Sierra Leone - DHA: 03-19.Dec.97

SIERRA LEONE HUMANITARIAN SITUATION REPORT
Period covered: 03 - 19 December 1997

This report has been prepared by the office of the
United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for Sierra Leone in Conakry,
Guinea


SECURITY
1. The reporting period saw increased tension and hostilities between
civil defense forces and the AFRC/RUF as well as the latter and ECOMOG.
ECOMOG HQ confirmed that on at least two occasions their aircraft
retaliated against ground fire with lethal force. While an AFRC
spokesperson cites 80 deaths due to the raids, estimates of fatalities
and the actual level of retaliation vary radically. Kamajoh activity
reportedly increased further in the Moyamba area and south of Bo and
Kenema. Rumors persist that the Kamajohs threaten to seal the roads
around Bo and Kenema if ECOMOG are not soon deployed.

POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS
2. The UN Security Council received the Second Report of the
Secretary-General on the situation in Sierra Leone on 5 December 1997.
The Report reviewed the implementation of Security Council resolution
1132, primarily through the actions of the military junta, ECOWAS, UN
Special Envoy, Member States and the Security Council Committee formed
under resolution 1132. The report noted the deteriorating humanitarian
situation and the difficulties encountered in implementing the cross
border delivery of humanitarian assistance. The Report reaffirmed the
resolution and called for a vigorous approach towards its
implementation. Noting the need for international assistance in the
Peace Process, the Secretary General announced his intention to send a
technical survey team to assist in defining the role the UN could play.
The Secretary-General requested his Envoy (SESG) to open an office with
Sierra Leone for liaison with ECOMOG and the Political Forces in
country. The report also stated that the UN would continue efforts to
ensure the delivery of humanitarian assistance to populations in need.

3. On 12 December, the UN Special Envoy of the Secretary-General (SESG)
traveled to Abuja, Nigeria to meet both ECOWAS Committee of Five (EC-5)
Chairperson Chief Tom Ikimi and ECOWAS Executive Secretary Lansanah
Kouyate to discuss to revitalization of the Sierra Leone Peace Process
and the disarmament exercise.

4. Soon thereafter on 16 December the SESG, the EC-5 Chairman and the
ECOWAS Executive Secretary met with te ECOWAS Foreign Ministers prior to
the beginning of the ECOWAS Summit in Lome, Togo. The situation in
Sierra Leone and Liberia were on the agenda. The two-day summit ended
with support for a permanent mechanism for conflict resolution and
regional security.

5. The Nigerian Foreign Minister and EC-5 Chairperson Chief Tom Ikimi,
warned the AFRC, which had stated the intention of sending a delegation
to the Summit, that any such mission would be arrested in accordance
with the UN Travel ban on Junta members. In relation to this and
pursuant to Security Resolution 1132 (1997) concerning Sierra Leone, a
list of the Members of the Military Junta and adult family members has
been assembled.

6. The AFRC Secretary of State, Victor Brandon released a paper entitled
the -Government's position in the management and utilisation of
humanitarian assistance for Sierra Leone.- The document expressed
concern over the fact that a humanitarian task force for Sierra Leone
operates from Conakry Guinea without representation from the junta. The
paper also established some points for consideration vis-a-vis
humanitarian assistance. These included the need for relief agencies to
comply with the law of the land, a recognition of the contribution of
Sierra Leoneans to humanitarian interventions in the aftermath of the 25
May coup and the need for national and international NGO partnerships
and capacity building. A final point directed all deliveries of relief
assistance to be channeled through the Queen Elizabeth II Quay, the port
in Freetown. It is of not that in its Presidential Statement of 2 August
the UN Security Council warned the AFRC to cease all interference with
humanitarian assistance.

Humanitarian Developments
7. The humanitarian situation in Sierra Leone continues to deteriorate
and it is now becoming acute in some areas. There is less than 500 MTs
of relief food available in country and this has brought a virtual halt
to the minimal targeted feeding programmes still operating. The
Committee on Food Aid including WFP estimates that the balance of stocks
will provide rations for only 60,000 of the most vulnerable among the
registered 157,000 relief dependant IDPs. Food assistance to Liberian
refugees, institutions and other beneficiaries of vulnerable group
feeding programmes will be curtailed. Growing insecurity upcountry has
isolated many beneficiaries thus rendering them even more vulnerable.

8. At the same time, stocks of health and medical supplies have reached
critically low levels in country compounded by dwindling personnel and
logistical resources. Recent UNICEF and NGO assessments of chiefdoms
around Kambia found 32 active cases of measles in a single chiefdom. A
recent outbreak of a viral from of acute respiratory infection took an
estimated 80 lives around Kolnadugu. Drastically reduced medical
emergency response capability has contributed significantly to the
spread of disease.

9. UN and humanitarian agencies are challenged to maintain even the most
basic health and nutrition services without additional supplies being
brought in from Guinea immediately. Even on-going humanitarian
operations inside Sierra Leone by NGOs such as MSF, ACF and MERLIN are
now experiencing difficulties in restocking. This is primarily due to
the fact that the procedures for the sanctions exemptions mechanisms are
not in place and thus relief goods exempted from the embargo according
to the agreed-upon DHA recommendations to ECOWAS, are not moving across
the border as expected. ECOWAS will clear operations to begin after the
fielding of an inspection team at the border. It is assumed that the
recent high-level meetings among ECOWAS states will clarify these
remaining issues.

10. The FAO Sierra Leone office has prepared a table delineating the
impact of seed rice distributions last growing season (More detailed
information regarding rice distribution in Sierra Leone, can be provided
by fax, upon request to DHA-IASB). Relief and resettlement packages
provided seed which produced 10 percent of the countries overall
estimated rice requirement. Only 60 percent of the overall requirement
were grown in-country.

This report is available on the internet through RELIEFWEB:
http://www.reliefweb.int

Complex Emergency Division (CED)  - New York
Mr. Stephen Johnson
Tel.: (1 212) 963.3044
Fax: (1 212) 963.3630
E-Mail: johnsons@un.org

Inter-Agency Support Branch (IASB) - Geneva
Mr. David Bassiouni - Chief
Ms. Chris Kaye
Tel.: (41 22) 788.1403
Fax: (41 22) 788.6389
Registry E-Mail: Rosemary.Addo-Yirenkyi@dha.unicc.org

Press to contact (DHA-Geneva)
Ms. Madeleine Moulin-Acevedo
Tel.: (41 22) 917.2856
Fax: (41 22) 917.0023
Telex: 414242 DHA CH
E-Mail: Moulin-Acevedo@dha.unicc.org




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