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United Nations Daily Highlights 96-05-09United Nations Daily Highlights Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The United Nations Home Page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.orgDAILY HIGHLIGHTSThursday, May 9, 1996This document is prepared by the Central News Section of the Department of Public Information and is updated every week-day at approximately 6:00 PM. HEADLINES
Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali has said that all efforts to resume the identification process in Western Sahara have failed, UN Spokesman Sylvanna Foa said today. In a report to the Security Council, the Secretary- General attributed the stalemate to the position of the two parties: the Moroccan Government and the POLISARIO. "He is recommending that the process be suspended until such time as the parties provide convincing evidence that they are fully committed to resuming it without further obstacles", the Spokesman said, adding that the remaining members of the Identification Commission would leave the area at the end of May. Only a small number of personnel, including that of the civilian police, would remain for terminal activities. The Secretary-General said, "we must build on the achievements we've made so far." The maintenance of the cease-fire was an example of that. Therefore, he was recommending that the (military) presence be considered still essential". However, he proposed that military personnel be reduced by 20 per cent. UN Spokesman Sylvanna Foa said that the Secretary-General was asking for a six-month extension of the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO). The Angolan Parliament has passed what has been described as a "landmark law", UN Spokesman Sylvanna Foa said today. She added that the law, which covers crimes against the state since 31 May 1991, grants amnesty to the troops of the Uniao Nacional para a Independencia Total de Angola (UNITA). The Spokesman said the amnesty law will now pave the way for the integration of UNITA's and the government's forces into a new national army. The Secretary-General's Special Envoy, Mr. Ladkhar Brahimi, has begun a goodwill mission aimed at restoring peace between Nigeria and Cameroon, according to UN Spokesman Sylvanna Foa. Mr. Brahimi was scheduled to meet President Paul Biya of Cameroon in Paris, Thursday, she added. He would then go to Nigeria to meet President Abacha and other senior government officials, the Spokesman said. The latest reports said there was continued fighting between Nigerian and Cameroon forces in the Bakassi Peninsula. Henrikas Yushkiavitshus, Assistant Director-General for Communication, Information and Informatics of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), yesterday thanked the Committee on Information for its unfailing support of UNESCO's programmes on freedom of expression and of the press. Speaking on behalf of UNESCO Director-General Federico Mayor, Mr. Yushkiavitshus reviewed the Organization's collaboration with the Department of Public Information (DPI) in organizing regional meetings to promote independent and pluralistic media. He was addressing the Committee as it continued its general debate. Gopal B. Thapa, the representative of Nepal, said under the leadership of Assistant Secretary-General Samir Sanbar, DPI had performed credibly well despite shrinking resources. The Department's early involvement in peace- keeping operations was essential to correct public misperceptions and strengthen popular support, he added. DPI's efforts to streamline staff, diversify media outreach, consolidate activities and embrace innovation were praised by the representative of Bulgaria, Dimitar Ivanov. Meanwhile, the representative of Colombia, Alexandra Kling, was among those who stressed the important role of the United Nations Information Centres in promoting a positive image of the Organization. The Secretary-General met yesterday with the Permanent Representative of Bahrain, Mohammed Buallay in his capacity as Chairman of the Arab Group; the Ambassador of Egypt, Nabil Elaraby; the Ambassador of Lebanon, Samir Moubarak; and the Permanent Observer of the League of Arab States at the United Nations, Mahmoud Aboul Nasr. A statement issued by a Spokesman for the Secretary-General said the Arab Ambassadors discussed the Secretary-General's report on the investigation into the Israeli shelling of the United Nations compound in Qana, Lebanon, on 18 April 1996. They expressed their disappointment over the fact that the issuance of the report had been delayed for a whole week, and that the report did not condemn the attack on Qana. The Secretary-General told the Ambassadors that the reason for the delay was to ensure that the report was as comprehensive as possible. Its aim was to establish the facts and to prevent a recurrence of the incident, he added. An African Conference on Consumer Protection stressed that African countries should strive to enact and enforce consumer protection policies and legislation on the basis of the United Nations Guidelines on Consumer Protection, in order to protect their citizens as consumers. The meeting, held in Harare, Zambia recently, urged the African countries to enact and implement policies which take into consideration everyday changes arising from the new globalized and liberalized world economy. In addition, it identified a number of areas for special attention: health, safety, access to goods and services, measures for redress and areas requiring future action, such as the extension of the United Nations guidelines for consumer protection to include, for example, the areas of financial services and consumer representation. Although progress in promoting the Guidelines in Africa has been made, it is not sufficient. Some 17 of the continent's 56 countries have no consumer bodies at all and many do not have fully operational legislative framework and institutional capacity for consumer protection. The Department for Development Support and Management Services (DDSMS) will hold a one-day symposium on corporations, communities and sustainable social development in the minerals sector on Friday, 10 May, at United Nations Headquarters in New York on the occasion of the third session of the Committee on Natural Resources. Among the issues to be discussed, will be ways to alleviate technical, financial and social constraints faced by communities in mining areas. The symposium will also outline strategies to ensure that development projects are consistent with good governance and the rights of community members to participate. This is consistent with the emphasis of the Copenhagen Declaration and Plan of Action adopted in March 1995 at the World Summit for Social Development on the importance of governance through a participatory, transparent and accountable administration. For information purposes only - - not an official record From the United Nations home page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.orgUnited Nations Daily Highlights Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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