Liberia: rule of law key to UN efforts to support security, envoy says

The top United Nations envoy to Liberia today pledged continued support to rule-of-law institutions as the linchpin of efforts to boost security in the country, which is recovering from a brutal 14-year civil war.

“This support is crucial to strengthening these institutions, to enable them to deal with security threats due to limited national capacity,” Ellen Margrethe Løj, Special Representative of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said as she awarded peacekeeping medals to the Kenyan Police Contingent of the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL).

Ms. Løj pointed to three institutions as particularly important for the stability of the West African nation: the Liberia National Police (LNP), the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization and the Bureau of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

“UNMIL will continue to work alongside the national authorities until the capacity constraints, particularly within the LNP – operational functions, logistics, management and planning capabilities - have been addressed,” she said.

She added that violent crime and unrest could only be controlled if the LNP is present in all counties, and equipped with the logistical tools to carry out its duties effectively.

In his latest report on Liberia, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon wrote that the country has made strides in slashing poverty, but significant challenges still remain in meeting security benchmarks.

In her statement today, Ms. Løj expressed satisfaction with the increasing attention being focused by the Government and international partners on other sectors of the rule of law in addition to the national police.

She welcomed the recently formulated plan for the corrections sector, the pilot scheme for inmate rehabilitation, and efforts to deal with prison congestion.

She also welcomed a workshop for the development of a new Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization Strategy, currently taking place in Robertsport, Grand Cape Mount County.

“No one institution in the rule of law sector should feel like an orphan anymore; we are willing to provide the support to enable them to carry out their duties,” Ms. Løj stressed.