Liberia is getting the UNSC’s green light to begin arming itself at the time Liberia’s long traditional border with the Sierra Leone and its volatile Francophone neighbors – Guinea and Cote D’Ivoire – the two countries that are blaming Liberia for their woes.The report spoke specifically of the increasing difficulty of managing nighttime movements at border crossings in Grand Cape Mount and Grand Gedeh, an issue it said has been widely reported by the local population.
LIBERIA: No More Arms Embargo
December 21, 2009
When the world was unanimous in the early 1990s that the then divided Liberia was the exporter of violence to the ECOWAS subregion, the UN slammed an arms embargo on rebels in the so-called “Greater Liberia” and the transitional government in Monrovia.
Even though critics say the embargo did very little to stop the flow of arms and spread of violence to the subregion, it remained the symbol of UN’s disapproval of arms falling into the hands of belligerent non-state actors and international arm-for-gemstone smugglers.
The global policeman says the threat has dissipated and that it is now time to let go.
The Analyst Staff has been looking at the reasons, strings attached, and implications of ending the embargo. UN Security Council (UNSC) has “adjusted” the arms embargo it imposed on Liberia some 17 years ago, making way for Liberia to help fight domestic crimes, and track and control arms movement as well as help secure its porous borders from pirates and smugglers.
The UNSC voted unanimous last Thursday in a meeting that lasted barely four minutes to authorize Liberia, for a 12-month trial period, to acquire certain military materiel for defensive purposes.
“[The UNSC decides that the measures on arms… shall not apply to the supply, sale or transfer of arms and related materiel and the provision of any assistance, advice or training, related to military activities, to the government of Liberia…” says Resolution 1903, which holds that UNMIL remains in charge of security in Liberia.
The resolution says the UNMIL factor in Liberia’s security equation remains significant because it has determined that despite the significant progress being made in Liberia, the situation there continued to constitute a threat to international peace and security in the region. The resolution also extended the 6-year-old asset-freeze regulation on former Taylor associates.
Reasons, Strings Attached
The resolution, which is based on the force of the recommendation contained in the December 11, 2009 Report of the UN Panel of Experts, said existing condition inside Liberia, plus the fact that the Sirleaf Administration has cooperated with UNMIL in its arms tracking and control program necessitated the end of the embargo.
“The Panel has not found any concrete evidence of major actual or attempted violations of the arms embargo. The national capacity of the Liberian Government to control weapons and to provide security to its citizens remains low, which is of particular concern to the Panel given the volatile regional situation in Guinea and Côte d’Ivoire,” says the Report of the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1521 (2003) concerning Liberia. The report was signed by Chairman Abdurrahman Mohamed Shalgham.
In June 2009, according to the report, the Government of Liberia completed its internal process of ratification of the “Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons, Their Ammunition and Other Related Materials of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)” but that it has yet to deposit its instrument of ratification with the ECOWAS secretariat.
It is not clear what Liberia’s delay in depositing the instrument of ratification would mean to its chances of acquiring arms to equip its security forces, but the unanimous resolution welcomed the “sustained progress made by the Government of Liberia since January 2006, in rebuilding Liberia for the benefit of all Liberians, with the support of the international community”.
The resolution said more instructive to the decision of UNSC was the fact that Government of Liberia had cooperated with UNMIL in weapons marking, even though it noted that insufficient progress has been made towards that end. It did not say who was responsible for the slow or lack of sufficient progress.
But it encouraged all stakeholders, including donors, to support the Government of Liberia in its efforts to meet the conditions of the resolution, which regard appropriate enforcement of the Kimberly diamond scheme for Liberia vis-à-vis border smuggling especially from neighboring Cote d’Ivoire.
It was however quick to note that there were more steep hills to climb in order to control border problems associated with arms-for-diamond trading believed to be sprouting alone the Guinea-to-Liberia-Cote d’Ivoire-to-Liberia contraband axis. As with every worthwhile opportunity comes responsibility, UNSC has demanded that the government of Liberia make all efforts necessary to enforce the asset freeze imposed against sanctioned persons and entities, which, it affirmed, was still in force.
The resolution stressed what it called the “continuing importance” of UNMIL in improving security throughout Liberia and helping the government establish its authority throughout the country, particularly in the diamond, timber, and other natural resources-producing regions, and border areas. This implies to observers that the now embargo-free Liberia would be required to play central role in deciding the level, intensity, and direction of its security programs and plan – both domestic and external.
The Council noted that acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations, it has decided that all states take the necessary measures to prevent the direct or indirect supply, sale or transfer, of weaponries from their territories to Liberia.
It mandated further that the states must also ensure that their nationals, or using their flag vessels or aircraft, do not transfer or sell arms and any related materiel, or provide assistance to any assistance, advice or training related to military activities.
The restrictions, it said, included financing and financial assistance, to all non-governmental entities and individuals operating in the territory of Liberia for a period of 12 months as of December 17, 2009. It did not say what would happen with regards to such activities beyond the stated period, but it noted that the restriction on non-state actors did not include UNMIL and troops contributing countries.
The Resolution makes allowance for troop contributing countries and UN to supply arms and related materiel as well as technical training and assistance intended solely for support of or use by the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL). The United Nations is also permitted to supply protective clothing, including flak jackets and military helmets for the use of UNMIL. Representatives of the media and humanitarian and development workers and associated personnel may also import such non-weapon materiel for the use of their personnel.
Also allowable under the arms embargo adjustment is the supply of other non-lethal military equipment intended solely for humanitarian or protective use, and related technical assistance and training, as notified in advance to the UN Committee established for the purpose.
“[The UNSC] decides, for the period time set forth …that all States shall notify in advance to the Committee any shipment of arms and related materiel to the Government of Liberia, or any provision of assistance, advice or training related to military activities for the Government of Liberia.” the resolution says.
UNMIL is exempt from the advance notice requirement, which UNSC said must state clearly, where applicable, the type and quantity of weapons and ammunitions delivered, the end-user, the proposed date of delivery and the itinerary of shipments.
It then noted that the Government of Liberia shall subsequently mark the weapons and ammunition, maintain a registry of them, and formally notify the Committee that these steps have been taken.
Relevant Links
It said once a year, the UNSC would review the measures imposed; it has therefore directed the Committee, in coordination with the relevant designating states and with the assistance of the Panel of Experts, to update as necessary the publicly available reasons for listing for entries on the travel ban and assets freeze lists as well as the Committee’s guidelines. Once the Liberian government met the requirements for the permanent end of the arms embargo and provided justification, UNSC said would not hesitate to act accordingly.
But what was necessary in the interim, the resolution says, was for “all states” and the Sirleaf Administration to cooperate fully with the Panel of Experts in all the aspects of its mandate, which includes monitoring of the Liberian government cooperation with the 2009 Kimberley Process review team to strengthen internal controls over diamond mining and exports.
“The Panel recommends setting up a working group comprising UNMIL, the Liberian National Commission on Small Arms, the different ministries in charge of armed security forces personnel and the US Embassy in order to support the government of Liberia in complying with the requirements of the ECOWAS Convention and the recommendations of the international instrument to enable States to identify and trace, in a timely and reliable manner, illicit small arms and light weapons,” said a UN Panel report.
It said consistent support should be provided, in partnership with UNMIL, to permit the government of Liberia to acquire the capacity to mark and register properly the weapons imported into the country and to build gradually its own capacity to manage properly and safely the weapon and ammunition disposal process. Continue reading “No More Arms Embargo: Does What Happens in Liberia, Stay in Liberia?” →
GUINEA OYE! 