| UN Security Council Resolution 897 | |
|---|---|
 Somali children waiting for relief supplies | |
| Date | 4 February 1994 |
| Meeting no. | 3,334 |
| Code | S/RES/897 (Document) |
| Subject | Somalia |
Voting summary | 15 voted for None voted against None abstained |
| Result | Adopted |
| Security Council composition | |
Permanent members | |
Non-permanent members | |
United Nations Security Council resolution 897, adopted unanimously on 4 February 1994, after reaffirming resolutions 733 (1992) and 886 (1992) and all of its subsequent resolutions on Somalia, the Council discussed the role of the United Nations Operation in Somalia II (UNOSOM II) in the peace process in the country.
United Nations Security Council resolution 733, adopted unanimously on 23 January 1992, after expressing its alarm at the situation in Somalia regarding the heavy loss of life, destruction to property and threat to regional stability, the Council, acting under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, decided to place a "general and complete" arms embargo on the country for the purposes of establishing peace and stability. The situation was brought to the attention of the Security Council by the Somali government.
United Nations Security Council resolution 886, adopted unanimously on 18 November 1993, after reaffirming resolutions 733 (1992) and all of its subsequent resolutions on Somalia, the Council discussed the situation in the country and renewed the mandate of the United Nations Operation in Somalia II until 31 May 1994.
Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, the Guardafui Channel and Somali Sea to the east, and Kenya to the southwest. Somalia has the longest coastline on Africa's mainland, and its terrain consists mainly of plateaus, plains and highlands. Climatically, hot conditions prevail year-round, with periodic monsoon winds and irregular rainfall.
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The Security Council reaffirmed its decision to continue the mandate of the UNOSOM II mission until 31 May 1994, with the aim of completing its mission by March 1995. It was important that all parties abided by the obligations they entered into agreements, particularly as agreements signed in Addis Ababa were the basis for resolving the conflict. Concern was expressed at the build up of weapons by Somali factions in several areas of the country. The continuing incidents of fighting and banditry against aid workers and peacekeepers were condemned and disarmament in order to establish peace was stressed. The Council commemorated those who had died and reiterated the importance that was attached to their safety. Furthermore, it was important that district and regional councils, a national council, police and a legal system were founded, with the commitment of the international community in this process was stated.
Addis Ababa or Addis Abeba, also known as Finfinne , is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. According to the 2007 census, the city has a population of 2,739,551 inhabitants.
A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used with intent to inflict damage or harm. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, self-defense, and warfare. In broader context, weapons may be construed to include anything used to gain a tactical, strategic, material or mental advantage over an adversary or enemy target.
In historical legal systems, an outlaw is declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, the criminal is withdrawn all legal protection, so that anyone is legally empowered to persecute or kill them. Outlawry was thus one of the harshest penalties in the legal system. In early Germanic law, the death penalty is conspicuously absent, and outlawing is the most extreme punishment, presumably amounting to a death sentence in practice. The concept is known from Roman law, as the status of homo sacer, and persisted throughout the Middle Ages.
Determining that the situation in Somalia continued to constitute a threat to international peace and security, acting under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, revised the mandate of UNOSOM II as follows: [1]
Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter sets out the UN Security Council's powers to maintain peace. It allows the Council to "determine the existence of any threat to the peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression" and to take military and nonmilitary action to "restore international peace and security".
- (a) assisting with the implementation of peace agreements, particularly in relation to disarmament and respect for the ceasefire;
- (b) protecting ports, airports and other essential infrastructure and communication lines;
- (c) delivering humanitarian aid;
- (d) assisting in the reorganisation of the police and judiciary;
- (e) helping in the repatriation and resettlement of displaced persons and refugees;
- (f) assisting in the political process in Somalia to achieve a democratically elected government;
- (g) protecting personnel from the United Nations and international humanitarian organisations.
It also strengthened the mission to 22,000 personnel. The safer regions of Somalia were given priority in reconstruction, as was the process of demining with the Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali requested to ensure the start of as soon as possible. After reaffirming the continuing arms embargo on the country, the Council urged Somali parties to co-operate with each other and UNOSOM II, respecting the ceasefire and refraining from violence against United Nations and humanitarian personnel.
Demining or mine clearance is the process of removing land mines from an area. In military operations, the object is to rapidly clear a path through a minefield, and this is often done with devices such as mine plows and blast waves. By contrast, the goal of humanitarian demining is to remove all of the landmines to a given depth and make the land safe for human use. Specially trained dogs are also used to narrow down the search and verify that an area is cleared. Mechanical devices such as flails and excavators are sometimes used to clear mines.
Boutros Boutros-Ghali was an Egyptian politician and diplomat who was the sixth Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) from January 1992 to December 1996. An academic and former Vice Foreign Minister of Egypt, Boutros-Ghali oversaw the UN over a period coinciding with several world crises, including the breakup of Yugoslavia and the Rwandan genocide. He was then the first Secretary-General of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie from 16 November 1997 to 31 December 2002.
An arms embargo is a restriction or a set of sanctions that applies solely to weaponry, and may also apply to "dual-use technology". An arms embargo may serve one or more purposes:
The Secretary-General was in requested to establish contact with Somali parties after consultations with the Organisation of African Unity and the Arab League to agree on a timetable for the implementation of the Addis Ababa Agreements. It was expected that the process would be completed by March 1995. Finally, Boutros-Ghali was requested to report to the Council in good time before 31 May 1994 on the situation.
The Organisation of African Unity was an intergovernmental organization established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with 32 signatory governments. One of the main heads for OAU's establishment was Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana. It was disbanded on 9 July 2002 by its last chairperson, South African President Thabo Mbeki, and replaced by the African Union (AU). Some of the key aims of the OAU were to encourage political and economic integration among member states, and to eradicate colonialism and neo-colonialism from the African continent. Although it achieved some success, there were also differences of opinion as to how that was going to be achieved.
The Arab League, formally the League of Arab States, is a regional organization of Arab states in and around North Africa, the Horn of Africa and Arabia. It was formed in Cairo on 22 March 1945 with six members: Egypt, Iraq, Transjordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Syria. Yemen joined as a member on 5 May 1945. Currently, the League has 22 members, but Syria's participation has been suspended since November 2011, as a consequence of government repression during the Syrian Civil War.
The Addis Ababa Agreement was a settlement reached at the 1993 Conference on National Reconciliation in Somalia.
