United Nations Security Council Resolution 898 – UN Operation in Mozambique

Resolution 898 (1994)

The Security Council,

Reaffirming its resolution 782 (1992) of 13 October 1992 and all subsequent resolutions,

Having considered the Secretary-General on the United NationsOperation in Mozambique (ONUMOZ) dated 28 January 1994 (S/1994/89 andAdd.1 and 2), and having completed the review of the status of ONUMOZ called forin its resolution 882 (1993),

Commending the efforts of the Secretary-General, his Special Representativeand the personnel of ONUMOZ in seeking to implement fully the mandate entrustedto it,

Commending also the role played by the Organization of African Unity (OAU),through the Special Representative of its Secretary-General, in the implementation of the General Peace Agreement for Mozambique (S/24635, annex),

Reiterating the importance it attaches to the General Peace Agreement, andto the timely fulfilment in good faith by all parties of their obligations underthe Agreement,

Noting that the people of Mozambique bear the ultimate responsibility forthe successful implementation of the General Peace Agreement,

Welcoming recent positive developments in the implementation of the GeneralPeace Agreement, but concerned none the less at delays in its fullimplementation,

Taking note of the request by the Government of Mozambique and RENAMOconcerning the monitoring of all police activities and additional tasks set outin the agreements of 3 September 1993 (S/26432), and of the agreement of bothparties to the general concept for the ONUMOZ police contingent,

Stressing the necessity, in this as in other peace-keeping operations, tocontinue to monitor expenditures carefully during this period of increasingdemands on peace-keeping resources, without jeopardizing their purposes,

Noting with appreciation in this context that the Secretary-General, inproposing the establishment of a police component as an integral part of ONUMOZ,has at the same time stated his intention to present specific proposals for thephased reduction of the military component of ONUMOZ, without prejudice to theeffective discharge of its mandate, in particular the tasks of its militarycomponent,

Reaffirming its conviction that the resolution of the conflict inMozambique will contribute to peace and security,

1. Welcomes the report of the Secretary-General of 28 January 1994;

2. Authorizes the establishment of a United Nations police component ofup to 1,144 personnel as an integral part of ONUMOZ with the mandate anddeployment described in paragraphs 9 to 18 of document S/1994/89/Add.1;

3. Requests the Secretary-General, as the police contingent is beingdeployed, to begin immediately preparing specific proposals for the drawdown ofan appropriate number of military personnel with the objective of ensuring thereis no increase in the cost of ONUMOZ without prejudice to the effectivedischarge of its mandate;

4. Further requests the Secretary-General to prepare a timetable for(a) the completion of ONUMOZ’s mandate, withdrawal of its personnel, andturnover of any remaining functions to United Nations agencies and programmes bythe target date of the end of November 1994, by which time the electedgovernment is expected to have assumed office, and in this context, for (b) thephased drawdown of military forces in the transportation corridors which shouldbegin as soon as feasible and be completed when the new national defence forceis operational, and (c) the withdrawal of military observers afterdemobilization is completed;

5. Welcomes recent positive developments in the implementation of theGeneral Peace Agreement including the commencement of the assembly of troops andthe dismantling of paramilitary forces, militia and irregular troops, theapproval of the electoral law and the appointment of the National ElectionsCommission and of its chairperson;

6. Expresses its concern, however, at the continuing delay in theimplementation of some major aspects of the General Peace Agreement, includingthe commencement of demobilization and the formation of a national defence forceand calls upon the parties to work towards the elimination of further delays;

7. Calls upon the Government of Mozambique and RENAMO to comply with allthe provisions of the General Peace Agreement, in particular those concerningthe cease-fire and the cantonment and demobilization of troops, and commends inthis respect the commitments made by both President Chissano and Mr. Dhlakama toimplement the General Peace Agreement;

8. Further calls upon the Government of Mozambique and RENAMO to complyfully and promptly with the decisions of the Monitoring and SupervisionCommission;

9. Encourages the Government of Mozambique to continue to fulfil itscommitments in respect of the provision of logistic support and adequate food,and making outstanding payments, to the troops in the assembly areas and thetraining centres;

10. Notes the recent acceleration in the assembly of the troops of theGovernment of Mozambique, and calls upon the Government to redouble its effortsto achieve balance between the parties in the cantonment of troops and anexpeditious and timely conclusion of this process as called for in the revisedtimetable;

11. Underlines the need for the troops of the Government of Mozambique andRENAMO to hand over all weapons to the United Nations at the assembly areas andfor the parties to come to an immediate agreement on the transfer of all weaponsto regional depots so as to ensure security in the assembly areas;

12. Reiterates the vital importance it attaches to the holding of generalelections no later than October 1994 and to the early commencement of electoralregistration and other electoral preparations, and urges the parties to agreepromptly on a specific election date;

13. Appeals to the international community to provide the necessary financial assistance to facilitate the implementation of the General PeaceAgreement and also to make voluntary financial contributions to the Trust Fundto be set up to support electoral activities of the political parties;

14. Notes the Secretary-General’s decision to explore the possibility ofestablishing a more effective mechanism for the provision of resources,disbursement under which is subject to the scrupulous and timely implementationof the General Peace Agreement, as described in paragraph 35 of his report of28 January 1994;

15. Notes extend the present severance payment schemeto facilitate the reintegration of demobilizing soldiers into civil society andencourages the international community to provide appropriate and promptassistance for the implementation of this scheme as a complement to the existingefforts made in the framework of the humanitarian assistance programme;

16. Expresses its appreciation to the United Kingdom of Great Britain andNorthern Ireland, France, Portugal and Italy for their offers of assistance inmilitary training or in rehabilitating the training centres for the new army;

17. Notes also with appreciation the response of the internationalcommunity to the humanitarian assistance needs of Mozambique and encourages theinternational community to continue to provide appropriate and prompt assistancefor the implementation of the humanitarian programme carried out in theframework of the General Peace Agreement;

18. Requests to facilitate unimpeded access tohumanitarian assistance for the civilian population in need, and also tocooperate with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) andother humanitarian agencies operating in Mozambique to facilitate the speedyrepatriation and resettlement of refugees and displaced persons;

19. Requests the Secretary-General to ensure maximum economy in theoperations of ONUMOZ, while remaining mindful of the importance of an effectivedischarge of its mandate;

20. Looks forward to the next report of the Secretary-General called forin paragraph 13 of resolution 882 (1993) on whether the parties have madesufficient and tangible progress towards implementing the General PeaceAgreement and in meeting the timetable set out in paragraphs 3 and 10 of thatresolution, on the basis of which it will consider the mandate of ONUMOZ;

21. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.

Adopted by the Security Council at its 3338th meeting,on 23 February 1994.