Transition agreement signed on Governors Island.

• Position: Haiti issue addressed by UN in New York, New York - United Nations developments

Sanctions imposed, numerous human rights violations reported

An agreement to resolve the political crisis in Haiti was signed on 3 July by the country's first democratically-elected President, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, ousted in a September 1991 coup, and Lieutenant-General Raoul Cedras, Commander-in-Chief of Haiti's Armed Forces, after almost a week of talks held on Governors Island, New York, in the United States.

The pact, which sets out transition arrangements from a military to a civilian government, was completed after the Security Council had imposed on 16 June a stringent arms and oil embargo against Haiti.

Drafted by Dante Caputo, Special Envoy for Haiti of the Secretaries-General of the UN and the Organization of American States (OAS), the document calls for President Aristide to return to Haiti on 30 October 1993 and appoint a new Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces to replace Lt.-Gen. Cedras. The President would also nominate a Prime Minister, to be confirmed by the legally reconstituted Parliament.

The parties agreed to hold a political dialogue, under UN/OAS auspices, to reach a political truce and create conditions for a peaceful transition of power, and to establish procedures to enable the Haitian Parliament to resume normal functioning.

The agreement further called for suspension of the Council embargo as soon as the new Prime Minister assumed office.

Resolution 841:

Haiti embargo

Acting under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, the Council on 16 June unanimously adopted resolution 841 (1993) detailing the terms of the embargo against Haiti. The sanctions entered into force on 23 June.

Under the resolution, all States are obliged to prevent the sale or supply by their nationals or from their territories or using their flag vessels or aircraft, of petroleum or petroleum products or arms and related materiel, including military vehicles, police equipment and spare parts, to any person or body in Haiti. They are also to prevent any activities by their nationals or in their territories which promoted or were calculated to promote such sale or supply.

States were to freeze all funds in the name of the Government of Haiti or of the de facto authorities, as well as those controlled directly or indirectly by them.

A Security Council Committee was also established to monitor compliance. Among other things, it was to authorize "on an exceptional case-by-case basis under a no-objection procedure", the importation to Haiti of petroleum...