STATEMENT BY VALENTINE RUGWABIZA, SPECIAL REREPRESENTATIVE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
SECURITY COUNCIL BRIEFING ON MINUSCA
New York
26 OCTOBER 2023
(spoke in French): Thank you, Mr. President, for giving me the floor.
At the outset, I would like to congratulate Brazil on its presidency of the Security Council for the month of October and to thank you, Mr. President, for convening the current session, which is of particular importance as the vote on the renewal of the mandate of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) is scheduled for next month. I am therefore honoured to be here today, ahead of that deadline, to present the Secretary-General’s most recent report on the Central African Republic (S/2023/769) and to inform the Council of recent developments and important achievements of the Mission in fulfilling its mandate.
I would like to focus my first remarks on the progress made by the Government in moving the peace process forward, notwithstanding the ongoing political, security and socioeconomic challenges that entail a need for strengthened and concerted support from the Council and the international community.
First, allow me to touch on the political and peace process. As we know, the preparations and the campaign for the referendum, which was held on 31 July, occupied a central position in the national political agenda during the period covered by the report. Nevertheless, the Government, with the support of MINUSCA, has continued its efforts to decentralize the political peace process. As part of those efforts, I had the privilege to accompany the Prime Minister and Head of Government, members of the Government and development partners to certain prefectures in the north-east and west of the Central African Republic, where major efforts had been made to stabilize the security situation with the full support of MINUSCA. It should be noted that some of the communities we visited were receiving a visit from a Prime Minister for the first time, as was the case for the Vakaga prefecture. MINUSCA will continue to assist such initiatives in order to support the Government in its efforts to extend the State presence throughout the country. In that regard, a stronger commitment from international financial partners and development actors remains central to consolidating the hard-won security gains, whether through investment or stabilization programmes aimed at providing basic services and sustainable socioeconomic livelihoods for the population.
I also welcome the effective reactivation and operationalization of a number of prefectural mechanisms for the implementation of the 2019 Political Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation in the Central African Republic, which remain essential for promoting inclusive dialogue and reconciliation at the local level, particularly in areas that have historically been marginalized, largely because of access difficulties.
The seventh Republic of the Central African Republic and its new Constitution, officially promulgated on 30 August, mark a new stage for the country. I welcome the statements made by the President of the Republic, His Excellency President Touadera, on 31 August and at the general debate of the seventy-eighth session of the General Assembly, in which he reaffirmed his commitment to speeding up the implementation of the political and peace process. The national ownership of that process was illustrated once again by the convening on Monday in Bangui of the second strategic review of the peace process, with the guarantors and facilitators of the Political Agreement and the Luanda joint road map for peace in the Central African Republic — known as the Luanda road map — and the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of Angola and Rwanda in attendance. With the aim of conducting an assessment of the peace process, the meeting noted the dissolution of nine armed groups, or their branches, that were signatories to the Political Agreement. The meeting also noted the progress made on disarmament, demobilization and reintegration, security-sector reform, the national policy on border management, which has now been adopted, and the restoration of State authority. It will be essential to capitalize on that momentum in order to continue building confidence between all the parties to the political peace process through tangible actions and initiatives. In that regard, we welcome the announcement by the Government of the Central African Republic of a strategy for engaging the leaders of armed groups with a view to ensuring their return to the political process.
Preparations for the local elections have been resumed, and the first round of voting is scheduled for October 2024. The new timetable provides a framework for accelerating the mobilization of resources and for revising the electoral code to ensure its compliance with the new Constitution. It is also essential that the commitment of the Central African Republic authorities to political solutions be made manifest in the form of efforts to preserve the democratic space and resume a dialogue with the opposition, with the aim of promoting inclusive and credible local elections.
The security situation remains volatile in some regions outside Bangui, particularly in border areas. Against that backdrop, and in line with our new political strategy, MINUSCA has strengthened its operational space in Haute-Kotto and Vakaga prefectures, enhancing its protection of civilians and deterring the threats posed by armed groups more effectively. In Haut-Mbomou prefecture, the Mission facilitated the first joint deployment with Central African defence and security forces in an area where they had previously been absent. The initiative was launched in response to intensifying clashes between Unité pour la Paix en Centrafrique and the new Azande Ani Kpi Gbe militia, with tangible and almost immediate results. In early October, that militia contacted MINUSCA and informed the Mission that it had decided to declare a ceasefire, join the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration process and promote social cohesion.
Once again, those results demonstrate — if proof were required — the effectiveness of concerted efforts, even if much remains to be done, including in terms of strengthening the capacities of national security and defence institutions.
In the past few months we also witnessed a major development, the facilitation of the voluntary repatriation of ex-combatants of the Lord’s Resistance Army. It had been a presence in Haut-Mbomou for more than 15 years and a real and constant threat to civilians. I also welcomed the signing of a border cooperation agreement between the Central African Republic and South Sudan on 1 September, which should help reinforce the development of coordinated responses to cross-border threats.
The increase in recorded cases of violations of human rights and international humanitarian law remains alarming. The Mission’s expansion of its operational space and stabilization efforts has enabled it to access remote areas of the country and conduct human rights investigations. Among other things, those investigations have shed light on violations, as yet unreported, that were committed before 2021 and 2022. I welcome the Government’s efforts to step up its response to human rights violations and its fight against impunity, as shown by its adoption in August of a national human rights policy whose formulation benefited from contributions from civil society. We also encourage the Government to do more to support the national justice system, the prison administration and the strict application of the law, so as to ensure that anyone who has committed or is committing heinous crimes against civilians or peacekeepers is duly tried and that justice is done for such crimes.
On the socioeconomic front, the period that just ended was unfortunately dominated by persistent challenges, which in turn were aggravated by the growing humanitarian needs associated with the influx of refugees from Chad and the Sudan. I welcome the solidarity with the refugees expressed by the Government of the Central African Republic and the populations of Vakaga and Lim-Pende prefectures, despite their own challenges and extreme food insecurity, which has been exacerbated by the closure of the border with the Sudan, a traditional source of basic foodstuffs for Vakaga. I also commend the Government for its policy of welcoming Central African refugees and returnees, and I would like to thank donors for their generous support in that regard.
The Mission has continued to reconfigure its security arrangements, following a sequenced rationalization process aimed at optimizing our uniformed and civilian staff’s effectiveness, particularly with regard to our mandate to support the protection of civilians, secure humanitarian assistance, support local conflict mediation and reconciliation and facilitate the decentralized implementation of the political peace process. With a view to enhancing performance and integration, we will continue to rationalize the number of temporary operational bases and improve the living and working conditions of MINUSCA’s civilian and uniformed personnel, making the working conditions for personnel deployed outside Bangui in areas that are difficult to reach a priority.
In order to uphold the values of the United Nations and maintain the population’s trust wherever we operate, MINUSCA continues to strengthen its efforts to prevent and manage risks of sexual exploitation and abuse, while working with United Nations country team agencies to assist identified victims. All in all, the increased scrutiny exercised by MINUSCA and local community networks, with the Mission’s support, helped reduce the number of new cases reported in 2023. We will increase and maintain those multidimensional efforts, in full compliance with the Secretary-General’s zero-tolerance policy.
I would like to take this opportunity to draw the Council’s attention to the critical gaps in the Mission’s air capabilities, ground-transport capacities and supply chain. Those gaps were confirmed during the global assessment of our logistics transport capabilities, which was carried out in September with the support of Headquarters. The Mission’s mobility is hampered by limited infrastructure and the lack or unusability of most runways outside Bangui. That state of affairs also affects the welfare, safety and security of our peacekeepers and our operational response. For instance, it takes several weeks for a convoy to travel from Bangui to Birao, in the north-east, or to Obo, in the south-east. The rainy season, which lasts seven months, makes the roads impassable. Furthermore, the Mission does not have sufficient operational coverage for the evacuation of the wounded throughout the territory. We plan to begin implementing some of the recommendations from the overall assessment of our logistics capabilities if we are granted the funds during the coming fiscal year. That is why we are now asking for the support of the Council and that of all Member States with a view to the gradual implementation of all the recommended measures.
We therefore encourage all stakeholders, including contributing countries and partners of the Central African Republic, to support the improvement of mobility and land access in the Central African Republic. That support should contribute to improving MINUSCA’s critical aviation capabilities, while allowing the rehabilitation of certain land transport infrastructure, with a view to maximizing the impact of MINUSCA operations. At the same time, continued investment by partners in the country’s network and infrastructure remains central to the development of the Central African Republic, which is hampered by past conflicts and the regular resurgence of violence. Such investments will contribute to the consolidation of lasting peace and stability in Central Africa.
The implementation of the Political Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation remains the only viable and appropriate solution for the return to peace and sustainable development in the Central African Republic. It is therefore essential to pay renewed attention to an inclusive dialogue with the political opposition and armed groups, as part of the peace process. I call for a remobilization of all stakeholders at the national, subregional and regional levels for a holistic implementation of the Political Agreement. I also reiterate that MINUSCA will continue to provide all the necessary support to establish an environment that is conducive to the advancement of the peace process.
I must also specify that decentralized governance in the Central African Republic cannot happen without the effective extension of State authority throughout the national territory. This is a priority and a prerequisite for the lasting restoration of peace and development in the country. I would like to emphasize that the efforts and resources invested by the Mission to expand its operational space and strengthen its preventive and robust posture have resulted in a substantial improvement in the protection of civilians, humanitarian access and the implementation of the entire mandate that the Council has entrusted to us. However, we know that the primary responsibility for the protection of civilians and the territorial integrity of the country lies with the Central African Government, whose national defence and internal security forces require strengthened capacities. Support from MINUSCA alone is not enough. Therefore, the stepped up and coordinated commitment of all partners to strengthen the strategic, operational and logistical capacities of national defence and security forces remains essential.
I would like to conclude by emphasizing that, despite the multiple challenges and difficulties, MINUSCA has contributed to protecting civilians and has facilitated the creation of an environment that is conducive to revitalized implementation of the political peace and reconciliation process, as well as the delivery of vital humanitarian aid to the most vulnerable people. The Mission, through its uniformed and civilian components, has implemented the mandate rigorously, with emphasis on providing innovative solutions to the identified challenges. Furthermore, I would like to pay tribute to the sacrifice of the peacekeepers. We lost three of our peacekeepers in the month of October alone, in two separate ground transportation accidents.
Despite the laudable efforts of the Government and the people of the Central African Republic, with the support of MINUSCA, the achievements remain very fragile and call for expanded and strengthened joint efforts from us to minimize the real risks of regression, particularly in view of the upcoming municipal elections in 2024 and 2025. Those elections will require even more extensive coordination in the joint plan of the Central African defence and security forces and MINUSCA for the security of elections. In that context, the presence of the Mission, in its current full capacity, remains vital to the restoration of sustainable and lasting peace, in support of the people and the Government of the Central African Republic.