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The United Nations Angola Verification Mission II (UNAVEM II), established May 1991 and lasting until February 1995, was the second
United Nations peacekeeping Peacekeeping by the United Nations is a role of the United Nations's Department of Peace Operations and an "instrument developed by the organization as a way to help countries torn by conflict to create the conditions for lasting peace". It is ...
mission, of a total of four, deployed to
Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...
during the course of the
Angolan Civil War The Angolan Civil War () was a civil war in Angola, beginning in 1975 and continuing, with interludes, until 2002. The war began immediately after Angola became independent from Portugal in November 1975. It was a power struggle between two for ...
, the longest war in modern
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
n history. Specifically, the mission was established to oversee and maintain the multilateral ceasefire of 1990 and the subsequent
Bicesse Accords The Bicesse Accords, also known as the Estoril Accords, laid out a transition to multi-party democracy in Angola under the supervision of the United Nations' UNAVEM II mission. President José Eduardo dos Santos of the MPLA and Jonas Savimb ...
in 1991, which instituted an electoral process for the first time including the two rival factions of the
civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
, the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), the ''de facto'' government of Angola, with control of
Luanda Luanda ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Angola, largest city of Angola. It is Angola's primary port, and its major industrial, cultural and urban centre. Located on Angola's northern Atlantic coast, Luanda is Ang ...
and most of the country since independence in 1975, and the
National Union for the Total Independence of Angola The National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (, abbr. UNITA) is the second-largest political party in Angola. Founded in 1966, UNITA fought alongside the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola ( MPLA) and the National Lib ...
(UNITA). The mission's original mandate was established by
United Nations Security Council Resolution 696 United Nations Security Council resolution 696, adopted unanimously on 30 May 1991, after noting the recent desire to sign the Bicesse Accords between the MPLA and UNITA in Angola, the recent withdrawal of all Cuban troops and considering a repor ...
(1991), passed on May 30, 1991. The stated mandate was:
to verify the arrangements agreed by the Angolan parties for the monitoring of the ceasefire and for the monitoring of the Angolan police during the ceasefire period.
The subsequent resolution Resolution 747 (1992), passed March 24, 1992 altered the mandate to include electoral monitoring duties. During the country's newly agreed upon election, 400 UN electoral observers were deployed, along with the rest of the mission, with the added mandate of "observation and verification of the presidential and legislative elections in Angola." After a series of Security Council resolutions in 1993, the mandate was again altered to encourage more stringent adherence to the ceasefire by both the government of Angola and UNITA, after a resumption of hostilities. Finally, in late 1994, with Security Council Resolutions 952 (1994) and 966 (1994), UNAVEM II began observation and verification of the Lusaka Protocol of November 20, 1994. Preparations were begun to make way for the new mission, United Nations Angola Verification Mission III (UNAVEM III), set up in the wake of the Lusaka Protocol. The mission consisted of military observers, civilian police, electoral observers,
paramedic A paramedic is a healthcare professional trained in the medical model, whose main role has historically been to respond to emergency calls for medical help outside of a hospital. Paramedics work as part of the emergency medical services (EMS), ...
s and both local and international staff. The personnel came from 25 countries in five continents. There was a maximum deployment of over 1100 during the early polling, as well as a minimum strength of under 200 after June 1993. UNAVEM II suffered a total of 5 fatalities, 3 military and 2 civilian.


Background

Soon after Angola's independence from
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
in 1975, the tenuous three-way coalition government descended into civil war. The MLPA, with the support of
Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
n troops as well as backing by the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
and other
communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...
parties, quickly gained control of
Luanda Luanda ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Angola, largest city of Angola. It is Angola's primary port, and its major industrial, cultural and urban centre. Located on Angola's northern Atlantic coast, Luanda is Ang ...
and the government, and the UNITA, allied with the tribal
National Liberation Front of Angola The National Front for the Liberation of Angola (; abbreviated FNLA) is a political party and former militant organisation that fought for Angolan independence from Portugal in the war of independence, under the leadership of Holden Roberto. F ...
(FNLA) was restricted to the country's interior. The first UN peacekeeping mission to Angola, United Nations Angola Verification Mission I (UNAVEM I) oversaw the agreed upon Cuban withdrawal in 1988. That same year, the
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
n troops supporting UNITA were withdrawn and by 1990 the belligerents, joined by eighteen other African nations agreed to a ceasefire. In mid-1991, the UN Security Council authorized the deployment of UNAVEM II to succeed UNAVEM I and monitor the new ceasefire agreement. The 1991 Bicesse Accords established a democratic electoral system for Angola, under the supervision of UNAVEM II. After the 1992 call to arms by disgruntled UNITA presidential candidate
Jonas Savimbi Jonas Malheiro Sidónio Sakaita Savimbi (; 3 August 1934 – 22 February 2002) was an Angolan revolutionary, politician, and rebel military leader who founded and led the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola ( UNITA). UNITA was on ...
, hostilities resumed until 1994's Lusaka Protocol.


Awards

The UN Issued awards for this mission:


See also

*
Angolan War of Independence The Angolan War of Independence (; 1961–1974), known as the Armed Struggle of National Liberation (Portuguese: ''Luta Armada de Libertação Nacional'') in Angola, was a war of independence fought between the Angolan nationalist forces ...
*
Angolan Civil War The Angolan Civil War () was a civil war in Angola, beginning in 1975 and continuing, with interludes, until 2002. The war began immediately after Angola became independent from Portugal in November 1975. It was a power struggle between two for ...
*
List of UN peacekeeping missions This is a list of United Nations peacekeeping missions since the United Nations was founded in 1945, organized by region, with the dates of deployment, the name of the related conflict, and the name of the UN operation. Peacekeeping, as define ...
*
Apurba Kumar Bardalai Apurba Kumar Bardalai (born 4 April 1956), is a retired Major general (India), Major General from the Indian Army. He holds a PhD from Tilburg University, where he is a Member of the Department of Organisation Studies. He is also a Research Fel ...


External links


UNAVEM II website
*
Full text of the Bicesse Accords
{{UN Peacekeeping Operations Angolan Civil War United Nations operations in Angola 1991 establishments in Angola 1995 disestablishments in Africa 1990s in Angola