Meeting calls for peace dialogue

Representatives from several UN agencies and the Mano River Union (MRU) have called on the international community to encourage dialogue among the leaders of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone in an effort to bring peace to the subregion, the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) reported on Monday. Participants in last week's two-day meeting in the Sierra Leonean capital, Freetown, called for intensified efforts to "translate the spirit of the recent MRU summit in Rabat, Morocco, into positive momentum for peace in the subregion," UNAMSIL said. Meeting under the umbrella of the UN Inter-Agency Working Group, a forum that brings together UN agencies operating in MRU member states, delegates recommended several "fast-track" projects to be carried out by UN agencies in the subregion. These include the revitalisation of the MRU secretariat so that it can resume normal activities within member MRU states and several others that support civil society organisations in the subregion, including the Mano River Women's Peace Network. The meeting also called for the three MRU countries to take steps that would demonstrate their commitment to peace in the region including the reopening of borders to allow free movement of people, UNAMSIL reported. Recommendations from the meeting will be presented in a report to the UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan. Delegates at the 21-22 March meeting - convened by UN Department of Political Affairs and the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) - included representatives from UN headquarters in New York, UNAMSIL, ECA, MRU, UNHCR, UNICEF and UNDP. Others included representatives from WFP, WHO, FAO, UNOCHA and UN Population Fund. Members of the Mano River Women's Peace Network also attended as observers, UNAMSIL reported.