The UN Staff Union urged Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Friday to consider withdrawing UN personnel from Afghanistan following the bombing of a UN voter registration site and a spate of attacks on election workers.
The union's committee on staff security called for a comprehensive review of the security situation in Afghanistan and new security measures before staff are sent back, saying "the safety of staff remains the highest priority."
"As we approach the election time, more than likely attacks will intensify," said Guy Candusso, the union's vice-president. "We think the UN should consider suspending operations and rethink security before moving into the next critical phase of the election process."
Afghan voters are scheduled to elect a president on Oct. 9 and a parliament in April.
UN associate spokesman Stephane Dujarric, asked about a possible staff withdrawal from Afghanistan, said a UN security assessment mission recently returned from the country with specific recommendations that have been approved and are in the process of being implemented.
"The overall security in Afghanistan is in the process of being upgraded, both on a management and operational level," he said. "Obviously, security is being examined on a daily basis in the country's different regions. And as in every mission, we have to tailor our activities to the security conditions."
In the latest attack targeting election workers, a series of bombs went off Thursday at a UN voter registration office in Farah City in western Afghanistan, near the border with Iraq. Six policemen were injured, two seriously, vehicles were set ablaze and windows shattered.
The blasts occurred on the first anniversary of the bombing at UN headquarters in Iraq, which killed 22 people, including top UN envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello. That attack and the subsequent investigation that criticized a "dysfunctional" UN security management system has led to a major overhaul and rethinking of UN security worldwide.
In a speech in Geneva marking the anniversary, Annan said the UN was "wrestling with wrenching, fundamental questions" about its operations at a time when its staff and blue flag may have become "one of the main targets of political violence."
"How do we operate in places like Iraq and some parts of Afghanistan, where many people want and expect us to help ... but some are determined to block our work at any price?," he asked.
In a message to UN staff in Afghanistan on Thursday's anniversary, the top UN envoy in the country, Jean Arnaut, said the magnitude of the Baghdad bombing was a reminder of the scale of the risk that the UN is facing in many of its operations today.
Annan reported to the Security Council on Tuesday that acts of violence in Afghanistan have, increasingly, been directed at the staff and offices of Afghan and UN electoral workers.
He called for an urgent increase in international security assistance, saying it was critical for the success of the electoral process.
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