Security Council

6278^th Meeting (AM)

Security Council Extends Mission in Timor-Leste until 26 February 2011,

Unanimously Adopting Resolution 1912 (2010)

 

Recognizing the important role of the United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) in promoting peace, stability and development in the nascent South-East Asian nation, the Security Council today extended the Mission’s mandate until 26 February 2011 at current levels, while endorsing the Secretary-General’s intention to reconfigure its police component, including its drawdown, in line with the phased resumption process of policing responsibilities by the national police.

Through the unanimous adoption of resolution 1912 (2010), following extensive debate earlier this week on the situation in that country, including the future strength of the Mission (see Press Release SC/9866), the Council supported the ongoing work on the resumption of policing responsibilities by the Policia Nacional de Timor-Leste (PNTL) through a phased approach, to ensure that the force met the criteria mutually agreed between the Timorese Government and UNMIT, as set out in the Secretary-General’s report of 4 February 2009 (document S/2009/72).

In that connection, it requested the Government and UNMIT to continue to cooperate to expeditiously implement the resumption process, and requested the Mission to ensure, through its own police component and support to the Timorese force, the maintenance of public security in the country, and to intensify its efforts to assist with further training and strengthening of the police force, with a view to enhancing its effectiveness.

By a related term of the text, the Council requested the Secretary-General to report no later than 15 October on elements on reconfiguring UNMIT’s police component, and no later than 26 January 2011 on possible adjustments in UNMIT’s mandate and strength.

The Council underscored the need for the concept of operations and rules of engagement to be regularly updated as necessary, and to be fully in line with the resolution’s provisions.  It asked the Secretary-General to report on that to the Council and troop- and police-contributing countries within 30 days.

Among other provisions of the comprehensive draft, the Council reaffirmed the importance of ongoing efforts to achieve accountability and justice, expressing its support of UNMIT in assisting the Government in that regard within its mandate; underlined the importance of a coordinated approach to justice sector reform; and requested UNMIT to assist the Government in carrying out the proceedings recommended by the Commission of Inquiry.

In recognition of the importance of the National Recovery Strategy, the Council called on UNMIT to cooperate and coordinate with United Nations actors on the ground, and all other relevant partners, to support the Government and relevant institutions in designing poverty reduction plans, improving education and promoting sustainable livelihood and economic growth policies.  It asked it to fully take into account gender considerations as a cross-cutting issue throughout its mandate.

It encouraged the Government to strengthen peacebuilding perspectives in such areas as employment and empowerment, especially focusing on rural areas and youth, as well as socio-economic development, especially in the agricultural sector.

The meeting was called to order at 10:14 a.m. and adjourned at 10:17 a.m.

Resolution

The full text of Security Council resolution 1912 (2010) reads as follows:

“The Security Council,

“Reaffirming all its previous resolutions and statements on the situation in Timor-Leste, in particular its resolutions 1599 (2005), 1677 (2006), 1690 (2006), 1703 (2006), 1704 (2006), 1745 (2007), 1802 (2008) and 1867 (2009),

“Welcoming the report of the Secretary-General of 12 February 2010 (S/2010/85), including the overview of the findings and recommendations of the Technical Assessment Mission, and its broad consultations with the Timorese authorities and other relevant stakeholders,

“Reaffirming its full commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and national unity of Timor-Leste and the promotion of long-term stability in the country,

“Taking note of general stability through further improvements in the political and security situation, and reiterating its call on the leadership and other stakeholders in Timor-Leste to continue to pursue peaceful dialogue and to avoid violent means to resolve differences,

“Welcoming the successful completion of the village (suco) elections in October 2009 as an indication of the progress made in the democratic political process in Timor-Leste,

“Welcoming also the efforts of the political leadership of Timor-Leste to create opportunities for all political parties to make contributions to issues of national interest,

“Reaffirming the need for respect for the independence of the judiciary, stressing the need to act against impunity, in this regard acknowledging the serious resource constraints of the judicial system, encouraging the leadership of Timor-Leste to continue its efforts to establish accountability for serious criminal offences including those committed during the 2006 crisis as recommended by the Independent Special Commission of Inquiry, and welcoming the adoption of a resolution by the Parliament of Timor-Leste on 14 December 2009,

“Expressing its full support to the establishment of the Anti-Corruption Commission, an independent organ that reports to the National Parliament, welcoming the appointment of its first commissioner, and encouraging Timor-Leste to take further steps to continue to increase the transparency, accountability and efficiency of the public administration,

“Welcoming the resumption of primary policing responsibilities by the Polícia Nacional de Timor-Leste (PNTL) to date, and recalling its previous statements on the need to implement fully the “Arrangement on the Restoration and Maintenance of Public Security in Timor-Leste and Assistance to the Reform, Restructuring and Rebuilding of PNTL and the Ministry of Interior”, concluded between the Government of Timor-Leste and UNMIT on 1 December 2006,

“Noting the statement made by President José Ramos-Horta on 9 December 2009 on the views of the Timorese authorities regarding the future role of UNMIT police during the 2010-2012 period,

“Expressing its full support for the role of the international security forces in assisting the Government of Timor-Leste and UNMIT, in the maintenance of law and stability, in response to the requests of the Government of Timor-Leste,

“Expressing deep concern with the high rates of unemployment and poverty among the Timorese population, as indicated in the report of the Secretary-General, welcoming in this regard the actions already taken by the Government of Timor-Leste to address these issues, in particular the efforts to finalize the National Strategic Development Plan, and underlining the importance of continued support by the international community for the socio-economic development of Timor-Leste,

“Recalling that while the manifestations of the current challenges in Timor-Leste are political and institutional in nature, poverty and its associated deprivations also contribute to these challenges, paying tribute to Timor-Leste’s bilateral and multilateral partners for their invaluable assistance, particularly with regard to human resource development, institutional capacity-building and social and economic development, and recognizing the progress being made in the development of many aspects of governance in Timor-Leste,

“Welcoming the closing of all the internally displaced persons (IDPs) camps, while recognizing the remaining challenges with regards to the full reintegration of IDPs, in assuring the sustainability of the return and the reintegration into Timorese society,

“Reaffirming its resolutions 1325 (2000), 1820 (2008), 1888 (2009) and 1889 (2009) on women, peace and security, 1674 (2006) and 1894 (2009) on protection of civilians and 1502 (2003) on the protection of humanitarian and United Nations personnel, and welcoming the cooperation of UNMIT with other United Nations partners to support the Government’s effort to develop a national gender equality policy and strategy,

“Recognizing the important role that UNMIT continues to play in promoting peace, stability and development in Timor-Leste, and expressing its appreciation for the efforts of UNMIT and the United Nations Country Team, under the leadership of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG),

“1.   Decides to extend the mandate of UNMIT until 26 February 2011 at the current authorized levels;

“2.   Urges all parties in Timor-Leste, in particular political leaders, to continue to work together and engage in political dialogue and to consolidate peace, democracy, rule of law, sustainable social and economic development, advancement of protection of human rights and national reconciliation in the country, and reaffirms its full support for the continued efforts of the SRSG aimed at addressing critical political and security-related issues facing the country, including enhancing a culture of democratic governance, through an inclusive and collaborative processes;

“3.   Requests UNMIT to extend the necessary support, within its current mandate, for municipal elections, if requested by the Government of Timor-Leste, and encourages the international community to assist in this process;

“4.   Reaffirms the continued importance of the review and reform of the security sector in Timor-Leste, in particular the need to delineate between the roles and responsibilities of the Falintil-Forças de Defesa de Timor-Leste (F-FDTL) and the PNTL, to strengthen legal frameworks, and to enhance civilian oversight and accountability mechanisms of both security institutions, and requests UNMIT to continue to support the Government of Timor-Leste in these efforts;

“5.   Supports the ongoing work on the resumption of policing responsibilities by the PNTL through a phased approach, to ensure that the PNTL meet the criteria mutually agreed between the Government of Timor-Leste and UNMIT as set out in paragraph 21 of the report of the Secretary-General of 4 February 2009 (S/2009/72), and requests the Government of Timor-Leste and UNMIT to continue their cooperation to implement expeditiously the resumption process in accordance with the mutually agreed criteria;

“6.   Endorses the Secretary-General’s intention to reconfigure the UNMIT police component, including its drawdown, in accordance with the phased resumption process of policing responsibilities by the PNTL, and requests the Secretary-General to include in his next report his review of this process;

“7.   Requests UNMIT to continue to ensure, through the presence of UNMIT police component and the provision of support to the PNTL, the maintenance of public security in Timor-Leste, which includes interim law enforcement and public security until the PNTL is fully reconstituted, and, working with partners, to intensify its efforts to assist with further training, mentoring, institutional development and strengthening of the PNTL with a view to enhancing its effectiveness, including with respect to community policing, and to address the special needs of women, and recognizes the importance of ensuring that UNMIT personnel have the appropriate profile and specialized skill sets for these tasks, and the potential need for civilian experts for the above purpose;

“8.   Underscores the need for the concept of operations and rules of engagement to be regularly updated as necessary and to be fully in line with the provisions of this resolution, and requests the Secretary-General to report on them to the Security Council and troop- and police-contributing countries within 90 days after the adoption of this resolution;

“9.   Reaffirms the importance of ongoing efforts to achieve accountability and justice, expresses its support for the work of UNMIT in assisting the Government of Timor-Leste in this regard within its mandate, and underlines the importance of the implementation by the Government of Timor-Leste of the recommendations of the United Nations Special Commission of Inquiry report of 2006 (S/2006/822), including paragraphs 225 through 228 of the report;

“10.  Underlines the importance of a coordinated approach to the justice sector reform, taking into account the recommendations of the Independent Comprehensive Needs Assessment and through implementation of the Timorese Government’s Justice Sector Strategic Plan, and the ongoing need to increase Timorese ownership and strengthen national capacity in judicial line functions, including the training and specialization of national lawyers and judges, and emphasizes the need for sustained support of the international community in capacity-building and strengthening of institutions in this sector;

“11.  Requests UNMIT to continue its efforts, adjusting them as necessary to enhance the effectiveness of the judiciary, in assisting the Government of Timor-Leste in carrying out the proceedings recommended by the Commission of Inquiry;

“12.  Calls upon UNMIT to continue to support the Government of Timor-Leste in its efforts to coordinate donor cooperation in areas of institutional capacity-building;

“13.  Recognizes the importance of Timor-Leste National Recovery Strategy, especially the attention paid to infrastructure, rural development and human resources capacity development, and in this regard, calls upon UNMIT to continue to cooperate and coordinate with the United Nations agencies, funds and programmes, as well as all relevant partners, to support the Government of Timor-Leste and relevant institutions in designing poverty reduction, improving education, promotion of sustainable livelihood and economic growth policies;

“14.  Encourages the Government of Timor-Leste to strengthen peacebuilding perspectives in such areas as employment and empowerment, especially focusing on rural areas and youth, as well as local socio-economic development in particular in the agricultural sector;

“15.  Requests UNMIT to fully take into account gender considerations as set out in Security Council resolutions 1325 (2000), 1820 (2008), 1888 (2009) and 1889 (2009) as a cross-cutting issue throughout its mandate, stressing the importance of strengthening the responsiveness of the security sector to specific needs of women, and further requests the Secretary-General to include in his reporting to the Security Council progress on gender mainstreaming throughout UNMIT and all other aspects relating to the situation of women and girls, especially on the need to protect them from gender-based violence, detailing special measures to protect women and girls from such violence;

“16.  Requests the Secretary-General to continue to take the necessary measures to ensure full compliance by UNMIT with the United Nations zero tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse and to keep the Council informed, and urges those countries contributing troops and police to take appropriate preventive action and to ensure full accountability in cases of such conduct involving their personnel;

“17.  Further requests the Secretary-General to keep the Security Council regularly informed of the developments on the ground and on the implementation of this resolution and to submit to the Security Council, no later than 15 October 2010, a report which includes elements requested in paragraph 6 of this resolution, and, no later than 26 January 2011, a report which includes possible adjustments in UNMIT’s mandate and strength;

“18.  Reaffirms the importance of the medium-term strategy and benchmarks for measuring and tracking progress in Timor-Leste, and assessing the level and form of United Nations support while keeping the benchmarks under active review, and underlines the importance of ownership of the strategy by the leaders and people of Timor-Leste in this process;

“19.  Decides to remain seized of the matter.”

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*     Reissued to correct text of resolution.

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