United Nations Daily Highlights, 00-04-17

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From: The United Nations Home Page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.org

BY FRED ECKHARD

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Monday, April 17, 2000

ISRAEL DELIVERS ANNAN NOTIFICATION ON LEBANON WITHDRAWAL

The Ambassador of Israel, Yehuda Lancry, met with Secretary-General Kofi Annan at 10 a.m. and delivered a letter formally announcing Israel's intention to withdraw from southern Lebanon, consistent with Security Council Resolutions 425 and 426 (1978), by July.

The Secretary-General is transmitting the letter to the Security Council. A statement issued by the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General would be consulting widely and that contingency planning by the Secretariat was already under way.

The Secretary-General then saw Ambassador Selim Tadmoury of Lebanon, followed by Ambassador Mikhail Wehbe of Syria, on this subject. He is also continuing his telephone consultations on the same topic.

Asked about the Secretary-General's meetings with the Ambassadors of Lebanon and Syria, the Spokesman said they were intended to brief the Ambassadors on the contents of the Israeli letter.

The Spokesman, in response to questions, said that the challenge before the UN peacekeepers now is "to see to it that the withdrawal is conducted safely, without any resumption of conflict or escalation of violence." He said that Annan has done all he can to consult with regional leaders about potential threats to the withdrawing Israelis and the possibility of an Israeli response.

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COUNCIL TO DISCUSS SANCTIONS IN OPEN DEBATE

This morning, the members of the Security Council met across the street at the UN Regal Plaza Hotel to hear a discussion of sanctions issues, including the presentation of a report by the International Peace Academy, titled "The Sanctions Decade," on the effectiveness of sanctions regimes.

The Secretary-General addressed the opening of the meeting, and said that sanctions need to be refined, noting the recent emphasis on "smart sanctions" that restrict the travel or freeze the overseas accounts of individuals as a more humane means of dealing with sanctions.

The Secretary-General added, "The record of the 'Sanctions Decade' has raised serious doubts not only about the effectiveness of sanctions but also about their scope and severity when innocent civilians often become victims not only of their own Government but of the actions of the international community, as well."

This afternoon, at 3 p.m., the discussion of sanctions issues will continue with an open debate in the Security Council on general issues pertaining to sanctions, which will be chaired by Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy.

On Tuesday, the Council will have another open debate on sanctions, this time focusing specifically on the UN sanctions imposed on the rebel National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA).

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SPECIAL ENVOY FOR HORN OF AFRICA DROUGHT VISITS ERITREA

World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director Catherine Bertini, on a mission as the Secretary-General's Special Envoy on the Drought in the Horn of Africa, spent the weekend in Djibouti and Eritrea.

As Bertini met with Eritrean government officials and donors in Asmara today, the World Food Programme announced a special emergency logistics operation, at a cost of $4 million, to rehabilitate the main transport corridor to drought affected areas in the Horn of Africa from Djibouti. Because WFP only has access to one port, Djibouti has become the sole port of entry for all goods and aid destined for Ethiopia.

WFP is working on improving the port facilities to prevent bottlenecks during this crisis period and is launching the road rehabilitation to ensure that emergency aid can be transported as quickly and efficiently upon arrival to the needy populations. This corridor is currently riddled with potholes, deep ruts and missing pavement. Should this road become impassible, the lives of thousands of people who currently face severe food shortage will be seriously threatened.

Bertini is scheduled to leave for Nairobi this evening.

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UN ENCOURAGED BY SEARCH FOR COMPROMISE ON CAMBODIA TRIBUNAL

Asked about possible future talks on the Khmer Rouge trials between the United Nations and the Government of Cambodia, the Spokesman said the time and venue for such a meeting has not been decided yet.

He noted press reports of Cambodia's acceptance of a formula proposed by United States Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts. The Secretary-General had met with Kerry and with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen last week in Havana.

However, the United Nations has not yet seen the specific proposals mentioned in the media, he said.

Eckhard said the Secretary-General was encouraged that the search for a compromise on the formula for a Khmer Rouge trial was "intense." The next step, he said, would be for the UN Legal Counsel, Hans Corell, to be in touch with his Cambodian counterpart to discuss this latest development and see whether the Kerry proposal could be the basis for a final compromise.

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UN TEAM DISPATCHED TO KINSHASA AIRPORT AFTER EXPLOSIONS

A team from the UN mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was dispatched to Kinshasa airport today to assess the state of UN aircraft and equipment following a series of explosions that rocked the facility Friday. The Secretary-General, in a statement, expressed his condolences to the families of the deceased in that explosion, and said he hoped the tragic incident would nor affect the implementation of the disengagement plan adopted on April 8.

The main Ndjili international airport remained closed today.

The government has launched an investigation into the cause of the explosions.

In response to a question on the recent Congo cease-fire, the Spokesman said that the United Nations was encouraged by reports that the cease-fire, which went into effect Friday, has been largely adhered to, except for residual skirmishes reported in two provinces on Friday.

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GOVERNMENTS MAINTAIN WHALE BAN AT ENDANGERED SPECIES MEETING

On Saturday, Governments meeting in Nairobi on endangered species voted to reject proposals by Japan and Norway that international trade in four types of whales be resumed. The ban on international trade in whales, whose commercial harvesting is forbidden by the International Whaling Commission (IWC), has been in place since 1986.

This morning, the Governments of Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe withdrew their request to be granted annual quotas for ivory sales. A vote, which had been expected on reopening the ivory trade for the first time since 1989, will therefore not take place.

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TENTH CRIME CONGRESS ENDS WITH DECLARATION

The Tenth Crime Congress ended today in Vienna after the adoption of its final declaration. The Declaration, among other things, establishes the target of the year 2005 for achieving a significant decrease in trafficking in persons, especially women and children, and the smuggling of migrants. The Congress will be followed a three-day session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice.

This afternoon, Pino Arlacchi, the Executive Director of the United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, gave his concluding remarks at the Crime Congress. "The desire to act globally is absolutely clear," he said. "Just as criminals have harnessed technology for their own use, so must we. Just as criminals have globalized their action, so must we."

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FINANCE MINISTERS TO HOLD DIALOGUE AT ECOSOC TUESDAY

Finance ministers who had been attending the spring meeting of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington, D.C. over the past three days will meet tomorrow morning with the Economic and Social Council in New York.

Starting at 9:30 a.m., several finance ministers will take part in an informal dialogue in the ECOSOC Chamber on the promotion of international financial stability, among other topics. The Secretary-General will deliver an address, and representatives of key Bretton Woods committees will participate in a panel discussion.

Asked about security arrangements for the ministers' visit, the Spokesman said UN security would take necessary precautions, and added that he hoped "it would stay quiet here."

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OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

Asked about the meeting today between the Secretary-General and the incoming Humanitarian Commissioner for Iraq, Tun Myat, Eckhard said the meeting would be the final consultation before Myat goes to Iraq. He added that Myat would not want to speak to the media until after he has started work at his new job.

Asked about the UN role in Angola, the Spokesman said it was primarily a humanitarian role, including the work of a UN Office in Angola, which was renewed last week by the Security Council until October 15.

Auguste R. Lindt, who was appointed as UN High Commissioner for Refugees in 1956 and served in that position until 1960, died in his sleep in Switzerland over the weekend. He was 94. In a press release, the current High Commissioner, Sadako Ogata, said that his "dynamic and forceful leadership" broadened the scope of the United Nations' work on behalf of refugees.

The UN Development Programme, in a press release out today, notes that findings from an upcoming report on world resources, which is to be issued in September, reveal a widespread decline in the condition of the world's ecosystems.

The UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo noted in a release that textbooks for Kosovar schoolchildren have arrived from Sarajevo, following negotiations between the UN Children's Fund and the Bosnian Government.

Today the Commission on Human Rights meeting in Geneva voted on several resolutions, including those concerning human rights in the occupied Arab territories and Palestine, Israeli settlements and the Golan Heights. Votes on Chechnya and East Timor were postponed until Tuesday, April 26, while consultations are still going on.

On Tuesday at 11 a.m., there will be a press conference on the World Economic Outlook; a summary of the outlook will be provided by Nobel Laureate Lawrence Klein of the University of Pennsylvania. The guest at Tuesday's noon briefing will be Carolyn McAskie, deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, who will talk about civilians and armed conflict.

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The guest at today's briefing is Dr. Ebrahim Samba, the World Health Organisation's (WHO) Regional Director for Africa, who talked about the panel discussion that will be held from 3 to 6 p.m. today in the Economic and Social Council Chamber on "Health in Africa."

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