Secretary-General's press conference (unofficial transcript)

I am delighted to be in Liberia at this turning point in the history of the country. I am here to pay tribute to the resilience of the Liberian people and to witness at first hand the progress being made in rebuilding, and to consult the government on how the United Nations can best assist the country in consolidating peace and advancing the recovery process.

Just a few months ago, the people of Liberia demonstrated their commitment to peace and democratic governance. They elected a new government. In short, you have passed a great test by indicating that you do want to go the democratic route and a great deal of progress has been made since then.

The three branches of government are fully functional. The resettlement of internally displaced persons has been completed; more Liberian refugees have returned home; the Government has taken measures to fight corruption; the Truth and Reconciliation Commission has begun its work. The progress made here has inspired and impressed your fellow Africans. Two days ago, I attended the African Union summit in Banjul. The Heads of State expressed a great deal of optimism about Liberia. This country, which was once at the centre of conflict in the sub-region, now serves as an example of what can be achieved when the leaders and the people of the country work together and are committed to peace.

Since my arrival last night, I have met President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, members of the cabinet, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate. I have also had the privilege of being the first non-Liberian to address a joint session of the Liberian legislature.

The government is working hard to surmount the considerable challenges that remain, in partnership with the international community. To gain and retain the trust of donors and partners, it will be important for Liberians to show their commitment to fighting corruption and working in earnest to build up the economy.

I have also met with United Nations staff, both civilian and soldiers, and reiterated to them the UN policy of zero tolerance for acts of sexual exploitation and abuse. Such conduct goes against everything that the United Nations stands for and we will not tolerate it. It undermines the trust that is essential for our success in this country and elsewhere. We have dismissed and repatriated personnel found guilty of such acts and will continue to do so.

In June, I submitted to the Security Council my 11th progress report on Liberia. I am pleased to inform you that the Security Council has endorsed the main elements of the report. The United Nations Mission will continue to provide security and assist in consolidating the peace so that the government can get on with the job of national recovery, reconciliation and development.

The UN Agencies, Funds and Programmes will continue to support the government in meeting its humanitarian and development objectives.

Before I take your questions I have a brief message for the Liberian media.

Freedom of the press was not always the case in Liberia. So I am delighted to see so many Liberian journalists here today, and everywhere I have been since my arrival. You play a crucial role in the democratic process. I hope you will play that role in a responsible manner, with commitment, fairness and objectivity.

I will now take your questions.

Q: Dr. Annan, when the former Liberian President Charles Taylor was arrested and transferred for war crimes prosecution, you hailed the move and said that it signalled a way that those responsible for atrocities or human rights violations in the West African sub-region would be held accountable. In Liberia, people are advocating for a war crimes court, like that of Sierra Leone. When do we expect this?

SG: Let me, first of all, say that the fight against impunity is not directed against individuals. It is directed against those who commit crimes. The impact of what happened with former President Taylor will be felt around the world -- not just in Liberia -- in Somalia, in Europe, and in Latin America. The message is that those who commit such crimes will be held to account, regardless of the position they held. You can be a head of state, you can be a common criminal, but you will, in the end, pay and the days when impunity was allowed to stand, are gone.

Here the government has made a choice. It has opted for a Truth and Reconciliation mechanism, which is also a mechanism South Africa used. And you have many ways to “skin a cat”, as it were, and when you go through the kind of experience Liberia has gone through, there are several urgent tasks that one has to take into account: reconciliation, peace, and the need for justice, and how this is sequenced, and how you approach those three essential tasks. Some governments have chosen the road of truth and reconciliation in order to reconcile the country, in order to put the past behind them, and build on peace and stabilize the country. And so I am not going to second guess the government. If the government decides to take another road that is fine, but of course it has made a choice.

The international community decided to set up the Sierra Leonean court and pursue people who have committed international humanitarian crime and, of course, Taylor was caught in that net. It is a Sierra Leonean court that indicted him and he is now in The Hague awaiting trial and let the law take its course.

Q: It appears that the government of Liberia has miserably failed to implement the UN sanctions for assets freeze, i.e. to freeze the assets of former government officials who may have played some role in the Liberian crisis. Looking at this, what measures will the UN take to make sure the assets of these individuals are frozen?

SG: I don't have the details of what you are referring to, but normally when there are sanctions against individuals and their assets are frozen, it is bank accounts and other liquid assets in banks around the world which are frozen. I don't know the assets of these individuals, which banks they are in and where they are frozen. But the governments concerned, I suspect, have taken action. By implication, you are indicating that these individuals have assets or bank accounts here in Liberia which are not frozen. I don't have these details and I am afraid I will not be able to comment on that. But the resolution was passed under Chapter 7 and each government has an obligation to implement it, including the Liberian government, if indeed its individuals have accounts in Liberian banks.

Q: I am looking at the example of Liberia and wondering what the next step is in consolidating this peace process. Now that the immediate peace is won, I am wondering how the definition of security would change to include more human elements. I am thinking more particularly of economic security and truth and justice that you spoke of. I am also looking at what the Liberian example means in a regional context, to West Africa in general.

SG: I think we have to begin somewhere. Let's look back to where the country was three years ago, before the Accra Comprehensive Peace Agreement, before the arrival of UNMIL (UN Mission in Liberia), and through the elections, and see how far the country has travelled. I suspect some of you were here throughout that period, and you lived the trauma, the misery, the violence, and the pain and the devastation which was wrought upon this country by criminal elements pretending to be fighting in the interest of the nation.

Since then, the guns have been silenced. Internally displaced people have gone home. Refugees have returned. You have elected a government, you have had a say on who is going to govern you and, obviously, you would also be vigilant in monitoring the programmes they put in place to assist you. So you are off to a good start, but this cannot be achieved overnight. It is a process. It is a peace process. The consolidation of peace would take time. The creation of an environment that would attract investors, domestic and local. The effort to create jobs particularly for the youth which we have discussed and which is being considered, does take time. So let's be clear. Attainment of peace after this kind of conflict is a process and not an event and it can take many years. But it is not something you leave to the government. You, as citizens of Liberia, also have your role to play. The international community has its role to play. Let's work together to consolidate peace and stabilize this country and exploit the resources of the country for the benefit of all.

Q: You spoke of the UN zero tolerance on sexual harassment. One case in point is Rudd Lubbers, who previously served as UN High Commissioner for Refugees. He was accused of sexual harassment and misconduct - a situation that forced him to resign from the UN. In Liberia, there is a case study with five Russian contractors who work for the UN. They were also accused of sexual harassment and they left the country. What is your office doing to investigate these Russians?

SG: Let me start with your first comment. I think you have to get your facts straight. But I like the way you started that. Lubbers was accused, but he was not found guilty. He resigned in the interest of the Organization because of the lingering accusation. It was fully investigated. I reviewed the report and determined that the facts did not sustain the accusation and he was not guilty. So that is important.

On the case of the five Russians, I don't have the details, but I am sure my colleagues here are taking energetic action to ensure that action is taken. Normally, we repatriate some of the troops so that the governments can take action. We do not have jurisdiction over them and that may change over time. We don't have troops; we borrow them from governments. And it is the government that has jurisdiction over its own troops. What we can do is, when they break the rules, is to send them home with the demand that the government prosecutes them at home.

Q: I want you to give me an idea of what your office is doing right now. You will recall that in February 2004, the National Transitional Government of Liberia and the United Nations organized what was referred to as a “donor conference” in New York. What are you doing now in order to encourage donor countries to make possible their pledges to that conference? If I heard you clearly on the radio today, you said that the stage we are now is the reconstruction stage. I am sure you agree with me that funds will be very much needed to carry out reconstruction.

SG: Let me say that we have never failed to press the donor community to make resources available and, particularly, the resources that have been pledged. We want to see them disbursed as soon as possible. But it takes two partners. We have to have the capacity and the institutions here in Liberia to absorb that money. And I think we are making progress. We are also planning another donor conference this year to try to obtain additional resources for reconstruction and recovery. There will be a meeting later on this month and there will be a bigger meeting later on in October in Washington, to encourage donors to give and give generously for the reconstruction of Liberia. So our efforts to generate resources for your reconstruction continues.

Q: So many times, the people of Liberia have been concerned about the lifting of sanctions on diamonds and timber. Prior to your arrival in Liberia, the hope of Liberians has been that you will actually focus on the issue of lifting the sanctions. If I am not mistaken, when I monitored your address to the joint session of the legislature, you outlined that conditions must be met, but you couldn't actually state what these conditions were. And the people of Liberia might feel that a lot of conditions have been addressed by the government, and we find ourselves in a situation that we have a democratically elected government. Corruption is being fined as you also stated. What are the basic factors that remain, in your own purview, that you think the government should address for the lifting of sanctions?

SG: First of all on the sanctions, we have begun lifting sanctions. The sanctions on timber has been lifted by the Security Council. The sanctions were imposed by the Council and it is the Council's responsibility to review them periodically and decide when and how to lift them. On the question of the sanctions, they are looking for certain further changes in the industry and how it is managed before it lifts the sanctions. But I have no doubt that, in due course, in a reasonable period, the sanctions would be lifted because we and the Security Council would want to see Liberia move on, exploit its resources for its own development and for the benefit of the people. The sanctions were imposed not to punish Liberians or to impede their economic development. And I think we all know the circumstances under which the sanctions were imposed. The revenues from the diamonds were being used to prosecute the war and to buy weapons which were turned on the Liberian people. And of course you would then argue that the war is over, we have had elections, why not lift it? But, as has been indicated, there are certain conditions that the Council would want to see met and I am sure they would be met and the sanctions would be lifted. And it would be in the interest of the country for some of the changes suggested to be implemented.

Q: During the joint session of the legislature, the speaker of the house put forward a request to you to the Security Council to establish a legal framework by which those persons on the UN sanctions list will vindicate themselves. What are you doing in this direction?

SG: You may be aware that I myself produced a paper for the Council encouraging them to establish a procedure that will allow the individuals on the list an opportunity first to be informed of why they are on the list, what they did wrong, and to be given an access either by themselves or their lawyer, to somebody within the Organization where they can explain themselves or seek redress of some kind. There has to be a perception of due process if the sanctions regime is not to be challenged. And the Council has taken that seriously and they are discussing it amongst themselves. And I will not be surprised if, sooner or later, hopefully sooner than later, a mechanism is set up that allows those on the list to seek answers to the questions that they may have.

Q: There is a saying that “not all that glitters is gold”. You have been in Liberia for two days now. I would like for you to tell us the negative aspects of this government, that you want for this government to improve on.

SG: Do you live here? Then help me answer your question. In your judgement, what are the things that glitter, that is not gold or diamonds, that you will point me towards, that I should be looking for? You said I am only here for two days. You live here and you know the details of this. But I am kidding actually?

Let me say that I agree that not all that glitters is gold. At the same time, one also has to be able to recognise a positive step, a positive beginning and movements in the right direction. And a journey of a thousand miles starts with one step. We should not be overly impatient. I know the expectation is very high. Expectations are very high on the UN. It is perhaps even higher on the new government, which is normal, but expectations also have to be managed. So you have to put things in context.

When I come to Liberia and visit and discuss with the government and my own people and indicate that there is progress being made in certain areas and we are moving in the right direction, that we should persevere, it does not mean that work is over. It does not mean that everything is glorious, everything is good. I did also indicate the challenges ahead and what needs to be done. I expressed my concern about youth unemployment and that we need to find creative and innovative ways of creating jobs for the youth. We need to be able to expand the government administration throughout the territory. We need to ensure that the cloth of government extends to cover every region and every group in this country. We need to fight corruption. There are lots of challenges ahead. That does not mean that we should not recognise the progress and the achievements which have been made.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, now in Liberia, when it comes to security, every Liberian depends on UNMIL. But in every corner of Monrovia now, there is, almost everyday, armed robbery in the city. So what is the UN doing to help the government improve security for Monrovians?

SG: I think one of the major things we are doing is working with the government on security sector reform -- re-professionalizing and training the police force, revamping the judiciary system and training and reforming the army. And all this takes time. In the meantime, the UN personnel here are doing the best they can to assist. But maintaining law and order and going after each criminal in each district and in each community, quite frankly, is not part of their mandate. They came here for very specific things: to try and help implement the peace agreement, to help go through the elections and we are helping with reconstruction and recovery. And part of it is also strengthening the institutions and we would want to do that effectively and as quickly as possible.

In the meantime, we can offer the assistance that we can. But honestly, it will be unrealistic to expect the UN troops to be in every corner of the country, preventing criminal elements. First of all, that law and order function is not the responsibility of troops. It is a police function. Most of our people here are troops, we do have some policemen, and this is why we are accelerating the process of training the police and professionalizing the police so that they can take action. But the police also needs help, the police needs the community to be able to do its work and the community must become engaged in identifying criminal elements and helping the police and law enforcement officers deal with them. Community policing is most effective when the population and individuals are involved. Tell your community to keep their eyes open and not harbour them, and if we all did that you will see what progress can be made.

Q: I am just seeking clarification on what you said already. You talked about the war crimes court and it is time that the government takes action. But today, a group of Liberians directly asked for your intervention in making sure that a court is set up in Liberia because they said if we leave this squarely with the Liberian government, some of the people who are in influential positions are those who committed the crimes in the past, so obviously they would not want to push for the setting up of the court. How do you respond to their request?

And the second thing I want you to clarify is, the sanctions on Liberia were imposed because you just said that proceeds were used to buy arms. After the leaving of Taylor, one issue that is still hanging is whether or not Mr. Taylor had money kept somewhere outside the country. In 2004, he wrote to you directly, waiving his right to confidentiality, that if there is any money kept somewhere in the world, it should be taken and sent back to Liberia. That letter was addressed to you. What have you found since that time?

SG: On the establishment of these tribunals, particularly in the case of Liberia or Sierra Leone, the UN deals with the government on these issues. In the case of Sierra Leone, we worked with the government of Sierra Leone to establish the Court. The Liberian government has decided to set up a Truth and Reconciliation Commission and we are going to offer the help that we can in that process. They have not discussed with us the establishment of a criminal court, but that does not mean that the Liberian courts cannot prosecute individuals who have committed crimes. Basically, it depends on the terms of reference of the TRC, how it works and what dispensation it gives to people who have committed crimes in the past, after they have confessed. This is an issue for the government, once again, and if the government is to decide to go that route and needs the UN's assistance, we would look at it.

On the question regarding Taylor, the issue of sanctions is imposed by the Security Council and managed (by) the Council. It is not managed by the Secretary-General. I am not the one who freezes their accounts, who knows where the accounts are, who knows how much their accounts are, and has access to the money to return it to the country concerned. In the final analysis, it is the Security Council that deals with these things, so the letter was misdirected. It should not have come to me. It should have gone to the Council.

Q: My concern has to do with the travel ban against the Taylor government. Reports we just gathered say that one of the suspect's [children] committed suicide in the States because his father had not been in touch with him –because of the travel ban. But the outcry in Monrovia is that they are calling on the international community to explain what is the cause for their punishment. So far, we have not received anything from Security Council. Why have they imposed this ban on them? What can you tell us in the capacity of Secretary-General?

SG: I think, in a way, I have answered that question already. I have indicated that this is an issue between them and the Security Council, not an issue between individuals and the Secretary-General. We have various organs in the UN and the Security Council is running this operation. I have indicated that we have recently had discussions in the Council were they are looking at setting up mechanisms where those on the list could go for answers to questions that they may have. I am also distressed to hear that a son committed suicide because his father could not get in touch with him because he could not travel. I hope that he was able to at least communicate with him electronically, by telephone or by mail. You create an impression that there was a total communication lock and that would be very unfortunate, but for that you cannot blame the UN. What is intended –I don't know the name of the individual –although he cannot travel, he should be able to pick up the phone and speak with his son, or send him a message and information and all that. I'm really sorry for the family if this did happen.

Q: Antonio Gutteres, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, visited Liberia and blamed the UN for establishing democracies around the world, especially in conflict stricken countries [Sic]. This can hardly be debatable but experiences in East Timor and neighbouring Sierra Leone show that there are looming fears about fostering Liberian democracy. Can you say what specific ways a UN Member State protects this embryonic democracy in Liberia?

SG: Let me answer your question by pointing out very clearly that, for democracy to take root, the people of the country and the leaders of the country have to take ownership. It is your responsibility to establish democracy. It is your responsibility to establish good governance. It is your responsibility to ensure that you have a say in the election of those who govern you, and they govern with your consent, the international community and the UN can only help. We are here to give you [a] leg up after a difficult period. We are not here to substitute ourselves for Liberian leadership on what the Liberian people must do.

It is unfortunate what happened in East Timor due to certain complicated relationships, but you have to be careful not to blame everything on the UN. What is the choice? Should the UN have stayed away from Liberia and not gotten involved at all because this project we are working on together may succeed or fail? We should not have taken the chance to work with you? We should have just stayed away? Would you have been better off? Is that what you would have preferred? I think we have given you a chance –a second chance –to have peace and to stabilize the situation in the country. The UN Member States are now beginning to accept that nation building is a longer term proposition and I expect that they will stick with Liberia for some time to come. We will avoid the mistake we made in East Timor by withdrawing - in my judgment - too soon. And that is a changing mindset –where we stay on longer and support the country coming out of conflict for a longer period is what is required. But I don't accept your premise that the UN should not establish democracies or help establish democracy around the world or help stabilize countries in conflict. If we don't do it, who will do it? Do you want to go the way of Somalia? You want Liberia to be another Somalia without any help from the international community and have warlords dominating the situation for 16 years as they did? Is that the choice you want to opt for? I think we need to be realistic. We are giving you a second chance to redeem your country and I think you can do it. We are here to support you so let us do it together.

Q: While it is true that many Liberians hailed the transfer of Mr. Taylor from Sierra Leone to The Hague because of some security concerns, there is an argument that people in West Africa, in Sierra Leone specifically where Mr. Taylor is supposed to have committed heinous crimes against, would not have access to the trial. Meaning they will not know what is happening in The Hague. Testimonies may not be made. What is the UN doing? In fact, today I heard from Human Rights Watch that they urge that the trial should be live or accessible to the people of West Africa. What is the UN doing to have this trial accessible to the people of West Africa?

SG: I don't know if many of you followed the work of the Yugoslav Tribunal in The Hague, when former President Milosovic was put on trial –it was on television. The prosecution made its case on television; Milosovic made his case on television; and I suspect that we will have a similar procedure where the case of Taylor will be an open process and accessible to Sierra Leoneans, Liberians and the people of West Africa. But I believe you all understand why the trial was moved to The Hague. The least that can be done is to make sure that the trial is accessible by television and radio and that people can follow it and see him in the court accounting for his actions.

Thank you.