UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- The UN Security Council on Friday welcomed the negotiations and the agreements on the resolution of the crisis in the Central African Republic (CAR).
"The members of the Security Council welcomed the negotiations held in Libreville 8-11 January 2013 and the signature of the declaration of principle, the cease fire agreement and the political agreement on the resolution of the crisis, in Libreville on 11 January 2013," said a press statement issued here after the Council heard a briefing by Margaret Vogt, the UN Secretary-General's Special Representative, on the situation in the CAR via videoconference.
In the statement, the 15-nation body emphasized the necessity of an expeditious implementation of the cease fire agreement and the political agreement, calling on all parties to implement them in good faith.
The most powerful body of UN underlined "the role of the bodies in charge of following up their implementation. They stressed that all the parties should be committed to building lasting peace in CAR."
In addition, the Security Council commended "the swift efforts made by the Economic Community of the Central African States (ECCAS), by the African Union and by the countries in the region to solve the recent crisis," the statement said.
The Seleka rebels, who accused the CAR's President Francois Bozize of reneging on a 2008 peace deal and cracking down on dissidents, launched an armed campaign on Dec. 10.
Mediated by ECCAS, the CAR's peace talks between the Seleka rebels, the government, the unarmed opposition, as well as the civil society, began on Wednesday in Libreville.
In the Friday statement, the Security Council reiterated its demand that all parties "allow safe and unhindered access to peoples in need of humanitarian assistance as quickly as possible" and "release immediately all civilians being held by armed groups."
Expressing serious concerns about "reports of human rights violations, in particular reports of the targeting of ethnic minorities and arrests, recruitment and use of children and sexual and gender based violence," the Council emphasized that such activities "must cease immediately and that those responsible for such violations should be held accountable," according to the statement.
Central African Republic is a country of 5 million. It won independence from France in 1960. Despite its rich resources of timber, gold, diamond and uranium, the country is ranked as one of the poorest in the world as a result of years of instability.
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