United Nations Security Council Resolution 2211 – Democratic Republic of the Congo

Resolution 2211 (2015)

The Security Council,

Recalling its previous resolutions and the statements of its President concerning the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), especially its resolutions 2198 (2015), 2147 (2014), 2136 (2014), 2098 (2013), 2078 (2012), 2076 (2012) and 2053 (2012),

Reaffirming the basic principles of peacekeeping, including consent of the parties, impartiality, and non-use of force, except in self-defence and defence of the mandate, and recognizing that the mandate of each peace-keeping mission is specific to the need and situation of the country concerned,

Reaffirming its strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of the DRC as well as all States in the region and emphasizing the need to respect fully the principles of non-interference, good-neighbourliness and regional cooperation,

Emphasizing that those responsible for violations of international humanitarian law and violations and abuses of human rights must be held accountable and that the Government of the DRC bears the primary responsibility to protect civilians within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction, including protection from crimes a gainst humanity and war crimes,

Noting that eastern DRC has continued to suffer from recurring cycles of conflict and persistent violence by armed groups, both Congolese and foreign, and recalling the strategic importance of the implementation of the Peace, Security and Cooperation (PSC) Framework for the DRC and the Region, and reiterating its call to all signatories to fulfil promptly, fully and in good faith their respective commitments under this agreement in order to address the root causes of conflic t and put an end to recurring cycles of violence, and promote lasting regional development,

Encouraging the continuation of efforts by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and the African Union (AU) to restore peace and security in eastern DRC, encouraging the government of the DRC to ensure continuous close cooperation with these and other international parties, and recognizing the efforts of the Government of the DRC aiming at the achievement of peace and national development,

Reiterating its deep concern regarding the security and humanitarian crisis in eastern DRC due to ongoing destabilizing activities of foreign and domestic armed groups, and stressing the importance of neutralizing the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), the Lord ’s Resistance Army (LRA), the National Liberation Forces (FNL), and all other armed groups in the DRC, and recognizing the efforts of the FARDC against armed groups, especially the ADF,

Recalling its Presidential statement of 8 January 2015 (S/PRST/2015/1) and reiterating that the swift neutralization of the FDLR is a top priority in bringing stability to and protecting civilians of the DRC and the Great Lakes region, noting with deep concern repeated reports of collaboration between elements of the Congolese Armed Forces (FARDC) and elements of the FDLR at a local level and unfettered regional travel by FDLR, recalling that the FDLR is a group Under United Nations sanctions whose leaders and members include perpetrators of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, during which Hutu and others who opposed the genocide were also killed, and have continued to promote and commit ethnically-based and other killings in Rwanda and the DRC,

Remaining greatly concerned by the humanitarian situation that continues to severely affect the civilian population, in particular in eastern DRC, expressing deep concern regarding the very high number of internally displaced persons in the DRC, at more than 2,7 million, and the over 490,000 refugees from eastern DRC caused by the various Congolese and foreign armed groups active in the region, and calling upon the DRC and all States in the region to work towards the peaceful environment conducive to the realization of durable solutions for refugees and internally displaced persons, including their eventual voluntary return and reintegration in the DRC, with the support, as appropriate, of the United Nations country team, supporting UNHCR’s current efforts to complete biometric registration of the Rwandese refugee population in the DRC to help facilitate the return of these refugees to Rwanda, and calling upon all parties in the conflict to respect the impartiality, independence and neutrality of humanitarian actors,

Remaining deeply concerned by the persistent high levels of violence and violations and abuses of human rights and international law, condemning in particular those involving the targeted attacks against civilians, widespread sexual and gender-based violence, systematic recruitment and use of children by certain parties to the conflict, the displacement of significant numbers of civilians, extrajudicial executions and arbitrary arrests, recognizing their deleterious effect on the stabilization, reconstruction and development efforts in the DRC, and calling for all those responsible for all such violations and abuses to be swiftly apprehended, brought to justice and held accountable,

Recalling all its relevant resolutions on women, peace and security, on children and armed conflicts, and on the protection of civilians in armed conflicts, also recalling the conclusions on Children and Armed conflicts in the DRC (S/AC.51/2014/3) adopted on 18 September 2014 by the Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflicts pertaining to the parties in armed conflicts of the DRC,

Welcoming the efforts of MONUSCO and international partners in delivering training in human rights, international humanitarian law, gender mainstreaming, child protection and protection from sexual and gender-based violence for Congolese security institutions and underlining its importance, and welcoming the establishment of the Women’s Platform for the PSC Framework in an effort to ensure the full participation of women in the PSC Framework peace process,

Noting the ongoing efforts made by the Government of the DRC to combat sexual violence in conflict including through its National Strategy and the commitments outlined in the Joint Communiqué between the Government of the DRC and the United Nations on the Fight Against Sexual Violence in Conflict adopted in Kinshasa on 30 March 2013, and strongly encouraging the Government of DRC to increase its efforts in this regard,

Acknowledging the adoption of the Framework of Cooperation between the United Nations Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict and the African Union Commission Concerning the Prevention and Response to Conflict-related Sexual Violence in Africa adopted in Addis Ababa on 31 January 2014,

Taking note of the report of the Secretary-General S/2014/181 which includes a list of parties responsible for patterns of rape and other forms of sexual violence in situations of armed conflict, being on the Security Council agenda,

Noting with deep concern reports and allegations indicating the persistence of serious human rights and international humanitarian law violations committed by some members of the FARDC, the Republican Guard and Congolese National Police (PNC) including during the protests in Kinshasa, Goma and Bukavu in January 2015, appealing for calm, urging all parties to refrain from violence, and emphasizing that the Government of the DRC response must respect human rights and comply with the principle of proportionality in the use of force,

Recalling the importance of fighting against impunity within all ranks of the FARDC and PNC, commending the DRC authorities for recent prosecutions and condemnations of FARDC officers for crimes against humanity and war crimes, and stressing the need for the Government of the DRC to continue to ensure the increased professionalism of its security forces,

Stressing the need for cooperation with the International Criminal Court (ICC) by the Government of the DRC, welcoming the commitment made by the Government of the DRC to hold accountable those responsible for serious crimes, in particular war crimes and crimes against humanity, in the country, and stressing the importance of actively seeking to hold accountable those responsible for genocide , war crimes and crimes against humanity in the country,

Reaffirming that the successful protection of civilians is critical to the fulfilment of MONUSCO’s mandate and the delivery of an improved security environment, also stressing the importance of peaceful means and progress on key reforms to promote the protection of civilians,

Welcoming the report of the Secretary-General on the strategic review of MONUSCO and the wider United Nations presence (S/2014/957) submitted pursuant to paragraph 39 of its resolution 2147 (2014), and further welcoming its recommendations on MONUSCO’s future objectives, activities, exit strategy and effective deployment of resources, bearing in mind the need to continue to increase the effectiveness of the mission, and respond to changing conditions on the ground,

Taking note of the views expressed by the Government of the DRC regarding its appreciation of the strategic review of MONUSCO, in particular on the objectives and the reconfiguration of the Mission,

Reaffirming its strong support to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) and MONUSCO in the implementation of their mandate, and strongly encouraging the continuation of their efforts,

Noting that it is important that all MONUSCO contingents, including the contingents of the Intervention Brigade, are properly prepared, effectively equipped and supported to be able to sustain their commitment to carry out their respective tasks,

Reiterating its call on all parties to cooperate fully with MONUSCO and to remain committed to the full and objective implementation of the Mission’s mandate, reiterating its condemnation of any and all attacks against peacekeepers, and emphasizing that those responsible for such attacks must be held accountable,

Reiterating its call upon the Secretary-General to take all measures deemed necessary to strengthen United Nations field security arrangements and improve the safety and security of all military contingents, police officers, military observers, and especially unarmed observers,

Underlining the importance of MONUSCO deterring any threats to the implementation of its mandate,

Recognizing the contribution of MONUSCO to a comprehensive strategy for durable peace and security, noting the need for MONUSCO to strengthen support to the government of the DRC to enable it to address security challenges and human rights concerns, and extend state authority of the government of DRC as expressed in paragraph 5 of the PSC Framework, noting with appreciation the contribution that MONUSCO makes to early peacebuilding, and emphasizing that MONUSCO’s activities should be conducted in a manner so as to facilitate post-conflict peacebuilding, prevention of relapse into armed conflict and progress towards sustainable peace and development,

Stressing the crucial importance of the upcoming electoral cycle for stabilization and consolidation of constitutional democracy in the DRC, expressing concern with restrictions of the political space in the DRC, in particular recent arrests of political opposition members and suspension of Internet and social media, and recalling the need for an open, inclusive and peaceful political dialogue between all stakeholders, while ensuring the protection of fundamental freedoms and human rights, paving the way for peaceful, credible, inclusive, transparent and timely elections in the DRC, particularly presidential and legislative elections by November 2016, in accordance with the Constitution and the electoral calendar, while respecting the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance,

Determining that the situation in the DRC continues to constitute a threat to international peace and security in the region,

Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations,

Adopted by the Security Council at its 7415th meeting, on 26 March 2015.