United Nations Daily Highlights, 04-02-09

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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, February 9, 2004

IRAQ: ANNAN HOPES TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS BY MONTH'S END

Secretary-General Kofi Annan issued a statement on Saturday announcing the arrival in Baghdad of the fact-finding team for Iraq.

He said hoped the team would help resolve the impasse of the transitional process. The Secretary-General stressed that the most sustainable way forward is one that comes from the Iraqis themselves.

As stressed in previous Security Council resolutions and the Secretary-Generals own reports to the Security Council, the UN is committed to help re-establishing

Iraq

sovereignty as soon as possible and to maintaining its territorial integrity. The UN strongly upholds the principle of the right of the Iraqi people freely to determine their political future and control their natural resources.

He said the United Nationswill offer whatever help it can to support the right of the Iraqi people to chart their own destiny and to live in peace, with respect and dignity.

As the Secretary-Generalcame into the building this morning, the Secretary-General totold reporters the work of the electoral team in Iraq had gone extremely well so far. He added that the team is reaching out and talking to as many groups as possible.

The Secretary-General noted that the atmosphere was good and that the team, led by his Special Advisor Lahkdar Brahimi, had been well received.

Asked how long the team would stay in Iraq, the Secretary-General answered that they would take as much time as needed but he did expect them to stay about a week. He also said he wanted to be in a position to make recommendations by the end of February.

UN TEAM MEETS WITH BROAD CROSS SECTION OF IRAQI POLITICAL SPECTRUM

On the ground, the electoral fact-finding team continued their discussions with a broad cross section of the Iraqi political spectrum. They met individual members of the Iraqi Governing Council, as well as various representatives of Iraqi Civil society. Throughout these meetings, Brahimi stressed that the UN team is there with no agenda other than to assist the Iraqi people in their quest for self-determination, independence and restoration of sovereignty.

The team arrived in Baghdad on Saturday to begin talks on how best to structure the handover of sovereignty to Iraq. Brahimi described himself as in listening mode, emphasizing the UNs independence and neutrality as Iraqis debate whether elections are the best means for the transfer of power by 30 June.

Brahimi met separately on Saturday with L. Paul Bremer, head of the Coalition Provisional Authority, and then with his British deputy, Sir Jeremy Greenstock. On Sunday he saw the current President of the Iraqi Governing Council, Kurdish leader Mohsen Abdul Hamid. He then met all members of the Governing Council, and that meeting continued through lunch.

In the afternoon, Brahimi had a series of bilateral meetings with individual Council members, starting with Shiite leader Muwaffak al-Rubaie. He then met with Kurdish leader Jalal Talabani before seeing Communist Party head Hameed Moussa. After that, he briefly joined a meeting between the UNs chief electoral adviser, Carina Perelli, and an Iraqi technical team from Najaf, to discuss election issues. Perelli is accompanied by two other UN electoral experts on this visit.

Brahimi then saw Abdelaziz al-Hakim, another Shiite leader, following which he had a dinner meeting with former Foreign Minister, Adnan Pachachi, a Sunni.

Asked about the role of Brahimi on the Iraq team, and whether he would be playing a leadership role, the Spokesman noted that Brahimi is listening rather than putting ideas on the table.

The Spokesman said Brahimis objective is to see whether the Iraqis can agree on a way to manage the transfer to sovereignty by 30 June. He noted that it is an important role, especially if Brahimi can succeed in identifying a process which all Iraqis can agree on. The Spokesman added that the appointment of Brahimi to lead the team was not publicly released last week due to security concerns.

Asked if Brahimi will meet Ayatollah Ali Sistani, the Spokesman said that no advance details of Brahimis programme would be made available. He added that Brahimis agenda in Iraq includes meetings all the major players and it is probably safe to assume that this includes a meeting with the Ayatollah.

ANNAN: TIME RUNNING OUT FOR

CYPRUS

PLAN

At his

press encounter, the Secretary-General was asked about the meeting taking place at UN Headquarters on Tuesday with the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders, and he noted that time was running short if the Cyprus plan were to be put to referenda by April.

Negotiations on the plan, he said, should conclude by the end of March.

The Secretary-General said he thought the leaders were coming to New York with a clear understanding, that he will engage when he senses a real political will among the parties for sustained negotiations. He said the people of Cyprus have a historic opportunity to unify their country and enter the European Union together, adding, I hope that the people of

Cyprus will press their leaders not to miss this opportunity.

Asked what sort of changes the Secretary-General would be willing to accept in regard to the Cyprus plan, the Spokesman said it is early to say anything more than the Secretary-General hopes that the two sides - and Greece and Turkey - are now firmly committed to resolving their outstanding differences on the basis on the plan, and that these can be resolved in time so as to hold a referendum so that the whole process can be completed by May 1.

The Spokesman added that he did not want to speculate about the Secretary-Generals negotiating strategy, nor whether the Secretary-General would be willing to leave some issues unresolved until after 1 May.

The Spokesman added that that the Secretary-General now sees signs that the two sides are serious about trying to meet the 1 May deadline, and would like to hear from each side what their opening position is, how far apart they are, how much flexibility there is on each side to compromise, and then see if the whole process can be accelerated to a successful conclusion.

ANNAN TO BRIEF SECURITY COUNCIL ON IRAQ, CYPRUS

The Security Council has scheduled consultations today at 3:30 p.m. to hear briefings by the Secretary-General on Iraq and

Cyprus.

UNITED NATIONS TO STEP UP INVOLVEMENT IN

HAITI

SOON

Asked at the press encounter about recent violence in Haiti, the Secretary-General today said the United Nations was following the situation closely, and had been in touch with the Organization of American States and the Caribbean Community.

The Secretary-General added, We will be stepping up our own involvement fairly soon.

Asked how the Secretary-General plans to increase the UN presence in Haiti, the Spokesman said there was nothing more to add for now except that the intention the Secretary-General seemed to be signalling this morning was his willingness to get involved.

UNITED NATIONS READY TO ASSIST IN ENDING FIGHTING IN WESTERN SUDAN

In response to a question at the press encounter, the Secretary-General today said that he was concerned about the humanitarian situation in Darfur, in western Sudan, and said he had recently spoken to the President of Chad, who had offered to mediate between the Sudanese Government and rebels.

He said the United Nations has offered to do whatever we can to assist the mediation, as well as to provide humanitarian assistance to the needy.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports that aid workers have begun evacuating thousands of

Sudanese refugees from the embattled Chadian border town of Tine despite blinding sandstorms and strong winds. The refugees are among some 110,000 Sudanese who fled fighting that broke out last year in Sudans western region of Darfur. They are scattered in the desert along Chads 600-km eastern border.

ANNAN TO APPOINT NEW SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR AFGHANISTAN

The Secretary-General last Friday wrote a letter to the President of the Security Council, informing the Council of his intention to appoint Jean Arnault, of France, as his Special Representative for Afghanistan.

Arnault has been the acting Special Representative in that country since Lakhdar Brahimi left the post last month.

The Security Council has until tomorrow to respond to the Secretary-Generals letter.

Prior to his time in Afghanistan, Arnault had served as the head of the UN Office in Burundi. Before that, he had been the Secretary-Generals Special Representative in Guatemala.

Also on Afghanistan, the UN Mission said that the reintegration of disarmed soldiers began in Kabul yesterday, and will continue through Wednesday. Between 100 and 170 former soldiers are expected to go through the reintegration process each day.

MORE THAN $500 MILLION PLEDGED FOR

LIBERIA

At the two-day International Reconstruction Conference on Liberia that ended Friday afternoon, organizations and governments pledged more than $500 million towards reconstruction and humanitarian assistance.

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said this morning that humanitarian needs remain urgent, and that humanitarian aid is still needed so that true reconstruction can begin in Liberia.

INTERNATIONAL FOOD AID NEEDED FOR NORTH KOREA

The World Food Programme has called for urgent international assistance to help feed 6.5 million people in North Korea. The countrys cereals stocks are almost exhausted and there is little in the pipeline.

Donors have recently pledged contributions amounting to some 77,000 tonnes. However, little of this food will arrive before April. This means that for the next two months, millions of North Koreans will be deprived of cereals, which make up a large share of the basic survival ration.

DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL TO OPEN DR CONGO MEETING

This afternoon at UN Headquarters, the Deputy Secretary-General will open a high-level meeting on security sector reform in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to be attended by the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the European Union, the World Bank and several interested States.

The meeting aims to reaffirm support and set priorities for a new army and police force in the DRC and for the disarming and reintegration of former combatants steps which must be taken before elections are held in mid 2005.

Separately, the UN Mission in the DRC reported rescuing 133 people from a sinking ship on the River Congo.

UN KIDNAP VICTIM FREED OVER WEEKEND

The UN field security officer who was abducted on January 29 in Somalia was freed over the weekend.

Rolf Helmrich of Germany

was released Saturday night into the custody of senior officials of the de facto authority in the region where he was abducted. He is recuperating with his family in Nairobi, Kenya.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

BURUNDI

IMPLEMENTATION MONITORING COMMITTEE MEETING OPENS: Berhanu Dinka, the Special Representative of the Secretary General for

Burundi

, is opening a meeting of the Implementation Monitoring Committee in Bujumbura today to discuss ways to advance the peace process forward. Among issues expected to be discussed relating to the implementation of the cease-fire agreements are the mobilization of financial resources for Burundis development, the demobilization, disarmament and reintegration of former combatants and, the establishment of the new Defense and Security Forces.

UN GLOBAL COMPACT LAUNCHED IN

EGYPT: In Cairo today, some 200 representatives of Egyptian businesses, Government, civil society, labor and the UN system convened for the national launch of the UNs Global Compact, the first time that initiative has been launched in the Arab world. In a message at that event, UN Chef de Cabinet Iqbal Riza delivered a message on the Secretary-Generals behalf, expressing the hope that todays launch will be followed by similar initiatives throughout the region. I am confident that the Global Compact will take root and blossom in your country and in the region, he says.

UN HUMANITARIAN TEAM AT EARTHQUAKE SITE IN INDONESIA: Following the series of earthquakes that hit Papua province in Indonesia, a UN humanitarian team arrived in the town of Nabire

yesterday. UN staff are supporting local authorities in assessing damages and needs. They report that electricity and telecommunication systems are completely down, while the only means of communication is through radio. Some buildings, houses, and infrastructure have been damaged - however, the scale of the damage is still uncertain. The local airport is also affected and can only be used for light single engine aircraft.

EARTHS CLOUD FORESTS UNDER THREAT: The Earth's cloud forests are under increasing threat from factors including agriculture, road-building, and climate change, according to a report from the UN Environment Programme, presented at a meeting today of the Convention on Biological Diversity in

Malaysia. Cloud forests are vital habitats for thousands of rare and endangered species, and theyre also suppliers of year-round water supplies for farmers, rural communities, and many rapidly growing cities. UNEPs report indicates that cloud forests cover an area of less than 2.5% of the globe's tropical rain forests and it makes clear that conserving and restoring cloud forests isnt only a matter of aesthetics or a love of nature but one of crucial economic importance for millions of people in the developing world.

SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON

RACISM IN COTE DIVOIRE: The Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on contemporary forms of racism and racial discrimination, Doudou Diene, is today starting a visit to Côte dIvoire which will last until 20 February. The aim of his visit is to examine the evolution of inter-communal and inter-ethnic relations, in the context of the conflict in the country.

Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission to hold meeting in

Nigeria: The Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission will hold its eighth meeting in Abuja , Nigeria, from February 10 to 12. It will take stock of the outcome of the Tripartite Summit between the President of the Republic of Cameroon, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and the Secretary-General held last week in Geneva on the follow-up of the October 10, 2002 ruling of the International Court of Justice relating to the land and maritime boundary between the two countries.

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

All other inquiries to be addressed to (212)

963-4475 or by e-mail to: inquiries@un.org

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