A UN Security Council delegation, which is just back after a five-nation tour, has recommended that the United Nations bolster its peacekeeping mission in Sierra Leone as conflict there is having an increasingly alarming impact on the region. The complex problems in Sierra Leone and its neighbours present an extraordinary challenge, which requires extraordinary action, The 11-member team says in its report released in New York on Tuesday. The report came as India has decided to withdraw its peacekeepers from the war-ravaged nation in phases.
To meet these challenges, the report suggests strengthening of the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) in terms of numbers, effectiveness and capability, As recommended by Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Annan has called for increasing UNAMSIL's authorised strength from 13,000 to 20,500 military personnel.
As part of its effort to examine the regional dimensions of Sierra Leone conflict, the delegation focused on the role played by Liberian President Charles Taylor.
“The view was firmly and frequently expressed within Sierra Leone that the cause of many of the country's problems lay in the support provided to the rebel Revolutionary United Front by President Taylor, motivated partly by his own political and security concerns and partly by his interest in profits from diamonds mined in Sierra Leone,” Says the report.
It also notes that President Taylor vigorously denied these accusations.
Bureau Report