Raees Arif

A level Politics - Global Politics

The UN and Global Governance

Côte d’Ivoire
Why did the UN become involved in your case study?

The UN mission was established in April 2004 to monitor a cease-fire agreement after the
2002-2003 armed conflict, with peacekeepers monitoring a “zone of confidence” that
separated the government-controlled south from the rebel-held north.

The United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI) was a peacekeeping mission created by
the UN Security Council in February 2004 to monitor the ceasefire and movements of armed
groups in Côte d’Ivoire, to protect civilians, and to provide humanitarian assistance following the
civil war in the country.

The United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI) (French: Opération des Nations Unies en
Côte d'Ivoire (ONUCI)) was a UN-NATO peacekeeping mission in Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire) whose
objective was "to facilitate the implementation by the Ivorian parties of the peace agreement signed by
them in January 2003" (which aimed to end the Ivorian Civil War). The two main Ivorian parties here are
the Ivorian Government forces who control the south of the country, and the New Florence (former
rebels), who control the north. The UNOCI mission aims to control a "zone of confidence" across the
centre of the country separating the two parties. The Head of Mission and Special Representative of the
Secretary-General is Aïchatou Mindaoudou Souleymane from Niger. She has succeeded Bert
Koenders from the Netherlands in 2013 who himself succeeded Choi Young-jin from South Korea in
2011. The mission officially ended on 30 June 2017.
The approved budget for the period July 2016 - June 2017 is $153,046,000. The last UN Security
Council Resolution is 2284 (2016).
How did the UN help with peacekeeping in this area?
Acting under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, the Security Council, by its resolution 1528 (2004) on 27 February 2004,
established the United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI) as from 4 April 2004 with a mandate to facilitate the
implementation by the Ivorian parties of the peace agreement signed by them in January 2003.

Following the 2010 Presidential election and the ensuing political crisis in Côte d'Ivoire, UNOCI has remained on the
ground to protect civilians, provide good offices, support the Ivorian Government in disarmament, demobilization and
reintegration (DDR) of former combatants as well as on security sector reform, and monitor and promote human rights.

What factors, in your view, lead to a successful UN intervention?

The United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire successfully completed its mandate On 30 June 2017, the Secretary-
General reiterated the commitment of the rest of the United Nations family present in Cote d’Ivoire to support the
Government and ensure that the hard won peace can be sustained and the country and its people will continue to
progress and thrive.

Kosovo (1999)
In a context of fears about the 'ethnic cleansing' of the Albanian population, a campaign of air strikes conducted by US-led
NATO forces, forced the Serbs to agree to withdraw their forces from Kosovo.

Why did the UN become involved in your case study?

The UN deployed its Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo, UNMIK, after the NATO air
strikes which ended Belgrade's control over Kosovo. It was established on the basis of
UN Security Council Resolution 1244, which was passed in June 1999. Russia, which
holds a UN Security Council veto, backed its Serbian allies.

Promoting security, stability and respect for human rights in Kosovo

Originally, the Security Council, by its resolution 1244 of 10 June 1999, authorized the Secretary-General
to establish an international civil presence in Kosovo – the United Nations Interim Administration
Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) – in order to provide an interim administration for Kosovo under which the
people of Kosovo could enjoy substantial autonomy. Its task was unprecedented in complexity and
scope; the Council vested UNMIK with authority over the territory and people of Kosovo, including all
legislative and executive powers and administration of the judiciary.

Subsequently, following the declaration of independence by the Kosovo authorities and the entry into
force of a new constitution on 15 June 2008, the tasks of the Mission have significantly been modified
to focus primarily on the promotion of security, stability and respect for human rights in Kosovo.

How did the UN help with peacekeeping in this area?

UNMIK has been divided into four sections which it calls "pillars". These are:
● Pillar I: Police and justice (United Nations-led)
● Pillar II: Civil administration (United Nations-led)
● Pillar III: Democratization and institution building (led by the Organization for
Security and Co-operation in Europe)
● Pillar IV: Reconstruction and economic development (European Union-led)
A NATO-led force called the Kosovo Force (KFOR) provides an international security presence in
support of UNMIK's work, but is not subordinate to the UN.

The European Union led economic development includes the privatisation of former government
enterprises.This policy has been opposed by Belgrade. This was formerly carried out by the KTA
(Kosovo Trust Agency) an EU organisation with Jasper Dick as Managing Director. Since 2008 this role
of the KTA has been taken over by The Privatisation Agency of Kosovo.

Resolution 1244 directed the UNMIK to:

● perform basic civilian administrative functions;
● promote the establishment of substantial autonomy and self-government in Kosovo;
● facilitate a political process to determine Kosovo's future status;
● coordinate humanitarian and disaster relief of all international agencies;
● support the reconstruction of key infrastructure;
● maintain civil law and order;
● promote human rights; and
● assure the safe and unimpeded return of all refugees and displaced persons to their homes
in Kosovo.
(As described above, the UNMIK no longer performs all of these functions).

What factors, in your view, lead to a successful UN intervention?

The United Nations’ achievements in Kosovo can be described as mixed at

best. The organization responsible for guiding Kosovo out of the chaos of a
crippling civil war, UNMIK, became somewhat of a detested figure within the
region, and eight years after its start in 1999, decided to abort their mission
and let the EU take over in Kosovo. But did the UN fail to deliver?
After the end of the NATO bombings and subsequent fall of the Milošević regime,
the UN decided to take over within Kosovo. A resolution was drafted in June 1999,
called the UN resolution S/RES/1244. Two organizations were placed within
Kosovo: UNMIK and KFOR. UNMIK was an organization set up to create a
temporary administration that could provide the region with stability after its
destructive conflict. KFOR on the other hand, was a peace force set up by NATO
as a ‘leading support organization’ for the region. UNMIK has now disappeared, but
KFOR up to this day remains up and running.

So why did UNMIK fail to help guide Kosovo to achieve a stronger state? Or did
UNMIK simply cease to have any relevance as an international aid after the
Kosovar declaration of independence in 2008? The subsequent EU take-over from
UNMIK in Kosovo suggests that this was not the case.

A success story, or a failure?

The United Nations Interim Administration Mission Kosovo (UNMIK) was charged
with protecting human rights of Albanian Kosovars, building a stable political
system, and trying to arrange a settlement with Serbia in connection with
independence for Kosovo. First of all, calling UNMIK a complete failure would be
overstretching the truth. It did manage to calm a volatile situation, with noticeable
successes in the department of justice and security.

However, in its main objective, namely to agree a settlement with Serbia, they did
not succeed. Along with this, most experts agree that the UN also failed to create a
stable political system with working institutions to support a working administration.
The main reason for this failure seemed to be that UNMIK did not involve the local
population in their decision-making. By marginalizing them, support for UNMIK
became more and more limited throughout the years. This gradually squeezed the
credibility out of UNMIK, leading to its eventual demise in 2007. Then UN
Secretary-General Kofi Annan already sensed in 2005 that a different approach
towards the region was necessary. Talking about peacekeeping missions in
general, he stressed the need for ‘participatory governance’. In other words, he
wanted the local population to become more involved in the decision-making
process. The Secretary-General sent Norwegian Diplomat Kai Eide to Kosovo to
set up a full rapport on the situation in the region. Eide wrote in his findings that the
UN was losing its grip on the region, and proposed a take-over from the EU to
restore stability in Kosovo.

Overall, the UN peacekeeping mission in Kosovo cannot be called a complete

failure. Definitely on a humanitarian level, crimes against the Kosovo population did
decrease. Politically however, it did not succeed. Institutions were built, but did not
work and UNMIK quickly became incredibly unpopular with the locals, due to their
lack of involvement. It can however be argued that the UNMIK operations provided
a good platform for the EU to take over their work, which is now working to slowly
create a path to full scale, functioning independence for Kosovo.

Time will tell whether the current EU operation will prove more successful than its
predecessor, and whether locals will continue to accept international involvement.

Criticisms
The UNMIK has been criticized for failing to achieve many of its stated objectives and is widely
resented by both Kosovo Serbs and Kosovo Albanians. After seven years of work (as of 2006):
● Key infrastructure is not reconstructed; specifically, electric distribution is still very
problematic;
● The UNMIK created constitutional framework for Kosovo, while authorised to create only
legal framework;
● The UNMIK has been slow to transfer competencies to the provisional Kosovo institutions;
● Ethnic violence has occasionally flared (most notably in March 2004);
● Corruption, including allegations of corruption within UNMIK, remains endemic;
● Human rights have been problematic, especially with Kosovo's minority communities;
● There has been a failure to eliminate parallel structures, insofar as health and education
within the Kosovo Serbian community remain dependent on Serbian budgets;
● UNMIK has been accused of failing to implement an economic development strategy;
● The government of Serbia claims there are around 250,000. Refugees and internally
displaced persons (IDPs) from Kosovo, the vast majority of whom are Serbs, who still do not
feel safe returning to their homes. Kosovo Albanians displaced from the divided town of
Mitrovica have yet to be granted the right to return.
● Amongst other things, according to SC Resolution 1244, Serbia is authorised to send a
specific amount of its troops back into Kosovo. The UNMIK so far has prevented Serbia
from doing so, thus in fact breaching the resolution.
● Since the establishment of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) in 1999,
according to some international organizations Kosovo has become a major destination
 country for women and young girls trafficked into forced prostitution. There have also been
allegations that the presence of UN/NATO peacekeeping troops helps "fuel the sex
trafficking trade." According to Amnesty International, most of these women are trafficked
from Moldova, Romania, Bulgaria and Ukraine.
● On 10 February 2007 UN police fired rubber bullets at unarmed demonstrators in Pristina,
killing two and injuring 82. The Chief Constable resigned; however, the police unit that fired
the rubber bullets returned to Romania, where it has not been investigated. Meanwhile, in
Pristina, UNMIK arrested and detained the demonstration organiser, Albin Kurti of
VETËVENDOSJE! (Albanian for self-determination). He remained in detention without trial
until July 2007 and subsequently has been under house arrest. Amnesty International has
criticised UNMIK's conduct of his prosecution.

East Timor (1999)

As Indonesia stepped up a campaign of intimidation and suppression, a UN authorized peacekeeping force, led by Australia
took control of the island from Indonesia

Why did the UN become involved in your case study?

A small UN force, played a classic peacekeeping role and separated 2 countries’ armies after a war.

The United Nations Mission in East Timor (UNAMET) (June—October 1999) was
mandated to organise and conduct a popular consultation to ascertain whether the East
Timorese people accepted a special autonomy within Indonesia or rejected the proposed
special autonomy, leading to East Timor's separation from Indonesia . UNAMET was a
political mission.
The United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) (October 1999 – May 2002)
was a peacekeeping operation. The Security Council established UNTAET following rejection by the
East Timorese of special autonomy. UNTAET exercised administrative authority over East Timor during
the transition to independence.
The United Nations Mission of Support in East Timor (UNMISET) (May 2002 – May 2005), also a
peacekeeping mission, was mandated to provide assistance to the newly independent East Timor until
all operational responsibilities were fully devolved to the East Timor authorities, and to permit the new
nation, now called Timor-Leste, to attain self-sufficiency.
Once the peacekeeping mission withdrew, a new political mission, the United Nations Office in East
Timor (UNOTIL) (May 2005 – August 2006), supported the development of critical State institutions and
the police and provided training in observance of democratic governance and human rights.
How did the UN help with peacekeeping in this area?

● The United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) (October 1999 - May 2002) was a
peacekeeping operation. The Security Council established UNTAET following rejection by the East Timorese of
special autonomy. UNTAET exercised administrative authority over East Timor during the transition to
independence.
● The United Nations Mission of Support in East Timor (UNMISET) (May 2002 - May 2005), also a peacekeeping
mission, was mandated to provide assistance to the newly independent East Timor until all operational
responsibilities were fully devolved to the East Timor authorities, and to permit the new nation, now called
Timor-Leste, to attain self-sufficiency.
● Once the peacekeeping mission withdrew, a new political mission, the United Nations Office in Timor-Leste
(UNOTIL) (May 2005—August 2006), supported the development of critical State institutions and the police and
provided training in observance of democratic governance and human rights.
What factors, in your view, lead to a successful UN intervention?

UNMIT completes mandate

Thanks to the resilience and determination of the Timorese people and their leaders, and with the support of the
international community, Timor-Leste has made tremendous progress since 2006. The displaced people peacefully
returned to their homes. Since March 2011, the national police had been responsible for policing throughout the country,
with no major breakdown of law and order. Timorese news media and civil society were growing ever stronger, making
important contributions to the democratic debate in the country. Poverty decreased as a result of public investments in
infrastructure and services. Since 2005, life expectancy at birth had increased by more than two years and averaged
62.1 years by the end of 2012. Primary school enrolment, a key element to future stability and growth, jumped from 63
per cent in 2006 to 90 per cent in 2012. The country was on track to eradicate adult illiteracy by 2015.

On the political front, 2012 saw free and peaceful presidential and parliamentary elections, followed by the smooth
formation of a new Government. Well over 70 per cent of the population went to the polls to vote in both the presidential
and parliamentary elections. Through a quota system, women comprised 38 per cent of the parliament, the highest
representation of women in parliament in the Asia-Pacific region. Beyond its borders, Timor-Leste had transitioned from
receiving peacekeeping assistance to contributing personnel to United Nations operations in other parts of the world. The
country assumed a leadership role with the g7+ and was a key contributor to the New Deal for aid effectiveness.

By its resolution 2037 of 23 February 2012, the Security Council extended the mandate of UNMIT for a final period until
31 December 2012. The departure of the Mission, however, does not mean the end of the United Nations engagement in
the country as Timor-Leste continued to face many challenges. The United Nations has been determined to embrace the
Government’s proposal for the global body to continue to be an important partner in the new phase of the country’s
development and to establish an innovative working relationship of cooperation for the post-UNMIT phase focusing on
institutional strengthening and development.

As UNMIT was completing its mandate, the Security Council, in its statement of 19 December 2012, commended the
remarkable achievements made by Timor-Leste over the past decade and recognized the important contribution of
UNMIT in promoting peace, stability and development in the country.

Côte d’ Ivoire
A civil war was fought in Ivory Coast between 2002–04 between the incumbent President Laurent
Gbagbo and the rebel Forces Nouvelles de Côte d'Ivoire (New Forces), representing Muslim
northerners who felt that they were being discriminated against by the politically dominant and
mostly Christian southerners.

In 2002 France sent its troops to Ivory Coast (Operation Unicorn) as peacekeepers. In February
2004 the United Nations established the United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI) "to
facilitate the implementation by the Ivorian parties of the peace agreement signed by them in
January 2003". Most of the fighting ended by late 2004, with the country split between a rebel-
held north and a government-held south. In March 2007 the two sides signed an agreement to
hold fresh elections, though they ended up being delayed until 2010, five years after Gbagbo's
term of office was supposed to have expired.

After northern candidate Alassane Ouattara was declared the victor of the 2010 Ivorian
presidential election by the country's Independent Electoral Commission (CEI), the President of the
Constitutional Council – an ally of Gbagbo – declared the results to be invalid and that Gbagbo was
the winner. Both Gbagbo and Ouattara claimed victory and took the presidential oath of office.

On 2 April, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon told the BBC that "[a]t this time, I strongly urge Mr
Gbagbo to step down and transfer power to the legitimately elected president... Mr Ouattara."

On 4 April, non-military United Nations personnel began to be evacuated from Abidjan and
hundreds of additional French troops landed in the Abidjan airport. UN and French helicopters
also began firing on pro-Gbagbo military installations, a French military spokesman said the attacks
were aimed at heavy artillery and armoured vehicles. Eyewitnesses reported seeing two UN Mi-
24P attack helicopters firing missiles at the Akouédo military camp in Abidjan. UN helicopters were
flown by Ukrainian Ground Forces crews seconded to the United Nations. The attacks sparked
protests by a Gbagbo spokesperson, who said that such actions were "illegal, illegitimate and
unacceptable." UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon defended the actions, however, saying that
"the [UN] mission has taken this action in self-defence and to protect civilians." He noted that
Gbagbo’s forces had fired on United Nations patrols and attacked the organization’s headquarters
in Abidjan “with heavy-caliber sniper fire as well as mortars and rocket-propelled grenades,”
wounding four peacekeepers.

On 11 April, Ouattara's forces stormed Gbagbo's residence and arrested him. The final assault was
assisted by French forces using helicopters and armoured vehicles, although the actual capture
was made by Ouattara's troops. There have been persistent rumors that French special forces
blew up a wall blocking a tunnel between the French Embassy and Gbagbo's residence in Abidjan;
Ivorian forces loyal to Ouattara then rushed through the tunnel into the house at arrest him.
Gbagbo, his wife, son and about 50 members of his entourage were captured unharmed and were
taken to the Golf Hotel, Ouattara's headquarters, where they were placed under United Nations
guard.

Kosovo

In July 1990, the Kosovo Albanians proclaimed the existence of the Republic of Kosova, and
declared it a sovereign and independent state in September 1992. In May 1992, Ibrahim Rugova
was elected its president in an election in which only Kosovo Albanians participated. During its
lifetime, the Republic of Kosova was only officially recognised by Albania. By the mid-1990s, the
Kosovo Albanian population was growing restless, as the status of Kosovo was not resolved as part
of the Dayton Agreement of November 1995, which ended the Bosnian War. By 1996, the Kosovo
Liberation Army (KLA), an ethnic Albanian guerrilla paramilitary group that sought the separation
of Kosovo and the eventual creation of a Greater Albania, had prevailed over the Rugova's non-
violent resistance movement and launched attacks against the Yugoslav Army and Serbian police
in Kosovo, resulting in the Kosovo War.

By 1998, international pressure compelled Yugoslavia to sign a ceasefire and partially withdraw its
security forces. Events were to be monitored by Organization for Security and Co-operation in
Europe (OSCE) observers according to an agreement negotiated by Richard Holbrooke. The
ceasefire did not hold and fighting resumed in December 1998, culminating in the Račak massacre,
which attracted further international attention to the conflict. Within weeks, a multilateral
international conference was convened and by March had prepared a draft agreement known as
the Rambouillet Accords, calling for the restoration of Kosovo's autonomy and the deployment of
NATO peacekeeping forces. The Yugoslav delegation found the terms unacceptable and refused to
sign the draft. Between 24 March and 10 June 1999, NATO intervened by bombing Yugoslavia
aimed to force Milošević to withdraw his forces from Kosovo, though NATO could not appeal to
any particular motion of the Security Council of the United Nations to help legitimise its
intervention.
On 10 June 1999, the UN Security Council passed UN Security Council Resolution 1244, which
placed Kosovo under transitional UN administration (UNMIK) and authorised Kosovo Force (KFOR),
a NATO-led peacekeeping force. Resolution 1244 provided that Kosovo would have autonomy
within the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and affirmed the territorial integrity of Yugoslavia,
which has been legally succeeded by the Republic of Serbia.

International negotiations began in 2006 to determine the final status of Kosovo, as envisaged
under UN Security Council Resolution 1244. The UN-backed talks, led by UN Special Envoy Martti
Ahtisaari, began in February 2006. Whilst progress was made on technical matters, both parties
remained diametrically opposed on the question of status itself.

In February 2007, Ahtisaari delivered a draft status settlement proposal to leaders in Belgrade and
Pristina, the basis for a draft UN Security Council Resolution which proposed 'supervised
independence' for the province. A draft resolution, backed by the United States, the United
Kingdom and other European members of the Security Council, was presented and rewritten four
times to try to accommodate Russian concerns that such a resolution would undermine the
principle of state sovereignty.

Russia, which holds a veto in the Security Council as one of five permanent members, had stated
that it would not support any resolution which was not acceptable to both Belgrade and Kosovo
Albanians. Whilst most observers had, at the beginning of the talks, anticipated independence as
the most likely outcome, others have suggested that a rapid resolution might not be preferable.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia on 17 February 2008. As of 4 November 2018, 113 UN
states recognise its independence, including all of its immediate neighbours, with the exception of
Serbia. Since declaring independence, it has become a member of the international institutions
such as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, though not of the United Nations.

East Timor

Japanese forces occupied Timor during World War II. East Timor province, including the Ambeno
enclave, thereafter remained in Portuguese possession until 1975, when one of the major political
parties there, Fretilin (Frente Revolucionária do Timor-Leste Independente [Revolutionary Front
for an Independent East Timor]), gained control of much of the territory and in November
declared its independence as the Democratic Republic of East Timor. Early in December
Indonesian forces invaded and occupied the area, and in 1976 Indonesia declared it to be an
integral part of that country as the province of East Timor (Timor Timur).

Over the next two decades, tens of thousands of East Timorese died (some observers claim as
many as 200,000 perished) resisting the Indonesian occupation and annexation or as a result of
famine and disease. In response to mounting international pressure, the Indonesian government
authorized a referendum there for August 30, 1999, to determine the future of East Timor. Almost
four-fifths of the voters supported independence, and the Indonesian parliament rescinded
Indonesia’s annexation of the territory. East Timor was returned to its preannexation status of
independence but as a non-self-governing territory under UN supervision. However, the transfer
of power was accompanied by violence perpetrated by anti-independence militants. Hundreds of
people were killed, and thousands fled to the western half of the island; refugees subsequently
began returning home.

In April 2002 Xanana Gusmão—leader of the National Council of Timorese Resistance (Conselho
Nacional de Resistência Timorense; CNRT), one of the former opposition groups—was elected East
Timor’s first president. The territory achieved full status as a sovereign state shortly thereafter.
Prime Minister José Ramos-Horta—who had been a co recipient of the 1996 Nobel Prize for Peace
—was elected president in May 2007 and succeeded Gusmão. Tensions within the country
remained high, however, as indicated by the continued presence of a UN security mission in the
country. The situation only worsened after Ramos-Horta swore in Gusmão as prime minister of a
coalition government even though the CNRT—renamed, with the same acronym, the National
Congress for the Reconstruction of Timor (Congresso Nacional de Reconstrução do Timor)—
finished second to Fretilin in the July 2007 parliamentary elections.