LOCATION: Uganda side of the Uganda-Rwanda border
HEADQUARTERS: Kabale
DURATION: June 1993 to present
AUTHORIZED STRENGTH: 81 military observers, 17 international staff and 7 locally recruited personnel
ACTING CHIEF MILITARY OBSERVER: Colonel Ben Matiwaza (Zimbabwe)
BACKGROUND Fighting between the Armed Forces of the Government of Rwanda and the Rwandese Patriotic Front (RPF) first broke out in October 1990 across the border between Rwanda and its northern neighbour, Uganda. Despite a number of cease-fire agreements thereafter, hostilities resumed in the northern part of the country in early February 1993. These interrupted comprehensive negotiations between the Government of Rwanda and RPF, which were supported by the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and facilitated by the United Republic of Tanzania.
In support of resumption of the negotiations, Rwanda and Uganda, in separate letters to the President of the Security Council on 22 February 1993, called for the deployment of United Nations military observers along the 150-kilometre common border in order to prevent the military use of the area, especially the transportation of military supplies. RPF control of the border has been extensive. Following consultations in the Security Council on 24 February concerning these letters, the Secretary-General decided to send a goodwill mission to Rwanda and Uganda. He instructed the mission to examine all major aspects of the peace process including the possibility of deploying military observers along the border. The goodwill mission carried out this mandate from 4 to 18 March 1993. Meanwhile, efforts by OAU and Tanzania led to a meeting between the Government of Rwanda and RPF from 5 to 7 March at Dar-es-Salaam, the capital of Tanzania. In a closing joint communiqu‚, the Government of Rwanda and RPF pledged their commitment to a negotiated settlement and agreed to reinstate the cease-fire on 9 March and to the resumption of peace talks in Arusha, Tanzania. They also committed themselves to providing adequate security and protection to displaced persons.
On 12 March 1993, the Security Council, by its resolution 812 (1993), called on the Government of Rwanda and RPF to respect the renewed cease-fire, to resume negotiations, to allow the delivery of humanitarian supplies and the return of displaced persons, and to fulfil the obligations and commitments the parties had made in the past. The Council also welcomed the goodwill mission the Secretary-General had sent to Rwanda and Uganda. Finally, it asked him to examine the requests of those two countries for the deployment of observers along their common border.
Following the adoption of the Council resolution, the Secretary-General decided to send a technical mission to the area. The mission visited Uganda from 2 to 5 April and Rwanda on 6 April. It reported that it would be possible to deploy United Nations military observers to monitor the border between Uganda and Rwanda and verify that no military assistance _ lethal weapons, ammunition and other material of possible military use _ was being provided across it. It was decided that deployment of the observers would be on the Uganda side of the border only.
OBSERVER MISSION IS AUTHORIZED On 22 June 1993, the Security Council, by its resolution 846 (1993), authorized the establishment of the United Nations Observer Mission Uganda-Rwanda (UNOMUR) on the Uganda side of the common border, for an initial period of six months, subject to review every six months. The Council decided that the verification would focus primarily on transit or transport, by roads or tracks which could accommodate vehicles, of lethal weapons and ammunition across the border, as well as any other material which could be of military use.
The Council welcomed the Secretary-General's decision to support the peace-keeping efforts of OAU by putting two military experts at its disposal to help expedite the deployment of OAU's expanded Neutral Military Observer Group (NMOG) to Rwanda. It also urged the Government of Rwanda and RPF to conclude quickly a comprehensive peace agreement, and requested the Secretary-General to report on the contribution the United Nations could make to assist OAU in implementing this agreement and to begin contingency planning in the event that the Council decided that such a contribution was needed.
As requested by resolution 846 (1993), the United Nations undertook consultations with the Government of Uganda with a view to concluding a status of mission agreement. The agreement was finalized and entered into force on 16 August 1993. This opened the way to deployment of an advance party which arrived in the mission area on 18 August. By the end of September, UNOMUR had reached its authorized strength of 81 military observers and was fully operational.
FUTURE OF UNOMUR The Arusha peace talks, which had resumed on 16 March 1993, were successfully concluded on 4 August 1993. The Government of Rwanda and RPF called for the establishment of a neutral international force to facilitate the implementation of the peace agreement. On 5 October, the Security Council, by resolution 872 (1993), established the United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda UNAMIR. On 22 October, the Secretary-General reported to the Security Council that he was consulting the Government of Uganda on the modalities of this integration, on the understanding that it would be "without prejudice to the mandate of UNOMUR as set out in resolution 846 (1993)".
COMPOSITION OF UNOMUR The authorized strength of UNOMUR is 81 military observers, 17 international and seven local civilian support staff. Military observers are provided by the following countries: Bangladesh, Botswana, Brazil, Canada, Hungary, Netherlands, Senegal, and Zimbabwe. In addition, Fiji and Slovak Republic have expressed their readiness in principle to make the necessary personnel available.
FINANCIAL ASPECTS The cost of UNOMUR for a six-month period has been estimated at approximately $4 million. The costs of the operation are met by the assessed contributions of United Nations Member States.
1 For more information on UNAMIR, see United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda.
PS/DPI/22 October 1993
Note: Data effective 31 October 1993