SC/8404
6 June 2005
Security Council Extends Côte d’Ivoire Mission until 24 June, With Intention to Renew for Further 7 Months
Resolution 1603 (2005) Adopted Unanimously; Requests of High Representative to Monitor Presidential, Legislative Elections
NEW YORK, 3 June (UN Headquarters) -- The Security Council today extended the mandate of the United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI) and that of the French forces supporting it, until 24 June 2005, with a view to renewing it for seven months.
Unanimously adopting resolution 1603 (2005) and acting under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, the Council authorized the Secretary-General to begin the necessary planning and preparations, including troop and police generation, as well as required support and other arrangements, to facilitate a timely deployment in the event that the Council decided to increase UNOCI’s authorized troop and police strength and to adjust its mandate.
Endorsing the Pretoria Agreement signed by the parties, in the presence of South African President Thabo Mbeki, the Council demanded that all the signatories and all parties concerned implement it fully and without delay. It demanded also that all the Ivorian parties take all necessary steps to ensure that the forthcoming general elections were free, fair and transparent.
The Council took note with satisfaction of the Pretoria Agreement’s provisions reaffirming the determination of the signatories regarding the need to organize presidential elections in October 2005 and legislative elections immediately thereafter. It also noted their agreement to invite the United Nations to participate in the work of the Independent Electoral Commission and the Constitutional Council, as well as in organizing the general election. It took note also of the decision by the Council of Ministers on 28 April 2005 to hold the first round of presidential elections on 30 October 2005.
Welcoming the decision taken by President Mbeki with regard to the eligibility for the Presidency of the Republic, as described in his letter of 11 April 2005 to President Laurent Gbagbo of Côte d’Ivoire (document S/2005/270), the Council took note with satisfaction of President Gbagbo’s 26 April announcement that all candidates nominated by the political parties signatory to the Linas-Marcoussis Agreement would be eligible for the presidential elections.
Commending the essential role played by President Mbeki, on behalf of the African Union, to restore peace and stability in Côte d’Ivoire, the Council reaffirmed its full support for his mediation efforts. It reminded the signatories to the Pretoria Agreement that in the event of differences in the interpretation of all or part of the accord, they should seek a ruling from President Mbeki.
The Council requested the Secretary-General, on the basis of the Pretoria Agreement, to designate, as an exceptional arrangement and after consultations with the African Union and President Mbeki, an autonomous High Representative for the Côte d’Ivoire elections to assist in the work of the Independent Electoral Commission and of the Constitutional Council, without prejudice to the responsibilities of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General. The High Representative’s mandate would end after the general elections.
By further provisions, the Council stressed that non-respect of any of the Pretoria commitments would endanger the Côte d’Ivoire peace process, constituting an obstacle to the implementation of the Linas-Marcoussis Agreement and the Accra III Agreement. It, therefore, reaffirmed its readiness to implement paragraphs 9 and 11 of resolution 1572 of 15 November 2004 if the parties failed to meet their commitments under the Linas-Marcoussis and Pretoria Agreements.
[By paragraph 9 of resolution 1572 (2004) the Council decided that all States would prevent the entry into or transit through their territories of all persons deemed to constitute a threat to the peace and national reconciliation process in Côte d’Ivoire, particularly those who blocked the implementation of the Linas-Marcoussis and Accra III Agreements; any other person determined as responsible for serious violations of human rights and international humanitarian law in Côte d’Ivoire on the basis of relevant information; any other person who publicly incited hatred and violence; and any other person determined to be in violation of the Council-imposed arms embargo on Côte d’Ivoire.
Paragraph 11 of that text stipulated that States would freeze immediately the funds, other financial assets and economic resources owned or controlled by the persons designated by paragraph 9, or held by entities owned or controlled by any persons acting on their behalf or at their direction.]
Today’s meeting began at 10:15 a.m. and ended at 10:20 a.m.
Resolution
The full text of resolution 1603 (2005) reads as follows:
“The Security Council,
“Recalling its previous resolutions and statements of its President relating to the situation in Côte d’Ivoire,
“Reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and unity of Côte d’Ivoire, and recalling the importance of the principles of good neighbourliness, non-interference and regional cooperation,
“Recalling that it endorsed the Agreement signed by the Ivorian political forces in Linas-Marcoussis on 24 January 2003 (S/2003/99) (the Linas-Marcoussis Agreement) approved by the Conference of Heads of State on Côte d’Ivoire, held in Paris on 25 and 26 January 2003, and the Agreement signed in Accra on 30 July 2004 (the Accra III Agreement),
“Welcoming the efforts of the Secretary-General, the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) towards re-establishing peace and stability in Côte d’Ivoire,
“Welcoming, in particular, the mediation efforts undertaken by Mr. Thabo Mbeki, President of the Republic of South Africa, on behalf of the African Union, and reaffirming its full support for him,
“Welcoming the signature by the Ivorian parties on 6 April 2005 in Pretoria of the agreement on the peace process in Côte d’Ivoire (the Pretoria Agreement), under the auspices of President Thabo Mbeki, and expressing its satisfaction with the first steps which have been undertaken by the Ivorian parties in order to implement this agreement, in particular with the agreement on the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration process reached on 14 May 2005 and the restoration of the status of the Ivorian Radio and Television to that it enjoyed before 24 December 2004,
“Reaffirming its resolutions 1325 (2000) of 31 October 2000 on women, peace and security, 1379 (2001) of 20 November 2001 and 1460 (2003) of 30 January 2003 on children and armed conflict as well as its resolutions 1265 (1999) of 17 September 1999 and 1296 (2000) of 19 April 2000 on protection of civilians in armed conflict,
“Expressing grave concern at the allegations of misconduct of some peacekeeping troops deployed in African countries, including the sexual exploitation, affirming that these troops should limit their behaviour in line with their code of conduct and reaffirming that there will be a zero-tolerance policy of any illegal misconduct or sexual exploitation and abuse in all peacekeeping troops,
“Having taken note of the report of the Secretary-General of 18 March 2005 (S/2005/186),
“Having also taken note of the letter of the Permanent Representative of the Republic of South-Africa of 24 May 2005 (S/2005/340),
“Expressing its concern at the continued deterioration of the security and humanitarian situation, in particular in the West of the country,
“Determining that the situation in Côte d’Ivoire continues to pose a threat to international peace and security in the region,
“Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations,
“1. Endorses the Pretoria Agreement and demands that all the signatories to the agreement and all the Ivorian parties concerned implement it fully and without delay;
“2. Stresses in this regard that non-respect, by the signatories to the Pretoria Agreement, or by any other Ivorian party concerned, of any of the commitments made in Pretoria in the presence of President Thabo Mbeki would endanger the peace process in Côte d’Ivoire and would constitute an obstacle to the implementation of the Linas-Marcoussis Agreement and the Accra III Agreement, and therefore reaffirms its readiness to implement paragraphs 9 and 11 of resolution 1572 (2004) if the parties fail to meet their commitments under the Linas-Marcoussis and Pretoria Agreements;
“3. Commends President Thabo Mbeki for the essential role he has played, on behalf of the African Union, to restore peace and stability in Côte d’Ivoire, reaffirms its full support for his mediation efforts, reminds the signatories to the Pretoria Agreement that in the event of differences in the interpretation of all or part of the agreement, they should seek a ruling from President Thabo Mbeki and encourages the Secretary-General, President Thabo Mbeki and the African Union to continue to collaborate closely in the implementation of the Pretoria Agreement;
“4. Takes note with satisfaction of the provisions of the Pretoria Agreement reaffirming the determination of the signatories of the Agreement regarding the need to organize presidential elections in October 2005 and legislative elections following immediately thereafter, as well as their agreement to invite the United Nations to participate in the work of the Independent Electoral Commission and the Constitutional Council and in the organization of the general election, and of the decision by the Council of Ministers on 28 April 2005 to hold the first round of the presidential elections on 30 October 2005;
“5. Welcomes the decision taken by President Thabo Mbeki with regard to the eligibility for the Presidency of the Republic, as described in the letter he sent to Mr. Laurent Gbagbo, President of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, on 11 April 2005 (S/2005/270), and takes note with satisfaction of the announcement made by President Laurent Gbagbo on 26 April 2005 that all candidates nominated by the political parties signatory to the Linas-Marcoussis Agreement would be eligible for the presidential elections;
“6. Demands that all the Ivorian parties take all necessary steps to ensure that the forthcoming general elections are free, fair and transparent;
“7. Requests the Secretary-General, on the basis of the Pretoria Agreement, to designate, as an exceptional arrangement, after consultations with the African Union and President Thabo Mbeki, a High Representative for the elections in Côte d’Ivoire (the High Representative), autonomous from the United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI), to assist in particular in the work of the Independent Electoral Commission and of the Constitutional Council, without prejudice to the responsibilities of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and with the following mandate:
(a) To verify, on behalf of the international community, that all stages of the electoral process, including the establishment of a register of voters and the issuance of voters’ cards, provide all the necessary guarantees for the holding of open, free, fair and transparent presidential and legislative elections within the time limits laid down in the Constitution of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire,
(b) To provide, in close co-operation with UNOCI and the mediation, all necessary advice and guidance to the Constitutional Council, the Independent Electoral Commission and other relevant agencies or institutes to help them prevent and resolve any difficulty which may jeopardize the holding of open, free, fair and transparent elections within the time limits laid down in the Constitution of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, with the authority in this regard to make necessary determinations,
(c) To report immediately to the Security Council through the Secretary-General, and to inform the mediator of the African Union, President Mbeki, any difficulty which may jeopardize the holding of open, free, fair and transparent elections, and to submit to them, as appropriate, such recommendations as he may see fit to make,
(d) To keep the Security Council, through the Secretary-General, and President Thabo Mbeki regularly informed of all aspects of his mandate,
(e) To request and receive information and technical advice from UNOCI as well as other sources;
“8. Decides that the mandate of the High Representative as referred to in paragraph 7 above will end after the forthcoming general elections in Côte d’Ivoire;
“9. Calls upon the community of donors to provide all the necessary financial resources to the High Representative to support the full implementation of his mission;
“10. Takes note of the agreement on the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) process and on the restructuring of the armed forces signed on 14 May 2005 in Yamoussoukro by the Chiefs of Staff of the National Armed Forces of Côte d’Ivoire (FANCI) and the armed forces of the Forces Nouvelles (FAFN), demands that the parties implement fully this agreement so that the DDR process can start without delay, reaffirms in this regard paragraphs 9 and 11 of resolution 1572 (2004), reaffirms also paragraph 8 of resolution 1584 (2005) regarding the establishment of a comprehensive list of armaments in their possession and demands the immediate disarmament and dismantling of militias throughout the national territory;
“11. Decides that the mandate of UNOCI and of the French forces which support it shall be extended until 24 June 2005, with a view to renew it, in this specific instance, for a period of 7 months;
“12. Authorizes the Secretary-General to begin the necessary planning and preparations, including troop and police generation as well as required support and other arrangements, to facilitate a timely deployment in the event that the Security Council decides to increase UNOCI’s authorized strength of troops and police and to adjust its mandate;
“13. Underlines the importance of mainstreaming the gender perspective in peacekeeping operations and post-conflict peacebuilding and of appropriate expertise in this regard, and encourages UNOCI to actively address this issue;
“14. Urges donors and international financial institutions to provide the necessary support to the implementation of the Pretoria Agreement, in particular the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration programme and the electoral process, through the expeditious allocation of financial resources;
“15. Calls upon all parties to cooperate fully in the deployment and operations of UNOCI, in particular by guaranteeing the safety, security and freedom of movement of United Nations personnel as well as associated personnel throughout the territory of Côte d’Ivoire;
“16. Welcomes the efforts undertaken by UNOCI to implement the Secretary-General’s zero tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse and to ensure full compliance of its personnel with the United Nations code of conduct, requests the Secretary-General to continue to take all necessary action in this regard and to keep the Security Council informed, and urges troop-contributing countries to take appropriate preventive action including the conduct of pre-deployment awareness training, and to take disciplinary action and other action to ensure full accountability in cases of such conduct involving their personnel;
“17. Requests the Secretary-General to continue to keep the Council regularly informed of the developments of the situation in Côte d’Ivoire, the implementation of the mandate of UNOCI and of the Linas-Marcoussis and Pretoria Agreements, and to report to it in this regard every three months;
“18. Requests also France to continue to report to it periodically on all aspects of its mandate in Côte d’Ivoire;
“19. Invites the African Union to keep it regularly informed of the implementation of the provisions of the Pretoria Agreement and to make recommendations to it as it deems necessary;
“20. Expresses its full support to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General;
“21. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.”
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