# Fifth Progress Report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Observer Mission in Sierra Leone (S/1999/237)
## I. Introduction

1. On the basis of my reports dated 16 December 1998 (S/1998/1176) and 7 January 1999 (S/1999/20), the Security Council, on 12 January 1999, adopted resolution 1220 (1999). By paragraph 3 of that resolution, the Security Council requested me to keep the Council closely informed on the situation in Sierra Leone and to submit a further report, by 5 March 1999, with recommendations on the future deployment of the United Nations Observer Mission in Sierra Leone (UNOMSIL) and the implementation of its mandate. The present report is submitted in accordance with that request.

## II. Military and Security Developments
### Rebel attack on Freetown and its aftermath

2. As described in my report of 7 January 1999 (see S/1999/20, para. 10), rebel fighters belonging to the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) attacked Freetown on 6 January 1999. The rebels attacked the city from the east and penetrated as far as the center, which they held for four days before being forced to withdraw by a counterattack. The fighting resulted in the deaths of between 3,000 and 5,000 persons, including rebel fighters, soldiers of the Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG), members of the Civil Defence Force (CDF) militia who were defending the capital and large numbers of civilian inhabitants. Many civilians were severely mutlated by the rebels. Up to 150,000 people were displaced in and around Freetown, and the rebels burnt down large numbers of public buildings and homes. A fuller description of the atrocities is contained in section IV below.
3. After fierce fighting, ECOMOG forces located in the western part of Freetown, reinforced from the main ECOMOG base at Lungi, managed to expel the rebels and regain control of the city. However, several thousand rebels are thought to remain in the Peninsula Mountains surrounding Freetown, despite ECOMOG and CDF efforts to dislodge him. It is also believed that unknown members of rebels might have infiltrated the city and remain there ready to launch further attacks. Consequently, the security situation in Freetown, despite recent improvements, should still be considered volatile. On 24 February, ECOMOG succeeded in expelling the rebels from Waterloo, although they remain in a position to cut the main road from Freetown to Bo and Kenema.
4. The rebels are now thought to control much of the north of the country, though ECOMOG has, with varying success, contested rebel control around Lunsar, Port Loko and Kambia, and retains possession of Kabala and Bumbuna. In the south, ECOMOG has repulsed several rebel attacks on Kenema. Around Bo, the second largest city in Sierra Leone, the situations remains calm but tense. Rebel forces reportedly rely on some foreign mercenaries, including Europeans and Liberians, and are reported to be receiving weapons from outside the country.
5. During the crisis, which began in mid-December, ECOMOG received several thousand reinforcements from Nigeria, Ghana, Guinea and Mali. However, some doubt has been cast over the longer-term future of ECOMOG in Sierra Leone in the light of statements made by candidates in the Nigerian elections. The contribution of Nigeria to ECOMOG has been so central that ECOMOG's military viability could be threatened if that contribution were reduced. Though efforts to create a Sierra Leonean army deserve further support, the army is unlikely to be able to bear the burden alone, at least for the foreseeable future.
6. UNOMSIL evacuated all its international personnel, many of its vehicles and much of its equipment immediately prior to the 6 January attack, as did other United Nations agencies, Governments and many non-governmental organizations (NGOs) represented in Sierra Leone. The relocation was followed by a substantial reduction in the number of staff, in particular military and civilian police. The remaining staff will stay in Conakry until the security situation is considered acceptable. My Special Representative, Francis G. Okelo, and members of his civilian and military staff, including the Chief Military Observer, Brigadier-General Subhash Joshi (India), have paid brief visits to Freetown to study the situation first-hand and to maintain contacts with the Government of Sierra Leone and with ECOMOG, as well as with civil society. On 3 March, following improvements in the security situation, it was decided to permit the return of a limited number of United Nations personnel as soon as possible. The security situation will continue to be kept under close review.

### Disarmament and demobilization

7. Following the rebel offensive in December and January, ex-soldiers in the disarmament and demobilization camp at Lungi were relocated by the Government in Freetown. The majority of them appear to have either joined the rebels or disappeared, while some lost their lives during the rebel attack on Freetown. On 4 February 1999, the National Committee on Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration held an emergency meeting to examine the situation regarding ex-combatants. During the meeting, the Vice-President stated that there was no change in the Government's policy on disarmament demobilization and reintegration. As of February 1999, approximately 1,000 of the 3,000 ex-combatants originally at the Lungi Demobilization Center had reported to ECOMOG and now are temporarily located within Freetown. At the meeting it was decided that these ex-combatants should be accommodated and cared for separately. It welcomed the offer by the Department for International Development of the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to provide food and medical treatment for ex-combatants in the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration programme and to assist in measures to improve the camp security. The Department for International Development has also been providing food, at Lungi Garrison, for 600 dependents of ex-combatants in the programme. The meeting also agreed that ex-combatants would be relocated to Lungi following an overall improvement in the security situation.
8. It may be noted that the two remaining UNOMSIL medical doctors have provided medical assistance to some of the ex-soldiers in the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration programme. This humanitarian gesture has been appreciated by the Government, ECOMOG, ex-soldiers in the programme and the public.

### Civilian police

9. As described in my earlier reports, prior to the rebel attack on Freetown, UNOMSIL civilian police had undertaken a wide range of activities to promote the reconstitution of the police force in Sierra Leone. During the rebel attack on Freetown, more than 200 policemen and members of their families were killed, and police equipment and infrastructure were destroyed, including the Criminal Investigation Department headquarters and all its files, records and documentation. The Pademba Road prison was also broken into and all of the prisoners escaped, a situation which poses a serious security threat. This has significantly impaired the Government's efforts to maintain law and order in the city. As a result, the Government's plans to reorganize the police force will require substantial external assistance.

## III. Political Developments
### Activities of the Government of Sierra Leone

10. The Government of Sierra Leone has continued to refine its policy with regard to negotiations with the rebels, and to take initiatives accordingly. On 7 January 1999, President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah met with Corporal Foday Sankoh, the leader of RUF, in an effort to arrange a ceasefire. On 16 January, the President issued a statement reiterating his readiness to pursue political dialogue and repeating his offer of amnesty to the rebels.
11. On 7 February 1999, President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah delivered a radio broadcast in which he again indicated his readiness to engage in a dialogue with the rebel leaders, and to allow Foday Sankoh to meet other RUF leaders, provided that RUF accepted the legitimacy of the Government. The President stated that the Abidjan Peace Agreement of November 1996 (S/1996/1034) could be used as a frame of reference for such a dialogue.
12. On 21 February, President Kabbah addressed the people of Sierra Leone in a nationwide radio broadcast in which he called on the Security Council, especially its permanent members, to exert pressure on those States and individuals who continue to supply the weapons and logistics which are being used to kill Sierra Leoneans. President Kabbah stated that it was no longer enough for the Council to condemn the activities of the rebels, but to consider the possibility of taking further action, not excluding the threat of force, against the rebels in order to give effect to the Council's previous demands that the rebels cease all violence and seek genuine dialogue for the restoration of lasting peace and stability in Sierra Leone. President Kabbah also reasserted his Government's determination to defend the territory of Sierra Leone. President Kabbah's address has been circulated as a document of the Security Council (S/1999/186).
13. On 25 February, the Minister of Information, Communications, Tourism and Culture reaffirmed the Government's commitment to dialogue with the rebels, stressing the crucial importance of seeking the views and suggestions of the civil society and expressing the Government's readiness to review the Abidjan Peace Agreement in the light of the prevailing situation.
14. On 28 February, President Kabbah again addressed the nation in a radio broadcast in which he agreed that Foday Sankoh and RUF members could hold their internal consultations in Lomé or Bamako. He stressed that, following these consultations, the RUF leader should be returned to Freetown to resume his appeal against his conviction for treason and related offenses (see S/1998/1176, para. 4). The President also called for the immediate release of all civilians being held in detention by the rebels, including children and women whom they had abducted during the recent attack on Freetown.

### Activities of the United Nations

15. In the aftermath of the rebel attack, my Special Representative, in close consultation with the Governments of Sierra Leone and of a number of countries of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), initiated or participated in a series of diplomatic efforts aimed at strengthening ECOMOG while opening up dialogue with the rebels. Following the initial involvement of the Government of Togo, the current Chairman of ECOWAS, and the Government of Côte d'Ivoire, my Special Representative visited Abuja, Lomé and Accra towards the end of January in order to help coordinate the ECOWAS response to the crisis.
16. These diplomatic activities culminated in the meeting, in Conakry, on 29 January, of the Heads of State of the three troop-contributing countries of ECOMOG: Ghana, Guinea and Nigeria. At that meeting, President Rawlings, President Conte and President Abubakar agreed on the need to convene an ECOWAS summit meeting on Sierra Leone, to be followed by a visit by representatives of the ECOWAS Committee of Six on Sierra Leone to New York to brief the Security Council. The Committee of Six on Sierra Leone comprises those three countries, as well as Togo, Côte d'Ivoire and Liberia. The three Heads of State also instructed their Ministers for Foreign Affairs to develop a strategy for pursuing the dual-track approach outlined in paragraph 15 above.
17. Following a visit to Freetown, from 13 to 16 February, for consultations with the Government, my Special Representative met with representatives of RUF in Abidjan on 21 February to ascertain the RUF commitment to the dialogue and the peace process and to discuss how best to expenditure the internal RUF consultations pursuant to President Kabbah's offer of a dialogue. These discussions also dealt with a number of issues, including the venue, format and duration of the internal RUF consultations; a ceasefire; respect for human rights; and the provision of humanitarian assistance. The outcome of these preliminary discussions is now being reviewed by the Government of Sierra Leone and other members of ECOWAS. Should agreement be reached on a venue for talks outside Sierra Leone, it would be necessary to temporarily lift the ban on the travel of RUF leaders imposed by Security Council resolution 1132 (1997) of 8 October 1997.

### Relations between Sierra Leone and Liberia

18. In response to repeated allegations that the Government of Liberia was supporting the Sierra Leonean rebels (see S/1999/20, paras. 14 and 15), the Liberian Government issued a statement, circulated as document S/1999/193, on the conflict of Sierra Leone. In the statement, the Government reaffirmed its recognition of the Government of President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah has the legitimate Government of Sierra Leone, and stated further that it had not and would not support, nor be a party to, any attempt to destabilize the Republic of Sierra Leone or any other country.
19. The Government of Liberia also announced in its statement that it had launched an effort to repatriate and offer amnesty to Liberians fighting in Sierra Leone and, as a matter of urgency, requested the United Nations to assist the Governments of Sierra Leone and Liberia in identifying, documenting and processing Liberians fighting in Sierra Leone for an organized repatriation. The Government of Liberia also renewed its request to the Security Council to approve the deployment of United Nations monitors along with ECOMOG forces at the Liberia/Sierra Leone border in the light of repeated allegations of illegal shipments of arms to the rebels.

## IV. Human Rights

20. In late January and early February, UNOMSIL human rights officers visited Freetown to conduct an assessment of the situation there. The assessment team travelled extensively within the city and interviewed numerous people, including victims of mutilations and other human rights violations. Members of the team witnessed violations during their visit. UNOMSIL human rights officers have also continued to monitor the situation in the rest of the country and have undertaken a range of technical assistance activities.
21. The team found that the ultimate responsibility for the fighting, for most of the civilian casualties and for the related humanitarian emergency in Freetown rested with the rebel forces. Though it was impossible to state with precision the actual number of civilian casualties, most estimates put the total casualty figure at between 3,000 and 5,000, including rebel fighters and ECOMOG and CDF combatants. It is feared that at least 2,000 of those casualties were civilian inhabitants of Freetown. Many civilians were killed while being used by the rebels as human shields in combat, or because they reportedly refused to come out into the streets to demonstrate in favor of the rebels. Many were killed while trying to protect family members from death or rape, or while trying to protect their property from looting and destruction.
22. Much of the killing seems to have been arbitrary and to have been carried out by child fighters or rebel fighters under the influence of drugs or alcohol. However, there is also evidence that some of the murders were targeted, including, reportedly, the murder of 200 police personnel. The Solicitor General was killed during the fighting, as were the Resident Minister for the North, an adviser to President Kabbah and at least two journalists. Other victims who appear to have been deliberately targeted include senior officials of the Sierra Leonean National Commission for Democracy and Human Rights, the Council of Churches and the National Commission for Rehabilitation, Reconstruction and Reintegration, as well as Nigerian nationals.
23. According to medical sources interviewed by the human rights assessment team, many hundreds of civilians were treated for the amputation of limbs or other forms of mutilation, including some 70 at Connaught Hospital alone. It is feared that hundreds of other victims of mutilation did not survive to seek treatment. Victims of amputation and mutilation included men, women and children, some as young as six years old. The mutilations were usually inflicted with machetes or axes. During February, there was a sharp drop in reported incidents of mutilation by rebel elements in areas where they are located.
24. There have been reports of widespread rape and other forms of sexual abuse by rebel elements in Freetown and Makeni. In Freetown, eyewitnesses reported incidents of violent group rape of young women and girls rounded up by the rebels for that heinous purpose. Many rape victims were reported to have been subsequently abducted, mutilated or killed.
25. A significant number of the rebel combatants were children. Reports were received of death and injuries being inflicted by boys as young as eight to 11 years old.
26. The rebels abducted a large but unverifiable number of people in Freetown and other places they attacked. By mid-February, child care agencies reported that some 2,000 children had gone missing in Freetown alone since 6 January. Agency staff said they had witnessed the abduction by rebels of some 300 of these children. Escapees reported by abducted boys were selected for training as fighters, or used as porters. Women and girls were taken for sexual purposes or to cook food. A small number of prominent Sierra Leonean personalities and foreigners were also abducted, including the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Freetown. Foreign abductees included several Indian workers, Roman Catholic nuns of Indian and Kenyan nationality and one Spanish and one French journalist. Though some managed to escape, at least eight abductees were killed and two seriously injured. Rebels continued to hold Roman Catholic Mission personnel abducted at Makeni and Kambia.
27. Rebel forces were also responsible for the deliberate widespread destruction of civilian property and public utilities in Freetown and other locations, such as Makeni and Kambia. In the center of Freetown, about 20 per cent of the housing stock was destroyed, with as much as 90 per cent destroyed in the eastern outskirts of the city. Some public facilities appear to have been deliberately demolished, including police stations, the Pademba Road prison, the Nigerian High Commission and UNOMSIL headquarters. The residences of human rights activists, lawyers, journalists and Government officials were also targeted, as well as churches, mosques and hospitals.
28. Eyewitnesses interviewed by the assessment team also reported summary executions of alleged rebels or rebel sympathizers by ECOMOG soldiers. Persistent reports were received of executions in various parts of Freetown, sometimes carried out after a cursory interrogation. One alleged victim of summary execution was an eight-year-old boy caught in possession of a pistol. Members of the assessment team witnessed an execution at Connaught Hospital on 3 February by men in ECOMOG uniforms. Members of CDF are also accused of mistreating civilians during the crisis in Freetown. ECOMOG jets attacking Freetown during the fighting are also reported to have caused civilian casualties. ECOMOG soldiers also detained and physically mistreated national staff members of a number of humanitarian NGOs and the International Committee of the Red Cross, apparently accusing them, without evidence, of being rebel collaborators. ECOMOG High Command has subsequently indicated to my Special Representative their intention to investigate these allegations and to take corrective action as necessary.
29. UNOMSIL continues to provide technical assistance to the National Commission for Democracy and Human Rights and the National Forum for Human Rights to assist them in carrying out their human rights monitoring, reporting and advocacy activities within Sierra Leone. It also works closely with the humanitarian community to ensure that they integrate issues of human rights into their current activities.
30. Facilitated by UNOMSIL, a Human Rights Committee for Sierra Leone has been temporarily established in Conakry, comprising the Sierra Leonean National Commission for Democracy and Human Rights, the National Forum for Human Rights, United Nations agencies, humanitarian organizations and UNOMSIL. The Committee is facilitating the active participation of the human rights community in the process of peace-building in Sierra Leone. In the coming weeks, if possible, significant activities of the Committee will be re-located to Freetown.

## V. Humanitarian Situation

31. Since my previous report, the humanitarian situation in Sierra Leone has drastically deteriorated, following the latest round of fighting, which culminated in the rebel attack on Freetown on 6 January 1999. The number of refugees in neighboring countries has increased to an estimated 450,000, with an estimated 700,000 internally displaced persons. With ECOMOG expanding its hold on the capital, the number of known vulnerable displaced persons in Freetown is now estimated at 200,000, out of which some 60,000 have sought refuge in the national stadium. Many more are living in abandoned churches and schools.
32. Following a recent eight-day tour of the region that included Côte d'Ivoire, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Sadako Ogata, has called for more support for repatriation programmes in the region. She also discussed plans with Guinean authorities to move 50,000 Sierra Leonean refugees away from the Guinean border to prevent the camps from becoming rear bases for the rebels. The European Union and the United States of America have promised 4 million dollars to aid this operation. The estimated number of Sierra Leonean refugees in Guinea today stands at 350,000.
33. UNOMSIL has facilitated the delivery of humanitarian aid by making its helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft available, to the extent possible, to United Nations agencies and international NGOs.
34. Outside Freetown, OXFAM has identified 30,000 displaced persons living in the Lungi peninsula. Further up country, approximately 50,000 internally displaced persons, who were reported to have fled Kenema during heavy fighting between the rebel forces and ECOMOG in early February 1999, appear to be returning to the area. While there are no reliable reports from further inland because of the insecure situation, thousands more are believed to have fled into the bush.
35. The suffering of vulnerable civilian populations is exacerbated by increasing levels of malnutrition, especially among children under five years of age. Preliminary surveys show that in some areas, as many as 25 per cent of the children are suffering from acute malnutrition. Furthermore, appalling sanitation conditions are rampant and health care is inadequate. Diarrhoeal diseases are on the rise in almost all the accessible areas. In addition, the disruption of routine vaccination activities has increased the risk of epidemics. The town of Kailahun is believed to be the origin of the more than 400 measles cases now being identified among displaced persons in Kenema. While a vaccination campaign has begun in Kenema, with 10,000 doses of antigen provided by UNICEF, many children are out of reach of the humanitarian community. Meanwhile, doctors and nurses at Connaught Hospital and elsewhere are struggling to treat about 500 victims of amputation and mutilation requiring extreme surgery. Lastly, approximately 1,750 children have been reported missing by their families. Very few have been reunited, while many are believed to be trapped in inaccessible areas.
36. The humanitarian community's ability to provide relief to these populations continues to be impaired by the ongoing hostilities and resultant insecurity. Following the widespread looting and destruction of humanitarian offices, warehouses, vehicles and relief supplies, humanitarian activities remain drastically reduced. Approximately two thirds of the country, roughly all of the territory north of Port Loko, Bo and Kenema, remains inaccessible by road. This has confined humanitarian interventions to the peninsula and the southern and western provinces, leaving thousands of Sierra Leoneans without basic assistance. The provision of humanitarian assistance to the needy is today being carried out, at great cost, by air. Meanwhile, the World Food Programme (WFP) has warned that if the roads to Freetown are not opened soon, allowing the free flow of commercial imports and food from upcountry, food shortages in the city could become more acute within one to three weeks.
37. Despite these constraints, the international humanitarian community has continued operation in accessible areas, particularly in the south where programmes continue in Bo, Kenema, Pujehun and Moyamba. From Conakry, international humanitarian staff continue to make day trips into the capital while national staff maintain a permanent presence in the city, where they work in collaboration with their governmental humanitarian counterparts. The humanitarian community's capacity to carry relief supplies and personnel to accessible areas of the country has been improved by the leasing of a helicopter for that purpose by the European Community Humanitarian Office and the United States Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (ECHO/OFDA).
38. In order to streamline operations, a 60-day humanitarian plan of action is being finalized by the international humanitarian community in consultation with the Government. The plan is based on five basic operational requirements. These include: full access by all humanitarian organizations to communications equipment; cooperation between the Government and humanitarian agencies; unhindered access for humanitarian assistance; effective coordination with military and security forces; and the establishment of a forward logistics base at Lungi Airport. Because the plan uses existing assets, considerable progress has already been achieved. Approximately 140,000 metric tons of food has been distributed to vulnerable groups in Freetown with an additional 100,000 reaching accessible upcountry populations. A total of 21 clinics and four hospitals in Freetown are fully operational with support from United Nations agencies and partners, and more than 1,300 rolls of plastic sheeting and 40,000 blankets are now available in Freetown for distribution.
39. The humanitarian community is committed to continuing its work of providing assistance in spite of insecurity and the difficult working environment. Relief workers and the civilian population need your support in continuously calling on all parties to the conflict to re-commit themselves to respecting international humanitarian law by: recognizing the neutrality and impartiality of all humanitarian organizations; fully guaranteeing the absolute safety and security of humanitarian personnel, including relief items and equipment; and calling upon the Government of Sierra Leone to confirm its willingness to permit the unimpeded flow of humanitarian assistance to all parts of the country.

## VI. Financial Aspects

40. The General Assembly, by its resolution 53/29 of 20 November 1998, appropriated an amount of $22 million for the establishment and operation of the Observer Mission for the period ending 30 June 1999. The resources provided by the Assembly covered the Observer Mission's start-up costs as well as its maintenance of the full strength authorized by Security Council resolution 1181 (1998) of 13 July 1998.
41. Therefore, should the Council decide to extend the mandate of UNOMSIL, as recommended in paragraph 51 below, the cost of maintaining the Observer Mission during the extension period will be well within the resources already provided by the General Assembly.
42. As at 15 February 1999, unpaid assessed contributions to the UNOMSIL special account amounted to $12.5 million. As at the same date, the total outstanding assessed contributions for all peacekeeping operations amounted to $1,666.6 million.
43. With regard to the Trust Fund to Support United Nations Peacekeeping-related Efforts in Sierra Leone, contributions received as at 28 February 1999 amounted to some $2.1 million, with authorized expenditure amounting to some $0.1 million.

## VII. Observations and Recommendations

44. Sierra Leone continues to face an extremely complex and difficult situation fraught with serious risks. Though ECOMOG has succeeded in driving the rebels from Freetown and restoring order in its immediate vicinity, the capital is still threatened by rebel forces in the peninsula.
45. I unreservedly strongly condemn the merciless murders, inhuman mutilations and other appalling human rights violations perpetrated by the rebels on the innocent civilian inhabitants of Freetown, and the widespread property damage they have inflicted. In the light of some allegations that members of pro-Government forces may also have been guilty of violations, I hope that the Government will fulfill its assurances that such allegations will be investigated and welcome its assurances that these forces will adhere to international human rights standards in the future.
46. Concern over violations of human rights and the prevention of further violations stand at the heart of the Sierra Leonean conflict. For that reason, and in view of the scale and enormity of the violations inflicted recently in Freetown, I intend to deploy an additional human rights officer to UNOMSIL. This will enable the human rights component to expand its reporting and deepen its coverage of human rights abuses in Sierra Leone, as well as to maintain its technical cooperation activities with Sierra Leonean human rights organizations.
47. ECOMOG is to be congratulated on its success in repelling the rebels from Freetown and restoring a measure of order to the city. I also commend the Government of Mali for providing additional troops to ECOMOG and donor Governments, in particular the Netherlands, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, for the logistical support they have provided and continue to provide to ECOMOG.
48. In the meantime, I would urge the international community to continue to support ECOMOG logistically and to consider the provision of prompt bilateral assistance to the Government of Sierra Leone in the creation of a new Sierra Leonean army to defend the country. The Governments of Nigeria and the United Kingdom have taken the first steps in this regard.
49. The possible partial withdrawal of Nigerian forces from ECOMOG following the elections in that country and the consequent effects on ECOMOG’s military effectiveness in Sierra Leone could require a major reappraisal of the situation. In particular, the dual track approach pursued so far, which combines support for ECOMOG military action to maintain law and order with a willingness to negotiate with the rebels, may need to be reviewed. The Security Council may wish to consider the implications of this important new potential development.
50. I intend to pursue further with President Taylor some of the suggestions contained in the statement of the Government of Liberia (S/1999/193). Since practical obstacles to the proposal to deploy United Nations monitors at the border between Sierra Leone and Liberia remain, as deployment of the ECOMOG forces required to protect them is unlikely, the steps taken by the Government to encourage the repatriation, disarmament and demobilization of Liberian fighters in Sierra Leone are welcome.
51. President Kabbah’s decision to allow the leader of RUF, Corporal Foday Sankoh, to meet with rebel leaders in order to develop a coherent set of political demands, which would form the basis of subsequent negotiations with the Government, is a bold and valuable initiative. The United Nations will continue to facilitate the conduct of talks through the provision of its good offices as required.
52. The preliminary meeting my Special Representative held with representatives of RUF in Abidjan on 21 February may have helped lay the groundwork for further negotiations, which might be based on the Abidjan Peace Agreement signed in November 1996 by the Government and RUF. In order to proceed, RUF must recognize the legitimacy of the Government, agree to a ceasefire, renounce violence, especially attacks on civilians, and permit humanitarian access to the areas they control under conditions of adequate security.
53. As I indicated in my report of 7 January (S/1999/20, para. 37), UNOMSIL has been substantially scaled back since its relocation to Conakry and now comprises only a small core of essential civilian and military personnel under the leadership of my Special Representative (see annex). The recent decision of the Government to allow Foday Sankoh to meet with the RUF leaders in Lomé or Bamako opens prospects for the start of a dialogue which should be encouraged. Should negotiations between the Government and the rebels take a favorable turn, UNOMSIL should remain in a position where it is capable of rendering further assistance to the peace process. I therefore recommend the extension of UNOMSIL’s mandate for a further period of three months, until 13 June 1999. Its mandate will continue to be to provide information to me, and through me to the Security Council, about the situation in Sierra Leone in its political, military, security, human rights and humanitarian aspects; to continue to liaise closely with the Government of Sierra Leone and with ECOWAS and ECOMOG; to explore, in close consultation with the Government, ways of pursuing dialogue with the rebels aimed at a peaceful settlement of the conflict; to advise me on further actions the United Nations could take in the event of developments in and around Sierra Leone; and to stand ready to take quick action, on the basis of such expansion as the Security Council may authorize, to assist the implementation of any peace agreement.
54. In view of the improvement in the security situation in and around Freetown achieved during the past few days, it is my intention to re-establish UNOMSIL in Freetown as soon as possible. At least initially, the re-establishment will take place on a small scale and with strict attention to the security situation. I therefore intend to increase the current number of military observers from 8 to 14, and to redeploy the necessary staff to support the relocation to Freetown. In the meantime, the United Nations Development Programme and other United Nations programmes and agencies have also been authorized to re-establish a limited presence in Freetown.
55. I take this opportunity to express my appreciation to my Special Representative, Francis G. Okelo, and his staff. My thanks also go to the Chief Military Observer, Brigadier-General Subhash C. Joshi and the military observers of UNOMSIL, including those who have been repatriated following the relocation to Conakry. The valuable contribution made by the five civilian police advisers, who have now been repatriated, also deserves recognition.

## Annex

United Nations Observer Mission in Sierra Leone: contributions as at 1 March 1999 :
| | Military observers | Others | Total |
| China | — | | — |
| Egypt | — | | — |
| India | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Kenya | 1 | | 1 |
| Kyrgyzstan | 1 | | 1 |
| New Zealand | — | | — |
| Pakistan | 1 | | 1 |
| Russian Federation | 1 | | 1 |
| United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | 1 | | 1 |
| Zambia | — | | — |
| Total | 7 | 2 | 9 |
* ↑ Medical team.
* ↑ Including Chief Military Observer.
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