When the world was unanimous in the early 1990s that the then divided Liberia was the exporter of violence to the ECOWAS subregion, the UN slammed an arms embargo on rebels in the so-called "Greater Liberia" and the transitional government in Monrovia.

Even though critics say the embargo did very little to stop the flow of arms and spread of violence to the subregion, it remained the symbol of UN's disapproval of arms falling into the hands of belligerent non-state actors and international arm-for-gemstone smugglers.

The global policeman says the threat has dissipated and that it is now time to let go.

The Analyst Staff has been looking at the reasons, strings attached, and implications of ending the embargo. UN Security Council (UNSC) has "adjusted" the arms embargo it imposed on Liberia some 17 years ago, making way for Liberia to help fight domestic crimes, and track and control arms movement as well as help secure its porous borders from pirates and smugglers.

The UNSC voted unanimous last Thursday in a meeting that lasted barely four minutes to authorize Liberia, for a 12-month trial period, to acquire certain military materiel for defensive purposes.

"[The UNSC decides that the measures on arms... shall not apply to the supply, sale or transfer of arms and related materiel and the provision of any assistance, advice or training, related to military activities, to the government of Liberia..." says Resolution 1903, which holds that UNMIL remains in charge of security in Liberia.

The resolution says the UNMIL factor in Liberia's security equation remains significant because it has determined that despite the significant progress being made in Liberia, the situation there continued to constitute a threat to international peace and security in the region. The resolution also extended the 6-year-old asset-freeze regulation on former Taylor associates.

Reasons, Strings Attached

The resolution, which is based on the force of the recommendation contained in the December 11, 2009 Report of the UN Panel of Experts, said existing condition inside Liberia, plus the fact that the Sirleaf Administration has cooperated with UNMIL in its arms tracking and control program necessitated the end of the embargo.

"The Panel has not found any concrete evidence of major actual or attempted violations of the arms embargo. The national capacity of the Liberian Government to control weapons and to provide security to its citizens remains low, which is of particular concern to the Panel given the volatile regional situation in Guinea and Côte d'Ivoire," says the Report of the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1521 (2003) concerning Liberia. The report was signed by Chairman Abdurrahman Mohamed Shalgham.

In June 2009, according to the report, the Government of Liberia completed its internal process of ratification of the "Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons, Their Ammunition and Other Related Materials of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)" but that it has yet to deposit its instrument of ratification with the ECOWAS secretariat.

It is not clear what Liberia's delay in depositing the instrument of ratification would mean to its chances of acquiring arms to equip its security forces, but the unanimous resolution welcomed the "sustained progress made by the Government of Liberia since January 2006, in rebuilding Liberia for the benefit of all Liberians, with the support of the international community".

The resolution said more instructive to the decision of UNSC was the fact that Government of Liberia had cooperated with UNMIL in weapons marking, even though it noted that insufficient progress has been made towards that end. It did not say who was responsible for the slow or lack of sufficient progress.

But it encouraged all stakeholders, including donors, to support the Government of Liberia in its efforts to meet the conditions of the resolution, which regard appropriate enforcement of the Kimberly diamond scheme for Liberia vis-à-vis border smuggling especially from neighboring Cote d'Ivoire.

It was however quick to note that there were more steep hills to climb in order to control border problems associated with arms-for-diamond trading believed to be sprouting alone the Guinea-to-Liberia-Cote d'Ivoire-to-Liberia contraband axis. As with every worthwhile opportunity comes responsibility, UNSC has demanded that the government of Liberia make all efforts necessary to enforce the asset freeze imposed against sanctioned persons and entities, which, it affirmed, was still in force.

The resolution stressed what it called the "continuing importance" of UNMIL in improving security throughout Liberia and helping the government establish its authority throughout the country, particularly in the diamond, timber, and other natural resources-producing regions, and border areas. This implies to observers that the now embargo-free Liberia would be required to play central role in deciding the level, intensity, and direction of its security programs and plan - both domestic and external.

The Council noted that acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations, it has decided that all states take the necessary measures to prevent the direct or indirect supply, sale or transfer, of weaponries from their territories to Liberia.

It mandated further that the states must also ensure that their nationals, or using their flag vessels or aircraft, do not transfer or sell arms and any related materiel, or provide assistance to any assistance, advice or training related to military activities.

The restrictions, it said, included financing and financial assistance, to all non-governmental entities and individuals operating in the territory of Liberia for a period of 12 months as of December 17, 2009. It did not say what would happen with regards to such activities beyond the stated period, but it noted that the restriction on non-state actors did not include UNMIL and troops contributing countries.

The Resolution makes allowance for troop contributing countries and UN to supply arms and related materiel as well as technical training and assistance intended solely for support of or use by the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL). The United Nations is also permitted to supply protective clothing, including flak jackets and military helmets for the use of UNMIL. Representatives of the media and humanitarian and development workers and associated personnel may also import such non-weapon materiel for the use of their personnel.

Also allowable under the arms embargo adjustment is the supply of other non-lethal military equipment intended solely for humanitarian or protective use, and related technical assistance and training, as notified in advance to the UN Committee established for the purpose.

"[The UNSC] decides, for the period time set forth ...that all States shall notify in advance to the Committee any shipment of arms and related materiel to the Government of Liberia, or any provision of assistance, advice or training related to military activities for the Government of Liberia." the resolution says.

UNMIL is exempt from the advance notice requirement, which UNSC said must state clearly, where applicable, the type and quantity of weapons and ammunitions delivered, the end-user, the proposed date of delivery and the itinerary of shipments.

It then noted that the Government of Liberia shall subsequently mark the weapons and ammunition, maintain a registry of them, and formally notify the Committee that these steps have been taken.

It said once a year, the UNSC would review the measures imposed; it has therefore directed the Committee, in coordination with the relevant designating states and with the assistance of the Panel of Experts, to update as necessary the publicly available reasons for listing for entries on the travel ban and assets freeze lists as well as the Committee's guidelines. Once the Liberian government met the requirements for the permanent end of the arms embargo and provided justification, UNSC said would not hesitate to act accordingly.

But what was necessary in the interim, the resolution says, was for "all states" and the Sirleaf Administration to cooperate fully with the Panel of Experts in all the aspects of its mandate, which includes monitoring of the Liberian government cooperation with the 2009 Kimberley Process review team to strengthen internal controls over diamond mining and exports.

"The Panel recommends setting up a working group comprising UNMIL, the Liberian National Commission on Small Arms, the different ministries in charge of armed security forces personnel and the US Embassy in order to support the government of Liberia in complying with the requirements of the ECOWAS Convention and the recommendations of the international instrument to enable States to identify and trace, in a timely and reliable manner, illicit small arms and light weapons," said a UN Panel report.

It said consistent support should be provided, in partnership with UNMIL, to permit the government of Liberia to acquire the capacity to mark and register properly the weapons imported into the country and to build gradually its own capacity to manage properly and safely the weapon and ammunition disposal process.

Implications

Observers say even though the UNSC only requires Liberia to give advance notice containing relevant information of arms importation and to ensure the tracking and control of such arms once delivered, the government was under more obligation than it can be imagined. For instance, they says, allowing the government to import arms of its own while the mandate as well as the numerical strength of UNMIL remains robust implied that soon the government would be under obligation to begin arming and deploying its security forces to extend its power across the country.

Requiring all states to ensure that arms and other military materiel are not supplied to non-state actors inside Liberia requires internal monitoring. With no additional information or mandate on the role of UNMIL in this regards, observers says, the responsibility falls squarely back on Liberia, a nation swarming with unemployed, unengaged, and ready-for-hire ex-fighters and yet headed by a government ill-equipped for and inexperienced in security management given the circumstances of its birth and existence.

Liberia is getting the UNSC's green light to begin arming itself at the time Liberia's long traditional border with the Sierra Leone and its volatile Francophone neighbors - Guinea and Cote D'Ivoire - the two countries that are blaming Liberia for their woes.The report spoke specifically of the increasing difficulty of managing nighttime movements at border crossings in Grand Cape Mount and Grand Gedeh, an issue it said has been widely reported by the local population.

This prompts observers to believe that soon Liberia will take on the added responsibility of patrolling its borders with nothing but rifles, bayonets, and perhaps clubs.

"UNMIL had demanded that the police take charge of nighttime patrols to combat Liberia's wave of urban crimes committed mainly by disaffected ex-combatants. The police have, from time to time, being found wanted. Now that they allowed to be armed, what will it be like?" wondered one observer.

During its investigation, the UN Panel said, it discovered that UNMIL made significant gains in discovering arm caches in Bomi Lake in Bomi County, and in Cape Mount, buried by panicking ex-combatants perhaps during the 2004 disarmament exercise and reported by villagers. The search by UNMIL, with all its sophistication, is going very slowing. The lifting of the arms embargo, observers say, is likely shift the responsibility of search, marking, control, and storage to the Liberian government all of whose military facilities were destroyed during the civil war.

"Whether UNMIL will wait for another year to shift this responsibility, seems unlikely, given how the UN military seemed all too ready to hand over patrols to Liberia's vulnerable police formed unit that had barely found its bearings," said other observer. There were also doubts that the Liberia government would be in the position, or would generate the required political and security guts take measures to keep arms out of the hands of civilians as well track and control the movement of arms in and out of Liberia.

During a visit to Grand Gedeh County in July, the Panel said noted the widespread presence of hunters using single-barrel guns. This, the Panel said, was despite the fact that pursuant to Executive Order No. 6 of 27 December 2006, no individual, group, organization, or entity other than the Government of Liberia may own, possess, or cause to be brought into Liberia any firearms.

"The government of Liberia, through the Liberian National Commission on Small Arms, has not made any noticeable progress in implementing the ECOWAS Convention on Small Arms and Light Weapons, Their Ammunition and Other Related Materials and the Protocol against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Their Parts and Components and Ammunition supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime," the Panel's December 11, 2009 report says.

This, observers say, raises the major issue of whether the government possesses the capacity to take measures, both implied and stated, to handle it own security with the now expected observer role of UNMIL.

"An adequate legal framework for small arms and light weapons import, export, transit licensing or authorization does not yet exist in Liberia, as the draft firearms control act is still pending (since 2006)," noted the Panel's report. As the result of the delay, or lack of prioritizing, the Panel recommended that the overall system of marking and registering the weapons and ammunition imported into Liberia should be revisited.

It said the revisiting of the overall system of marking and registering the weapons and ammunition must include standardization, unifying and centralization to ensure that it complies with the requirements of the ECOWAS Convention and the recommendations of the international instrument to enable states to identify and trace, in a timely and reliable manner, illicit small arms and light weapons.

The Panel's report then revealed that the training of the US-funded Emergency Response Unit (ERU) of the Liberia National Police would end by in few weeks' time with only 350 graduates instead of the original 500. The new unit, the report said, would be equipped with four-wheel-drive vehicles, modern weapons and the means for basic radio communications.

"Considering the huge gap between the operational capacities of the Unit and those of the regular Liberian National Police units, which are underequipped and insufficiently armed, the responsibilities given to the Emergency Response Unit will probably tend to go far beyond the original mandate," the report said. But it said that would set a potential for problem for the Liberian government, now that it is about to resume responsibility for equipping the security forces.

Some Liberian officials expressed their concern to the Panel of Experts that, should the resources allocated by donors to the above-mentioned security sector institutions decrease drastically in the near future, the Government would not have the budget to cover the gap," the report said. "This might result in strong discontent among the members of the Emergency Response Unit and AFL, which could lead to unrest and riots."

While some say Liberia needs to celebrate the lifting of the arms embargo that will make it mandatory for the Sirleaf Administration to face it security responsibility, mainly domestic crimes, squarely, many say the government is in a much deeper quagmire than it can face drinking coffee.

"It needs no celebration. It needs immediate rolling the sleeves to meet the challenges as a nation and people who must face and take their destiny into their own hands following many years of international goodwill and guardian.