PRESS BRIEFING ON SIERRA LEONE ELECTIONS

PRESS BRIEFING ON SIERRA LEONE ELECTIONS

The fact that there was no significant incident during the presidential and parliamentary elections held in Sierra Leone yesterday was a major testament to the political will of the Sierra Leonean people to move towards peace and build the foundations of peace, Jean-Marie Guéhenno, Under Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, told correspondents at a Headquarters briefing today.

Voters turned out in reportedly huge numbers throughout the country to cast ballots, with some 17,000 members of the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) present in 150 locations.  Some 2.3 million voters registered to vote at about 5,000 polling stations across the country, according to the Mission.

Mr. Guéhenno said for once the international community and the United Nations were really united in the peace effort, as well as in the electoral process itself.  It was impressive to see the presence of observers from the Organizations of African Unity (OAU), Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Commonwealth.  It was impressive to see how those observers complemented the 4,000 national observers.  There was a very significant international presence.

Mr. Guéhenno lauded UNAMSIL for playing a “critical role” on election day, transporting 800 police officers to various polling stations, as well as briefing materials and sensitive electoral documents.  The logistics of the election went reasonably well, because of UNAMSIL's support.

Behind what happened on election day, he said, there were two years of very hard work.  With 17,500 troops deployed during that period, it showed that when adequate resources were put into a peacekeeping situation, you could achieve results.  There were problems two years ago, because the resource were not there.  "When you deploy en force, then you send the right message", and that stabilized the situation.  The UNAMSIL, as a result, was able to progressively extend its reach throughout the country until it eventually deployed in the areas that had been deemed the most sensitive -– the diamond areas.

By election day UNAMSIL was all over, providing a security umbrella that was critical to creating the right context for an election, he told correspondents.  He added that, during the period between May of last year and the beginning of this year, approximately 47,000 ex-combatants had been disarmed, signifying "a major transition from a country at war to a country moving into a real substantive peace".

He warned, however, that in spite of the impressive success, everything had been accomplished.  If there was one other lesson to be learned from the past, apart from the fact that the international community had been united, “it was the need for the right resources in a peacekeeping situation.  "We must not stop halfway", he said.  In the period following the election, it would be crucial for the international community to continue to support a country that had been weakened by years of war, and whose structures still needed a lot of support.  The international community would have to make sure “not to rush to the exit”, without making sure that it was leaving behind a situation that had been stabilized in depth.

A correspondent asked if there were enough resources to rehabilitate ex-combatants.  Also, how much control did the Government have over the main economic resources -- diamonds?

Mr. Guéhenno replied that regarding the demobilization, disarming and reintegration process, the ex-combatants were paid approximately $150 when they were discharged.  That meant that the amounts of money involved were significant.  All the more so, as once they were discharged they had to be put in a reintegration programme.  For that, money was needed, and at the moment there’s unfortunately still a $13.5 million shortfall.  All the countries that wanted Sierra Leone to really "turn the page of war", should think about that figure and make sure that the gap was eventually funded.

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