Written question asked by Lord Avebury (Liberal Democrat), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord Triesman (Labour) on Tuesday, 8 November 2005.

Sudan: African Union Mission

Question: Whether they will discuss with the African Union an amendment to the mandate of the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS), to require AMIS actively to protect civilians from armed groups, particularly in the camps and their vicinity.

Answer: The advice of the international military assessment team on the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) during a visit in March 2005 was that the mandate was adequate, but that more troops were needed to deliver it effectively. AMIS has now deployed around 5,500 military and civilian personnel, and 1,000 civilian police, as part its current expansion to more than 7,700 personnel.The UK and international partners have urged the AU to carry a further assessment mission to examine the effectiveness of the expanded AMIS and present recommendations for the future, including on the requirements of the mandate. We expect that this mission will take place in the coming weeks.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 675 c70-1WA; 1987
Session: 2005-06
Subjects: Deployment Civilians Protection Peacekeeping operations Sudan African Union Internally displaced people
Contains statistics: Yes
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk