India against enforcement of no-fly zone or use of force in Libya; U.N. General Assembly votes for suspension of Libya from U.N. Human Rights Council; India asks for a speedier U.N. Security Council reform process; Withdrawal of U.N. peacekeepers from Sie
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    • India, articulating its official thinking on the situation in Libya has said that it is against the enforcement of a no-fly-zone or the use of force to end the civil war in the nation. India’s Foreign Secretary, Nirupama Rao said in an interview that India had not decided whether to abstain or vote against such a resolution in case the issue came up before the United Nations Security Council. She also indicated that any such decision would be made by India after consulting with its ‘friends’. 1

    Following the U.N. Security Council’s imposition of sanctions on Libya, the U.N. General Assembly suspended Libya from UN Human Rights Council for committing ‘gross and systematic violations of human rights’. The vote does not permanently remove Libya from the Council, but prevents it from participation until the General Assembly determines whether to restore the country to full status. 2

    Meanwhile, addressing an informal meeting of the plenary on the intergovernmental negotiations on the reform of the UN Security Council, India’s Ambassador to the U.N. Hardeep Singh Puri asked UN diplomats to no longer delay the reform process and to act decisively to change the Council’s current structure. He warned that proposals that would give new permanent members less rights and obligations as the existing ones, were “not saleable”. 3

    In the last week, the Security Council at the request of Sierra Leone, unanimously authorized the withdrawal of U.N. peacekeepers protecting the court trying indicted war criminals in the country by 7th of March. It also authorized handing over of the responsibility to local forces. 4

    In other developments, amidst the growing clashes in Cote d’Ivoire between pro-Gbagbo and pro-Quattara forces, the U.N. Security Council voiced ‘deep concerns’ at the escalating violence on civilians, the increasing number of refugees and displaced persons and the risk of a resurgence of a civil war. Calling on both sides to show utmost restraint, the Security Council condemned the violence perpetrated against U.N. personnel and civilians. It also urged the UNOCI ‘to use all necessary means to carry out its mandate, in particular to protect civilians’. Further, it reiterated its readiness to impose sanctions against all those threatening the peace process, obstructing the UNOCI and inciting hatred and violence.5

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