UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres is asking the transitional authorities to speed up this process so that constitutional order is restored within the agreed timeframe. He also called on the signatory parties to the Peace Agreement, the process of which has been blocked for several weeks, to meet quickly at a meeting in order to overcome the current difficulties.
In his quarterly report presented this Wednesday, April 12, 2023, at the Council meeting, Mr. Guterres is also concerned about the persistence of violence and its impact on the populations, and the “impasse” in which in the implementation implementation of the Agreement signed in 2015 between the government and armed groups.
In 8 years of implementation, the two signatory parties mutually accuse each other of responsibility for the slowness and violations of the commitments made in this document.
Thus, the report of the SG of the UN deplores “the persistent paralysis of the mechanisms for monitoring the application of the peace agreement, as well as the accusations and counter-accusations of violations of the ceasefire and disturbing remarks “.
Attitudes that are likely to create a climate of deep mistrust.
“It is essential that the parties urgently overcome the current stalemate given the prevailing security conditions, particularly in north-eastern Mali, where terrorist groups relentlessly attack civilians, and all humanitarian consequences linked to this situation”, indicated Mr. GUTERRES.
In this climate of mistrust, the UN official proposes “the rapid organization of a high-level meeting of the Agreement Monitoring Committee” which will allow the parties to discuss their respective concerns in an appropriate framework and to agree on the way forward.
For its part, MINUSMA will increase contacts with the parties with regard to monitoring the application of the ceasefire, which must be respected.
While efforts are meager in favor of the peace process, the quarterly report of the Secretary-General also notes progress in the electoral process, such as the drafting of a Constitution and the creation of an electoral management authority.
Nevertheless, he noted, “less than a year from the scheduled end of the transition, it is incumbent on the Malian authorities to do everything in their power to speed up this process so that constitutional order is restored in the agreed deadlines.
Secretary Antonio GUTERRES has also requested international support to “fill the financing gap in the basket of funds administered by the UNDP, no contribution having been announced for 31% of the necessary resources”.
And further support will be needed when all the information related to the election budget is available.
In the meantime, MINUSMA continues to support the electoral process in various ways and to participate, alongside the African Union and ECOWAS, in the Malian-led follow-up mechanisms relating to the transition.
In this report, despite the cooperation between MINUSMA and the authorities, the UN SG once again denounced the obstacles to MINUSMA’s freedom of movement preventing the Mission from properly protecting civilians and supporting more effectively stabilization, which the Malian population expects of them, but they further compromise the security of the peacekeepers.
BY SIKOU BAH