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Jonathan Proposes Creation of UN Mediation Commission
- By Abimbola Tooki
- Published September 26th, 2011
- Washington File
- Unrated
President Goodluck Jonathan joined Leaders from Europe and Africa at the United Nations General Assembly to stress the important role that mediation can play in resolving conflicts before they become intractable.
Jonathan however went a step further tasking the General Assembly on the creation of a conflict mediation commission within the office of the United Nations Secretary-General to develop strategies for the resolution of disputes across the world.
Such a commission, the President pointed out, would be tasked with collating information on conflicts, identifying the parties to them and developing rules of engagement, including the sanctions that would apply to those who obstruct efforts to resolve disputes peacefully.
“For the world to move from a culture of response after conflict to that of a culture of prevention, the international community must muster the political will to promote preventive diplomacy, in particular through mediation,” said Jonathan.
He said conflicts were also linked to the proliferation of small arms and pledged that Nigeria remains committed to the implementation of the Arms Trade Treaty that addresses the problem of illicit trade in small arms and light weapons.
The Nigerian President also voiced concern over the increasing incidence of piracy and maritime crime in West Africa’s Gulf of Guinea and expressed his support for the Secretary-General’s proposal to send a UN assessment mission to the region to study the situation and explore possible options for UN support and action.
He pointed that Nigeria had in the recent past faced an upsurge in incidents of terrorism, including the suicide bomb attack on UN House in the capital, Abuja, on 26 August that claimed the lives of 23 people, including 11 UN staff, and said his country will continue to work with the world body and other partners to combat the scourge. He announced that the UN Counter Terrorism Implementation Task Force (CTITF) will launch its first project in Abuja in November intended to prevent conflict and counter the appeal of terrorism to youth through education and dialogue.
With this year’s theme of the general debate on the role of mediation in the peaceful settlement of disputes, Finland’s President Tarja Halonen said UN capabilities in conflict mediation must be strengthened to give the world body a greater role in the prevention and settlement of disputes, calling for mediation to be deployed at every phase of a conflict in an effort to stop it starting or continuing.
Ms. Halonen said that peace processes must also be more inclusive, stressing the need for women to play a more prominent role. President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal noted the use of mediation both in internal conflicts and in inter-State disputes. Among the former examples he cited the efforts of the presidents of Nigeria, Ghana and Senegal in resolving a serious internal crisis in Guinea-Bissau several years ago, and mediation initiatives under the aegis of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in Niger and Guinea.
He also called for Security Council reform with a permanent seat with veto rights being awarded to Africa. Mozambique’s President Armando Emilio Guebuza stressed that mediation cannot be started “assuming that we have all the answers. The mediation process should be conducted in an objective, impartial and neutral manner, ensuring the involvement of stakeholders at all stages and their ownership of the process,” he said.
He, too, called for UN reform, with an enhanced General Assembly endowed with necessary authority to take the most important decisions on the international agenda, and an enlarged Security Council that assumes its vital role in building the credibility of the UN as a universal entity.
Jonathan however went a step further tasking the General Assembly on the creation of a conflict mediation commission within the office of the United Nations Secretary-General to develop strategies for the resolution of disputes across the world.
Such a commission, the President pointed out, would be tasked with collating information on conflicts, identifying the parties to them and developing rules of engagement, including the sanctions that would apply to those who obstruct efforts to resolve disputes peacefully.
“For the world to move from a culture of response after conflict to that of a culture of prevention, the international community must muster the political will to promote preventive diplomacy, in particular through mediation,” said Jonathan.
He said conflicts were also linked to the proliferation of small arms and pledged that Nigeria remains committed to the implementation of the Arms Trade Treaty that addresses the problem of illicit trade in small arms and light weapons.
The Nigerian President also voiced concern over the increasing incidence of piracy and maritime crime in West Africa’s Gulf of Guinea and expressed his support for the Secretary-General’s proposal to send a UN assessment mission to the region to study the situation and explore possible options for UN support and action.
He pointed that Nigeria had in the recent past faced an upsurge in incidents of terrorism, including the suicide bomb attack on UN House in the capital, Abuja, on 26 August that claimed the lives of 23 people, including 11 UN staff, and said his country will continue to work with the world body and other partners to combat the scourge. He announced that the UN Counter Terrorism Implementation Task Force (CTITF) will launch its first project in Abuja in November intended to prevent conflict and counter the appeal of terrorism to youth through education and dialogue.
With this year’s theme of the general debate on the role of mediation in the peaceful settlement of disputes, Finland’s President Tarja Halonen said UN capabilities in conflict mediation must be strengthened to give the world body a greater role in the prevention and settlement of disputes, calling for mediation to be deployed at every phase of a conflict in an effort to stop it starting or continuing.
Ms. Halonen said that peace processes must also be more inclusive, stressing the need for women to play a more prominent role. President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal noted the use of mediation both in internal conflicts and in inter-State disputes. Among the former examples he cited the efforts of the presidents of Nigeria, Ghana and Senegal in resolving a serious internal crisis in Guinea-Bissau several years ago, and mediation initiatives under the aegis of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in Niger and Guinea.
He also called for Security Council reform with a permanent seat with veto rights being awarded to Africa. Mozambique’s President Armando Emilio Guebuza stressed that mediation cannot be started “assuming that we have all the answers. The mediation process should be conducted in an objective, impartial and neutral manner, ensuring the involvement of stakeholders at all stages and their ownership of the process,” he said.
He, too, called for UN reform, with an enhanced General Assembly endowed with necessary authority to take the most important decisions on the international agenda, and an enlarged Security Council that assumes its vital role in building the credibility of the UN as a universal entity.
