Human rights / Mercenaries: UN expert group launches first official visit to Côte d’Ivoire

GENEVA, Switzerland, October 2, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — The United Nations Working Group on the use of mercenaries will carry out an official visit to Côte d’Ivoire from 7 to 10 October 2014 to examine and assess the impacts of mercenarism on human rights in the country.

“Cote d’Ivoire has faced tremendous challenges at the turn of the century, experiencing civil conflicts which were reported to involve mercenary activities,” said human rights expert Patricia Arias who currently heads the expert group. Ms. Arias will be accompanied by Anton Katz, fellow member of the Working Group.

The Working Group, as part of its mandate given by the Human Rights Council, will also examine the situation of private military and security companies (PMSCs) and how they operate in the country.

Côte d’Ivoire was one of the countries covered in the Working Group’s report* to the Human Rights Council this year which focused on the national legislation concerning PMSCs in several countries in Asia and Francophone Africa.

During the visit, which is being conducted at the invitation of the Ivorian authorities, the experts will hold meetings in Abidjan with members of the executive, legislative and judiciary branches of the State, the army, representatives of the diplomatic community and civil society organizations.

A press conference on the preliminary observations of the Working Group will be held at 2:45 p.m. in the Press Room of the UNOCI office, Ancien Hôtel Sebroko, Attécoubé, Abidjan.

The final report on the visit will be presented to the Human Rights Council in September 2015.

(*) Check the Working Group’s report (A/HRC/27/50): http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Mercenaries/WGMercenaries/Pages/AnnualReports.aspx

Source: AFRICAWIN