Briefing to Security Council on UNMIL by USG Ladsous

13 Nov 2014

Briefing to Security Council on UNMIL by USG Ladsous

Mr. President,

I wish to begin by expressing my deep appreciation for this Council’s efforts to mobilize support to defeat the Ebola epidemic, which has had serious political, security and social effects on all of the countries affected. A month ago, I briefed this Council during its important discussion on the peace and security implications of the Ebola crisis.

While I spoke then to the political and security ramifications of the health emergency for all the countries in West Africa where we have peacekeeping operations deployed, including Mali and Côte d’Ivoire, while my focus was on Liberia, the country most affected by Ebola. Today, I will again focus on Liberia, but I would seek to look beyond the immediate health crisis to how we, as an international community deeply committed to this county, may continue to keep its longer-term interests in our focus.

 

Significant developments have transpired over the past month. In early October, the President accepted the resignation of her Minister of Justice, Christiana Tah, after more than five years of service. In departing, Mme. Tah publicly claimed that she had been thwarted in her efforts to perform her responsibilities of stewarding national security institutions falling under the authority of her ministry. A few days ago, the national human rights commission released a report challenging the findings of a board of inquiry into the actions of the army while enforcing a quarantine of an Ebola-affected community in Monrovia. Five soldiers have been found guilty of disciplinary offences related to the incident and have received demotions and custody sentences. The question of criminal prosecution remains. Following direction from the President and the Legislature, the national body responsible for elections has held consultations with various stakeholders on how to proceed with the senatorial elections that would have, under normal circumstances, been held on 14 October. Many within civil society have raised serious concerns about the appropriateness of proceeding with senatorial elections, while the electoral body has recommended to the Legislature holding those elections on 16 December, which is under consideration. Yesterday, the 90-day state of emergency imposed by the President to respond to the health emergency expired, and there are discussions ongoing within the Legislature regarding its possible extension.

 

Last month, I spoke about our fear of reversal, triggered by the Ebola crisis. This Council is familiar with the challenges facing Liberia, and these have been exacerbated by the health emergency. Political and social divisions in Liberia are deepening; already weak national institutions are showing increased vulnerability; and, the very survival of the most economically vulnerable people is at risk. As I told you last month, even the small dignities of our shared humanity, the ability to touch and comfort loved ones, has been devastated by Ebola.

 

However, there is some good news in the midst of this serious crisis. We are no longer seeing signs that security could seriously deteriorate, which was our fear in late August and early September. And, while this crisis has put unprecedented pressure on public institutions to perform, and while they have not always been successful, some areas of strength have also been demonstrated. Local level officials have responded to challenges at their level in a manner we have not seen before, providing a unique opportunity for the decentralization of services. Furthermore, the fact that the national human rights commission demanded accountability for the actions of security forces at West Point provides an important opportunity to enhance democratic oversight of the security forces. These are goals we have been seeking for years, and for which we observed there was a concerning lack of urgency to achieve.

 

For Liberia, this is a moment of national tragedy. As the Minister of Defence told this Council in September, the very existence of the nation is at stake. But even at such a difficult juncture, there is an opportunity to mobilize the urgency required for transformation. And, we must encourage the people and Government of Liberia to seize this opportunity, not only in addressing the immediate crisis, but also in rebuilding post-Ebola.

 

Mr. President,

The people of Liberia have demonstrated considerable resilience throughout the Ebola crisis and we are humbled by their strength. We must provide them with whatever assistance we can. And, we must give consideration to how best we can support not only the Ebola response, but also and perhaps most critically, the post-Ebola reconstruction effort that will be required.

 

In August, the Secretary-General put forward a series of recommendations for how the United Nations could revise its engagement in Liberia, including with respect to enhancing UNMIL’s political role and drawing down its uniformed presence. In the current circumstances, we are of the view that it would be appropriate to extend UNMIL’s mandate until September 2015, while taking forward the former set of recommendations on political issues and deferring consideration of the latter – the drawdown of troops and police -- until such time as the appropriate health authorities inform that the Ebola crisis is over.

 

Mr. President, as an international community, we must seize the current moment, and see how best we may, collectively, help to transform this moment into one that is positively catalytic for the country. We may need to, as the Secretary-General put it in his August report, reimagine our engagement in Liberia. Even as the international community scales up its response to the immediate challenge of defeating Ebola, we must also consider how we may collectively support the rebuilding of Liberia post-Ebola.

 

Thank you, Mr. President.