United Nations Daily Highlights, 01-11-01

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

THE NOON BRIEFING

BY MANOEL DE ALMEIDA E SILVA

DEPUTY SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Thursday, November 1, 2001

ANNAN LAUDS AFGHAN AID EFFORTS, WARNS TARGETS NOT BEING MET

Secretary-General Kofi Annan , who is in Geneva, and his Special Representative for Afghanistan Lakhdar Brahimi in Islamabad, Pakistan, flagged the urgency of getting sufficient humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan as winter approaches.

Speaking to reporters at a press conference in Geneva today, the Secretary-General clarified his position on the military strikes on Afghanistan, saying, For us, what I would want to see is an end to the military operations as quickly as possible so that we can get on with our work. He added, I suspect those undertaking the operation should also want to see that, because we need to be able to step up our humanitarian operation and help the people.

The Secretary-General also noted that the ability to get in aid to the Afghans was due to the courage of the national staff and the truck drivers, but that targets for food delivery were not being met. We need about 50,000 to 60,000 tons a month and we are doing about half of that, he said.

The Secretary-General also told reporters that the struggle against terrorism can only be won if there is broad and sustained international cooperation, and added that the actions of the Security Council and the General Assembly provided a solid basis for such cooperation.

Meanwhile, Brahimi, who has been meeting with Pakistani, Afghan and diplomatic representatives in Islamabad since Monday, continued his extensive consultations with Afghan groups and individuals.

He held a second day of meetings with Afghan women representatives, including the Revolutionary Association for the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA), to hear their views on their countrys future.

He also met with Afghans from inside Afghanistan, including one person who traveled two days to reach Islamabad and speak to him.

In addition, Brahimi met with all the heads of the UN humanitarian agencies operating inside Afghanistan, and had a separate meeting with the staff of the UN Special Mission for Afghanistan (UNSMA).

At a press conference, he said the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan is the UNs priority and highlighted the efforts being made against terrible odds, with winter drawing very near.

SECRETARY-GENERAL OPENS ILO EMPLOYMENT CONFERENCE

The Secretary-General this morning opened the International Labour Organizations Global Employment Forum, called to address the policy challenges posed by the projection that a half billion more workers will be added to the labor forces of the developing countries over the coming decade.

The Secretary-General said that the September 11 attacks on the United States have had an impact not only on global security, but also on the global economy, and poor economies will pay the highest price. As a result of the attacks, he said, we know millions of people will become more vulnerable to poverty than before. The ILO estimates that 24 million more people, most from the developing world, will become unemployed as a result of the current crisis.

The Secretary-General made a special appeal for employment of youth, which he called our most valuable asset, and for women, the largest sector of unemployed, under-employed and underpaid people in the world.

At a press encounter after the speech, the Secretary-General said that the UN and its agencies were working more closely together, as well as in partnership with others, to deal with unemployment. The United Nations was monitoring governments, he said, to assess their compliance with employment targets set last year.

The Secretary-General had a number of bilateral meetings today, starting with a working breakfast with the Prime Minister of Denmark, Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, in which they discussed the Middle East and Afghanistan, among other topics.

In the afternoon, the Secretary-General had a lunch with ILO Director-General Juan Somavia and other participants from the Forum.

Later, he met with his Special Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Jacques Klein. He then saw Vladimir Petrovsky, Director-General of the UN Office at Geneva; and he also met with Carlo Lamprecht, the President of the Republic and Canton of Geneva.

He then conferred with his principle advisers on Afghanistan in New York via video-conference.

On Friday, the Secretary-General is expected to meet with UN staff in Geneva before returning to New York over the weekend.

ANNAN WELCOMES INAUGURATION OF GOVERNMENT IN BURUNDI

This morning in Bujumbura, during the ceremonies marking the inauguration of the Burundis transitional government, the Secretary-Generals Special Representative for the Great Lakes Region, Ambassador Bernahu Dinka, delivered a message on the Secretary-Generals behalf, calling today a defining moment in the history of Burundi and its long suffering people.

The Secretary-General added that the United Nations had supported the peace process since its inception under the guidance of the late president of Tanzania, Mwalimu Julius K. Nyerere.

The choice made by Burundis political class to pursue the path of peace through a negotiated settlement was the right one, and it merits and deserves the support of the goodwill people everywhere, he added.

The Secretary-General described the transitional government as a significant step forward. All of us, he said, are hopeful that this will usher a new era in which the countrys governance is informed by Africas traditional values of tolerance and solidarity, and based on a constitutional framework that will accommodate diversity, engender mutual trust and guarantee durable peace with justice and security for all.

He concluded by saying that alleviating the plight of the Burundian people and moving the country towards reconstruction and development must now be the priority, towards which he reaffirmed the commitment of the United Nations.

Asked about the composition of the new government, the Spokesman said the Cabinet would comprise 12 Tutsi ministers, including President Pierre Buyoya, and 14 Hutu ministers, including the Vice President, who would switch places with the President after 18 months.

IAEA WARNS OF THREAT OF NUCLEAR TERRORISM

Nuclear terrorism will be the subject of a special session of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), to be held in Vienna Friday.

Today, the Agencys Director-General, Mohammed El-Baradei, warned that, following September 11, the world must join together to take responsibility for the security of nuclear material.

He said, The willingness of terrorists to commit suicide to achieve their evil aims makes the nuclear terrorism threat far more likely than it was before September 11.

JAMAICA TAKES OVER PRESIDENCY OF SECURITY COUNCIL

There are no meetings of the Security Council scheduled today.

Today is the first day of Jamaicas presidency of the Council, and Ambassador Patricia Durrant will be holding bilateral consultations on the Councils program of work for the month of November.

Following a public meeting late Wednesday afternoon on the situation in East Timor, Council members adopted a presidential statement in which they endorsed the recommendation of the territorys Constituent Assembly that independence be declared on May 20, 2002.

UN ENVOY TRAVELS TO CYPRUS, REGION FOR CONSULTATIONS

The Secretary-Generals Special Advisor on Cyprus, Alvaro de Soto, will leave New York today to travel to Cyprus, Turkey and Greece for consultations in furtherance of the Secretary-General's mission of good offices.

De Soto will be meeting separately with Glafcos Clerides and Rauf Denktash in Nicosia on Friday.

He will also hold consultations with Turkish Government officials in Ankara on Monday, November 5, and with Greek Government officials in Athens on Tuesday, November 7.

He will return to New York next Wednesday

UN URGES COMMON EFFORT AGAINST AFGHAN DRUG PRODUCTION

Pino Arlacchi, Executive Director of the United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention (ODCCP) in his address to the 55-nation Permanent Council of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), today called on OSCE States to join in a common effort to prevent opium poppy cultivation and heroin production in Afghanistan.

"A reduction in the availability of illicit drugs will address an important threat to human security in the region and in Europe, Arlacchi said, adding that it would also affect the financial base of terrorism and organized crime.

He also called human trafficking the fastest growing form of organized crime. Arlacchi outlined that trafficking in human beings was the fastest growing form of organized crime. There are reports that drug traffickers are switching to human cargo to obtain greater profit with less risk, he said.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

Asked about recent statements made by the Chief Military Observer of the UN Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP), Gen. Hermann Loidolt, the Spokesman said that chiefs of UN missions in the field are required to consult with Headquarters before making political statements, which had not been done. Loidolt was reminded of his responsibilities, the Spokesman said, adding that the Secretary-General did not share the views the Chief Military Observer had expressed.

World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Gro Harlem Brundtland today called on lawmakers around the world to take action against tobacco advertising. Tobacco companies, she said, have embarked on a massive global campaign to woo governments away from negotiating strong agreements against the advertising and promotion of their products.