New York (United Nations), 24 March 2025 (SPS) - Algeria on Monday condemned the fact that the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) still lacks a human rights mandate, unlike other similar UN missions.
"We have been repeatedly lectured by certain partners on the importance of monitoring and reporting human rights violations, as well as the need to respect international law, including international humanitarian law. Yet, curiously, when it comes to MINURSO, we have been stunned by their silence - even their opposition," stated Algeria’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Amar Bendjama, in New York.
Speaking during a UN Security Council meeting on enhancing the adaptability of peacekeeping operations to new realities, Bendjama drew attention to this anomaly, which specifically affects MINURSO.
"This attitude sends the signal that MINURSO, as an exception among all UN peace operations deployed in Africa, should simply turn a blind eye to human rights violations," he said.
"Equipping all UN peace operations without exception with a robust human rights component is essential to improving the work of UN missions on the ground by monitoring and reporting violations," the Algerian diplomat emphasized.
More broadly, Bendjama noted that Algeria considers "the debate on the future of UN peace operations and their adaptability as a crucial issue for [the] Council and the international community, especially in a context where UN peacekeeping faces enormous challenges."
"As we prepare for the Berlin Ministerial Conference on Peacekeeping next May, we stress the importance of seizing every possible opportunity to develop a unified vision for the future of peacekeeping, particularly in terms of adaptability," he added.
However, Algeria believes that UN peace operations "have shown their limits and require significant adjustments to effectively address new challenges," the diplomat noted.
In this regard, Algeria advocates - in addition to the human rights aspect - that the mandates of peace operations be "focused on core issues while keeping in mind the mission’s purpose and clearly defining its end goal from the outset."
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