[dehai-news] Securitycouncilreport.org: November 2011-Eritrea from Berhane Habtemariam on 2011-11-10 (Dehai News Mailing List Archive)

From: Berhane Habtemariam <Berhane.Habtemariam_at_gmx.de_at_dehai.org>
Date: Thu, 10 Nov 2011 13:12:09 +0100

November 2011-Eritrea

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<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/c.glKWLeMTIsG/b.7811219/k.1D69/No
vember_2011brEritrea.htm#action> Expected Council Action •
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/c.glKWLeMTIsG/b.7811219/k.1D69/No
vember_2011brEritrea.htm#developments> Key Recent Developments •
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/c.glKWLeMTIsG/b.7811219/k.1D69/No
vember_2011brEritrea.htm#issues> Key Issues •
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/c.glKWLeMTIsG/b.7811219/k.1D69/No
vember_2011brEritrea.htm#options> Options •
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/c.glKWLeMTIsG/b.7811219/k.1D69/No
vember_2011brEritrea.htm#dynamics> Council Dynamics •
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/c.glKWLeMTIsG/b.7811219/k.1D69/No
vember_2011brEritrea.htm#documents> UN Documents •
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/c.glKWLeMTIsG/b.4282283/k.4470/Pu
blications_on_Djibouti__Eritrea.htm> Other SCR Publications on Eritrea

10711/2011

Expected Council Action

In November, it is possible that the Council will adopt a resolution that would impose additional sanctions on Eritrea.

At press time, Council members were negotiating a draft resolution proposed by Gabon and co-sponsored by Nigeria that would subject a number of Eritrean entities to the targeted-sanctions provisions of resolutions 1844 and 1907 and impose restrictions on investments in the Eritrean mining industry and on certain other financial transfers that could be used by Eritrea for the purpose of destabilizing the Horn of Africa. This comes in response to the findings of the latest report of the Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea, which concluded that Eritrea had committed numerous violations of the existing sanctions regime.

Also, it appears that the Eritrean president Isaias Afwerki has requested a meeting with the Council.

<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/c.glKWLeMTIsG/b.7811219/k.1D69/No
vember_2011brEritrea.htm#Top> top •
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781120
3> full forecast

Key Recent Developments

In its June <http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=S/2011/433> report, the Monitoring Group concluded that:

Eritrea’s leadership committed multiple violations of resolutions 1844 and 1907 in the period covered by the report;
Eritrea had continued to provide training, financial and logistical support to armed opposition groups throughout the region, including Djibouti, Ethiopia, Somalia (including the Islamist rebel group Al Shabaab) and Sudan;
the government of Eritrea “conceived, planned, organised and directed” a failed bomb attack against
the AU summit in Addis Ababa in January 2011; and
Eritrea had continued to engage in arms trafficking in violation of the arms embargo.

The Monitoring Group recommended among other things that the Council should consider encouraging UN member states to establish “rigorous due-diligence guidelines” for international financial institutions handling Eritrean funds as well as for mining companies operating in the country with respect to payments made to the government of Eritrea.

On 4 July, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) issued a
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E
4FF96FF9%7D/Somalia%20S%202011%20434.pdf> communiqué condemning the activities of Eritrea and its role in “destabilizing the region by supporting extremists”, calling on the Council “to take all appropriate measures” to put an end to these activities and calling on both the AU and the Council to fully implement the existing sanctions regimes and impose additional targeted sanctions.

Meanwhile, Eritrea called for the lifting of sanctions against it and requested a meeting with the Council to explain its position. In response to this request, Eritrea was invited, along with IGAD members Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti, Somalia, Uganda and IGAD representatives, to an informal dialogue with Council members on 19 July. Eritrea had another opportunity to explain its position on 22 July when its foreign minister met with the Somalia/Eritrea Sanctions Committee.

On 29 July, the Council extended the mandate of the Monitoring Group for another 12 months. It made no changes to the sanctions regime for Eritrea, but requested a separate report on Eritrea from the Monitoring Group.

For its part, Eritrea continued to publicly deny the Monitoring Group’s accusations. In a 3 August press statement, the Foreign Ministry denounced a draft Council resolution proposed by Ethiopia calling for additional sanctions against Eritrea, claiming the purpose of this resolution was “to provide cover to the illegal invasion and occupation of sovereign Eritrean territories”.

In a
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E
4FF96FF9%7D/Somalia%20S%202011%20494.pdf> 4 August letter to the Council, Eritrea submitted its “preliminary remarks” on the Monitoring Group’s report. It refuted all the findings of the report and maintained that there was no conclusive evidence of any violations on its behalf.

On 15 August, Eritrea once again denied the accusations against it in another press release, drawing attention to its unresolved border dispute with Ethiopia and calling for diplomatic and political efforts to build trust and confidence among countries in the region.

In a
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E
4FF96FF9%7D/Somalia%20S%202011%20623.pdf> 7 October letter to the Council, Eritrea called on the Council to “reject Ethiopia’s current hostile campaign” and immediately lift all sanctions against it. It also announced that it planned to present to the Sanctions Committee a comprehensive response to the Monitoring Group’s report. (This has since been submitted to the Committee.)

Key Issues

A key issue for the Council is whether the Monitoring Group’s accusations against Eritrea are credible. If the answer is yes, the key issue becomes whether imposing additional sanctions on Eritrea is the appropriate response and in particular whether it will have a positive impact on the situation and lead to the desired change in Eritrean behaviour.

Another key issue is what impact the proposed resolution will have on the already very difficult humanitarian situation in Eritrea.

A further key issue is the fact that the Sanctions Committee has yet to designate any individuals or entities for targeted measures under the current sanctions on Eritrea, in place since 2009.

A final issue is whether to address other factors exacerbating the situation in the region, such as Ethiopia’s noncompliance with the border-demarcation decision of the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) and related Council resolutions.

Options

Main options for the Council include:

adopting a resolution imposing additional sanctions on Eritrea;
taking a more gradual approach by first adopting a statement warning Eritrea that additional sanctions would be imposed unless it changes its behaviour and calling for intensified diplomatic efforts to resolve outstanding issues in the region;
re-engaging on the issue of the unresolved border dispute between Ethiopia and Eritrea by explicitly addressing Ethiopia’s noncompliance with the EEBC’s border-demarcation decision;
moving in the Sanctions Committee to make the first designations for targeted sanctions under the provisions of
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E
4FF96FF9%7D/Somalia%20S%20RES%201844.pdf> resolutions 1844 and
<http://daccess-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N09/665/58/PDF/N0966558.pdf?Open
Element> 1907 relating to Eritrea; or
taking no action at this stage.

Council Dynamics

Behind-the-scenes discussions about possible additional sanctions against Eritrea seem to have been going on since the Monitoring Group presented its report to the Council. Among Council members, the US has been the most vocal in calling for further action. In an interview in August, Ambassador Susan Rice said the US was very concerned about Eritrea’s behaviour in the region and was “very much interested in additional pressure and sanctions being applied on Eritrea”. It appears, however, that the US and other members have been looking to African Council members for leadership on this issue but that they initially seemed reluctant to take it up.

It was only in mid-October that Gabon circulated its draft resolution. It had Nigeria as a co-sponsor, but not South Africa. The initial rounds of negotiations have revealed substantive differences among Council members. While most members, with the exception of China and Russia, seem open to consider further steps against Eritrea, they are also cautious about any measures, such as economic sanctions, which could have a negative impact on the Eritrean population. It appears that a majority of Council members considered the initial text proposed by Gabon to be too strong, especially because of its focus on additional economic sanctions. Council members therefore made proposals to either delete or substantially weaken the sanctions provisions and put more emphasis on political processes.

Gabon circulated a revised text on 26 October, which at the time of writing was expected to be discussed by Council members on 31 October.

China abstained on
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E
4FF96FF9%7D/Erit%20Djibou%20S%20RES%201907.pdf> resolution 1907, and it remains to be seen whether it would support any action against Eritrea at this stage.
top
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/c.glKWLeMTIsG/b.7811219/k.1D69/No
vember_2011brEritrea.htm#Top> • full forecast
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781120
3>

UN Documents

Security Council Resolutions

*
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E
4FF96FF9%7D/Somalia%20S%20RES%202002.pdf> S/RES/2002 (29 July 2011) extended the mandate of the Monitoring Group for Eritrea and Somalia for another year and requested for the first time a separate report on Eritrea. *
<http://daccess-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N09/665/58/PDF/N0966558.pdf?Open
Element> S/RES/1907 (23 December 2009) imposed an arms embargo and targeted sanctions on Eritrea.
*
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E
4FF96FF9%7D/Somalia%20S%20RES%201844.pdf> S/RES/1844 (20 November 2008) imposed targeted sanctions relating to the situation in Somalia.

Meeting Record

*
<http://daccess-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/PRO/N09/664/54/PDF/N0966454.pdf?Open
Element> S/PV.6254 (23 December 2009) was the adoption of resolution 1907 with explanations of vote, including by China, which abstained.

Letters

*
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E
4FF96FF9%7D/Somalia%20S%202011%20623.pdf> S/2011/623 (7 October 2011) was from Eritrea to the Council calling for a lifting of the sanctions against it.
*
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E
4FF96FF9%7D/Somalia%20S%202011%20617.pdf> S/2011/617 (6 October 2011) was from Djibouti to the Council about the escape of two Djiboutian prisoners of war from an Eritrean prison.
*
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E
4FF96FF9%7D/Somalia%20S%202011%20494.pdf> S/2011/494 (4 August 2011) was from Eritrea to the Council submitting its preliminary response to the report of the Monitoring Group.
*
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E
4FF96FF9%7D/Somalia%20S%202011%20434.pdf> S/2011/434 (14 July 2011) was from Ethiopia to the Council transmitting the 4 July IGAD Assembly of Heads of Government communiqué calling for Council action against Eritrea. * <http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=S/2011/433> S/2011/433 (18 July 2011) was from the Sanctions Committee chair transmitting the Monitoring Group’s latest report to the Council.

top
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/c.glKWLeMTIsG/b.7811219/k.1D69/No
vember_2011brEritrea.htm#Top> • full forecast
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781120
3>

November 2011
Overview

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Portugal will hold the presidency of the Security Council in November. Several debates and briefings will be held.

President Aníbal Cavaco Silva of Portugal is expected to chair the open debate on
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781124
9> protection of civilians in armed conflict. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, High Commissioner for Human Rights Navanethem Pillay and ICRC Director for International Law and Cooperation Philip Spoerri are the invited speakers for this open debate.

Portugal’s Foreign Minister Paulo Portas will most likely preside over the debate on Timor-Leste, which will also include the participation of either the President or Prime Minister of
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781123
9> Timor-Leste. Special Representative and the head of the UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT), Ameerah Haq, will also brief.

Portas will also likely preside over the briefing on
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781124
5> new challenges to peace and security, to which the Secretary-General, the Executive Director of UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Yury Fedotov, the High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres and the Director General of the World Health Organisation, Margaret Chan, have been invited as speakers

There will also be an open debate on Council
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781125
3> working methods.

Debates are furthermore expected on:

*
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781124
3> Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a briefing by High Representative Valentin Inzko; and
*
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781124
1> Kosovo, with a briefing by Special Representative Farid Zarif.

There will be several other briefings in November:

on
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781121
1> Libya, by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Luis Moreno Ocampo;
on
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781122
9> Guinea-Bissau, most likely by the head of the UN office there, UNIOGBIS, Joseph Mutaboba, and by the chair of the PBC country-specific configuration on Guinea-Bissau, Ambassador Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti of Brazil, to be followed by consultations;
on the situation in the
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781122
1> DRC, by the head of MONUSCO, the UN operation there, Special Representative Roger Meece and Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict Margot Wallström, to be followed by consultations;
on the work of the three
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781125
1> counter-terrorism committees, Ambassador Peter Wittig of Germany (1267 Committee), Ambassador Hardeep Singh Puri of India (the CTC) and Ambassador Baso Sangqu of South Africa (1540 Committee);
on the threats posed by the Lord’s Resistance Army and the work of the UN Regional Office for Central Africa (
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781122
5> UNOCA), by Special Representative Abou Moussa and Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Taye-Brook Zerihoun;
on the Middle East, by the DPA, to be followed by consultations;
on
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781121
1> Libya, by Special Representative Ian Martin, to be followed by consultations; and
on the UN operation in
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781121
5> South Sudan, UNMISS, by Under-Secretary-General Hervé Ladsous, or Special Representative Hilde Johnson, or possibly both, to be followed by consultations.

Briefings in consultations are expected on:

*
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781123
1> Yemen, by Special Advisor Jamal Benomar; *
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781122
1> DRC sanctions, by the chair of the sanctions committee, Ambassador Maria Luiza Viotti of Brazil;
* Somalia/Eritrea sanctions, by the chair of the Sanctions Committee, Ambassador Hardeep Singh Puri of India; *
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781123
7> DPRK sanctions, by the chair of the Sanctions Committee, Ambassador José Filipe Moraes Cabral of Portugal;
*
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781123
3> Lebanon, on the implementation of
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E
4FF96FF9%7D/Lebanon%20SRES1701.pdf> resolution 1701, by the DPA; and * issues of concern, by the head of DPA, B. Lynn Pascoe.

Council members are also likely to hold their periodic consultations with the head of the Department for Peacekeeping Operations, Hervé Ladsous and the deputy head of the Department for Field Support, Anthony Banbury, to discuss a range of
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781124
7> peacekeeping-related issues.

Formal sessions will be needed to adopt resolutions on:

the authorisation of
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781124
3> EUFOR, the European force in Bosnia and Herzegovina;
the renewal of the
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781122
1> DRC sanctions and the mandate of its panel of experts;
the renewal of anti-piracy measures in
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781121
7> Somalia; and
possibly additional sanctions against
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=781121
9> Eritrea.

The Council President, José Filipe Moraes Cabral, will introduce the annual report of the Security Council to the General Assembly in November.

The Council will elect in November (concurrently with the GA) five judges of the
<http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/site/lookup.asp?c=glKWLeMTIsG&b=775181
9> International Court of Justice.

The annual workshop with the five newly elected Council members (Azerbaijan, Guatemala, Morocco, Pakistan and Togo), organised by the mission of Finland, is also expected in November.

full forecast
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3>

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