Sierra Leone
UN assesses peace process in Sierra Leone

afrol News, 30 June - The chairman of the UN Security Council sanctions committee on Sierra Leone has arrived in the capital, Freetown, to assess the current peace process and political developments in the country. The biggest threat to peace now comes from increased fighting in Liberia. 

During his stay, Ambassador Adolfo Zinser of Mexico is scheduled to hold discussions with President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah and members of his cabinet, as well as the Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Sierra Leone, Oluyemi Adeniji, and other senior officials of the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL).

The sanctions committee was set up in 1997 to monitor and report on violations of the arms embargo imposed against Sierra Leone when a military junta overthrew the democratically elected government of President Kabbah in May of that year.

Meanwhile, Mr Adeniji this week visited several towns bordering Liberia to assess the refugee and returnee situation in the area. He also crossed the Mano River Bridge to Bo Waterside in Liberia, where he sought assurances from the Liberians that refugees and returnees were being allowed to cross freely into Sierra Leone.

Adeniji said it was "an irony of fate" that the inflow of refugees is in the opposite direction than in the past - now from Liberia to Sierra Leone.

Sierra Leone's decade of civil war was officially declared over last January, but renewed fights in neighbouring Liberia are seen to destabilise the entire region. Liberian rebels and government troops repeatedly have crossed over to the Sierra Leonean side of the border and a large influx of Liberian refugees and maybe weapons is also threatening the Sierra Leonean peace process. 

UNAMSIL Brig. Gen. George Ayi Bonte however today told Mr Zinser that the security situation in the southern districts, bordering Liberia, was "calm" despite the “continuous inflow of Liberian refugees” into Sierra Leone. He assured the ambassador that UNAMSIL was "closely monitoring potential tension points" and assisting the UN refugee agency UNHCR in transporting Liberian refugees to camps further inland.

Zinser is also visiting the diamond-rich district of Kono to assess the current situation in the zone that earlier fuelled the Sierra Leonean civil war. In Kenema, some tensions have arisen regarding illegal occupation of houses by ex-combatants. The UNAMSIL sector commander says that "scarce job opportunities are exacerbating the tensions," stressing that ex-combatants involved in mining had "no other prospects" for getting a job. District authorities were, however, urging the ex-combatants to exercise patience.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in his latest report on Sierra Leone however states that the country's prospects for peace are "encouraging," but Sierra Leone – with international assistance – must consolidate progress and tackle the challenges ahead.

Mr Annan's report called on the international community to "stay the course" in Sierra Leone, adding that the country's authorities "must deliver the peace dividend to the people and address not only the consequences of the war, but also its root causes, including corruption, human rights abuses, highly centralized government structures and neglect of the developmental needs of the population in the provinces."

Sources: Based on UN sources and afrol archives

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