U.N. imposes sanctions on Sierra Leone
cnn.com
Organization backs West African nations
October 8, 1997
Web posted at: 4:36 p.m. EDT (2036 GMT)
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Crackdown wins international support Restrictions spelled out Related stories and sites
UNITED NATIONS (CNN) -- The Security Council imposed an oil, weapons and travel embargo Wednesday on Sierra Leone, demanding that the military junta restore the elected government it ousted in May.
The unanimous council resolution was initiated by Britain, and reinforces the embargo imposed by Sierra Leone's neighbors -- the 16-nation Economic Community of West African States. That organization wants exiled President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah to be reinstated.
Also Wednesday, a plane from a Nigerian-led force policing the economic sanctions exchanged gunfire with military headquarters in Freetown, the capital, a military spokesman and residents said.
Residents living nearby said the Sierra Leone soldiers opened fire on the plane with antiaircraft guns, after it made two low-level passes over the buildings. But it was not immediately clear whether this triggered an attack or whether the plane fired first.
Crackdown wins international support
<Picture: Ahmed Tejan Kabbah>
Council diplomats said West African foreign ministers asked for an international show of support for their efforts on behalf of Kabbah.
Western countries have been encouraging regional African organizations to take the lead in mediating crises on the continent.
The United States and other major U.N. members lost their taste for U.N. peacekeeping operations in Africa after U.N. multinational peacekeepers were brutally driven from Somalia a few years ago.
"The resolution makes clear how the junta can end these sanctions -- by restoring the legitimate government of Sierra Leone," Bill Richardson, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. told the council.
"We call upon the military officers ... to restore the constitutional order and the democratically elected government."
The junta leader, Maj. Johnny Paul Koroma, has refused to restore civilian rule and has said he will remain in office until 2001. Koroma launched his coup after accusing Kabbah of leading the country down a path toward civil war.
Restrictions spelled out
<Picture: Military troops>
The resolution, which applies to all 185 U.N. member states, calls on governments to ban junta leaders and their families from entering their countries and to impose an oil and arms embargo on the West African nation.
Oil shipments for humanitarian purposes must be cleared by the United Nations. All countries are barred from selling or transporting ammunition, spare parts and supplies to the Sierra Leone military.
Last week, Kabbah appeared before the General Assembly and issued a "desperate appeal" to the international community to "save a nation" by returning him to power.
The coup in Sierra Leone followed years of mediation by the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity to end a five-year rebellion by the Revolutionary United Front. That group signed a peace accord with Kabbah last November, nine months after he won elections that ended years of army rule.
After ousting Kabbah, Koroma invited the Front to join him in running the country, resulting in an influx of thousands of Front fighters to the capital. |
