Security Council Extends Mandate of United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Guinea-Bissau for Three Months, Pending Assessment Report
The Security Council this morning extended the mandate of the United Nations Integrated Peace Building Office in Guinea-Bissau (UNIOGBIS) for three months until 28 February 2015, as it awaits an assessment report to decide on mandate adjustments.
Through the unanimous adoption of resolution 2186 (2014), the Council decided that, within the time frame of the extension, the Office would focus on supporting Government efforts for political dialogue, national reconciliation, democratic governance, the rule of law, security sector reform, combating transnational organized crime, protection of human rights, mainstreaming gender perspective and coordination of international assistance.
Calling on the authorities of Guinea-Bissau to make further progress in all those areas, the 15-member body encouraged the international community to enhance cooperation with the country on its challenges.
In an 18 November briefing, UNIOGBIS Head Miguel Trovoada had said that despite the political progress accomplished by the recent formation of inclusive Government, political parties remained divided and a climate of suspicion persisted between the civilian and military branches. He urged continued international support to maintain the gains that had been achieved.
In today’s text, the Council welcomed in that light the intention of authorities of Guinea-Bissau to convene an international donor conference in February 2015 and encouraged participation of Member States.
The resolution also urged the West African country to step up its activities to prevent the spread of Ebola in collaboration with UNIOGBIS and international development and humanitarian partners.
The meeting began at 10:05 a.m. and ended at 10:07 a.m.
Resolution
The full text of resolution 2186 (2014) reads as follows:
“The Security Council,
“Recalling its previous resolutions, statements of its President and press statements on the situation in Guinea-Bissau, in particular resolutions 1876 (2009), 2030 (2011), 2048 (2012), 2092 (2013), 2103 (2013) and 2157 (2014),
“Taking note of the report of the Secretary-General on Guinea-Bissau, dated 18 August 2014 (S/2014/603) and his letter dated 11 November 2014 (S/2014/805) and the recommendations contained therein, and commending the engagement of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Guinea-Bissau (UNIOGBIS),
“Welcoming the progress made by the Government of Guinea-Bissau in determining its national priorities following the return to constitutional order,
“Emphasizing the need for respect of democratic principles and stressing the importance of inclusive governance, essential for the attainment of lasting peace in Guinea-Bissau,
“Stressing that the consolidation of peace and stability in Guinea-Bissau can only result from a consensual, inclusive and nationally owned process, respect for constitutional order, the reforms in the defence, security and justice sectors, the promotion of the rule of law, the protection of human rights, the promotion of socioeconomic development and the fight against impunity and drug trafficking,
“Stressing that all stakeholders in Guinea-Bissau should work to ensure short, medium and long-term stability through clear commitment and genuine inclusive political dialogue aimed at creating conditions conducive to finding viable and sustainable solutions to the country’s social, economic, political and military problems, which would facilitate the implementation of key reforms and the strengthening of State institutions,
“Emphasizing the importance of pursuing a national reconciliation and social cohesion strategy and underlining the importance of including all Bissau‑Guineans in the reconciliation process at the national and local levels, while upholding justice and the rule of law and combating impunity,
“Noting efforts of the Government to gain effective civilian control and oversight over the defence and security forces, as failure to do so could adversely affect the effective functioning of State institutions, as a result of collusion between some political actors and the military leadership,
“Commending the efforts of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in helping to sustain peace, security and development and to support the security sector reform (SSR) process in Guinea-Bissau namely through the activities of its Mission (ECOMIB),
“Taking note of the desire of the new authorities of Guinea-Bissau to maintain ECOMIB presence on the ground to support the implementation of reforms and to build up confidence among international partners,
“Reiterating concern about reports of continuing violations and abuses of human rights, and calling on the Government of Guinea‑Bissau to conduct transparent and credible investigations into all alleged human rights violations and abuses, in accordance with international standards, and to hold those responsible accountable for their actions,
“Reiterating its deep concern at the threat drug trafficking poses to stability, re-emphasizing the need to tackle the problem of drug trafficking in the countries of origin, transit and final destination through an approach of common and shared responsibility,
“Underlining that any lasting solution to instability in Guinea-Bissau should include concrete actions to fight impunity and ensure that those responsible for politically motivated assassinations and other serious crimes such as breaches of constitutional order and drug trafficking-related activities are brought to justice, including through national judicial mechanisms,
“Welcoming in this regard the efforts of the Government to update the three‑year national plan for combating drug trafficking and organized crime prepared in June 2011, and to define new priority areas accordingly,
“Reiterating the importance of the continued support of the United Nations and international, subregional, regional and bilateral partners for the long-term security and development of Guinea-Bissau, particularly towards the implementation of security and justice sectors reforms, the fight against drug trafficking, organized crime and human trafficking, as well as the creation of an enabling environment for good governance and inclusive and sustainable social and economic development,
“Commending the important work of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in collaboration with relevant United Nations (UN) entities in the fight against drug trafficking and transnational organized crime in Guinea-Bissau and the sub-region, and encouraging enhanced cooperation between UNODC and UNIOGBIS,
“Stressing the urgent need to maintain in Guinea-Bissau continuous evaluation capacity and to continue to support national, subregional, regional and international institutions in charge of the fight against drug trafficking,
“Stressing also the need for increased coherence, coordination and efficiency among relevant partners to enhance their collective efforts toward combating drug trafficking in Guinea-Bissau, in particular through sharing of information,
“Emphasizing the important role of women in prevention and resolution of conflicts and in peacebuilding, as recognized in resolutions 1325 (2000), 1820 (2008), 1888 (2009), 1889 (2009), 1960 (2010), 2106 (2013) and 2122 (2013), welcoming the Mission’s work to increase women’s participation in Guinea-Bissau and underlining that a gender perspective must continue to inform the implementation of all relevant aspects of the mandate of UNIOGBIS,
“Condemning cases of illegal and unauthorized fishing in Guinea-Bissau’s territorial waters and exclusive economic zone, as well as illegal exploitation of natural resources which undermines prospects for the country’s economic development,
“Reaffirming that Guinea-Bissau’s partners should continue to actively and closely coordinate their actions to help bring solutions to the country’s political, security and development challenges; in this regard, welcoming the efforts made by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Guinea-Bissau to convene an international donor conference in close consultation with international, regional, and subregional development partners in order to mobilize resources for the country’s development priorities including the Government’s 2014-2018 programme containing immediate and long-term priorities for the country,
“Taking note of the statement made by the Chair of the Guinea-Bissau Configuration of the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) on 18 November 2014, and welcoming the engagement of the PBC with Guinea-Bissau,
“Also welcoming the reactivation of the International Contact Group on Guinea Bissau and its 10th meeting held on 18 November 2014,
“Recognizing the need for UNIOGBIS to support national efforts to maintain constitutional order and to promote a multilayered national dialogue towards peace and reconciliation,
“Reaffirming the importance of preparedness by all Member States to detect, prevent, respond to, isolate and mitigate suspected cases of Ebola within and across borders and recalling the International Health Regulations (2005), which aim to improve the capacity of all countries to detect, assess, notify and respond to public health threats,
“Reaffirming its full commitment to the consolidation of peace and stability in Guinea-Bissau,
“1. Decides to extend the mandate of UNIOGBIS for a period of 3 months beginning on 1 December 2014 until 28 February 2015 to perform the following tasks:
(a) Supporting an inclusive political dialogue and national reconciliation process to facilitate democratic governance;
(b) Assisting in strengthening democratic institutions and enhancing the capacity of state organs to function effectively and constitutionally;
(c) Providing strategic and technical advice and support for the establishment of effective and efficient law enforcement and criminal justice and penitentiary systems, capable of maintaining public security and combating impunity, while respecting human rights and fundamental freedoms;
(d) Providing strategic and technical advice and support to national authorities and relevant stakeholders, including in coordination with ECOWAS/ECOMIB, in implementing the national security sector reform and rule of law strategies, as well as developing civilian and military justice systems that are compliant with international standards;
(e) Assisting national authorities to combat drug trafficking and transnational organized crime, in close cooperation with UNODC;
(f) Assisting national authorities in the promotion and protection of human rights as well as undertaking human rights monitoring and reporting activities;
(g) Mainstreaming a gender perspective into peacebuilding, in line with Security Council resolutions 1325 (2000) and 1820 (2008);
(h) Working with the Peacebuilding Commission in support of Guinea-Bissau’s peacebuilding priorities; and
(i) Contributing to the mobilization, harmonization and coordination of international assistance, including for the implementation of the national security sector reform and rule of law strategies, and enhancing cooperation with the African Union (AU), ECOWAS, the Community of Portuguese Language-Speaking Countries (CPLP), the European Union (EU) and other partners in support of the maintenance of constitutional order and the stabilization of Guinea-Bissau;
“2. Reiterates its demand to the security and defence services to submit themselves fully to civilian control;
“3. Urges the authorities of Guinea-Bissau to take all necessary measures to protect human rights, put an end to impunity, initiate investigations to identify the perpetrators of human rights violations and abuses and bring them to justice and take action to protect witnesses in order to ensure due process;
“4. Welcomes the joint efforts by international partners, in particular the UN, AU, ECOWAS, the EU and CPLP, to enhance cooperation in support of the legitimate democratic government in Guinea-Bissau and encourages them to continue to work together towards the country’s stabilization;
“5 Encourages the efforts in support of SSR as a crucial element for long-term stability in Guinea-Bissau and encourages coordinated action by all relevant regional, subregional and international partners of Guinea-Bissau in this field in order to obtain expeditious and positive results;
“6. Calls upon the authorities of Guinea-Bissau to review, adopt and implement national legislations and mechanisms to more effectively combat transnational organized crime, in particular drug trafficking and money laundering, and in this context, to provide additional support to the Transnational Crime Unit (TCU) established under the West Africa Coast Initiative (WACI); and urges both the authorities of Guinea-Bissau and its security and defence services to demonstrate full commitment to combating drug trafficking and calls upon international partners to support their efforts;
“7. Encourages members of the international community to enhance cooperation with Guinea-Bissau, in order to enable it to ensure control of air traffic and surveillance of maritime security within its jurisdiction, in particular to fight drug trafficking and organized crime, as well as illegal fishing in Guinea-Bissau’s territorial waters and exclusive economic zone and other cases of illegal exploitation of natural resources;
“8. Requests the Special Representative of the Secretary-General to increase efforts to achieve greater coherence, coordination and efficiency among relevant UN agencies, funds and programmes in Guinea-Bissau to maximize their collective effectiveness toward combating drug trafficking, in particular through provision by these agencies, funds and programs of relevant information to the Special Representative on individuals, groups, undertakings and entities associated with drug trafficking that contribute to creating a threat to the peace, stability and security of Guinea-Bissau and the subregion;
“9. Invites the Special Representative of the Secretary-General to share all relevant information with the Committee established pursuant to its resolution 2048 (2012), particularly names of individuals who meet the criteria set forth in paragraph 6 and elaborated by paragraph 7 of resolution 2048 (2012);
“10. Stresses the challenges posed by the fight against drug trafficking in the search of solutions to the overall political and economic crisis in Guinea-Bissau, and requests the Secretary-General to ensure the relevant capacity within UNIOGBIS, continuing to provide an anti-drug component, including appropriate expertise;
“11. Encourages international bilateral and multilateral partners to continue their technical support to Guinea-Bissau in strengthening efforts to tackle transnational organized crime including illicit activities, such as money-laundering and drug trafficking, calls upon them to increase their support to WACI and the TCU to fight transnational organized crime and drug trafficking, which threaten security and stability in Guinea-Bissau and in the subregion and further encourages them to contribute to support the presence of UNODC in Guinea-Bissau and to the UNIOGBIS Trust Fund for immediate, medium and longer-term priorities, including for post-election reforms;
“12. Welcomes the intention of the authorities of Guinea-Bissau to convene an international donor conference in Brussels in February 2015 and encourages participation from Member States;
“13. Urges Guinea-Bissau to implement relevant Temporary Recommendations issued under the International Health Regulations (2005) regarding the 2014 Ebola Outbreak in West Africa, and to lead the organisation, coordination and implementation of national preparedness and response activities, including, as appropriate, in collaboration with international development and humanitarian partners, including UNIOGBIS within its existing mandate;
“14. Looking forward to the findings and recommendations of the strategic assessment mission (SAM) to be included in the report of the Secretary-General in January 2015 with a view toward the consideration of such recommendations for appropriate adjustment to the mandate of UNIOGBIS;
“15. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.”