United Nations Daily Highlights, 02-05-24

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

OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY

FRED ECKHARD

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Friday, May 24, 2002

UN Headquarters will be closed on Monday, May 27, to mark the U.S. holiday of Memorial Day. The noon briefings will resume on Tuesday, May 28.

ANNAN TO VISIT UKRAINE, RUSSIA, SWITZERLAND, ITALY

Secretary-General Kofi Annan will leave at the end of next week on a trip that will take him on his first visit to the Ukraine. From there, he will travel to Moscow, Geneva and Rome.

He will arrive in the Ukraine on Sunday, June 2, for an official program that will last through Tuesday. In response to a question, the Spokesman said the Secretary-General had intended to visit Ukraine for years, and would visit the President, Foreign Minister, Parliamentary leaders and representatives of non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

His program in Moscow will last from Tuesday afternoon through Thursday morning.

He will then go to Geneva to receive an honorary degree on Friday, June 7, from the University of Geneva, where he did graduate work in economics in 1961 and 1962.

His last stop will be Rome, where he will arrive on Sunday, June 9. On Monday, he will address the five-year review conference of the 1996 World Food Summit, before returning to New York on Tuesday, June 11.

ANNAN WELCOMES U.S.-RUSSIA NUCLEAR TREATY

The Secretary-General welcomed the signing today by the United State and the Russian Federation of a treaty to reduce their deployed strategic nuclear weapons substantially by the year 2012.

In a statement issued on May 14, he noted that the signing of the treaty constituted a positive step in the direction of nuclear disarmament and contributes to the fulfillment of the obligations of the two countries as nuclear-weapon states under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

SECURITY COUNCIL DISCUSSES SOMALIA, KOSOVO AND DR-CONGO

Security Council consultations were held this morning on Somalia, and Kieran Prendergast, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, gave an update on political and security matters and the recent activities of the Secretary-Generals Representative to that country, Winston Tubman.

[Following consultations, Council President Ambassador Kishore Mahbubani of Singapore read out a press statement on behalf of the Council in which members emphasized the need for a peaceful solution in Somalia based on national reconciliation and underlined the need for strong international support.]

A fact sheet on Somalia is available, with information on political developments, the so-called IGAD (Intergovernmental Authority on Development) peace process, the UN Political Office for Somalia, as well as the security, humanitarian and economic situations.

Kosovo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo were also discussed during consultations. Two consecutive formal meetings were held during which presidential statements on these items were read out by Council President Kishore Mahbubani.

In the afternoon at 3:00, the Security Council has scheduled a closed meeting of troop contributing countries to the UN Disengagement Observer Force in the Golan Heights, known as UNDOF.

ANNAN WELCOMES LAUNCHING OF AFRICAN UNION

The Secretary-General, in his message on the occasion of Africa Day, which takes place on May 25 to mark the founding of the Organization of African Unity, welcomes the launching of the African Union. He described it as a grand project of integration with the potential to provide the framework, tools and common purpose needed for the continent to achieve its goals. He also notes another dynamic initiative, the New Partnership for Africas Development (NEPAD), is taking shape.

He adds that the struggle for democracy, development, human rights and good governance in Africa may well be reaching what has been called a tipping point. And he says that Africans are confronting the scourge of AIDS with innovative programs and relentless campaigns of public education, often led by the very men, women and orphans who are the victims of the disease.

At 10 a.m. this morning, the President of the Security Council, Ambassador Mahbubani of Singapore, made a statement at a special meeting of the Africa Group to commemorate Africa Day. On behalf of the members of the Security Council, the Council President expressed the Council's solidarity with Africa. He reiterated the Council's strong message of support as well as its solidarity with Africa in the management of the challenges and the opportunities that face the continent.

EX-HEAD OF POPULATION FUND NAMED ENVOY FOR AIDS IN ASIA

The Secretary-General has decided to appoint Nafis Sadik, the former Executive Director of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), as his Special Adviser, with additional responsibilities as Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Asia.

As Special Envoy, Dr. Sadik will be responsible for promoting throughout Asia the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS, which was adopted by the General Assembly in July 2001 in its Special Session on AIDS. She will meet with high-level government officials to promote key issues and encourage celebrities and other influential persons to get involved in the fight against AIDS. In carrying out those functions, she will work closely with the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

Dr. Sadik was the first woman to lead a major UN voluntary-funded program, heading UNFPA from 1987 to 2000. Before joining the United Nations, she had been Director-General of the Central Family Planning Council in Pakistan.

PANEL NOTES CONTINUING EXTRACTION OF DR-CONGO RESOURCES

The illegal exploitation of natural resources in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is continuing with disastrous effects on the civilian population, according to a tentative assessment by the Panel of Experts on the Illegal Exploitation of Natural Resources and Other Forms of Wealth in the DRC.

Following two months of fact-finding within and outside the Great Lakes region, the panel issued a preliminary report on its findings, which the Council is scheduled to discuss today.

The panel said it is gaining a better understanding of the varying roles of the different foreign armies and armed groups both foreign and Congolese in the exploitation of resources and in the continuing war in the country.

The humanitarian toll of this exploitation is widespread, especially in the eastern part of the DRC, where panelists focused their work in the past two months. Local populations, including children, the panel writes, are being conscripted and used as forced labor in the extraction of resources by some military forces in different regions.

In some cases armed groups have destroyed the infrastructure for agricultural production to force people to participate in the extraction of resources. This has led to increased food insecurity, among other things.

ANNAN PRAISES START OF INDIGENOUS FORUM

The Secretary-General this morning addressed the first session of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, which is wrapping up two weeks of work today, and said that with the Forums inauguration, indigenous issues assume their rightful place higher on the international agenda than ever before.

He said that a new chapter in the history of indigenous people had begun at the United Nations, adding, It is entirely appropriate that as victims of discrimination, and as some of the worlds poorest of the poor, indigenous peoples have platform where they can raise their concerns. Indigenous peoples, he noted, make up an estimated one out of every 20 persons.

CONFERENCE ON AFGHAN RECONSTRUCTION ENDS IN INDIA

An international conference on recovery and reconstruction in Afghanistan, jointly hosted by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government of India ended in New Delhi today. The Conference attracted high-level participation from nearly 50 countries, largely from the developing world, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and other UN organizations active in Afghanistan.

UNDP Administrator Mark Malloch Brown said, Mending Afghanistan is a task for all of us, North and South a historic wrong to be put right and an opportunity for a common solidarity.

The conference focused on matching Afghanistans needs and priorities, as defined in the Afghanistan Interim Administrations National Development Framework, with the supply of skills and assistance available from the developing world.

For example, Bangladesh offered its experience in micro-credit; India offered agricultural skills; Malaysia offered its information technology knowledge; Mozambique offered its demining experience; Vietnam brought forward its experience in institution-building; and India offered its expertise in information technology and agriculture.

In other news from Afghanistan, the UN Childrens Fund (UNICEF) scheduled the next round of polio immunization to take place from May 27-29. It will provide 6.9 million doses of vaccine, and is targeting 5.8 million children under the age of five for vaccination.

UNHCR WARNS OF COMPLAINTS FROM AFGHAN REFUGEES IN PAKISTAN

In recent days, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says it has received a disturbing number of complaints from Afghan refugees in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, and the neighboring city of Rawalpindi about police harassment, forced evictions and extortion.

Upon hearing these reports, the Interior Secretary of Pakistan acted immediately to set up a special government task force, including UNHCR representation, which will meet twice a week. The first meeting took place on Thursday, and UNHCR says it welcomes the central government's swift response to the concerns UNHCR has raised.

UNHCR also reports that the first organized refugee return convey from camps in Ethiopia to northwest Somalia, known as Somaliland, took place Thursday. The refugee agency also reports tensions rising in the north-eastern Kenyan border town of Mandera where some 3,500 Somali refugees have gathered.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

Asked about any further UN action on the dispute between India and Pakistan, following a letter from Pakistans foreign minister requesting UN intervention, the Spokesman said he was unaware if the Security Council had received a formal request so far.

The

UN Volunteers and the Government of Luxembourg signed an agreement for a five-year project to support poor young people living in urban areas of Burkina Faso. The project will provide educational and vocational counseling and support to street children and other marginalized young people.

The UN Postal Administration today launched 12 stamps to commemorate the International Year of Mountains being observed this year. The stamps, four in each of the currencies of the Postal Administration, feature photographs of mountains in Kyrgyzstan, Tanzania, the United States, Chile, Switzerland, Japan, Antarctica, India, New Zealand, Canada, Pakistan and Nepal.

THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UNITED NATIONS Monday, May 27

Today is a UN holiday, and UN Headquarters will be closed.

The final preparatory meetings for the World Summit on Social Development will begin in Bali, Indonesia.

Adolf Ogi, the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Sport for Development and Peace, will be representing the United Nations and the Secretary-General personally in the Republic of Korea and Japan during the World Cup. Ogi arrives in Seoul today to participate in the opening ceremony and the inaugural match between France and Senegal.

Tuesday, May 28 The Security Council expects to hold consultations on the Informal Working Group of the Security Council Concerning the Council's Documentation and Other Procedural Questions.

Wednesday, May 29 The Security Council has scheduled consultations on the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) in the Golan Heights and the oil-for-food program for Iraq.

The 23rd FAO Regional Conference for Europe will be held in Nicosia, Cyprus, through Friday. The conference is expected to focus on the upcoming World Food Summit: Five Years Later and to recommend measures to strengthen the fight against hunger and malnutrition in Europe.

Karen Koning Abu Zayd, Deputy Commissioner-General of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, will be the guest at the noon briefing.

Thursday, May 30 The Security Council has scheduled a public meeting to consider the mandate of the UN Disengagement Observer Force, with the current mandate to end on May 31.

Friday, May 31 The Security Council has scheduled a private meeting to wrap up its work for May, under the Presidency of Ambassador Kishore Mahbubani of Singapore. Ambassador Mikhail Wehbe of Syria will preside over the Councils work for June.

Today is World No Tobacco Day, with observances worldwide to focus on the theme of tobacco-free sports.

Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General United Nations, S-378 New York, NY 10017 Tel. 212-963-7162 - press/media only Fax. 212-963-7055

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