YouSaid · the spoken record

Lieutenant General Afzal

lines on the record
14
first
2010-08-06
most recent
2010-08-06
sittings or episodes
1
sources
un-security-council

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  1. “As has been noted, the existing budget for this year has been increased nominally for the Government security sector. Last but not least, I would like to conclude by saying that without providing security, there can be no governance and no security.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  2. “The existing United Nations military strength in Liberia is 8,000, and the existing military strength of the armed forces of Liberia stands at 2,000. The Council is well aware of where the gap already lies, and what is essential is to raise more officers for the Liberian National Police, which should be able to fulfil the security requirements during the forthcoming elections and afterwards. This would not only mean raising additional police, but also establishing police stations, providing them with vehicles, wherewithal, communications and, last but not least, the sustenance required for the police personnel to be operable in the long run. This also relates to Liberia's limited budget. With a limited budget, they can only provide so much space for the security sector within the existing budget.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  3. “We also identified the existing capacity of that particular agency of the Government of Liberia to undertake the task and the assistance and guidance that would be required to develop that capacity and capability. Moving on to the forthcoming elections, UNMIL is mandated to provide logistical support and, as I mentioned earlier, we can do it with the existing resources. However, there is definitely going to be an area of concern, and that would be the capacity of the security forces of Liberia themselves, especially the police and the military, to ensure security during this period. As the Council is well aware, the existing United Nations police strength in Liberia is 4,000 personnel, whereas the strength of the Liberian National Police stands at 3,000.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  4. “Secondly, the transition phase, which is the handing over of security responsibilities from UNMIL to the Government of Liberia's security agencies, is already in progress. On the instructions of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, UNMIL commenced with a workshop, which was held in June this year, between not only UNMIL and the Government of Liberia's different departments and ministries, but also experts from other missions that had transitioned to this phase. As a consequence, we identified a list of those actions or functions that UNMIL undertakes at present to provide security and those persons who, from the side of the Government of Liberia, would be taking over that responsibility in the future.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  5. “Lieutenant General Afzal: I appreciate the concern shown by the members of the Council in respect of Liberia and will endeavour to answer the questions that they have raised. I would like to thank all participants for their questions, especially the question dealing with the transition from the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) to the security forces of Liberia and the concern they have shown for the successful completion of the Mission. First, to start in a sequential manner, the drawdown, as envisaged to date by the Security Council, has been completed, and the present strength of the UNMIL military and police components, including the enablers, is more than sufficient to meet the requirements that the Security Council has mandated for the conduct of the forthcoming elections by the end of next year.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  6. “From a situation of success we may have another Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of the Congo or Haiti on our hands. I humbly request the members of the Security Council, donor countries and other players to invest and focus all their resources on strengthening the Liberian police and military and improving the communication infrastructure in the country over the next few years, so that UNMIL can leave as a success.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  7. “However, slow progress in security sector reform, the absence of police infrastructure, a limited national security presence in outlying counties and weak capacity of the criminal justice sector pose huge challenges to the transition process. Considerable assistance from the United Nations and bilateral partners is required to ensure a smooth and seamless transition process. In conclusion, I would like to submit that while at present the situation is calm and stable, this is primarily as a result of the deterrence of the UNMIL force and the United Nations police. However, in case a rapid withdrawal of the force is undertaken after the elections without building the capacity of the country's security sector, the potential for the country slipping into internal strife cannot be ruled out.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  8. “In order to fulfil its mandate, it has to undertake more aerial and ground patrolling, which implies more flying hours and more consumption of fuel and wear and tear on equipment. Thus, the tasks cannot be completed when a reduced budget is allocated to the Mission. The third challenge is the transition in security tasks from UNMIL to the Government of Liberia. The Mission's exit strategy envisages a final withdrawal when Liberia has a self-sustainable security sector able to perform independent of the UNMIL mission. Transition planning has commenced for UNMIL's handover of its currently mandated security sector responsibilities to the appropriate national agencies, following a very fruitful and productive workshop in June. Significant progress has been achieved.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  9. “Let me conclude by highlighting three major challenges for UNMIL and its force in the near future. First, the upcoming national elections at the end of 2011 will be a prominent marker in measuring the success of the UNMIL mission and in shaping the Mission's withdrawal from Liberia. Support for the elections is expected to place a huge burden on the UNMIL force to deal with any volatile situations, as well as on logistics capabilities, particularly in the light of UNMIL's reduced numbers. The second challenge is the budgetary constraints as a consequence of drawdown and the funding available for peacekeeping. While the force has been reduced in numbers, its tasks remain the same.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  10. “Some of the lessons learned in the past year have led to making the crisis management mechanisms within UNMIL more effective. Joint exercises of UNMIL military and UNMIL police personnel have increased. There is a need to train and equip the United Nations military force to respond to civil disorder by establishing within the military contingents company- sized units capable of conducting riot control. Steps have been taken to improve joint military-police cooperation, in the shape of table-top exercises and rehearsals on the ground. On the crisis-management side, a formal crisis-management team and a crisis- management working group have been established - chaired by the special Representative of the Secretary- General - and the effectiveness of the Joint Operations Centre has been improved.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  11. “The drawdown has meant that remaining units have had to extend their areas of responsibility with no additional resources. As a consequence, it has become difficult to maintain a presence in all districts, and UNMIL has increased the number of extended long- distance patrols by air and by road. In addition, our reaction time in dealing with unforeseen situations has increased. Therefore, the battalion-sized quick reaction force is now based in Monrovia and at two forward operating bases adjacent to main communication routes to the Guinea and Cote d'Ivoire borders. In the absence of engineering capacity within the country, it is the force engineers who keep the roads open all year round and thus ensure that logistics reach not only the United Nations camps, but also the local populace.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  12. “Many displaced people have settled in areas belonging to other people, and the laws relating to property rights, boundaries and natural resources are not clear. When tribal and ethnic factors are added in, disagreements can quickly turn violent. UNMIL military has successfully completed stage three of its drawdown. Its military strength is now 8,102, down from 14,000 personnel, representing 43 different troop-contributing countries, as mandated by the Security Council in its resolution 1885 (2009) of September 2009. UNMIL remains headquartered in Monrovia. The operating forces are deployed in two sectors, with three infantry battalions each, a force reserve of a battalion, six engineer companies and three field hospitals.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  13. “Although Liberia is generally calm and peaceful, unemployment, poverty and weak infrastructure are hampering development. Let me highlight some of the most serious security challenges to Liberia. The greatest challenge facing the Government of Liberia is that of law and order and dealing with criminality. Linked to this is the problem of maintaining internal security. The root of the problem is the population's lack of confidence in the police and judicial systems. The police lack the ability to respond to crime effectively, although the situation is improving. At the same time, the judicial system does not have the capacity to deal with the increasing caseload. The lack of confidence often results in vigilante mob justice requiring the intervention of UNMIL. 3 Land disputes are a common occurrence in Liberia as a legacy of the war.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source

  14. “Lieutenant General Afzal: My name is Sikander Afzal and I am the Force Commander of the United Nation Mission in Liberia (UNMIL). It is an honour for me to be allowed to say a few words about the Mission in Liberia. Liberia is emerging from the devastation caused by 14 years of civil war. Its Government is taking the right steps to improve infrastructure, governance and the well-being of its people with the help of the world community, donor nations and the United Nations. However, it still has a long way to go. From a regional perspective, there is no direct threat to Liberia from any of its neighbours, but the volatility of the region, coupled with the tribal, ethnic and demographic links among regional countries means that a serious event in any one country is likely to spill over into another.”

    2010-08-06 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.6370 (2010) · source