GUIDELINES OF THE COMMITTEE FOR THE CONDUCT OF ITS WORK
as consolidated, revised and adopted by the Committee on 11 May 2009
1. The Somalia Sanctions Committee
(a) The Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 751 (1992) concerning Somalia shall hereinafter be referred to as “the Committee”. Its mandate is defined in paragraph 11 of resolution 751 (1992), paragraph 4 of resolution 1356 (2001) of 19 June 2001, and paragraph 11 of resolution 1844 (2008) of 20 November 2008.
(b) The Committee is a subsidiary organ of the Security Council and will consist of all Members of the Council.
(c) The Chairman of the Committee will be appointed by the Security Council to serve in his/her personal capacity. The Chairman will be assisted by two delegations who will act as Vice-Chairmen, and who will also be appointed by the Security Council.
(d) The Chairman will chair formal meetings of the Committee. When he/she is unable to chair a meeting, he/she will nominate one of the Vice-Chairmen to act on his/her behalf. The Chairman or one of his/her designated representatives may chair informal consultations of the Committee.
(e) The Secretariat of the United Nations will provide the Committee with secretariat support.
2. Meetings of the Committee
(a) Meetings of the Committee, both formal and informal, will be convened at any time the Chairman deems necessary, or at the request of a Member of the Committee. Two working days notice will be given for any meeting of the Committee, although shorter notice may be given in urgent situations.
(b) The Committee will meet in closed session, unless it decides otherwise. The Committee may invite any Member of the United Nations to participate in the discussion of any question brought before the Committee in which interests of that Member are affected specifically. The Committee will consider requests from Member States to send representatives to meet with the Committee as described in Section 13, paragraph (d) of these Guidelines. The Committee may invite members of the Secretariat or other persons to provide the Committee with appropriate expertise or information or provide other assistance in examining matters within its competence.
(c) The Committee may invite the members of the Monitoring Group, as established in paragraph 2 of resolution 1519 (2003) of 16 December 2003 (“the Monitoring Group”), to attend meetings as appropriate.
3. Decision-making
(a) The Committee shall make decisions by consensus of its Members. If consensus cannot be reached on a particular issue, the Chairman may undertake such further consultations as may facilitate agreement. If after these consultations, consensus still cannot be reached, the matter may be submitted to the Security Council. The Chairman may encourage and facilitate bilateral exchanges among interested Member States in order to clarify the issue prior to a decision.
(b) Where the Committee agrees, decisions may be taken by a written procedure. In such cases the Chairman will circulate to all Members of the Committee the proposed decision of the Committee, and will request Members of the Committee to indicate any objection they may have to the proposed decision within 5 working days (or 3 working days as outlined in paragraph 11 (a) below or, in urgent situations, such shorter period as the Chairman shall determine). If no objection is received within such period, the decision will be deemed adopted. Communications regarding listing, delisting, and exemptions pursuant to resolution 1844 (2008) shall be considered in accordance with the procedures set out in that resolution.
(c) A hold placed on a matter by a Member of the Committee will cease to have effect at the time its membership of the Committee ends. New members shall be informed of all pending matters one month before their membership begins and are encouraged to inform the Committee of their position on relevant matters, including possible approval, objection or hold, at the time they become members.
(d) The Committee will review at least once a month the status of pending issues as updated by the Secretariat.
4. Mandate of the Committee
The mandate of the Committee shall be, on the basis of the measures imposed by paragraph 11 of resolution 751 (1992), paragraph 4 of resolution 1356 (2001), and paragraph 11 of resolution 1844 (2008) to undertake the following tasks:
MEASURES IMPLEMENTATION
(a) To monitor, with the support of the Monitoring Group, implementation of the measures imposed in paragraphs 1, 3, and 7 of resolution 1844 (the “Travel Ban”, the “Assets Freeze”, and the “Targeted Ban on Arms Transfers”, respectively), in addition to the general and complete arms embargo against Somalia originally imposed by resolution 733 (1992), as elaborated and amended by resolutions 1356 (2001), 1425 (2002), 1725 (2006), 1744 (2007), 1772 (2007), and 1844 (2008) (the “General Arms Embargo”);
(b) To seek from all Member States, in particular those in the region, information regarding the actions they have taken to implement effectively the Travel Ban, Assets Freeze, Targeted Ban on Arms Transfers, and General Arms Embargo, as well as whatever further information it may consider useful;
(c) To examine information regarding alleged violations of the Travel Ban, Assets Freeze, Targeted Ban on Arms Transfers, and General Arms Embargo, and take appropriate action if necessary;
(d) To identify possible cases of non compliance with the Travel Ban, Assets Freeze and Targeted Ban on Arms Transfers, and determine the appropriate course of action on each case;
(e) To amend these guidelines to facilitate the implementation of the measures imposed by resolution 1844 and keep these guidelines under active review as may be necessary.
EXEMPTIONS TO THE MEASURES
(f) To consider and decide upon requests for exemptions from the General Arms Embargo, which are set out in paragraph 3 of resolution 1356 (2001), in paragraphs 6 (b) and 7 of resolution 1744 (2007) and reiterated in paragraphs 11 (b) and 12 of resolution 1772 (2007) (the “General Arms Embargo Exemptions”), as well as by paragraph 12 of resolution 1846 (2008), as described in Section 10 below;
(g) To consider and decide upon notifications and requests for exemptions under paragraph 4 (a) and (b) of resolution 1844 from the Assets Freeze, as described in Section 11 below;
(h) To consider and decide upon requests for exemptions under paragraph 2 of resolution 1844 from the Travel Ban, in accordance with that paragraph and as described in Section 12 below;
LIST
(i) To designate individuals and entities pursuant to paragraph 8 of resolution 1844 (2008) and on the basis of the additional criteria as they may be developed by the Security Council, and to consider listing submissions, de-listing requests and proposed updates to the existing information, as described in Sections 6, 7 and 8 below respectively;
(j) To update regularly the list referred to in paragraphs 3 and 8 of resolution 1844 (2008) (the “List”), as described in Section 5 below;
(k) To make accessible on the Committee’s website narrative summaries of reasons for listing for all entries on the List, as described in Section 5, paragraph (d) and Section 6, paragraph (h) below;
(l) To review the names on the List, as described in Section 9 below;
(m) To keep these guidelines under active review in support of the objectives to continue to ensure that fair and clear procedures exist for placing individuals and entities on the List and for removing them as well as for granting humanitarian exemptions;
REPORTS
(n) To examine the reports submitted by Members States pursuant to paragraph 25 of resolution 1844 (2008), reports presented by the Monitoring Group originally established pursuant to paragraph 2 of resolution 1519 (2003) and information submitted by Member States using any tools provided on the Committee’s website;
(o) The Committee, through its Chairman, may report to the Security Council, when it deems appropriate.
(p) To report at least every 120 days to the Security Council on its work and on the implementation of the measures imposed by relevant resolutions, with its observations and recommendations on ways to strengthen the effectiveness of the General Arms Embargo, Travel Ban, Assets Freeze, and Targeted Ban on Arms Transfers, as well as on possible cases of non-compliance as identified by the Committee pursuant to paragraph 11 (h) of resolution 1844 (2008), including on the appropriate course of actions determined by the Committee in each case;
(q) To recommend appropriate measures in response to violations of the Travel Ban, Assets Freeze, Targeted Ban on Arms Transfers, and General Arms Embargo and to provide information on a regular basis to the Secretary-General for general distribution to Member States.
OUTREACH
(r) To make publicly available, through the appropriate media, information it considers relevant, including the List.
(s) In order to enhance and publicize the work of the Committee the Chairman will be authorized, after prior consultations and with the approval of the Committee, to hold press conferences or to issue press statements on any aspect of the Committee’s work, if and when necessary.
(t) The Committee will, by means of a press release, encourage national or international governmental or non-governmental organizations having information relating to violations or alleged violations of the Travel Ban, Assets Freeze, Targeted Ban on Arms Transfers, and General Arms Embargo established with respect to Somalia to turn such information over to the Governments of their nationality and residence or to the Governments of the countries of origin of violations or alleged violations. The press statement is to include a request that copies of communications conveying such information to Governments, and the information itself, should be forwarded to the Committee by means of communications addressed to the Chairman in writing.
5. The List
(a) The Committee will update regularly the List when it has agreed to include or delete relevant information in accordance with the procedures set out in these guidelines.
(b) The updated List will be made promptly available on the website of the Committee. At the same time, any modification to the List will be communicated to Member States immediately through Notes Verbale, including an electronic advance copy, and United Nations Press Releases.
(c) Once the updated List is communicated to Member States, States are encouraged to circulate it widely, such as to banks and other financial institutions, border points, airports, seaports, consulates, customs agents, intelligence agencies, alternative remittance systems and charities.
(d) For all entries on the List, the Committee, with the assistance of the Monitoring Group and in coordination with the relevant designating State(s), shall make accessible on its website narrative summaries of reasons for listing.
6. Listing
(a) Member States may submit listing requests at any time.
(b) The Committee shall consider including new names of individuals or entities, for designation under paragraph 8 of resolution 1844 (2008), or of individuals and entities acting on their behalf or at their direction, or entities owned or controlled by them for designation under paragraph 3 of that resolution, based on submissions received from Member States.
(c) States are advised to submit names as soon as they gather the supporting evidence of actions that meet the criteria in paragraphs 3 or 8 of resolution 1844 (2008). The Committee will consider proposed listings based on the criteria described in paragraphs 3 or 8 of resolution 1844 (2008). When submitting names of groups, undertakings and/or entities, States are encouraged, if they deem it appropriate, to propose for listing at the same time the names of the individuals responsible for the decisions of the group, undertaking and/or entity concerned.
(d) Member States shall provide a detailed statement of case in support of the proposed listing that forms the basis or justification for the listing in accordance with the relevant criteria in paragraphs 3 or 8 of resolution 1844 (2008). The statement of case should provide as much detail as possible on the basis for listing indicated above, including: (1) specific findings and reasoning demonstrating that the criteria are met; (2) the nature of the supporting evidence (e.g., intelligence, law enforcement, judicial, media, admissions by subject, etc.); and (3) supporting evidence or documents that can be supplied. States should include details of any connection with a currently listed individual or entity. States shall identify those parts of the statement of case that may be publicly released, including for the use by the Committee for development of the summary described in paragraph (h) below or for the purpose of notifying or informing the listed individual or entity of the listing, and those parts that may be released upon request to interested States.
(e) Proposed additions to the List shall include as much relevant and specific information as possible on a proposed name, in particular sufficient identifying information to allow for the positive identification of the individual, group, undertaking or entity concerned by competent authorities, including:
- For individuals: family name/surname, given names, other relevant names, date of birth, place of birth, nationality/citizenship, gender, aliases, employment/occupation, residence, passport or travel document (including date and place of issue) and national identification number, current and previous addresses, website addresses, and current location;
- For groups, undertakings or entities: name, acronyms, address, headquarters, subsidiaries, affiliates, fronts, nature of business or activity, leadership, tax or other identification number and other names by which it is known or was formerly known, and website addresses.
(f) The Committee will consider expeditiously requests to update the List. If a proposal for listing is not approved within the decision-making period as set out in Section 3, paragraph (b) above, the Committee will provide feedback to the submitting State on the status of the request.
(g) In its communication to inform Member States of new entries to the List, the Secretariat shall include the publicly releasable portion of the statement of case.
(h) Following a new listing, the Committee, with the assistance of the Monitoring Group and in coordination with the relevant designating State(s), shall make accessible on the Committee’s website a narrative summary of reasons for listing for the corresponding entry or entries on the List.
(i) The Secretariat shall, after publication but within one week after a name is added to the List, notify the Permanent Mission of the country or countries where the individual or entity is believed to be located and, in the case of individuals, the country of which the person is a national (to the extent this information is known). The Secretariat shall include with this notification a copy of the publicly releasable portion of the statement of case, a description of the effects of designation, as set forth in the relevant resolutions, the Committee’s procedures for considering delisting requests, and the provisions for available exemptions. The letter shall remind States receiving such notification that they are required to take, in accordance with their domestic laws and practices, all possible measures to notify or inform in a timely manner the newly listed individuals and entities on the List of the measures imposed on them, any information on reasons for listing available on the Committee’s website as well as all the information provided by the Secretariat in the above-mentioned notification.
7. De-listing
(a) Member States may submit delisting requests at any time.
(b) Without prejudice to available procedures, a petitioner (individual(s), groups, undertakings, and/or entities on the List) may submit a petition to request review of the case.
(c) A petitioner seeking to submit a request for de-listing can do so either directly to the Focal Point as outlined in paragraph (g) below, or through his/her State of residence or nationality as outlined in paragraph (h) below.
(d) A State can decide that as a rule, its nationals or residents should address their de-listing requests directly to the Focal Point. The State will do so by a declaration addressed to the Chairman that will be published on the Committee’s website.
(e) The petitioner should provide justification for the de-listing request by describing the basis for this request, including by explaining why he/she does not or no longer meets the criteria described in paragraph 8 of resolution 1844 (2008), the petitioner’s current occupation and/or activities, and any other relevant information. Any documentation supporting the request can be referred to and/or attached together with the explanation of its relevance, where appropriate.
(f) For a deceased individual, the petition shall be submitted either directly to the Committee by a State, or through the Focal Point by his/her legal beneficiary, together with an official documentation certifying that status. The statement of case supporting the de-listing request shall include a death certificate or similar official documentation confirming the death. The submitting State or the petitioner should also ascertain and inform the Committee whether or not any legal beneficiary of the deceased’s estate or any joint owner of his /her assets is on the List.
(g) If a petitioner chooses to submit a petition to the Focal Point, the latter would perform the following tasks:
i. Receive de-listing requests from a petitioner (individual(s), groups, undertakings and/or entities on the List);
ii. Verify if the request is new or is a repeated request;
iii. If it is a repeated request and if it does not contain any additional information, return it to the petitioner;
iv. Acknowledge receipt of the request to the petitioner and inform the petitioner on the general procedure for processing that request;
v. Forward the request, for their information and possible comments to the designating State(s) and to the State(s) of nationality and residence. These States are urged to review de-listing petitions in a timely manner and indicate whether they support or oppose the request in order to facilitate the Committee’s review. The State(s) of nationality and residence are encouraged to consult with the designating State(s) before recommending de-listing. To this end, they may approach the Focal Point, which, if the designating State(s) so agree(s), will put them in contact with the designating State(s);
vi.
a. If, after these consultations, any of these States recommend de-listing, that State will forward its recommendation, either through the Focal Point or directly to the Chairman, accompanied by that State’s explanation. The Chairman will then place the de-listing request on the Committee’s agenda;
b. If any of the States, which were consulted on the de-listing request under subparagraph v. above oppose the request, the Focal Point will so inform the Committee and provide copies of the de-listing request. Any member of the Committee, which possesses information useful for evaluating the de-listing request, is encouraged to share such information with the States that reviewed the de-listing request under subparagraph v. above;
c. If, after a reasonable time (3 months), none of the States which reviewed the de-listing request under subparagraph v. above comment, or indicate that they are working on the de-listing request to the Committee and require an additional definite period of time, the Focal Point will so notify all members of the Committee and provide copies of the de-listing request. Any member of the Committee may, after consultation with the designating State(s), recommend de-listing by forwarding the request to the Chairman, accompanied by an explanation. (Only one member of the Committee needs to recommend de-listing in order to place the issue on the Committee’s agenda.) If after one month, no Committee member recommends de-listing, then it shall be deemed rejected and the Chairman shall inform the Focal Point accordingly;
vii. The Focal Point shall convey all communications, which it receives from Member States, to the Committee for its information;
viii. Inform the petitioner:
a. Of the decision of the Committee to grant the de-listing petition; or
b. That the process of consideration of the de-listing request within the Committee has been completed and that the petitioner remains on the list of the Committee.
ix. Where appropriate, the Focal Point will inform the reviewing States of the outcome of the de-listing petition.
(h) If the petitioner submits the petition to the State of residence or nationality, the procedure outlined in the subparagraphs below shall apply:
i. The State to which a petition is submitted (the petitioned State) should review all relevant information and then approach bilaterally the designating State(s) to seek additional information and to hold consultations on the de-listing request;
ii. The designating State(s) may also request additional information from the petitioner’s State of nationality or residence. The petitioned and the designating State(s) may, as appropriate, consult with the Chairman during the course of any such bilateral consultations;
iii. If, after reviewing any additional information, the petitioned State wishes to pursue a de-listing request, it should seek to persuade the designating State(s) to submit jointly or separately a request for de-listing to the Committee. The petitioned State may, without an accompanying request from the designating State(s), submit a request for de-listing to the Committee, pursuant to the no-objection procedure;
iv. Where appropriate, the Chairman will inform the reviewing States of the outcome of the de-listing petition
(i) The Secretariat shall, within one week after a name is removed from the List, notify the Permanent Mission of the country or countries where the individual or entity is believed to be located and, in the case of individuals, the country of which the person is a national (to the extent this information is known). The letter shall remind States receiving such notification that they are required to take measures, in accordance with their domestic laws and practices, to notify or inform the concerned individual or entity of the de-listing in a timely manner.
8. Updating the Existing Information on the List
The Committee shall consider and decide , in accordance with the following procedures, on updating the List with any information supplied by Member States, regional or international organizations, or the Monitoring Group, in particular additional identifying information and other information, along with supporting documentation, including updates on the operating status of listed individuals, groups and undertakings, the movement, incarceration or death of listed individuals and other significant events, as such information becomes available.
(a) The Committee may approach the original designating State and consult with it on the relevance of the submitted additional information. The Committee may also encourage Member States or regional or international organizations providing such additional information to consult with the original designating State. The Secretariat will, subject to the designating State’s consent, assist in establishing the appropriate contacts.
(b) The Monitoring Group will, as appropriate, review any and all information received by the Committee in order to clarify or confirm such information. In this connection, the Monitoring Group will use all sources available to it, including other sources than those provided by the original designating State.
(c) The Monitoring Group will subsequently advise the Committee, within 4 weeks, if such information could be included in the List, or if further clarification is recommended in order to ascertain that the information received can be incorporated in the List. The Committee shall decide whether and how such clarification should be obtained and may again call upon the expertise of the Monitoring Group.
(d) The Monitoring Group may also submit to the Committee any information on listed individuals and entities it has obtained from publicly available official sources, or with the help of international agencies, such as the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), with their agreement. In such cases, the Monitoring Group shall identify the source of each piece of new information when presenting it for the Committee’s consideration.
(e) Upon the decision of the Committee to incorporate additional information into the List the Chairman of the Committee will inform the Member State or regional or international organization that submitted the additional information accordingly.
(f) Any additional relevant information submitted to the Committee that is not incorporated into the List will be stored by the Monitoring Group in a database for the use of the Committee and the Monitoring Group in carrying out their respective mandates. The Committee may share such additional information with Member States whose nationals, residents or entities have been included on the List. On a case-by-case basis the Committee may decide to release the information to other parties, with the prior consent of the submitting State.
9. Review of the List
(a) The Committee shall conduct an annual review of all names on the List, in which the relevant names, together with the original statement of case, are circulated to the designating States and States of residence and/or nationality, where known, in order to ensure the List is as updated and as accurate as possible and to confirm that the listing remains appropriate.
(b) Every year, the Secretariat shall circulate to the Committee the list of the names of the individuals mentioned in the List as reportedly deceased, reportedly killed or killed, along with the original statement of case, as well as all relevant information pertaining to all updates to those entries and any information on reasons for listing available on the Committee’s website. At the same time, the Monitoring Group shall provide the Committee with information on listed individuals whose death has been officially reported or publicly declared by their State of residence or nationality, or reported through other open official sources. To ensure the List is as updated and as accurate as possible and to confirm that the listing remains appropriate, any member of the Committee may request a review of these names.
(c) The reviews described in this section shall not preclude the submission of de-listing requests at any time, in accordance with the relevant procedures set out in Section 7 of these guidelines.
(d) In cases where any of the States reviewing the names in accordance with paragraph 9 (a) or 9 (b) above determines that a listing is no longer appropriate, that State may submit a de-listing request following the same relevant procedures set out in Section 7 of these guidelines.
10. Exemptions from the General Arms Embargo
(a) In accordance with paragraph 4 of resolution 1356 (2001) and paragraph 6 (b) of resolution 1744 (2007), the Committee shall give consideration to, and decide upon, requests for exemptions to the arms embargo as set out in paragraph 3 of resolution 1356 (2001) and, on notifications of provision of supplies and technical assistance as specified in paragraphs 7 of resolution 1744 (2007) and 12 of 1846 (2008).
(b) Such requests for the advance approval as set out in paragraph 3 of resolution 1356 (2001), and notifications pursuant to paragraph 7 of resolution 1744 (2007) and 12 of resolution 1846 (2008), shall be submitted in writing to the Chairman by the Permanent or Observer Mission of the State or the international organization or agency supplying the equipment.
(c) Each such request for advance approval for supplies of non-lethal military equipment intended solely for humanitarian and protective use, as set out in paragraph 3 of resolution 1356 (2001) shall provide the following information:
i. the type and technical specification of the equipment; the intended recipient and end-user of the equipment;
ii. The humanitarian or protective use to which it will be put;
iii. The means of transport to be used for the supply of the equipment;
iv. The port of entry into Somalia;
(d) Notifications of supplies and technical assistance by States intended solely for the purpose of helping develop security sector institutions, as specified in paragraph 6 (b) of resolution 1744 (2007), and for the purpose to enhance the capacity of Somalia and coastal States to ensure coastal and maritime security, as set out in paragraph 12 of resolution 1846 (2008). Such notifications shall provide the following information:
i. The type and technical specification of the equipment and/or technical assistance and training;
ii. The intended recipient and end-user of the equipment and/or of the technical assistance and training;
iii. The means of transport to be used for the supply of the equipment;
iv. The port of entry into Somalia.
(e) The Chairman shall circulate to the Committee members, under a 5-day no objection time period, all complete requests received for exemptions as set out in paragraph 3 of Security Council resolution 1356 (2001) or notifications received pursuant to paragraph 7 of resolution 1744 (2007) and paragraph 12 of resolution 1846 (2008);
(f) Where a request or a notification does not contain all the information referred to in paragraph 7 above, the Chairman may seek further information from the Permanent Mission or Permanent Observer Mission of the State or the international organization or agency which submitted the request;
(g) The Chairman shall immediately inform the Permanent Mission or Permanent Observer Mission of the State or the international organization or agency of the decision of the Committee regarding the exemptions referred to in paragraphs a) and b) above.
11. Exemptions to the Assets Freeze
(a) Pursuant to resolution 1844 (2008), the Committee shall receive notifications from Member States of their intention to authorize, where appropriate, access to frozen funds or other financial assets or economic resources to cover basic expenses, as provided for in paragraph 4(a) of resolution 1844 (2008) (“the basic expenses exemption”). The Committee, through the Secretariat, will immediately acknowledge receipt of the notification. Should no negative decision be taken by the Committee within the requisite 3 working day period, the Committee, through its Chairman, will inform the notifying Member State thereof. The Committee will also inform the notifying Member State if a negative decision has been taken regarding the notification.(b) The Committee shall consider and approve, if appropriate, requests by Member States for extraordinary expenses, as provided for in paragraph 4(b) of resolution 1844 (2008) (“the extraordinary expenses exemption”). Member States are encouraged, when submitting requests for the extraordinary expenses exemption, to report in a timely way on the use of such funds, with a view to preventing such funds from being used to conduct any of the acts described in paragraph 8 of that resolution.
(c) Notifications for the basic expenses exemption and requests for the extraordinary expenses exemption should, as appropriate, include the following information:
i. recipient (name and address)
ii. recipient’s bank information (name and address of bank, account number)
iii. purpose of payment and justification of the determination of the expenses falling under the basic expenses exemption and the extraordinary expenses exemption:
- under the basic expenses exemption:
• basic expenses, including payment for foodstuffs, rent or mortgage, medicines and medical treatment, taxes, insurance premiums, and public utility charges;
• payment of reasonable professional fees and reimbursement of incurred expenses associated with the provisions of legal services;
• fees or service charges for routine holding or maintenance of frozen funds or other financial assets or economic resources.
- under extraordinary expenses exemption:
• extraordinary expenses (other categories than the ones mentioned under paragraph 4(a)).
iv. amount of installment
v. number of installments
vi. payment starting date
vii. bank transfer or direct debit
viii. interests
ix. specific funds being unfrozen
x. other information.
(d) Pursuant to paragraph 5 of resolution 1844 (2008), States may allow for the addition to accounts subject to the Assets Freeze of:
i. interest or other earnings due on those accounts, or
ii. payments due under contracts, agreements or obligations that arose prior to the date on which those accounts became subject to the Assets Freeze, or
iii. any payment in favour of listed individuals, groups, undertakings or entities, provided that any such interest, other earnings and payments continue to be subject to the Assets Freeze.
12. Exemptions from the Travel Ban
In paragraph 1 of resolution 1844 (2008), the Security Council decided that all Member States shall take the necessary measures to prevent the entry into or transit through their territories of individuals designated by the Committee pursuant to paragraph 8 of the resolution, provided that nothing in paragraph 1 shall oblige a State to refuse its own nationals entry into its territory.In paragraph 2 of resolution 1844 (2008), the Council decided that the measures imposed by paragraph 1 shall not apply: where the Committee determines on a case-by-case basis that such travel is justified on the grounds of humanitarian need, including religious obligation; or where the Committee determines on a case-by-case basis that an exemption would otherwise further the objectives of peace and national reconciliation in Somalia and stability in the region.
(a) Each request for exemption must be submitted in writing, on behalf of the listed individual, to the Chairman. The States that may submit a request through their Permanent Mission to the United Nations are the State(s) of destination, the State(s) of transit, the State of nationality, and the State of residence. If no effective central government exists in the country in which the listed individual is located, a United Nations office or agency in that country may submit the request for exemption on the listed individual’s behalf.
(b) Each request for exemption shall be received by the Chairman as early as possible but not less than five working days before the date of the proposed travel.
(c) Each request for exemption should include the following information:
i. the full name, nationality, passport number or travel document number of the listed individual;
ii. the purpose of and justification for the proposed travel, with copies of supporting documents, including specific details of meetings or appointments;
iii. the proposed dates and times of departure and return;
iv. the complete itinerary and timetable, including for all transit stops;
v. details of the mode of transport to be used, including where applicable, record locator, flight numbers and names of vessels;
(d) Once the Committee has approved a request for exemption from the Travel Ban, the Secretariat shall notify in writing the Permanent Missions to the United Nations of: the State in which the listed individual is resident, the State of nationality, the State(s) to which the listed individual will be traveling, and any transit State, as well as any United Nations office/agency involved as provided for in paragraph (a) above, to inform them of the approved travel, itinerary and timetable.
(e) Written confirmation of the completion of the travel by the listed individual shall be provided to the Chairman within five working days following the expiry of the exemption by the State (or United Nations office/agency as in paragraph (a) above) in which the listed individual has stated he will be resident after completion of the exempted travel.
(f) Notwithstanding any exemption from the Travel Ban, listed individuals remain subject to the General Arms Embargo, the Assets Freeze, and the Targeted Ban on Arms Transfers.
(g) Any changes to the information provided under paragraph (c) above, including with regard to points of transit, shall require further consideration by the Committee and shall be received by the Chairman no less than three working days prior to the commencement of the travel.
(h) Any request for an extension of the exemption shall be subject to the procedures set out above and shall be received by the Chairman in writing, with a revised itinerary, no less than five working days before the expiry of the approved exemption.
(i) The submitting State (or United Nations office/agency as in paragraph (a) above) shall inform the Chairman immediately and in writing of any change to the departure date for any travel for which the Committee has already issued an exemption. Written notification will be sufficient in cases where the time of departure is advanced or postponed no more than 48 hours and the itinerary remains otherwise unchanged. If travel is to be advanced or postponed by more than 48 hours, or the itinerary is changed, then a new exemption request shall be submitted in conformity with paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) above.
(j) In cases of emergency evacuation to the nearest appropriate State, including for medical or humanitarian needs or through force majeure, the Committee will determine whether the travel is justified within the provisions of paragraph 2(a) of resolution 1844 (2008), within 24 hours once notified of the name of the listed individual traveler, the reason for travel, the date and time of evacuation, along with transportation details, including transit points and destination. The notifying authority shall also provide, as soon as possible, a doctor’s or other relevant national official’s note containing as many details as possible of the nature of the emergency and the facility where treatment or other necessary assistance was received by the listed individual without prejudice to respect of medical confidentiality, as well as information regarding the date, time, and mode of travel by which the listed individual returned to his/her country of residence or nationality, and complete details on all expenses in connection with the emergency evacuation.
(k) Unless the Committee otherwise decides, all requests for exemptions and extensions thereto which have been approved by the Committee in accordance with the above procedures, shall be posted in the “Exemptions” section of the Committee’s website until expiry of the exemption.
13. Other Information Supplied to the Committee
(a) The Committee will consider other information relevant to its work, including possible non-compliance with the measures imposed by the relevant resolutions, received from different sources through Member States, international or regional organizations or the Monitoring Group. The Committee will make an appeal to all States, as well as to international or regional organizations, to that effect, advising them to submit their information in communications addressed to the Chairman in writing, under assurance of confidentiality. The Committee may renew the appeal as occasion warrants.
(b) The information received by the Committee will be kept confidential if the provider so requests or if the Committee so decides.
(c) With a view to assisting States in their endeavor to implement the General Arms Embargo, the Assets Freeze, the Travel Ban, and the Targeted Ban on Arms Transfers, the Committee may decide to supply information forwarded to it relating to possible non-compliance to the States concerned, and ask any such State to report to the Committee subsequently on any follow-up action undertaken.
(d) The Committee will provide Member States with an opportunity to send representatives to meet the Committee for more in-depth discussion of relevant issues or to give voluntary briefings on their efforts to implement the measures, including particular challenges that hinder full implementation of the measures.
(e) The Secretariat may forward to the Committee any information from published sources, including radio, television broadcasts and the Internet, relating to violations or alleged violations of the General Arms Embargo, the Assets Freeze, the Travel Ban, or the Targeted Ban on Arms Transfers.
14. Outreach
(a) In order to enhance the dialogue with Member States and to publicize the work of the Committee, the Chairman will on a regular basis hold briefings for all interested Member States, as well as brief interested Member States and the press following formal meetings of the Committee, unless the Committee decides otherwise. In addition, the Chairman may, after prior consultations and with the approval of the Committee, hold press conferences and/or issue press releases on any aspect of the Committee’s work.
(b) The Secretariat shall maintain a website for the Committee which should include all public documents relevant to the Committee’s work, including the List, relevant resolutions, public reports of the Committee, relevant press releases, reports submitted by Member States pursuant to paragraph 25 of resolution 1844 (2008), and reports of the Monitoring Group. Information on the website should be updated in an expeditious manner.
(c) The Committee may consider, as appropriate, visits by the Chairman and/or Committee Members to selected countries to enhance the full and effective implementation of the measures referred to above, with a view to encouraging States to comply fully with the relevant resolutions:
i. The Committee shall consider and approve the proposal to visit selected countries, and coordinate such visits with the other subsidiary organs of the Security Council as appropriate.
ii. The Chairman will contact the selected countries through their Permanent Missions in New York, and will also send letters seeking their prior consent and explaining the objectives of the trip.
iii. The Secretariat and the Monitoring Group will provide the Chairman and the Committee with the necessary assistance in this regard.
iv. Upon his/her return the Chairman will prepare a comprehensive report on the findings of the trip and will brief the Committee orally and in writing.