United Nations Daily Highlights, 04-09-07

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

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY MARIE OKABE

ASSOCIATE SPOKESWOMAN FOR THE

SECRETARY-GENERAL

OF THE UNITED NATIONS

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Tuesday, September 7, 2004

ANNAN TO ATTEND DEMOCRACY SEMINAR IN

MEXICO

Secretary General Kofi Annan isleaving for Mexico City today to attend a seminar on "Democracy, Politics and the State," organized jointly by the Government of Mexico and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

The seminar is intended to contribute to the public debate by Latin American countries on strengthening their democracies. It will be based on a report issued by UNDP in April of this year on the state of democracy and public opinion in the region.

While in

Mexico City

, the Secretary-General

is scheduled to meet President Vicente Fox, Foreign Minister Luis Ernesto Derbez, members of the Senate External Relations Commission and of the Federal Electoral Institute, and representatives of the academic and business world. He is also expected to meet the press.

This stay in

Mexico

will be his first since he attended the Monterrey Conference on Financing for Development in March 2002, and his third visit to

Mexico

as Secretary-General.

Asked when the Secretary-General would return, the Spokeswoman said he would be back by the end of this weekend.

Asked if the Secretary-General would be meeting with the Mayor of Mexico City, the Spokeswoman noted that detailed programmes of his schedule were not provided in advance because of security concerns, although meetings could be confirmed once they had taken place.

SECURITY COUNCIL EXPECTED TO ACT ON

SUDAN

REPORT WITHIN NEXT WEEK

The Secretary-General told reporters today that he expects the Security Council to take action on his report on Sudan within the next week, and argued that we believe that more can and should be done on the security front in that country.

The Secretary-General said that his Special Representative, Jan Pronk, had made it very clear that, while humanitarian access has improved, a lot needs to be done on the security front.

He urged the Sudanese Government to adopt a strategic approach to bring peace to the whole of

Sudan

, including between the North and South, as well as in Darfur .

In response to questions about the meetings he had on Sudan Tuesday morning, the Spokeswoman said that the Secretary-General and John Garang, leader of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, today discussed the Naivasha peace process and the prospects for completing it. They also discussed

Darfur and both sides agreed on the need to intensify efforts to complete the Naivasha process and seek a solution to the Darfur crisis.

The Secretary-General also met El Sadiq El Mahdi, former Prime Minister of

Sudan, with whom he discussed the overall peace process, and in particular Darfur, the Spokeswoman said. On Darfur, El Mahdi encouraged the international community, notably the Security Council, to remain engaged and emphasized the need to continue to put pressure on the parties to fulfill their commitments.

DARFUR

PEACE TALKS DISCUSS PROTOCOL ON SECURITY ISSUES

The parties to the political talks on the Darfur crisis taking place in

Abuja, Nigeria, continue to discuss a draft protocol on security issues prepared by the African Union mediation together with the United Nations and other partners. The issues on contention include disarmament and monitoring.

The mediation with the support of the partners is trying to assist the parties -- the Government of the Sudan and the two rebel groups, Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) -- to reach what could be a viable compromise.

On the humanitarian front, the World Food Programme (WFP) said that in August, it had been able to reach almost one million persons in Darfur with food aid, despite especially difficult and dangerous working conditions.

The good news was that WFP had reached the almost one million persons, but the bad news was that it had not reached its goal of 1.2 million. The obstacles in August were particularly bad, including the rainy season, insecurity and the shortage of funds.

GOVERNMENTS SHOULD REFRAIN FROM TAMPERING WITH CONSTITUTIONS

The Secretary-General was asked, on entering the building, about the situation in

Lebanon

and

Syria

, and said that he had made clear at the recent African Union summit that Governments should refrain from tampering with the Constitution.

The Constitution is for the long-term interest of the nation and should not be changed to suit the needs of one individual, he said.

Asked about the

U.S.

elections, the Secretary-General said that the United Nations is working well with this administration and voiced his confidence that it will work well with the next one.

Concerning comments made at last weeks Republican National Convention, he said that, regardless of statements made during elections, every country, including the

U.S.

administration, is working seriously with the United Nations. He added, On the question of multilateralism, I think the world is on our side.

Asked about a theme for this years General Assembly, he said, It would not be bad if we all concentrated on the rule of law.

U.N. ENVOY REITERATES PRIORITIES TO IRAQI GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS

Over the last three days, the Secretary-Generals Deputy Special Representative in Iraq, Ross Mountain, held a series of meetings with Iraqs President Ghazi Al Yawer, Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, Deputy Prime Minister, Barham Salah and Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari among others.

Mountain reiterated the UN's current priorities elections and the political process, and the humanitarian/reconstruction work of the UN System. He also discussed the preparatory work for the forthcoming elections and the support the United Nationsis extending to the relevant Iraqi institutions.

Foreign Minister Zebari said the UNs return was long overdue, as the international organization is and will be necessary to energize the political and reconstruction process in

Iraq. In this regard, the minister called for UN support in

Iraq

s efforts to hold an international conference on reconstruction that would include the neighboring countries.

Also on

Iraq

, but closer to home, the Secretary-Generals Special Representative, Ashraf Qazi, is in

New York

this week. Yesterday, Qazi met with the Secretary-General at his residence, and he will be a guest at the Spokesmans

noon

briefing on Thursday.

Asked how many UN staff members have re-entered

Iraq

and whether any such re-entry is a sign that the Secretary-General was confident of the security situation there, the Spokeswoman said the Secretary-General's report on

Iraq

is due out later today or tomorrow, and this would provide an overview on his thoughts on the matter.

SITUATION IN

HAITI

IS ENCOURAGING BUT MORE NEEDS TO BE DONE

The Secretary-General said it is encouraging that the overall situation in Haiti has become calmer and more stable but it is clear that international efforts to help the country must be accompanied by sustainable economic development and income-generating activities.

That is one of the conclusions of the Secretary-Generals latest report on the UN Mission in Haiti, which is out on the racks today.

In it, the Secretary-General also appeals for donors to deliver on commitments made at the Donors Conference in July in a timely manner.

In addition, the Secretary-Generals Special Representative in Haiti, Juan Gabriel Valdes, addressed political leaders, civil society and representatives of international organizations during the opening of a workshop over the weekend, organized by the Provisional Electoral Council in order to initiate discussions concerning Haitis democratic elections next year.

PROGRESS MADE IN REACHING MILLENNIUM GOALS,

BUT POOREST NATIONS LAGGING

Developing countries are reducing extreme poverty, extending access to primary education and alleviating disease and hunger in many parts of the world, in pursuit of targets set in the year-2000 UN Millennium Declaration.

Those are some of the findings of the Secretary-General's annual progress report on the implementation of the Declaration, which is out today.

But the UN warns that progress has been hardest to come by in the poorest nations: those that are landlocked or least developed, and those that are in sub-Saharan Africa . In many cases, there is lack of significant progress or even reversals.

There are eight Millennium Development Goals, derived from the Declaration, which set targets for progress in areas ranging from poverty to disease most of the targets call for substantial improvements by 2015, compared with 1990.

UNITED NATIONS TO PROTEST SHOOTING OF CHILD

IN

U.N.-FLAGGED

SCHOOL

IN

GAZA

The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) reports that a child sitting in the classroom of a UN-flagged school in

Gaza

was struck in the head by gunfire from an Israeli position. This is the third such incident in 18 months.

The Israeli fire towards Khan Yunis was in retaliation for a Palestinian Kassam rocket which had been fired towards the settlement of Neve Dekalim.

Following the incident, UNRWAs Commissioner-General Peter Hansen said the agency would protest this incident to Israeli authorities in the strongest possible terms.

He added that this kind of live firing into refugee camps is so indiscriminate that it makes classrooms dangerous for 10-year old children, and is totally unacceptable.

ANNAN RELIEVED TO LEARN OF RELEASE OF

U.N. PEACEKEEPER IN DR

CONGO

The Secretary-General is relieved to learn of the release yesterday of Private Rashid Zahidi, a member of the Moroccan contingent serving with the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC).

The Moroccan soldier had been detained by elements belonging to the Union des Patriotes Congolais (UPC) since 2 September.

The Secretary-General concurs with the Transitional Governments communiqué of September 6 that such an act also constituted a flagrant violation of the

May 14, 2004 "Acte dengagement" signed by the leaders of armed groups in Ituri, and calls on all concerned to recommit themselves to bring the Ituri peace process back on track.

The Secretary-General wishes to express his appreciation to the Transitional Government for its cooperation and is grateful to his Special Representative for the DR Congo and other MONUC officials for their efforts to obtain the earliest possible release of the Moroccan soldier.

SECURITY COUNCIL TO HOLD

CONSULTATIONS ON DR

CONGO

At 3:00 this afternoon, the Security Council will hold closed consultations on the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Security Council members are expected to discuss a draft resolution concerning the proposals, included in the Secretary-Generals recent report, on the strengthening of the mandate of the UN Mission in that country.

DESERT LOCUST CAUSING SIGNIFICANT CROP DAMAGE IN WEST AFRICA

The latest estimate of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimates that some 4.3 million hectares of crops in West Africa need to be treated with pesticide to protect them from desert locust swarms. So far less than 3% of that total has actually been treated.

Many of the major donors are concerned with the consequences of using up to 4 million liters of pesticide in the affected areas. They have requested that funds be set aside to monitor and evaluate the short- and long-term effects of the pesticides on humans, the environment, livestock, and wildlife. As of 26 August, some $37 million have been made available. $100 million dollars is still needed to avoid the full-scale disaster that affected 28 countries between 1986 and 1990.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

CAMPAIGN FOR

AFGHANISTAN

S PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION BEGINS: The campaign for Afghanistans presidential election officially began today, and is to last for thirty days.

Afghanistan's Joint Electoral Management Body has prepared a set of regulations, procedures and a code of conduct to govern the campaign period, during which 18 candidates are running for President.

WHO LAUNCHES PRINCIPLES ON AGEING FOR HEALTH CARE CENTRES: More than one billion people will be over 60 years old by 2025 and, as populations age, the burden of chronic diseases will increase. So in order to help tackle the public health implications of ageing, the World Health Organization yesterday launched new general principles that will serve as guidelines for community-based Primary Health Care centres. Currently, there are 600 million people around the world aged 60 and over this figure is expected to reach two billion by 2050, with the vast majority in the developing world.

2004

EXPORT

QUOTAS

FOR

BLACK

SEA

STURGEON STOCKS RELEASED:

The Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Wild Species of Fauna and Flora administered by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) published today the 2004 export quotas for three Black Sea

countries that jointly manage the sturgeon stocks that spawn every year in the

Danube

River. UNEP said that although Black Sea caviar and sturgeon represent a small percentage of the global trade in these valuable wildlife products it is encouraging that Romania, Bulgaria and Serbia and Montenegro have worked together successfully to comply with the conservation requirements that governments must now meet before they can obtain their annual quotas.

FORMER LIBERIAN PRESIDENT GIVES UP WEAPONS: Liberias immediate former President, Moses Z. Blah, who took over from exiled President Charles Taylor in August last year, surrendered his weapons to Force Commander Lt.-Gen.Daniel Opande, of the UN Mission in Liberia, at his residence in Monrovia today, five days after the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Jacques Paul Klein, announced the intended conclusion of the disarmament programme in the country within two months.

ERITREAN NATIONALS GRANTED ASYLUM IN

SUDAN

: The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports that 60 Eritrean nationals who were aboard a Libyan plane diverted to

Khartoum

late last month have been granted asylum in

Sudan. The Sudanese government informed UNHCR yesterday of the decision to grant the asylum seekers refugee status. The 60 were part of a group of 75 Eritrean nationals who arrived in

Sudan

on August 27, after the plane that had been carrying them from

Libya

to the Eritrean capital

Asmara

was re-routed to

Khartoum

.

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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