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UNAMSIL PRESS BRIEFING
29 MAY 2001
(Near Verbatim)
MARGARET NOVICKI- SPOKESMAN
AND MAJOR MOHAMMED YERIMA - MILITARY SPOKESMAN
SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL TO OPEN TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION SEMINAR IN FREETOWN TODAY
The Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Ambassador Oluyemi Adeniji, today officially opened a four-day international seminar on operational, management and financial issues related to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). The seminar, which was organized by the Human Rights Section of UNAMSIL, is being held at the Lagoonda Complex, Cape Sierra, in Freetown.
Among the issues to be discussed are strategies and methodologies for investigating human rights abuses; guidelines on the relationship between the TRC and the independent Special Court; and the internal organization of the Commission. Participants in the seminar include local and international lawyers and legal activists, and officials from UNAMSIL, UNDP and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. The Minister of Presidential Affairs, Hon. Momodu Koroma, UNAMSIL's Deputy SRSG, Mr. Behrooz Sadry, and the British High Commissioner, Mr. Alan Jones, are among the speakers expected to give closing remarks on Friday, 1 June.
SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL AND FORCE COMMANDERS MEET RUF AND CDF IN KOIDU
The Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Ambassador Oluyemi Adeniji, visited the eastern town of Koidu in Kono district on Friday, 25 May, and on Saturday, 26 May, where he met with representatives of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) and the Civil Defence Force (CDF), in an effort to stop ceasefire violations and continuation of hostilities in Kono district. The SRSG was accompanied on the visits by the Force Commander, Lt. Gen. Daniel I. Opande, the Deputy Force Commander, Maj. Gen. Martin L. Agwai, and the Chief Military Observer, Brig. General I.S.A. Chisuzi.
Saturday's meeting was attended by a Government delegation, including Deputy Defence Minister and Coordinator of CDF Chief Hinga Norman, Minister of Political and Parliamentary Affairs Mr. Abu Koroma, and the Resident Minister of State for Eastern Region, Mr. S. Fillie-Faboe, as well as and the Chairman of the RUF's Political and Peace Council, Mr. Omrie Golley, and Brig. Morris Kallon.
The tripartite meeting of the Government of Sierra Leone/CDF, RUF and UNAMSIL was very productive and resulted in a reaffirmation by the CDF and RUF of strict respect henceforth of the ceasefire agreement, as well as a decision on disarmament in Kono.
UNAMSIL DEPUTY FORCE COMMANDER MEETS CIVIL DEFENCE FORCE AND REVOLUTIONARY UNITED FRONT IN KOIDU
The Deputy Force Commander, Maj. Gen. Martin L. Agwai, yesterday, 28 May, met with the leadership of the Civil Defense Force (CDF) and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) in the eastern town of Koidu, in Kono district, in his third confidence-building visit to the area in less than a week.
Addressing CDF commanders, Maj. Gen. Agwai commended them for the comportment of their men since they arrived at the Koidu football stadium on Friday, 25 May. He informed them that the combatants would leave for the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) camp in Daru, where food and medicine will be available. The commanders would remain in Koidu to assist UNAMSIL with administrative details. The Deputy Force Commander then presented the CDF leaders with items of clothing donated by the Government of Sierra Leone.
Gen. Agwai then chaired a meeting with the RUF leadership, where he credited them for complying with the ceasefire agreement and for cooperating with UNAMSIL troops deployed in Koidu. In response, the RUF leaders expressed their satisfaction with the neutrality displayed by UNAMSIL in discharge of its duties and appealed to the peacekeepers to prevail upon NGOs and humanitarian agencies to provide services for the needy people of Kono.
The Deputy Force Commander also asked the two parties to prepare for a meeting which will be held on 2 June with Government of Sierra Leone and UNAMSIL that will review the disarmament process so far and chart the way forward. He also asked them to provide the estimated numbers of those to be disarmed in Kono district for planning purposes.
Maj. Gen. Agwai was accompanied by the Sector 4 Commander, Brig. Gen. Ali Hassan, and other UNAMSIL civilian and military officials.
DISARMAMENT CONCLUDES IN KAMBIA AND PORT LOKO DISTRICTS
UNAMSIL Force Commander Lt. Gen. Daniel I. Opande yesterday visited Kambia and Port Loko districts to bring to a conclusion the disarmament exercise. Disarmament in the two districts began on 18 May for a 10-day period, as per the 15 May Freetown agreement between the Government of Sierra Leone and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF).
Arriving in Mange, Lt. Gen. Opande, accompanied by Chief Military Observer Brig. Gen. I.S.A. Chisuzi and head of UNAMSIL's Political Section, Mr. Peter Tingwa, was met by UNAMSIL military commanders and the former RUF 3rd Brigade Commander, Col. Bai Bureh, and his deputy, Lt. Col. Emmanuel.
The Force Commander then proceeded to Rokupr, Kambia and Kukuna. In Kambia, he and his entourage were welcomed to Kambia City Hall by Mr. N. Yillah, Deputy Chairman of the Revolutionary United Front Party (RUFP), Kambia.
Mr. Yillah led a welcome song in honor of the Force Commander and his entourage and thanked UNAMSIL for its timely intervention by deploying in Kambia District. He enumerated the problems of the populace of the district, including social and economic distress, and lack of food, health care and education. Expressing his delight for the just-concluded disarmament process, he implored the community to forgive and forget about the past.
In his response, the Force Commander thanked the population for cooperating with the RUF in bringing peace to Kambia and implored the people to assist the government in its efforts to rebuild the district.
In Kukuna, Col. Bai Bureh introduced the Force Commander and his entourage to the chiefs and people of the town. The Force Commander congratulated them on their cooperation during the disarmament exercise and briefed them on UNAMSIL's deployment throughout Sierra Leone. Gen. Opande also informed them about the deployment of the Sierra Leone Army (SLA) to the district, beginning today, 29 May, and urged them to cooperate with SLA personnel who will protect their border with Guinea.
For the period 18 May through 28 May, in the Port Loko and Kambia districts, a total of 3,348 combatants have disarmed, of which 1,088 are RUF and 2,260 are CDF. Teams from Defense Headquarters and the Sierra Leone Police have visited the Port Loko DDR camp, briefing the ex-combatants on the criteria and procedures for absorption into the army and police force.
UNAMSIL AND JIMMY B HOLD PEACE CONCERT IN MAKENI
Sierra Leone's leading pop star, "Jimmy B" Bangura, and his Paradise Family of musicians and performers on Saturday entertained the population of Makeni, in northern Sierra Leone, in a well-attended concert for peace. The concert was organized by the Public Information Section of the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL), with the assistance of Nigerian Battalion 7, which is deployed in Makeni.
Thousands of Makeni residents turned out for the free concert, the first such event in the formerly Revolutionary United Front (RUF)-held town in more than a decade.
They were treated to performances by AB4U, Daddi Saj, Wizi Waza, YOK7, Original Tinga, Fisher, Sistas With Attitude, Conscious Knowledge, Mattoh, Breeze, and Flicker, before Jimmy B took to the stage with his dancers and musicians for a powerful rendition of hit songs carrying the messages of peace and reconciliation.
A Government delegation led by the Minister of Rural Development and Local Government, Mr. J.B. Dauda, traveled to Makeni for the concert. It also included Mr. A.O. Timbo, the Minister of Labour, Industrial Relations and Social Security; Mr. Ibrahim Sesay, the Minister of State for the North; Dr. Cecil Blake, the Minister of Information and Broadcasting; Dr. C.A. Jalloh, the Minister of Energy and Power; Mrs. Theresa Koroma, the Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry; Mr. Abass Collier, the Deputy Minister of Education, Youth and Sports; and Mr. Kanja Sesay, Commissioner of the National Commission for Rehabilitation, Resettlement and Reconstruction.
The RUF delegation was headed by Col. Jonathan Kposowa, chief of administration, and included Col. Dennis Lansana, Col. Patrick Beinda, Col. Molesky Kallon, Col. Ben Kenneh, Col. Bangalie, Lt. Col. Musa Koroma and Pastor Alpha.
Mr. Dauda carried a peace message to the people of Makeni from President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, while Col. Kposowa expressed the RUF's determination to abide by the peace agreements it had signed. The Government and RUF delegations joined Jimmy B on stage to dance together to the final song of the show.
UNAMSIL wishes to express its deep gratitude to Jimmy B and the Paradise Family for donating their talents in support of the cause of peace.
RUF HANDS OVER NEARLY 600 CHILD COMBATANTS TO UNAMSIL
In a ceremony in the Northern Province town of Makeni on 25 May, the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) handed over 591 former child combatants to UNAMSIL. The Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Ambassador Oluyemi Adeniji, received the children on the UN's behalf.
Also present were Government of Sierra Leone officials, RUF commanders, and representatives of the Diplomatic Corps. Four hundred and twenty-four children, including 10 girls, were released in Makeni, and the others at reception centers elsewhere in the country.
The release of abducted children is one of the key provisions of the Lomé Peace Agreement, the Abuja Ceasefire Agreement and the 15 May 2001 Freetown disarmament agreement between the RUF and the Government of Sierra Leone, in which the RUF agreed, "to release to UNAMSIL all child combatants and abductees, particularly children, young women, starting on 25th May, 2001."
Speaking at the ceremony, Ambassador Adeniji said that the handing over of the children "demonstrates clearly RUF's commitment to stop the use of children in the fighting forces." He further urged "all fighting forces to do as well and give the children a chance to rebuild and move on with their lives."
UNAMSIL will hand over the released children to child protection agencies in their regions of origin. UNAMSIL's Child Protection Adviser, Ms. Bituin Gonzales, expressed the hope that "more children will come from other areas." There are "facilities all over the country for demobilization of children and their welfare," she stated, adding that "commanders should be encouraged to make use of designated child protection agencies for demobilization of children."
The International Rescue Committee (IRC)--the lead agency in Kenema--Caritas-Makeni in the Northern Province, Save the Children in Daru, and other child protection agencies are providing demobilization services for the former child combatants.
Protection of children is high on the peacekeeping agenda. Ambassador Adeniji called on "international, national and local authorities to strengthen the process leading to the reintegration of children with their families and communities."
Chanting and singing before departing to demobilization centers, the children burned their combat uniforms in a bonfire as a symbol of the start of their journey to a better future.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q: What is the total number of fighters disarmed in both Kambia and Port Loko districts? Does that number tally with what the RUF presented before the disarmament?
A: The total number in Port Loko and Kambia districts through yesterday, is 3,348, of which 1,088 are RUF and 2,260 are CDF. And you will remember that the original numbers that were presented by the RUF and CDF were roughly1,000 each.
Q: Are you still going ahead with disarmament in Kono tomorrow, even without the full deployment of UNAMSIL troops in that district?
A: Discussions have been ongoing between UNAMSIL, RUF and CDF to work out the modalities for the disarmament to begin in the Kono district. A tentative date that was set for the start of disarmament is 30 May 2001-which is tomorrow. If everything goes well, it may start tomorrow, but again it may start a day or two later. It is just a matter of working out the logistical details on the ground.
Q: What is the long-term future for those fighters who are now disarming?
A: Well, I think that that is a question best put to the National Commission for Disarmament and Demobilisation and Reintegration (NCDDR) and National Commission for Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Reintegration (NCRRR). They are the responsible government agencies whose mandate is to provide reintegration and resettlement programmes.
Q: After the just-concluded simultaneous disarmament in Kambia and Port Loko districts, when are you having a disarmament meeting in Kono?
A: The meeting will be on 2 June 2001 in Magburaka. But in the mean time, a number of CDF combatants have come into Koidu town to disarm. So we are dealing with that issue as well.
Q: Sierra Leoneans are currently suffering in Liberia and on the Sierra Leone-Liberia border--particular in Kailahun district. When is UNAMSIL therefore deploying in Kailahun district and on the Sierra Leone-Liberia border to stop this suffering?
A: We are dealing with this issue from within our mandate--which is to deploy our troops all over the country and to make sure disarmament take place and the UN is dealing with it from the international perspective by the Security Council instituting sanctions on Liberia.
Q: Are you putting in place a makeshift arrangement in Koidu for the disarmament? Don't you think this will generate welfare problems?
A: The responsibility for the DDR camps is with the NCDDR. So those questions about what kind of arrangements are made for ex-combatants in the DDR camp should be address to the NCDDR. UNAMSIL provides security at the DDR camp. We are not doing any makeshift arrangement. We have DDR camps in Daru and Kenema and these ex-combatants will be moved there.
Q: How do you look at RUF commander, Mr. Jonathan Kposowa's request for the release from detention their leader Corporal Foday Sankoh during the peace concert in Makeni?
A: I think that every group in this country has their own constituency to whom they must appeal when they make public statements.
Q: What is the latest on the weapons seized from UNAMSIL by the RUF?
A: At the ceremony for the release of child combatants in Makeni, Mr. Omrie Golley pledged that the RUF will hand in the weapons to UNAMSIL by 30 May 2001. We are waiting for that date.
*********** For additional information, contact UNAMSIL Public Information Office: UNAMSIL Headquarters, Mammy Yoko, P. O. Box 5, Freetown, Sierra Leone. Tel: 232-22-273-183/4/5 Fax: 232-22-273-189
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