United Nations Daily Highlights, 05-09-21

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

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SPOKESMAN'S NOON BRIEFING

BY STEPHANE

DUJARRIC

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Wednesday, September 21, 2005

SUDAN AND IRAQ ON SECURITY COUNCIL AGENDA FOR WEDNESDAY

Sudan and

Iraq are on the

Security Council agenda today.

The Security Council started the day with a meeting of troop-contributing countries to the

UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS). That meeting was followed by a briefing on the latest developments in Sudan by the Secretary-Generals Special Representative,

Jan Pronk.

A draft resolution was circulated to Council members on the extension of UNMIS.

At 3:00 p.m., the Secretary-Generals Special Representative for Iraq,

Ashraf Qazi, will brief the Council in an open meeting. That meeting will be followed by closed consultations on Iraq.

PREVENTION OF GENOCIDE ENVOY TO VISIT DARFUR THIS WEEK

The Secretary-Generals Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide,

Juan Mendez, is presently in

Sudan and will be visiting Darfurthis week.

His goal is to review the situation in Darfurand to see first hand the developments that have taken place since the visit he undertook with the

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in September 2004.

The purpose of his mandate is preventive and designed to offer recommendations to avoid massive violations of human rights and international humanitarian law which, if not addressed, could lead to genocide.

Upon completion of his visit, he intends to make recommendations to the

Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, and through him to the

Security Council.

ANNAN, PRIME MINISTER OF GUINEA-BISSAU DISCUSS POST-ELECTORAL SITUATION

According to a statement issued just after the noon briefing, the Secretary-General met today at United Nations Headquarters with the Prime Minister of Guinea-Bissau, Carlos Gomes Jr., to discuss the post-electoral situation in Guinea-Bissau.

In this regard, the Secretary-General impressed upon the Prime Minister the need to abide by his commitment made on 16 September before the sixtieth session of the General Assembly that the President-elect, João Bernardo Vieira, would be inaugurated on 1 October 2005.

The Secretary-General stressed that the President-elects inauguration would restore constitutional order fully, and establish proper conditions for the resumption of international assistance and, in particular, for the convening of a donors round table next November.

HIGH-LEVEL HUMANITARIAN VISIT TO ZIMBABWE BEING PLANNED

Asked about the

Secretary-Generals meeting over the weekend with President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, the Spokesman said that they had discussed issues relating to the UN-Zimbabwe agenda. The meeting was requested by President Mugabe as a follow-up to exchanges he has had with the Secretary-General regarding the humanitarian situation in the country.

The Secretary-General and Mugabe reviewed briefly the humanitarian requirements relating particularly to the situation resulting from the demolitions and food requirements shortfall and agreed that it would be appropriate to have a high-level visit by

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). That visit, the Spokesman said, is being prepared.

Regarding a possible visit by the Secretary-General to Zimbabwe, the two parties agreed that it needs to be properly prepared.

The Secretary-General, Dujarric said, would want to go if there were clear and defined aims to the visit. A timetable could not be set for the visit without clarifying its objectives. Those matters are being worked out with the Government of Zimbabwe.

Asked whether the OCHA visit was taking place at the expense of one by the Under-Secretary-General for

Political Affairs, Ibrahim Gambari, the Spokesman said it was not. Because of timing, it had been felt that the issues to be dealt with by Gambari would be better discussed at UN Headquarters, while the next trip would focus on humanitarian issues. He said the visit would be a good way for the United Nations to assess firsthand humanitarian access in Zimbabwe.

In response to questions, the Spokesman said that the political aspect of the Zimbabwe issue, as laid out in Anna Tibaijukas report, had not been abandoned by the United Nations, and that the focus remains on the humanitarian situation.

An appeal for Zimbabwe, he said, has not yet been launched, but

UNICEF.

World Food Programme (WFP) and other agencies are assisting in areas such as food distribution and the construction of shelters. WFP is addressing the food shortage in the country.

ANNAN STANDS BY STATEMENT ON COTE DIVOIRE

Asked about a letter from Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo, saying that he would not talk to the opposition, the Spokesman said that the

Secretary-General stands by his statement of 15 September after his meeting with President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria and President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa.

In that meeting, they agreed on the need to intensify the efforts of the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the United Nations in support of the implementation of major agreements reached in Côte dIvoire.

NUCLEAR TEST BAN TREATY CONFERENCE STARTS WEDNESDAY

The

Conference on Facilitating the Entry into Force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty starts today here at UN Headquarters.

The Treaty bans all nuclear weapons test explosions or any other nuclear explosions underground, underwater and in the atmosphere.

The Conference will examine ways and means to accelerate the Treatys entry into force. The

Secretary-General is scheduled to make remarks this afternoon.

The Conference ends this Friday, and it is expected that a final declaration will be adopted.

UNITED NATIONS CONCERNED ABOUT WESTERN SAHARAN DETAINEES

Asked about a hunger strike by Saharawi prisoners, the Spokesman said that the United Nations is concerned by this situation in Western Sahara, and the

Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights is seized of the matter.

Some special procedures of the Commission on Human Rights have taken up the issue by sending communications.

While the

UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara does not have the mandate to deal with the issue, he added, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, in consultation with the

UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations, is exploring other possibilities to address this issue.

UNITED NATIONS MARKS THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PEACE

Today is the

International Day of Peace.

In a ceremony to mark the occasion at UN Headquarters this morning, the

Secretary-General rang the

peace bell, reaffirming the United Nations commitment to world peace.

At his side were

UN Messengers of Peace Anna Cataldi, Michael Douglas, Jane Goodall and Elie Wiesel.

In his

remarks at the ceremony, the Secretary-General also called for honouring those who have suffered from violence and armed conflict.

Also, the

UN Postal Administration has issued new stamps to commemorate the day.

FUNDING SHORTFALL AFFECTS WFP ACTIVITIES IN IRAQ

The

World Food Programme (WFP) today

warned that a 56% funding shortfall is hurting its emergency operation in

Iraq, which aims to support more than three million people, over half of whom are children.

The agencys $66 million operation, which runs until the end of this year, has received only $29 million to date.

According to a WFP food security survey published last year, over 27% of all Iraqi children under the age of five are chronically malnourished.

Asked why the Secretary-General does not free up money for Iraq by closing the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) and turning over all its funds, the Spokesman said that the issue of UNMOVIC is to be decided by the

Security Council, to which that Commission reports. However, the Spokesman later added, that the Security Council had, in June of this year, approved the Secretary-Generals recommendation that $200 million be transferred from UNMOVICs account to the Development Fund for Iraq.

MANY COUNTRIES HAVE SET UP NATIONAL COMMITTEES FOR YEAR OF SPORT

Adolf Ogi, the Secretary-Generals Special Adviser on

Sport for Development and Peace, and Roger Federer, the worlds top-ranked tennis player and Spokesperson for the

International Year of Sport and Physical Education 2005, today gave a joint press conference at the

UN Office in Geneva.

Saying that sports could help to achieve the

Millennium Development Goals, Ogi noted that: many countries had set up national committees for the Year; the UN was helping to run athletic projects in a number of developing countries; and the sports world had reached out to tsunami survivors through fund-raising and high-profile visits.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY UNAFFECTED BY POWER FAILURE ON MONDAY

Asked about the disruption in UN operations on Monday when a fuse blew, the Spokesman said that the proceedings in the

General Assembly, and the services for the Assembly, went on unhindered. He noted the response by UN Security, in which no one was injured as the Secretariat was evacuated.

The blowing of the fuse did not completely cut power, Dujarric said, so backup generators did not kick in to feed power to computers and phones. That problem was being reviewed.

Asked about a memo from Chef de Cabinet Mark Malloch Brown to UN staff, saying that he and Under-Secretary-General for Security

David Veness would lead an urgent review of what happened on Monday, the Spokesman said the review, expected to be completed by next week, would include such issues as what caused the fuse to blow and how to improve communications.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

UNITED NATIONS IN SIERRA LEONE HELPS START NEW POLITICAL TALKS: The

UN Assistance Mission in Sierra Leone

reports that it has brought together, for the first time, the three leading political parties of that country. The Special Representative of the Secretary General there, Daudi Mwakawago said he urged all parties to open a free flow of communications between the government of the day and opposition groups.

ANNAN SEES DIALOGUE AS BEST WAY DEAL WITH IRANIAN NUCLEAR ISSUE: Asked about recent comments on the nuclear issue made by Iranian officials, the Spokesman said that the

Secretary-General continues to believe that the best way to resolve the situation is through the dialogue between the three European Union nations and Iran.

ANNANS GOOD OFFICES REMAIN AVAILABLE FOR CYRPUS: Asked about the next steps concerning Cyprus, the Spokesman said that the

Secretary-General had told the Cypriot President that his good offices remain available to the parties. The timing of any UN good offices would have to be appropriate and a new effort would have to be well prepared.

UNICEF FOCUSES ON ISLAMIC CHILDREN: A new

report out from the

UN Childrens Fund today says theres an urgent need to tackle poverty and other problems of some 600 million children in the Islamic world. The report, co-published with Islamic groups, cites a need for effort in the areas of poverty, education, disease and protection.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY DEBATE CONTINUES: The General Assembly met today to continue its annual general debate.

*** The guest at the Noon Briefing today was Rachel Mayanja, the Secretary-Generals Special Adviser on Gender Issues and the Advancement of Women. She spoke about her recent trip to Sudan.

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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