January 19, 2000
New York, UN - In continuation of its focus on Africa for the month of January, the UN Security Council Tuesday held an open meeting on Angola, which included briefs from its secretariat and the sanctions committee on the country. Robert Fowler of Canada and chairman of the sanctions committee, who returned from Angola this week, briefed the council on the mechanisms used by UNITA to burst sanctions imposed by the council on the rebel movement over the years.
In a video-taped testimonial shown to members, one of UNITA defectors interviewed said the movement was able to side-step UN arms sanctions by buying arms through international arms brokers. A logistics officer, he said the rebel group usually contacted arms brokers for quotations on the supply of arms. Based on the bids made, UNITA would then choose the broker with the best bid, the officer said. Owing to sanctions freezing UNITA's accounts and banning flights and contacts with the rebel group, UNITA usually paid for arms suppliers with diamonds. He said delivery of the arms was usually flown by the international brokers to areas controlled by UNITA in Angola. But the officer said UNITA did not use governments to get arms supplies. The officer also said UNITA's leader, Jonas Savimbi, has a lot of diamonds he keeps in the house and with family members and friends. Though the Angolan government is taking over much of the area formerly controlled by UNITA, the officer said Savimbi had said to him that he would never go into exile.
The UN under-secretary general for political affairs, Kieran Prendergast, told the council that humanitarian situation in Angola had deteriorated. He said millions of Angolans have been displaced by the fighting with an undetermined number not accessible to humanitarian aid as a result of insecurity. A survey conducted showed that 42 percent of Angolan children under five years were underweight and are likely to face health problems later in life, Prendergast said. He called for increased access to the needy and execution of mine clearance to pave way for agricultural activities.
The Russian ambassador, Sergey Lavrov, on behalf of the three-member monitoring committee on Angola which includes the United States and Portugal, reaffirmed the council's position that UNITA bears primary responsibility for continuation of war. He said the committee demands that both parties immediately comply with the peace accord signed in Lusaka, Zambia, in 1994. It condemns human rights violations by UNITA and calls on it lay down its arms. The committee also urged the government to respect human rights and media freedom. It appealed to the donors to continue to assist Angola and comply with the resolution imposing sanctions on UNITA.
