UN official says peacekeepers aim to deliver

The UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Bernard Miyet, told journalists on Tuesday that the United Nations was committed to making a difference in Sierra Leone.

Speaking at the end of a three-day visit, Miyet said the United Nations was there to bring peace and to work with the people. He said its mandate gave it the means to react if there was “a negative reaction”.

More UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) troops are expected soon from India, Jordan, Bangladesh and Zambia to bring the force up to its full complement of over 11,000, he said. Asked if Revolutionary United Front (RUF) leader Foday Sankoh would allow UNAMSIL to deploy, Miyet said:

“Everyone, and I would say the RUF in particular, recognised now that UNAMSIL was a fully legitimate ... and neutral peacekeeping force in this country and that its deployment should have to be facilitated and accepted by everyone.”

Miyet said all roadblocks put up by all the factions would have to be removed within two weeks. He said he raised this and other questions, including the rationale behind the UN presence in Sierra Leone, during a meeting he had with Sankoh.

The UN official stressed the importance of elections, of disarmament— which, he said, was at the heart of the peace process—and the restructuring of the armed forces and police.

Miyet’s agenda included visits to Port Loko South Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) centre and a children’s centre run by CARITAS, the Roman Catholic relief organisation, in the northern town of Makeni.

He also had meetings with parties involved in the peace process, including President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, and ex-Armed Forces Revolutionary Council leader, Johnny Paul Koroma.