United Nations recalls head of Sierra Leone mission

Mr Schulenburg has for months been the victim of a local media slur campaign. However, the government recently issued a denial of reports that he had been declared a persona non grata.

The United Nations has announced the premature ending of the assignment of its Sierra Leone mission chief amid allegations of government pressure.

According to a UN statement, Mr Michael von der Schulenburg, the executive representative of the UN secretary general and head of the UN Integrated Peace Building Office in Sierra Leone (UNIPSIL), was expected to leave the West African country on Monday.

His departure comes seven months before the end of his term in office. No reason has been advanced for the sudden departure of the German-born diplomat.

But he has been the subject of months of confrontation between his office and pro-government supporters, mainly media outlets, who accused him of “interference” in domestic politics.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in a statement commended Mr Schulenburg for “excellent service” and for his “open and fruitful work with all sections of the Sierra Leonean society, including with political parties and stakeholders and his effective cooperation with the Peacebuilding Commission.”

Mr Schulenburg has served the UN in troubled spots such as Pakistan, Iraq, Afghanistan and Haiti.

His trouble in Sierra Leone started with his objection to campaigns for the opening of an inquest into killings during the era of one of the country’s junta regimes. That regime, the National Provisional Ruling Council (NPRC), would later be headed by President Ernest Bai Koroma’s main challenger in the November elections, Rtd Brigadier Julius Maada Bio.

Some notable supporters of President Koroma have accused the UN diplomat of siding with Bio’s Sierra Leone Peoples Party (SLPP).

The Sierra Leonean public had grown divided, mainly on political line, over Mr Schulenburg’s treatment during his last days in the country. Many express fear in the state of ongoing reconciliation process, for which he has been given a lot of commendations.

The UN though says its peace building office and the general UN country team will remain closely engaged and “will continue to assist, where possible, in the effort to ensure peaceful and credible elections” in the country.