S/PV.8122 Security Council

The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. After consultations among Council members, I have been authorized to make the following statement on their behalf: “The Security Council expresses grave concern about reports of migrants being sold into slavery in Libya. The Security Council condemns such actions as heinous abuses of human rights which may also amount to crimes against humanity. The Security Council calls upon all relevant authorities to investigate such activities without delay to bring the perpetrators to justice and hold those responsible to account. “The Security Council welcomes in this regard the statement by the Presidency Council of the Government of National Accord (GNA) of Libya denouncing trafficking in persons, including for the purpose of slavery, inside or outside Libya, and notes that the GNA has launched an investigation into the reported incidents and committed to hold those responsible for these actions to account. The Council also welcomes the statements by the African Union calling for an immediate end to these practices and welcomes the Secretary- General’s request for the relevant United Nations actors to actively pursue this matter. “The Security Council reaffirms its support for the United Nations action plan for Libya, reiterates its call for all Libyans to work together in a spirit of compromise in the inclusive political process facilitated by Special Representative of the Secretary-General Ghassan Salamé, and emphasizes that a stable Libya is the only way to help improve the living conditions of all people in Libya, including migrants. “The Security Council reiterates concern at the smuggling of migrants and trafficking in persons, including through Libya, and welcomes the work of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) in coordinating and supporting the provision of humanitarian assistance for refugees and migrants through the United Nations country team, particularly the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). “The Security Council further underlines the need for coordination of efforts to tackle the root causes of large movements of people, including forced displacement, unmanaged migration and trafficking in persons, in a comprehensive and holistic manner, to prevent exploitation of refugees and migrants by smugglers and human traffickers, as well as for implementation of the 2030 Agenda. “The Security Council underlines the importance of a comprehensive response for all migrants in Libya and strengthened international cooperation with the Libyan authorities. “The Security Council emphasizes that all migrants should be treated with humanity and dignity and that their rights should be fully respected, and urges the Libyan authorities and all Member States in this regard to comply with their obligations under international law, including international human rights law and international refugee law, as applicable. “The Security Council stresses the need to transfer detainees to State authorities and encourages the Libyan authorities to reinforce their cooperation with international organizations and United Nations agencies and to ensure humanitarian access to detention centres. “The Security Council recalls its resolution 1970 (2011) and notes that individuals and entities planning, directing, or committing acts that violate applicable international human rights law or international humanitarian law, or acts that constitute human rights abuses in Libya, may be subject to designation by the Sanctions committee established by resolution 1970 (2011). “The Security Council also reiterates concern at the implications for regional stability posed by transnational organized crime and illicit activities, such as trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants, and calls upon Member States to step up their efforts to investigate, disrupt and dismantle networks engaging in trafficking in persons in areas affected by armed conflict and to take all appropriate measures to collect, preserve and store evidence of human trafficking to help hold those responsible accountable, and assist victims of human trafficking, and in this regard calls on the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, within its existing mandates, to provide technical assistance to Member States on their request. “The Security Council further recalls its resolutions 2331 (2016) and 2388 (2017), on trafficking of persons in conflict situations, which recognize that the various forms of exploitation can include slavery and practices similar to slavery. The Security Council also reiterates its call to Member States to consider, as a matter of priority, ratifying or acceding to, and for States Parties to effectively implement, the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its supplementary Protocols, in particular the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons Especially Women and Children, and the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air. “The Security Council calls on all Member States to implement effectively the United Nations Global Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking in Persons and for the United Nations to step up its efforts including through the Inter-Agency Coordination Group Against Trafficking in Persons. “The Security Council encourages cooperation between the European Union, the African Union and the United Nations to protect the lives of migrants and refugees along migration routes, and in particular inside Libya. “The Security Council further reiterates the need to place prevention and protection of victims of trafficking, including for the purpose of slavery, at the centre of the national and international response, including through the strengthening of identification, registration, gender and age-sensitive assistance, and services for the physical, psychological and social recovery care of those who are victims of trafficking, as well as to strengthen Member States’ and United Nations assessment, where appropriate, of those who are vulnerable to trafficking in persons, and further encourages Member States, especially transit and destination States, to develop and use early warning and early screening frameworks. “The Security Council welcomes ongoing efforts by Members States and regional organizations to assist Libya, on request, in building capacity, including to secure its borders and to prevent, investigate and prosecute acts of smuggling of migrants and trafficking in persons through its territory and in its territorial seas, and calls on Member States and regional organizations to continue to do so, in partnership with the Presidency Council of the Government of National Accord of Libya and in support of the United Nations country team, in particular UNHCR and IOM, while reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and national unity of Libya.” This statement will be issued as a document of the Security Council under the symbol S/PRST/2017/24. I shall now give the floor to those members of the Council who wish to make statements.

Russia supported today’s presidential statement S/PRST/2017/24, echoing the voices of those who are gravely concerned by reports of incidents of migrants being sold into slavery in Libya. However, the authors of the text, bowing to the opinions of some Council members, refused to take into account one important addition to the draft statement that had been proposed by the Russian delegation. We are convinced that the Security Council should have condemned the circumstances that created the current legal chaos in Libya, leading to alleged manifestations of slavery. We understand the extent to which some did not wish to recognize their responsibility for the far-reaching consequences of the 2011 military intervention. For years now, we have had to cherish the hope that the United Nations would help the Libyans to achieve national reconciliation and re-establish the country’s unity.