United Nations Daily Highlights, 08-05-02

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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

FARHAN HAQ

ASSOCIATE

SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

Friday, May 2, 2008

MIDDLE EAST QUARTET EXPRESSES

STRONG SUPPORT FOR

ONGOING ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN NEGOTIATIONS

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon met with the other

principal members of the

Middle East Quartet in London today to discuss the situation in that

region, and they were joined by Quartet Representative Tony Blair.

The Secretary-General read a joint statement by the

Quartet after that meeting, when he and the other principal members spoke to

the press. He said that Quartet expressed its strong support for ongoing

Israeli-Palestinian negotiations and encouraged the parties to make every

effort to realize the shared goal of an agreement on the establishment of a

Palestinian state by the end of 2008.

The Quartet expressed its deep concern at continuing

settlement activity and called on Israel to freeze all settlement activity,

including natural growth, and to dismantle outposts erected since March 2001.

It called on the Palestinian Authority to fulfill its commitments to fight

terrorism and to accelerate steps to rebuild and refocus its security

apparatus.

The Quartet also called for continued emergency and

humanitarian assistance and the provision of essential services to Gaza

without obstruction.

After the Quartet meeting, the Secretary-General chaired

an ad hoc meeting of Quartet members and Tony Blair with Arab participants in

the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee, as well as with the United Kingdon and Norway as

the hosts and chairs of the Committee.

During that meeting, participants discussed the ongoing

political negotiations, as well as the efforts underway to ensure

implementation of Road Map commitments, support the Palestinian Authority, and

improve the situation on the ground in both the West Bank and Gaza, in

furtherance of the Annapolis process.

The Secretary-General also participated in an enlarged

meeting of the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee on Economic Development for the West

Bank and Gaza. He also held a number of bilateral meetings before flying back

to New York.

SOARING FOOD PRICES THREATEN RELIEF

EFFORTS IN WEST BANK AND GAZA

The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in

the Near East (UNRWA)

reports that soaring food prices have led to severe financial burdens. The

Agencys General Fund is currently facing a shortfall of more than US$117

million. That hampers its efforts to provide emergency and regular food aid to

nearly one million refugees in the West Bank and Gaza alone.

Regarding the fuel situation in Gaza, UNRWA says that,

even though the fuel it has gotten has allowed it to resume food aid

distribution, the haphazard supply is making it impossible to carry out any

planning. And today, the Agency is worried that it is again running out of

fuel.

The agency reports that the streets of Gaza are virtually

empty of cars and that public transportation has stopped. Enrolment in UNRWA

schools is now basically limited to those who are able to walk to school.

SECURITY COUNCIL ADOPTS PROGRAMME OF

WORK FOR MONTH

The Security Council

held consultations this morning on its programme of work for May, in its first

meeting under the Council Presidency of the United Kingdom.

The Council also adopted a

presidential

statement on Myanmar.

U.N. PEACEKEEPING CHIEF DEPARTS ON

KOSOVO FACT-FINDING MISSION

With regard to Kosovo, Under-Secretary-General for

Peacekeeping Operations

Jean-Marie Guéhenno is leaving today on a fact finding mission to the region.

He will be holding talks with all stakeholders in both

Pristina and in Belgrade concerning the future of the international civil

presence in Kosovo.

HUMANITARIAN SITUATION IN SOMALIA IS

WORSENING

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)

reports that the situation in Somalia is deteriorating, due to soaring food

prices and worsening drought.

More than a third of the population now needs food

assistance, largely because of an increase in the number of urban poor who

dont have enough to eat.

The World Food Programme (WFP)

has signed an agreement with the Danish Refugee Council to continue providing

cooked meals to 50,000 people a day in Mogadishu. WFP is also feeding nearly

400,000 people in Puntland, Somaliland and South Central Somalia.

WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME AND WORLD BANK

WELCOME

U.S. FOOD AID INITIATIVE

The World Food Programme (WFP)

and the

World Bank have issued statements welcoming U.S. President Bushs call for

an additional US$770 million in financing for food and development programmes.

WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran noted that ever

since reaching out to a hungry world devastated by World War Two, the American

people have generously come to the urgent aid of those trapped in hunger.

World Bank President Robert Zoellick encouraged other

countries to follow the lead of the U.S. and take similar bold action.

Asked about the Secretary-Generals comments on reducing

food tariffs, the Spokesman noted that issues concerning the rise in food

prices are complex, which is why the Secretary-General wants as high a level

of participation as possible at the

High-Level Conference on Food Security that will take place in Rome in

June.

U.N. DISABILITIES CONVENTION ENTERS INTO

FORCE TOMORROW

The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with

Disabilities is set to

enter into

force tomorrow.

Twenty-five countries have now ratified the treaty, which

aims to ensure that existing rights are fully extended and guaranteed to the

worlds estimated 650 million people with disabilities.

A ceremony to mark the Conventions entry into force will

take place in the General Assembly Hall on May 12th.

U.N. POLITICAL FACT-FINDING MISSION TO

VISIT THE MALDIVES

A UN Inter-agency Fact Finding Mission, led by the

Department of Political Affairs,

will visit the Maldives between 4-9 May, in response to a request from the

Government.

The Mission will meet with a broad spectrum of

interlocutors, including Government officials, political leaders, civil

society, non-governmental organizations and other important national actors,

as well as diplomatic representatives, in order to assess whether UN

assistance to the forthcoming elections would be appropriate.

COMMITTEE

POSTPONES DECISION ON LOCATION OF RACISM REVIEW CONFERENCE

A two-week

meeting of the Preparatory Committee for the review conference on racism,

racial discrimination, xenophobia, and related intolerance ended in Geneva on

Friday after agreeing to postpone decisions on where to hold the review

conference. It is likely, however, to be in one of the four UN centres of

Geneva, Nairobi, New York or Vienna.

The precise

duration of the conference was also not decided, with some States wanting it

to last for three days and others wanting five. While the precise date will

depend on the availability of the venue, there was general consensus that the

conference would probably take place in June 2009.

The Preparatory Committee

agreed to hold a special extension of the current session on 26 May, in order

to decide the outstanding issues.

U.N. ENVOY CONVEYS CONDOLENCES

FOLLOWING PLANE CRASH IN SOUTHERN SUDAN

The Secretary-Generals Special Representative in Sudan,

Ashraf Jehangir Qazi, has conveyed his condolences to the Government of South

Sudan (GoSS) on hearing of today's tragic plane crash, which took the lives of

GoSS SPLA Affairs Minister Dominic Dim Deng and other military officials.

Qazi has also offered deepest sympathy on behalf of the

United Nations and the U.N. Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) to the bereaved families

of the crash victims.

UNMIS flight assets have been made available to bring

Government of National Unity and GoSS aviation safety officials to the scene

of the crash in order to facilitate their inquiries.

OTHER

ANNOUNCEMENTS

RENOVATED MINISTRY BUILDING HANDED OVER TO LIBERIAN

GOVERNMENT: The United Nations has handed over a newly-rehabilitated

Ministry of Internal Affairs building to the Liberian Government. Speaking at a

ceremony on Wednesday, Jordan Ryan, the Deputy Special Representative for

Liberia and UN Development Programme

resident representative, called the handover a crucial step in rebuilding

Liberias post-war infrastructure, as well as consolidating peace and fostering

development. The UN provided more than US$200,000, or nearly three quarters of

the cost, to refurbish the building.

U.N. TAKES DR CONGO ALLEGATIONS VERY SERIOUSLY:

Asked about a letter from Human Rights Watch concerning alleged misconduct by UN

peacekeeping forces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Spokesman said

that the United Nations takes the allegations very seriously. He noted that the

Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO)

and the Office for Internal Oversight Services (OIOS)

had briefed the press on the allegations earlier this week.

SECRETARY-GENERAL PREPARED TO PROVIDE GOOD OFFICES

FOLLOWING ZIMBABWE ELECTIONS: Asked about the reported announcement of

electoral results in Zimbabwe, the Spokesman reiterated the Secretary-Generals

call on all parties in the country to resolve issues peacefully, and he noted

that the Secretary-General was willing to offer his good offices in

collaboration with the Southern African Development Community and the African

Union. He declined to speculate on whether the United Nations would be requested

to assist in a run-off round of elections.

U.N. HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSIONER HAS CALLED FOR DUE

PROCESS AT GUANTANAMO: Asked about the release of a prisoner from the US

camp in Guantanamo Bay, the Spokesman noted that

High Commissioner

for Human Rights Louise Arbour had spoken out in favour of due legal process for

the inmates at Guantanamo.

U.N. GENERALLY CALLS FOR AVOIDANCE OF THREATENING

RHETORIC: Asked about reported comments by U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton

concerning Iran, the Spokesman declined to comment, but he noted that the United

Nations, as a general rule, wants rhetoric threatening any group of people or

any nation to be avoided.

COMMISSION ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENTS 16TH

SESSION BEGINS NEXT WEEK: On Monday, the Commission on Sustainable

Development (CSD)

opens its 16th session. It will be devoted to issues at the core of the global

food crisis: agriculture, land use, rural development, drought and

desertification, with a special focus on Africa. The CSD runs through May 16th.

THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UNITED NATIONS

Saturday, May 3

The Convention on the Rights

of Persons with Disabilities enters into force.

Today is World Press Freedom

Day. In Maputo, Mozambique, UNESCO awards its Guillermo Cano Prize to Mexican

journalist Lydia Cacho Ribeiro.

From today through Monday in

Cairo, Egypt, the UN Industrial Development Organization holds a Global

Conference on Traceability and Food Security.

Sunday, May 4

From today through 9 May, a UN

Inter-agency Fact Finding Mission, led by the Department of Political Affairs,

visits the Maldives to assess the political climate and technical aspects of the

forthcoming elections and consider whether UN assistance would be appropriate.

Monday, May 5

At

10 a.m. in Conference Room 3, the General Assemblys Fifth Committee begins the

second part of its resumed session, which is expected to last until 30 May.

At

10 a.m. in Conference Room 4, Under-Secretary-General Sha Zukang opens the 16th

Session of the Commission on Sustainable Development, which runs through 16 May

and will focus on agriculture, rural development, land, drought,

desertification, and Africa.

At

11 a.m., the Secretary-General takes part in the groundbreaking for the

construction of the North Lawn Conference Building, marking the beginning of the

renovation of the UN Headquarters under the Capital Master Plan.

From today through 7 May in Oslo, Norway, the Deputy Secretary-General represents the UN at the Sudan Consortium. Co-organized by the UN and the World Bank and hosted by the Government of Norway, the Consortium will evaluate progress in implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement between North and South Sudan.

Tuesday, May 6

This morning, the Security Council holds an open debate on its Counter-Terrorism, 1267 and 1540 Committees.

The guest at the noon briefing is Christian Thommessen, Director of the U.N. Development Programmes Private Sector Division, who will brief on the Business Call to Action, a new initiative that seeks to galvanize businesses, governments and civil society as part of a major campaign to accelerate progress towards the Millennium Development Goals.

At 5 p.m. in the Economic and Social Council Chamber, the Secretary-General presents the Franklin D. Roosevelt International Disability Award to Governor-General Satyanand of New Zealand.

In London, General Assembly President Srgjan Kerim addresses a major private sector meeting on the Millennium Development Goals convened by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown before traveling on to Turkey and Egypt for official visits.

From today through Friday in Geneva, the World Health Organization holds consultations on the revision of pandemic influenza preparedness guidance.

Wednesday, May 7

This morning, the Security Council receives a briefing on Sierra Leone, followed by consultations on that topic.

Following the noon briefing, Eric Falt, Director of the Department of Public Informations (DPI) Outreach Division and Mia Hanak, Executive Director of the Natural World Museum, join internationally acclaimed artists to brief on DPIs upcoming Unlearning Intolerance Seminar on "Art Changing Attitudes toward the Environment".

Thursday, May 8

Today and tomorrow, the Secretary-General is in Atlanta, as part of his tour of major U.S. cities.

This morning, the Security Council holds consultations on its 1559 report.

All day in Conference Room 1, an Unlearning Intolerance Seminar focuses on Art Changing Attitudes toward the Environment. At 9:15 a.m. in the Visitors Lobby, model and activist Christie Brinkley and Under-Secretary-General for Public Information Kiyotaka Akasaka participate in a press encounter and photo op.

Today and tomorrow are the Time of Remembrance and Reconciliation for Those Who Lost Their Lives during the Second World War.

Friday, May 9

All day in Conference Room C, there will be a Seminar on Climate change, environmental degradation and migration.

Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General

United Nations, S-378

New York, NY 10017

Tel. 212-963-7162

Fax. 212-963-7055

to the Spokesperson's Page

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