S/PV.7004 Security Council

Under rule 37 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure, I invite the representative of Côte d’Ivoire to participate in this meeting. Under rule 39 of the Council’s provisional rules of procedure, I invite Mr. Hervé Ladsous, Under- Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, to participate in this meeting. The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. I wish to draw the attention of Council members to document S/2013/377, which contains the thirty-second report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire. I now give the floor to Mr. Ladsous.

I thank you, Mr. President, for this opportunity to introduce the report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (S/2013/377). I will begin by announcing that Ms. Aïchatou Mindaoudou took up her responsibilities as the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Côte d’Ivoire and Head of the United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI) last week, on 8 July. She has already been able to meet with President Ouattara, members of his Government and other key stakeholders. As is highlighted in the report before the Council, Côte d’Ivoire has continued to make progress on the path to recovery since the end of the violent post- election crisis in April 2011. President Ouattara and his Government have taken significant steps to stabilize the security situation, accelerate economic recovery and initiate key reforms. An elected National Assembly is in place and working well. The success of the regional and municipal elections held in April demonstrated the ability of the national authorities, including the security forces, to assume responsibility for organizing and safeguarding the election process. We can say that Côte d’Ivoire is on the right track. Its leadership has shown remarkable resolve in tackling the country’s many challenges. The establishment of the National Security Council and the adoption and endorsement of a national security strategy are important steps on the road to security sector reform, while the start, in 2012, of the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of the 65,000 or so former combatants was another important milestone. Indeed, that process remains a key priority for President Ouattara, who has asked his Government to expedite the disarmament and demobilization of 30,000 combatants by the end of this year and to complete the process by the end of 2014. We cannot pretend that this is not an ambitious goal, and UNOCI will continue to assist the national authorities in implementing that national programme. However, Côte d’Ivoire will need the support of the international community as a whole to ensure that lasting solutions are found for every former combatant. There is a real risk, going on lessons learned from the crisis, that if solutions are not found for them, they may once again become a threat to human rights and stability in Côte d’Ivoire and the subregion, since they may potentially take up arms again if the opportunity arises. It is therefore very important that the Government continue to work closely with its international and regional partners to ensure that such reintegration is sustainable, and that it is supported by job creation and a return to normality. The Government has made genuine efforts to engage with the political opposition parties, in spite of the decision those parties made to boycott the local elections. While discussions with several of them have been resumed, dialogue with the former ruling party has been stalled since February. It is vital that it be resumed without further delay in order to pave the way for political reconciliation, which will be essential as we move towards a new electoral cycle in 2015. At the same time, conflict prevention and resolution at the local level should be promoted. Considering that the current mandate of the Dialogue, Truth and Reconciliation Commission ends in September, it is important for the Government to ensure that efforts to promote reconciliation and healing continue across the country. Reconciliation must go hand in hand with equitable justice. Ensuring the accountability of those who have committed violations of human rights and international humanitarian law is essential. The human rights situation, in which I include incidents of sexual and gender-based violence, remains worrying. Efforts to combat impunity must be expedited by ensuring that those responsible for serious violations of human rights and international humanitarian law are brought to justice whatever their political affiliation, while, obviously, respecting the rights of those in detention. Impartial justice is essential to achieve reconciliation and end decades of impunity for human rights violations. As the report indicates, the Governments of Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia have continued their efforts at every level to address common border challenges, with the support of UNOCI and the United Nations Mission in Liberia. At the second quadripartite meeting in April, both Governments committed to beginning to institutionalize their cross-border cooperation and to enhancing their security forces’ presence on both sides of the border. They also agreed to increase their exchange of intelligence, to undertake joint actions — including intensified and coordinated land and river patrols — to take steps to strengthen the relationship between their security forces and their populations and to reinforce their coordination of humanitarian efforts. Despite such significant progress, threats to Côte d’Ivoire’s peace and security persist and should not be underestimated. The political divisions go deep and networks connected to the former regime, whose aim is to destabilize the Government, are still there. Further continuing concerns are the presence of mercenaries, former combatants and other armed elements, the uncontrolled circulation of weapons, criminal activity and violence between communities. Nor should we forget other threats to stability, which include piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, drug trafficking and organized crime; and we cannot rule out the possibility of terrorist threats. All of that goes to show that UNOCI’s ongoing presence in Côte d’Ivoire remains essential, particularly regarding its core priorities — the protection of civilians, the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of former combatants, and security sector reform. UNOCI has continued working to strengthen its efforts to protect civilians, with particular emphasis on the western part of the country, involving strengthening its civilian presence on the ground and its contacts with local authorities. That has, in point of fact, helped to improve the mission’s capacity to collect relevant information, identify key protection concerns and take necessary action, in close coordination with the United Nations country team. Further to the decision of the Security Council, 850 troops were repatriated in May following the conclusion of the local elections, and preparations are under way to transfer the military hospital in Abidjan to the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali. UNOCI is continuing to refine plans for a further reduction of its military strength by 2015, while exploring with the Government the possibility of reducing, for example, the protection arrangements enjoyed by some members of the Government and key strategic installations. In that regard, UNOCI is keeping a close watch on developments on the ground to inform the planning process. In the report before the Council, the Secretary- General has proposed broad benchmarks to measure Côte d’Ivoire’s progress towards long-term stability and to undertake transition planning. However, it is clearly still too early to predict when UNOCI will start its transition. We need to take into account, in particular, the 2015 presidential and legislative elections, after which the situation can be fully reassessed. By way of conclusion, let me say that the Council’s ongoing support continues to be critical to improving the ability of the United Nations to make a positive difference in Côte d’Ivoire.

I thank Mr. Ladsous for his briefing. I now give the floor to the representative of Côte d’Ivoire.

My delegation takes note of the report of the Secretary- General before the Council (S/2013/377). We thank Mr. Hervé Ladsous, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, for his excellent briefing. Before making a few comments on some points that appear critical to my delegation, I would like to warmly congratulate your country, Mr. President, on assuming the presidency of the Security Council for the month of July. Please also allow me to pay tribute to the Secretary- General for his personal and continued commitment to the issue of the United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI)  — a commitment that is reflected in the quality of the report before us today. I would also like to pay tribute to Mr. Bert Koenders, former Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Côte D’Ivoire and head of UNOCI, for the excellent results he achieved in just two years. We hope that he will achieve the same superior results in our brotherly country of Mali, where he now serves as the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali. Finally, my delegation would like to congratulate Ms. Aichatou Mindaoudou Souleymane on her appointment as the new Special Representative of the Secretary-General and head of UNOCI. We note with satisfaction that Ms. Souleymane has, in her new capacity, begun to make contact with the various authorities and Ivorian entities. I assure her of the full cooperation of the Ivorian authorities. Returning to the report of the Secretary-General and as has been relevantly pointed out, considerable progress has been made at all levels, particularly at the level of the general objectives concerning security and stability, including security sector reform (SSR) and disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR); justice and human rights; and political dialogue and national reconciliation. In terms of security and stability, as is strongly emphasized in the report of the Secretary-General, President Alassane Ouattara and his Government are paying particular attention to the stabilization of the security situation throughout the national territory, with good results, such as the reclassification of the cities of Abidjan and Yamoussoukro by the United Nations in May 2013 as areas authorized for the families of the international staff of the Organization. However, as was emphasized by Mr. Ladsous, concerns remain along the border with Liberia, although the situation has improved significantly following the strengthening of the quadripartite cooperation among the security services of Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia, UNOCI and the United Nations Mission in Liberia. With regard to the reform of the security sector, I would like to point out that the coordination of the implementation of SSR takes place on three levels: the political and strategic level; the coordination level, which involves monitoring and evaluation; and the operational level, which involves implementation. The National Security Council is at the political and strategic level. The Council secretariat and the Advisory Group are at the level of coordination. The various ministries involved in SSR are implementing structures, with each ministry having a focal point that reports monthly on its progress in implementing SSR to the Council secretariat and the Advisory Group, which are its partners. Each ministry must develop its own implementation model and programme it. Accordingly, the Ministries of Defence, Justice, Interior and National Security, and Foreign Affairs are the most advanced in the process of implementing SSR. With regard to the fight against smuggling, specific measures have been taken to eradicate the smuggling of natural resources for the benefit of neighbouring countries and to put an end to the parallel tax system set up by members of the former Forces nouvelles and former combatants. Those measures focus on the redeployment of State administration throughout the national territory, in particular customs, police, gendarmerie, the finance and tax services, on the one hand, and on raising awareness of military personnel of the danger that trafficking poses to the national economy and the sanctions they may incur in the event of proven liability, including their termination, on the other hand. Finally, with regard to the case of Amadé Ouérémi, which is briefly mentioned in paragraph 20 of the Secretary-General’s report, my delegation would like to state that after 10 years of fomenting insecurity in the Mont Peko national park located in western Côte d’Ivoire, Mr. Ouérémi was apprehended, prosecuted, charged and placed in custody on 22 May. The suspect is subject to the following charges: crimes against civilians, genocide, violation of individual freedom, assassination, murder, rape, assault and battery, threat of death, violence and assault, tribalism and xenophobia, attacks and other offences against the authority of the State, the setting- up of gangs, participation in an insurgency, disturbing public order, looting, destruction or deterioration of foodstuffs, goods, merchandise or equipment, group robbery, extortion, wilful destruction of real or personal property, coercion, abetting, conspiracy and attempt to commit all of the aforementioned offences. He is accused and charged along with nine others. The proceedings are well under way. In-depth interrogations, investigations of the individuals involved and psychiatric assessments have been made. Accordingly, 50 rape victims and 4,000 victims of various other offences have already been heard by the examining magistrate, who has indicted several suspects, including Amadé Ouérémi himself, and is continuing the investigations in order to find other accomplices. On disarmament, demobilization and reintegration, the Authority for Disarmament. Demobilization and Reintegration, created on 8 August 2012, was set up in October 2012 and began operations in January 2013. After six months of operation, 7,680 weapons have been collected and 8,044 former combatants have been demobilized and reintegrated or are in the process of reintegration. In recent months, now that the installation and implementation of systems and procedures is complete, we have seen accelerated results. With the opening of three regional offices and four branches, we expect to see the Authority’s activities take off. We also expect to open three more regional offices and six other branches by the end of July. The Transitional Demobilization and Reintegration Programme — supported, among others, by the World Bank and the African Development Bank — has provided assistance to the Authority for nearly two months in developing a strategic framework for the national DDR strategy. This framework was shared with all partners in April. The Authority has established a framework for overall coordination, including national and international partners, that meets once a month, as well as four thematic groups. This coordination mechanism enables the development of sectoral strategies and action plans. Thus, the thematic groups are finalizing thematic strategy papers that will be available in late July. In the same vein, a programmatic document will be developed with the assistance of UNOCI, the United Nations Development Programme and the European Union, which have volunteered to support the Authority in this exercise. The document will serve as a basis for the meeting of partners for resource mobilization in September. Regarding the database of ex-combatants, UNOCI has made a computer expert available to the Authority for Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration to examine the database in order to make it more credible. Thus, the issue of UNOCI access to the database is no longer relevant. The ongoing joint exercise has already helped to detect and correct anomalies in the database. By mutual agreement, UNOCI and the Authority have agreed not to proceed with a new registry of ex-combatants. On the other hand, a joint mechanism to verify the status of ex-combatants has been developed and implemented. Furthermore, a system to monitor and mark weapons in connection with the demobilization of ex-combatants has been established with the support of UNOCI, and regular statistics on disarmament, reintegration and rehabilitation, as well as on weapons, are provided to UNOCI. Finally, discussions are under way with UNOCI and other partners to expedite the reintegration of ex-combatants. These discussions will be recorded in the reintegration action plan. In that context, I welcome the readiness and much appreciated support of UNOCI in the development and implementation of the thematic strategies, which will allow the Authority for Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration to achieve its objectives. In terms of justice and human rights, at the general level it should first be noted that the members of the National Commission on Human Rights have been appointed. We also note that progress has been made in the implementation of the national strategy for justice reform for 2012-2015. The action plan and budget for the strategy were approved by the Council of Ministers on 6 June. In addition to the national strategy, a strategic plan is being developed to reform the juvenile justice system. My delegation notes that numerous efforts and investments are being made by the State to strengthen the capacity of the judicial and penal systems. With respect to the armed forces, the supervisory authority and the General Staff of the Forces républicaines de Côte d’Ivoire (FRCI) have established a technical unit for human rights training. This unit conducts awareness and training for the FRCI throughout the national territory. Regulations are in place to punish gross violations of human rights. Following the report of the National Commission of Inquiry into the crimes of the post-election period, the military tribunal has opened investigations and proceeded to indictments and even to convictions of military personnel following a procedure in accordance with the relevant laws. There are three categories of personnel subject to the judicial proceedings. Thirty- two members of the army and gendarmerie and eight members of the National Police have been charged and heard on the merits. Twenty-three members of the army and gendarmerie and eight members of the National Police have been charged on a committal order. Six soldiers have been charged on a committal order but not yet heard the merits. In addition, a focal point between the office of UNOCI and the army has been appointed. Regarding the investigation of the attack on the Nahibly camp for internally displaced persons, the examining magistrate in the court of Man has been engaged to shed light on the facts of the case and to charge and detain all persons involved. The investigation is ongoing and developments therein will be communicated as soon as available. Regarding other ongoing judicial procedures, concerning which we have heard a broad spectrum of commentary, my delegation would draw attention to the fact that the separation of powers is a fundamental parameter of good governance and an expression of the rule of law throughout the world. There can be no impartial justice if everyone seeks to tell the judicial system how to conduct its investigations and who to prosecute. Based on the foregoing, I would like to emphasize that the main concern of the Government of Côte d’Ivoire in its judicial proceedings is to ensure that all citizens receive a fair trial within a reasonable time frame. Despite the difficulties in infrastructure and superstructure of the Ivorian justice system — which are related mainly to the destruction that occurred in the post-election crisis — several procedures have been completed and submitted to the trial courts. Decisions have been handed down and trials are about to open. I would therefore like to emphasize that there are no political indictees or prisoners in Côte d’Ivoire, since it is a generally accepted rule that a person’s activities do not affect the juridical nature of the offence with which that person may be charged. In other words, it is not because someone holds an important position in civil and political society that he or she is not subject to the law. At this level, the strategy put in place to ensure equitable justice in Côte d’Ivoire has led the Public Prosecutor, who is also the head of the Special Investigations Unit, to give priority attention to the proceedings of detainees in a sequential approach in order to ensure them a speedy and fair trial within a reasonable time frame, in accordance with all the declarations and principles of human rights enshrined in the Ivorian Constitution. However, it is important to note, especially for the leaders of the former regime, that most of the actions for which they are being prosecuted are of a criminal nature, thus requiring the court to make use of a two- tier investigation process before indictment before the Court of Appeals. Moreover, an indictment was recently issued before the Court of Appeals for the accused, which indicates that the procedures will end in judgments that are in the course of formulation. In terms of political dialogue and national reconciliation, my delegation wishes to reaffirm the continued commitment of the Ivorian authorities to the process of political dialogue and national reconciliation. Everyone knows that Côte d’Ivoire has a long and deeply-rooted tradition of ongoing dialogue, despite all that is said and written in the media and other sources of information. Contacts are patiently and constantly maintained among all parties, and tangible results will be seen shortly. At this point, the President of the Republic continues to maintain a close dialogue with his people during his tours to all regions of the country. Thus, having visited the west in April, on Monday he completed a tour through the north. While these tours are an opportunity for communion between the President and the people by promoting direct interaction, they also reflect the tone of the equitable redistribution of the country’s wealth, since numerous socioeconomic and even cultural goods are provided for the benefit of the regions concerned during the course of these presidential visits. Thus, in the case of northern Ferkessédougou, it has promoted reconciliation between political leaders representing political parties in power or in the opposition. It is equally reassuring to note that, apart from these actions at the highest level of the State, local authorities, through sensitization and early warning committees, actively contribute to calming tensions and communal violence. A national programme for social cohesion was launched on 10 May to coordinate all Government initiatives in this area. To set it squarely within the parameters of the national development plan, the programme is housed within the Ministry of Planning and Development, which ensures its institutional foundations. With regard to the process of national reconciliation, there is reason to celebrate significant progress. Indeed, after field studies that lasted several months, the Dialogue, Truth and Reconciliation Commission organized a restitution workshop in December 2012 to take preliminary stock of the situation. This was followed by a listening seminar to ascertain the views of Ivorians on the causes of the crisis, after which the Commission met on 10, 11 and 12 July, during a symposium held in Yamoussoukro, to determine the root causes of the crisis. The symposium was attended by 120 participants from all socio-professional strata to share their views in the context of seven subcommittees on each of the following themes: land; citizenship, nationality and democracy; communication and society; justice and security; gender; education, training and youth; and poverty. After three days of intense and fruitful work, the Commission can be credited with having achieved remarkable results since all the causes of the Ivorian crisis were exhaustively inventoried by each of the seven subcommittees, and appropriate solutions were recommended in each of the aforementioned spheres. The matrix thus developed will help to formulate appropriate policies to achieve the objectives of national reconciliation. Given these facts and their positive momentum, we hope fervently that our international partners in general, and UNOCI in particular, can furnish all the support the Commission needs to effectively implement the next phases of its work before submitting its final report to the President of the Republic in September. In conclusion, my delegation believes that the matter of plans to reduce UNOCI’s military, police and civilian components by 2015 should be approached with great care so as not to create a security vacuum on the ground while the Security Council’s complex mandates for UNOCI are still being implemented. In that context, I should reiterate strongly that the Government of Côte d’Ivoire is aware that it bears primary responsibility for the country’s sustainable recovery and is thus determined to spare no effort and to make any sacrifice necessary to achieve its goals for security sector reform, a well-run DDR process, the achievement of its national reconciliation objectives, efforts towards strong, sustainable and inclusive economic growth and preparation for the conduct of free, fair, transparent and peaceful elections scheduled for 2015. I would also like to recall the fact that the Charter of the United Nations confers on the Security Council the responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, which is why UNOCI is helping Côte d’Ivoire to achieve its aforementioned goals. In that context, my delegation shares the Secretary- General’s opinion that Côte d’Ivoire’s sustainable recovery will undoubtedly contribute to strengthening peace, stability and development in West Africa. It is therefore important that the Council’s decisions on UNOCI’s military and police units reflect that fact; hence my delegation’s reservations about the proposal to reduce them by two battalions in 2015. We believe that the progress being made on every ongoing project deserves to be strengthened and protected, at least until the 2015 elections, after which UNOCI could comfortably consider an orderly transition to a peacebuilding regime. Similarly, my delegation emphasizes the critical need for UNOCI to continue to work closely with the Côte d’Ivoire authorities in order to come to an agreement on identifying and evaluating the country’s criteria for long-term stability. Incidentally, it is in consideration of Côte d’Ivoire’s requirements for stability in the long term that the Ivorian authorities have formally requested that surveillance drones be deployed along all of our borders, particularly those with Liberia, and we hope that the Council will give the request all the attention it deserves.

There are no more names inscribed on the list of speakers. I now invite Council members to informal consultations to continue our discussion on the subject.