United Nations Daily Highlights, 10-05-05

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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 MARTIN NESIRKY

SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

U.N. HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

SECURITY COUNCIL BRIEFED ON RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN NEPAL

The

Security Council will discuss

Nepal this afternoon at 3:00 pm. Karin Landgren, the Secretary-Generals Representative for Nepal, will brief the Council on the recent developments there and the work of the

UN Mission in Nepal, in an open meeting followed by consultations.

Earlier today, the Council held a private meeting with the troop contributing countries for the

UN Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad.

SECRETARY-GENERALS REPORT: NO SUBSTANTIVE PROGRESS MADE IN NEPALS PEACE PROCESS

In his

report to the

Security Council on the work of the

UN Mission in Nepal (UNMIN), the

Secretary-General highlighted that no substantive progress has been made on the main outstanding tasks of the peace process in

Nepal since his January report to the Council.

The Secretary-General also said the prospect of a serious political-constitutional crisis resulting from failure to promulgate the constitution by 28 May has raised concerns.

He appeals to the Government and the parties to resolve without delay the remaining political impediments, and underlines that only adherence to existing commitments and a negotiated settlement, will offer a satisfactory outcome for the future of Nepal.

Should the Government, in consultation with the parties, request an extension of UNMINs mandate, the Secretary-General recommends that the Council respond positively. He underlines his expectation that such a request specify the areas in which UNMIN should strengthen its support, in order to both expedite progress in the peace process and to enable the Mission to complete its mandated tasks.

The Secretary-General also expressed strong hope to see the parties move forward in the implementation of the agreements they have reached, with the aim of adopting a new constitution and ensuring long-term peace, stability and prosperity.

SECRETARY-GENERAL CALLS FOR REVISED MANDATE FOR U.N. MISSION IN CHAD AND CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC

The

Secretary-Generals latest

report on the

UN Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT) has been issued. In it, the Secretary-General lays out a revised mandate for the Mission.

Last January, the Chadian authorities said that they would bear the primary responsibility for the security and protection of civilians, following the end of the current mandate of MINURCAT on 15 May.

Under the revised mandate of the mission, and subject to the decision of the

Security Council, the mandate that MINURCAT now has for the protection of civilians will cease. MINURCATs military component will be reduced from its current 3,300 strength in Chad to 1,400 troops and 500 support elements. Some 1,400 troops will be withdrawn by 15 July 2010.

The remaining 1,900 troops will be in Chad until 15 October 2010, when they will cease all operations and commence their final withdrawal, subject to approval by the Security Council.

The Secretary-General recommends that the Council approves a revised mandate for MINURCAT for one year.

SECRETARY-GENERAL NOTES LACK OF ACCESS TO PARTS OF DARFUR

The

Secretary-Generals

report to the

Security Council on the

African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) has been issued. In it, the Secretary-General notes positive developments in Darfur, including progress in the negotiations in Doha, improvement in the relations between Chad and the Sudan and an elections process that took place largely without violence.

In that context, the increasing deployment and operational capabilities of UNAMID, especially in remote areas, have helped to improve the safety and security of the Darfuri population, including through expanded patrolling, community policing and improved collaboration with Sudanese authorities, he says.

Nonetheless, there remain serious challenges to the achievement of a lasting peace in the region, including the ongoing reports of violence in many areas of Darfur, the lack of participation by key stakeholders in the political process and the failure of the electoral process to include large groups of Darfurians.

The Secretary-General notes the continued denial of access to UNAMID by the various parties particularly to areas in which clashes have reportedly occurred, such as Jebel Marra,

Darfur.

He also says that the continued refusal by Abdul Wahid to join the Doha process and negotiate with the Government of the Sudan, coupled with his movements refusal to allow UNAMID and humanitarian agencies to gain access to areas under its control, constitute serious impediments to the peace process in Darfur.

He urges Abdul Wahid to engage in negotiations under the auspices of the Joint Chief Mediator and he urges those Member States with influence over him to encourage him to join the talks in Doha.

The

Security Council is scheduled to discuss the report on 20 May.

DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL ATTENDING WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM ON AFRICA

The

Deputy Secretary-General is in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, today to attend the 20th World Economic Forum on Africa which continues until Friday.

This year, the Forum will look at how leaders are rising to the current challenges facing the continent and using the economic crisis as an opportunity to redesign a sustainable roadmap for Africas future within the new global economy.

The Deputy Secretary-General will, in particular, speak during sessions focusing on Fostering Public Sector leadership, the Empowerment of Girls, as well as on African continental cooperation. She will also hold bilateral meetings with Tanzanian Government officials as well as other visiting dignitaries.

TOP U.N. OFFICIALS APPALLED AT GROWING USE OF CHILD SOLDIERS IN SOMALIA

In a joint

statement, the

Executive Director of the

UN Childrens Fund, Anthony Lake, and

Radhika Coomaraswamy, the Secretary-Generals Special Representative for

Children and Armed Conflict, said they are appalled that the recruitment and use of children as soldiers by armed groups in Somalia is rising. All parties to the conflict are involved, they say, and in some cases children as young as nine years old are being recruited.

They emphasize that the use of children by armed forces and groups is a war crime, which must stop immediately. All parties must release the children within their ranks. Children who have been recruited are victims and must be treated accordingly.

U.N. OFFICIAL RENEWS CALL FOR RELEASE OF FORMER CHILD SOLDIER OMAR KHADR

The Secretary-Generals Special Representative for

Children and Armed Conflict,

Radhika Coomaraswamy, is calling on the Governments of Canada and the United States of America to remove all obstacles to the release of Omar Khadr.

Omar Khadr, a Canadian citizen, is being prosecuted under the US military commission at Guantanamo. He was arrested in Afghanistan in 2002 at the age of fifteen. He is the last remaining child soldier at the Guantanamo facility.

Coomaraswamy is deeply concerned that his case has been brought to trial under the Guantanamo military commission and that he has been charged with war crimes. She calls for the immediately release Omar Khadr into Canadian custody.

The Special Representative also calls upon both the Canadian and US Governments to treat Omar Khadr as a child soldier and to undertake efforts for his rehabilitation and reintegration back into his community. Trying young people for war crimes with regard to acts committed when they are minors could create a dangerous international precedent, she said.

U.N. OFFICE ON DRUGS AND CRIME ASSISTING SEYCHELLES WITH PIRACY TRIALS

The

UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is

working with the Government of the Seychelles and the joint Counter-Piracy Programme of the European Union to help ensure the smooth operation of a new regional centre to prosecute

piracy.

With naval activity around the Horn of Africa including Somalia becoming increasingly secure, pirates are moving south towards Seychelles, attacking ships based in or operating around the archipelago.

The Seychelles regional centre will be the second of its kind, the first having been established in Kenya, and it will try piracy suspects apprehended by the European Union Naval Force Somalia Operation (EU NAVFOR).

UNDOC will help to ensure that the Seychelles police, coastguard, prosecutors, courts and prisons are assisted in handling the additional challenges of piracy cases.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

HUMAN RIGHTS: Asked about the qualifications of

Ivan Simonovic to be Assistant Secretary-General in the

Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Spokesperson said that Simonovic was chosen unanimously by a UN selection panel after a rigorous search process and that the Secretary-General was happy with the choice. Asked when Simonovic would start his duties in New York, Nesirky said that Simonovic would visit Geneva soon to discuss when he would take up his duties, with the aim of starting sooner rather than later.

AFGHANISTAN: Asked about the contact the United Nations has had with the family of Louis Maxwell, a staff member who was killed last year in

Afghanistan, the Spokesperson said that the United Nations has briefed Louis Maxwells family members regularly and provided them with support.

Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General

United Nations, SA-1B15

New York, NY 10017

Tel. 212-963-7162

Fax. 212-963-7055

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