of constitutional reform, national reconciliation, land reform, the capacity-building of security agencies, and natural resource management. UNMIL has not ceased its mandated activities, however, and other work has intensified with respect to the security sector and the rule of law, political good offices, the protection of civilians and human rights monitoring and support. In the fight against the EVD, the Mission is working through four pillars of engagement and support: security and the rule of law, logistics, communications and outreach, and coordination at both the central and the county levels.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“As in Guinea and Sierra Leone, discussions are under way to design an overarching coordination platform for response efforts in Liberia through a national and international partnership. Beyond an initial $20 million of Government funding approved by the legislature, of which $5 million have been made available, the related trust fund has not received significant financial support. Transparent and credible financial management will be essential, and the World Bank is working on a modality through its development trust fund. Since late July, UNMIL has turned its full focus on EVD and engaged in supporting the nationally led response.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“The Ebola outbreak has halted UNMIL's joint border operations with the United Nations Operation in Cote d'Ivoire and Ivorian authorities. Other than incidents within Cote d'Ivoire near the Liberian border in February and May, the border areas have been peaceful during 2014. Although Ivorian refugee returns remain suspended, the situation in the refugee camps remains calm. Early on in the crisis, the Government established a national task force on Ebola, chaired by the President herself, operating as overall leadership for the response in Liberia. The structure, which has undergone adjustments, has been criticized for failing to bring the epidemic under control. There have been calls in Liberia for a stronger international role in coordination structures.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“Although the delicate progress achieved in the security transition may be stalled by Ebola, the handover of security functions from the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) to national actors has so far taken place according to Government and UNMIL agreed timelines. Since the completion of the second phase of UNMIL's military drawdown in June, the Mission no longer has a fixed military presence in seven of Liberia's 15 counties, and four counties have no presence of UNMIL armed security response capacity. As increased funding is found to respond to EVD, it will be important that the Government take full responsibility for resourcing the Liberia National Police adequately and holding it accountable for delivery. Critical to that will be the ability to use the opportunity to deploy police officers more widely throughout the country.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“A successful Ebola response will require steady governance. Since the end of the civil war, Liberia has made progress in developing basic institutional capacities while laying the foundations for a transformed democratic State. However, the Ebola crisis has started to strip away some of that progress. The enormous task ofaddressing Ebola has revealed persistent and profound institutional weaknesses, including in the security sector. As demands pile up, the police face monumental challenges in planning and implementing large-scale operations due to poor logistics and communications, an overly centralized command structure and an over- concentration of personnel in Monrovia.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“The national constitutional conference envisaged for August could not be held, delaying national discussion of proposed amendments and the legislative consideration of proposals that was to follow. It pushes the national referendum on constitutional reforms into at least 2016. The Government is, by its own admission, extremely stretched. Several officials have reportedly left the country or remained abroad, despite the President's Office announcing on 11 August that officials who failed to return to the country within a week would lose their jobs. A lack of confidence in the Government's capacity to address the crisis has contributed to fluid political dynamics, and it has been widely reported that some Liberians, including among the diaspora, have called for an organized transition from the present Government.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“The EVD outbreak has also created uncertainty around some fundamental democratic processes. Noting that it would be unable to deliver credible senatorial elections in October, as scheduled, the National Elections Commission proposed a postponement until the second week of December, which would allow the vote to take place before the 15 incumbent senators finish their terms on 6 January. The legal framework for a postponement is being explored by the legislature and the Law Reform Commission. The National Elections Commission will need clarity soon. There is growing recognition that even a December electoral timeline may be difficult to maintain should the crisis stretch. The constitutional review process has also suffered.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“A number of forestry concessions have stopped operating and over 10,000 forestry workers have reportedly been laid off. With unemployment and underemployment already high, Ebola has added to Liberia's economic uncertainty. The Ministry of Finance and Development Planning has announced that the Government already faces a $57-million revenue shortfall, and informed donors of preliminary indications of a $ll6-million budget gap. Growth projections have been revised downward to 2.9 per cent from 5.9 per cent. The executive is revising the budget to reflect revenue shortfalls and to assure that the Government has the resources to operate while responding to Ebola. The national budget for the fiscal year beginning 1 July not having been passed, the Government has been operating on an advance equivalent to one-twelfth of last year's budget.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“Criteria for passage at checkpoints have not been consistently implemented or clearly communicated to the public, and opportunities for vigilantism and profiteering have increased. Although some coordination has been visible among security agencies in the EVD response, each agency has planned and executed its own security operation, with coordination more visible at the county level. A joint command centre has been established to oversee nationwide operations. The halting of cross-border trade, domestic movement restrictions and general economic uncertainty have prompted panic buying of food and other goods. Several major concessions have reassured the Government and their own employees that they are not planning to close, although many have reduced operations and repatriated foreign personnel.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“Those operations, to date, have not always included prior arrangements to make available food and water, or sufficient supportive engagement with the communities concerned. On 20 August, when the Government mounted an AFL-led operation to isolate the West Point area of Monrovia, the prices of essential goods within the cordon skyrocketed within hours. Panicked residents protested the cordon, and in the confrontation with the AFL shots were fired and a 15-year old boy was fatally wounded. Following that incident, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf made the commitment that there would be no further use of lethal force, and on 30 August the West Point cordon was lifted. Movement restrictions throughout the country continue, including through operations of the Armed Forces.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“Extraordinary measures were required, the President said, including the suspension of some constitutionally guaranteed rights. The legislature endorsed the decision, as required by the Constitution. Later in the month, a curfew was instituted from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., since yesterday pushed back to 11 p.m. Within the context of the state of emergency, the narrow domestic role of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) was broadened and the army deployed, along with the National Police and the Immigration Service, to isolate highly Ebola-affected counties and communities and to protect the less-affected counties. The benefits of isolating Ebola-affected communities to prevent disease transmission are not clear.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“By late July, the EVD outbreak had triggered widespread alarm and the Government took several measures. Borders were closed, other than at a few strictly controlled crossing points; non-essential Government workers were sent on mandatory leave; and most Government travel was restricted. Border markets, schools and other institutions were ordered to close, and large gatherings were suspended. But Ebola's spread outpaced the Government's ability to respond. In several instances, public anger broke out over the failure to remove the bodies of EVD victims from streets and houses. On 6 August, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf declared a 90-day state of emergency, stating that the scale and scope of the epidemic exceeded the response capacity of national institutions and existing legal frameworks.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“Advocacy and community mobilization, the prompt removal of suspected EVD cases from communities to case management centres, the urgent and safe disposal of bodies, and robust contact tracing and active case search are the main elements. That does require going community to community - and even door to door - to inquire, inform and support. It requires health workers to staff Ebola case management centres, while employing meticulous infection control measures. For now, patients at advanced stages of EVD continue to be brought to facilities that cannot admit them. Four new case management centres will be established in Monrovia, adding some 500 beds in the capital alone, but even this may not fully respond to the needs. We will know this epidemic is being outrun when we find that there is spare bed capacity.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“The Liberian health system was the region's weakest, despite a decade of partnership efforts; now, at least 160 health workers have contracted the disease and 80 have died. Most health workers have gone long stretches without proper protective equipment, training or pay. Local funeral rites that involve the touching and washing of the dead have led to countless new deaths and will need to be replaced with safer rituals, requiring the commitment of religious and traditional leaders. Many communities denied that Ebola existed at all. There is no real disagreement among health experts about what needs to be done.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“Ms. Landgren: The report ofthe Secretary-General on Liberia (S/2014/598) that is before the Council has been overtaken by the Ebola virus disease (EVD) epidemic. Liberians are facing their gravest threat since the war and my remarks will focus on that. The spread of the EVD in Liberia has been merciless. The Ministry of Health puts the number of reported cases above 2,070, with over 1,200 deaths, but these numbers understate Ebola's true toll. The speed and scale of the loss of lives and the economic, social, political and security reverberations of the crisis are affecting Liberia profoundly. Unlike an earthquake or a flood, this crisis grows exponentially, with every fresh infection begetting others. Caring for the sick and burying the dead are traditions now freighted with risk.”
2014-09-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7260 (2014) · source
“But the Council should be under no illusion that the bulk of UNMIL work can be assumed by anyone other than the Government of Liberia itself. Continuing to manage an appropriate exit strategy from Liberia, in whose stability the international community has invested so much, will remain a delicate challenge for UNMIL and for the Council.”
2014-03-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7145 (2014) · source
“With the closure of our sister mission in Sierra Leone this month, we reflect on the stability that has returned to West Africa and to Liberia's neighbours. As we look ahead, we are conscious of regional and national watershed events to come: presidential elections in 2015 in Guinea and Cote d'Ivoire, and in 2017 in Liberia. Much is at stake here, and stability and confidence will need to be maintained. We are equally conscious of the enormous pressures on United Nations peacekeeping globally, with resources needed in several countries simply to avert immediate bloodshed. UNMIL is currently engaged in a comparative analysis with the United Nations country team, on which we expect to report at our next meeting.”
2014-03-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7145 (2014) · source
“Over 46,000 Ivorian refugees remain in Liberia, and I am concerned that recent events, including an attack in Cote d'Ivoire near the border on 23 February, may have a chilling effect on returns. I am encouraged that the two Governments, with UNHCR, plan to resume the work of the Tripartite Commission on Humanitarian and Refugee Issues at the ministerial-level meeting this month. Despite a long period of calm, the situation remains fragile along the Liberia/Cote d'Ivoire border. Aside from their apparent security cooperation, engagement between the two Governments on concrete measures to stabilize the border has continued to be overshadowed by other priorities, or hampered by resource constraints.”
2014-03-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7145 (2014) · source
“Voluntary repatriations surpassed targets in 2013, and in January and February of this year over 5,300 refugees returned to Cote d'Ivoire, with the assistance of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). However, in the early morning hours of 17 February, the Government of Liberia, a party to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, forcibly returned a group of Ivorians, including 14 refugees, to Cote D'Ivoire, in breach of international law, in what appears to have been a closely coordinated operation with the Ivorian Government. Six ofthe refugees have since been returned to Liberia. The Government has not been forthcoming with UNMIL as to the nature of the operation.”
2014-03-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7145 (2014) · source
“The centre is working to resolve this and to demarcate the properties. The United Nations Peacebuilding Fund-supported alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, such as the land coordination centres, using trained staff, will remain important and should receive significant international support for the years to come. As the local head of the land coordination centre explained to me, its mediation role is free, also making it more attractive to users than the justice system. Since I last addressed this body (see S/PV.7029), there has been steady progress towards durable solutions for those who sought refuge in Liberia in connection with the Ivorian post-election crisis.”
2014-03-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7145 (2014) · source
“Measures have also been taken to implement the recommendations of last year's management and accountability review of the police, judiciary and prosecution, which were validated in November. Among these is the drafting of a police act, which is expected to address clear and merit-based recruitment and promotion procedures within the police and issues of police oversight. However, the disbarring of the Minister of Justice for six months by the Supreme Court in January has created additional challenges to gaining momentum in justice and security sector reforms. Meanwhile, there are encouraging parallel developments that can also help to reduce conflict. Last week I visited one of Liberia's six land coordination centres, in Harper, Maryland county, and met with two claimants who had been locked in decades of dispute over their lands.”
2014-03-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7145 (2014) · source
“Some 75 per cent of the prison population is in pre-trial detention, creating insecurity in overcrowded prisons, while failure effectively to prosecute even serious crimes promotes a culture of impunity. Many courts in Liberia still fail to sit, and those that do address a minute fraction of pending cases, with UNMIL monitoring showing that, on average, only 8 per cent of cases are fully tried. The first justice and security hub is operational and has brought services to the counties it covers. Based on lessons learned, services are now slowly being rolled out in the second and third hubs. Once hubs are established, it is the Government's obligation to sustain their functioning.”
2014-03-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7145 (2014) · source
“To achieve this, however, they have spread existing capacity more thinly, and at times diverted resources away from priority areas. When planning began for this security transition, the impending withdrawal of United Nations forces from any county prompted public and Government anxiety. The public discourse has shifted now to acknowledging that UNMIL will not be staying forever. The coming phases will need careful management. The detailedjoint planning to date, Government and UNMIL dialogue with communities, and the calibrated and gradual phasing of the drawdown have been instrumental in allaying concerns, while making clear the goals to be reached by Liberia's security institutions. An effective security sector needs to work with a functioning criminal justice system that inspires public trust, which remains extremely low in Liberia.”
2014-03-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7145 (2014) · source
“At the conclusion ofthese movements, half of Liberia's counties will be left without a fixed United Nations military presence, with the remaining battalions configured to provide coverage in Monrovia and along the Cote d'Ivoire and Guinea borders, which are also the country's most populated areas. The joint transition planning process is an example of exceptional collaboration between UNMIL and the Government. The implementation of the first phase highlighted deep institutional weaknesses and stringent resource constraints. National institutions have begun taking on security functions in areas no longer covered by UNMIL, such as static guard duties at important locations, including at the Monrovia Freeport and the Central Bank.”
2014-03-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7145 (2014) · source
“The framework is expected to be signed by the LNP and UNMIL next week. A similarjoint baseline assessment of the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization will be completed this year. Following a security sector reform retreat in September, marked by frank discussion, the National Security Council is overseeing preparation of a new national security strategy. UNMIL will continue to offer support through this process. In June, UNMIL will complete the second phase of its three-phase military drawdown endorsed by the Council. As I speak, United Nations troops are withdrawing from counties along the Sierra Leone border to cover other areas, and another battalion is being repatriated.”
2014-03-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7145 (2014) · source
“However, more needs to be done to operationalize the LNP regional training centre in Harper, and to make better use of training facilities at the justice and security hub in Gbarnga. The President has also committed to achieving a better balance in the 2014-2015 national budget between infrastructure and national security, and to streamlining procedures for financing recurrent costs. There has been progress in a number of areas within the security sector following a series of reviews conducted last year. Most notable has been the baseline assessment of the Liberia National Police, which has informed a new LNP strategic plan and a joint LNP- United Nations development framework that outlines specific and targeted interventions to fill gaps, while including a robust monitoring and evaluation system.”
2014-03-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7145 (2014) · source
“These funds will also help to resource urgent operational requirements related to the security transition. UNMIL applauds the Minister's continued involvement, which has also addressed critical needs at the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization. The second is the President's own commitment to activating more training resources and the better use of facilities. With partners, the United Nations has supported the fast-tracking of management training for officers of the LNP and the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration. Together with the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization, UNMIL is also supporting the conversion of former UNMIL facilities in Foya, Lofa county, into a new immigration training centre.”
2014-03-20 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7145 (2014) · source