The following is an edited transcript of the press briefing of 16 November , chaired in the Ethiopian capital by UNMEE Spokesman and Chief, Public Information Office, Jean Victor Nkolo, via a videoconference linking Asmara and Addis Ababa. STATE OF THE PEACE PROCESS Earlier today, 16 November 2001 the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG), Legwaila Joseph Legwaila, briefed representatives of the Permanent Five, European Union, Algerian Embassy and the troop contributing countries on the peace process. Also in attendance were the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Addis Ababa, Mr. Cheikh-Tidiane Gaye, and the Force Commander, Major-General Patrick Cammaert. The Security Council is meeting today in New York with the Ethiopian Minister of Foreign Affairs, and thereafter, with the Eritrean Minister of Foreign Affairs. The two ministers met separately yesterday with the UN Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan. SITUATION IN THE TEMPORARY SECURITY ZONE The general situation in the Temporary Security Zone (TSZ) remains calm. The peace process is on track. Both parties are collaborating with UNMEE in the management of the TSZ and the implementation of the Agreements they have signed. UNMEE urges the two countries to continue to respect the integrity of the Zone. Notwithstanding, information on the numbers of militia and police in the TSZ as well as the unrestricted freedom of movement for UNMEE in the area adjacent to the northern boundary of the TSZ would facilitate the full implementation of the Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities. POLITICAL On Friday, 9 November in Asmara, the SRSG met the Eritrean Minister of Foreign Affairs, his Excellency Abdella Ali Said. They discussed the peace process and collaboration between Eritrean authorities and UNMEE. On Saturday, 10 November, the SRSG paid a working visit Sector East. He went to Assab (in Eritrea) and Bure (in Ethiopia). He visited other locations along the Assab-Bure corridor. He also flew by helicopter and observed the entire area around Mount Musa Ali in Sector East. He was accompanied by Rodney Kiwa, Senior Political Representative of the Organization of African Unity/African Union Liaison Mission to the UN Peacekeeping Mission (OLMEE). During his visit, Ambassador Legwaila inspected the new observation posts that the Kenyan Battalion (KENBAT) set up to better monitor some of the areas in the Sector. He was briefed by the Commanding Officer, Lieutenant-Colonel John Nzamba on KENBAT activities and the situation in the area, which is calm. Ambassador Legwaila also visited KENBAT observation post at point 73 and point 885, near the area separating the two parties. In Bure, Mr. Legwaila met with Ethiopian military commanders stationed there. The meeting was described as friendly and encouraging. A senior Ethiopian military commander informed the SRSG that the Ethiopian Armed Forced (EAF) units had received orders to cooperate with UNMEE. The SRSG also met with the local Bure Administrator. Mr. Legwaila discussed with his interlocutors areas of possible humanitarian assistance by UNMEE targeting local populations. On 13 November 2001, the SRSG visited the UNMEE field office in Mekelle, the capital of Tigray Province in Ethiopia. Ms. Salimatu Khan-Kamara, UNMEE Political Affairs Officer in Mekelle, briefed the SRSG on the operations of the office. Ambassador Legwaila also met with regional authorities, representatives of Non-Governmental Organizations and UN agencies active in the region. He was accompanied by the DSRSG in Addis Ababa, Mr. Gaye. On the following day in Addis Ababa, the SRSG had a meeting with Ambassador Kongit Sinegiorgis, Director-General for African Affairs at the Ethiopian Ministry for Foreign Affairs. They discussed matters relating to the peace process. On 9 November, the DSRSG in Asmara, Ian Martin, held talks with the General Abrahaley Kifle, the Associate Commissioner of the Eritrean Commission for Coordination with the UN Peacekeeping Mission. The discussion centered on Eritrean Defence Forces (EDF) liaison officers in the sectors. DSRSG Martin was informed that Eritrean authorities had not given new instructions to their troops to reduce the level of liaison and cooperation with UNMEE. MILITARY On Wednesday, 14 November, the Force Commander visited the western and central sectors where he met with the sector commanders on the ground. His report from this visit confirms that the situation in the TSZ is stable and calm. In the Sector West, the Indian Construction Engineering Company is repairing the Barentu-Awgaro-Mishigili and the Barentu-Adi Malele-Shilalo roads. UNMEE patrols continue to face restrictions on Freedom of Movement by the Eritrean Defense Forces (EDF) in the central sector in the adjacent areas north of the TSZ. From 8 to 14 of November, the EDF denied Freedom of Movement to UNMEE personnel on 33 occasions. In the eastern sector, patrols from Team Assab were denied Freedom of Movement on four occasions by EDF outside the TSZ in adjacent areas. In addition, in the central sector, INDBAT patrols checked the police and militia weapon cantonment sites at Sebo, Le Embada, Buleli, Emba Lekha, Akek Gorzo, Senafe, Zigfet, Kulkul Welase, Dib Dib, Embab Dehan, Enda Dashan, Enda Gherghis and Sadike. Weapons were found correct as per the inventory. QUICK IMPACT PROJECTS So far 62 projects, with a total value of US$656,000, have been approved under the UNMEE Quick Impact Projects (QIPs) programme. Although US$342,000 of QIPs funds are in the water and sanitation sectors, about US$150,000 has been approved for various health programs and US$129,000 for education programs. Implementing partners include local and international NGOs, local administrations, UN agencies and, in a few cases, UNMEE itself. A little less than half the approved projects are in the central sector while about 30 percent are in the Western Sector and the balance are in the Eastern Sector. The original allocation for the QIPs program was $700,000 and, as this allocation is almost exhausted, requests for contributions to the newly established Trust Fund to Support the Peace Process in Ethiopia and Eritrea have been sent to several donor governments. MINE ACTION A Bangladeshi de-mining company has cleared an area of 4,800 square meters on the Shambiko Ford-Badme road. They also demined an area of 3,920 square meters on Badme-Adi Malele road. At the Shambiko Helipad an area of 5,000 square meters was manually demined and work is still in progress. A KENBAT demining team has cleared a total of 2,500 square meters at Peak 885 near Bure and from Point 62 leading to nearby water boreholes. De-mining is also underway at Shambiko Ford, Hambiko Ford, Om Hajer, Shambiko-Badme Road, Dida Lala-Adi Malele Road and Adi Bigdi-Girme Road. The Jordanian Battalion is repairing a number of roads and tracks in Barentu and the vicinity. The de-mining and repair of Gergera-Adi Teklo-Geleba Road is in progress in the eastern sector. During last week, six Eritrean dog handlers with their six explosive detection dogs from RONCO were accredited and licensed by the Mine Action Center (MACC) quality assurance team. The explosive detection dog teams will join manual clearance teams operating in Senafe, Central Sector. The accreditation process of Karenswood dogs and their handlers is on-going. This additional asset is expected to provide the Danish Demining Group (DDG) with a total of six dogs for field operations to support the current flail operations. Authorized to conduct limited clearance in low risk areas, the flail, is however, on its last leg in the Mission. Its contract expires today, 16 November, and its fate thereafter, is not yet determined. Since February 2001, over 1,100 Eritrean mine action personnel have been trained at the National Training Center and deployed to the TSZ. Since March 2001, 47 personnel from national and international NGOs have been trained as mine risk education facilitators, and over 30,000 persons attended mine risk sessions throughout the TSZ. UNMEE force engineers cleared 103,120 square metres of minefield areas and 22.88 kilometres of road. In addition, they marked 38,620 square metres of contaminated ground. No mines or unexploded ordnance were found. QUESTIONS & ANSWERS Question from Asmara: With regard to UNMEE's movements, what reasons do the Eritreans give for denying freedom of movement? We thought in the beginning that these were misunderstandings between UNMEE and Eritrean authorities. Now we believe that this is a policy position by the Government of Eritrea. However I can only repeat the position of the UN on this matter. We ought to have unrestricted freedom of movement not only in the TSZ but also in adjacent areas. I have to stress that we do not experience restriction on freedom of movement in the TSZ itself, but we face restrictions on freedom of movement in adjacent areas. In order for us to be able to monitor the area effectively and thoroughly, unrestricted freedom of movement is necessary. Question from Addis Ababa: I would like to ask three questions. First, could you tell us if there is progress made in the collection of remains of dead soldiers, and when you talk about restrictions on freedom, what does that mean? Do they put road blocks or what? How do the Eritreans stop you? Finally, how many journalists are attending the press briefing from Eritrea? Well I will leave the last question to Diane Bailey (UNMEE PIO) to tell us how many journalists are attending from the other side. But for the first question on collecting mortal remains, I think the answer is yes, because the two parties agreed during the last Military Coordination Commission (MCC) meeting in Djibouti to take this matter further and to do that seriously and effectively. And since the next MCC meeting is going to be held at the Mereb River Bridge at the end of this month, in less than two weeks time, I think we should wait and see. The two parties have decided to appoint representatives who will handle this matter. I think that this is progress. The two parties are taking the question of collecting mortal remains seriously. I have to say that during his visit in Sector East a few days ago, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Ambassador Legwaila Joseph Legwaila traveled on the Assab- Bure road, and with his party that included the Senior Political Representative of the OAU to UNMEE he was able to see on the side of the road, some of these mortal remains. We appreciate the fact that the two parties have now decided to take the matter further in a positive and constructive manner. Question from Addis Ababa: So the bodies have not been collected? The matter is being pursued and followed up. You will probably realize that when the next MCC takes place progress will have been made. Before these unclaimed remains are to be collected, there are all sorts some technical discussions that ought to take place. We cannot just go and collect these mortal remains because these areas are mined. Remains must be identified as much as feasible, assessed, counted. There are all kinds of practical issues that have to be discussed but this is being handled. On the question of the restriction on freedom of movement, what really happens is that if we have to fly over a certain area we are somehow denied the right to fly here or there. But once again, no matter the way we are stopped, we keep on repeating that unrestricted freedom of movement is necessary. And this is standard practice in all peacekeeping missions. We must monitor the redeployment of forces where they are redeployed. We need to be able to do that quickly, freely and thoroughly. Question from Addis Ababa: But when you are traveling on the road, what do they do? Well, they could stop the UNMEE peacekeepers by saying, well you cannot travel on this side road or track but believe me, we try to monitor as best as we can despite these restrictions. And this does not reduce the strength of our statement when we say that the situation in the TSZ is calm and that we do not have any cause for alarm for the time being. This is why we keep on saying that unrestricted freedom of movement as well as providing us with the numbers of police and militia will help in the implementation of our mandate. On a question from Addis Ababa regarding the number of journalists in attendance in Asmara? (Diane Bailey, in Asmara) We have six guests. One journalist, two diplomats, two NGOs, and one from the UN agency, UNHCR . But I would like to remind everyone that the independent press, the private media is still not allowed to work here and that is probably why we have few journalists here today. Question from Addis Ababa: Tell us about the situation of police and militia within the TSZ in Eritrea? As you know Eritrea has the right to have police and militia in the TSZ and the Agreements that the two parties signed do not stipulate what the numbers of these police and militia should be. However, UNMEE is monitoring the movements and the whereabouts of these police and militia. We also do this monitoring as per very specific protocols. In other words, there are specific things that can be done and cannot be done, like the number of people moving around together. You cannot move more than a certain number of police at the same time; weapons have to be stockpiled in specific places, checked and monitored and so on and so forth. We are satisfied this is properly monitored. However, the fact that we keep on asking for the numbers is something that we believe would be helpful in order to provide a greater facilitation of our monitoring duties. But we are satisfied that the situation is calm and quiet in the TSZ. Question from Addis Ababa: What numbers do you have? Eritrea has the right to have police and militia in the TSZ. The number has not been specified by the Agreements. There is no specific number. So these police and militia move in and out, but we have a specific protocol that ensures that their movement and their activities, really, do not really hamper the quietness and demilitarization of the TSZ. Question from Asmara: I am from the Netherlands Embassy in Asmara. You are indicating that everything is calm and quiet, etc , etc. But what is the reason for having a Security Council meeting in New York today with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs? That's one thing, the other question is on the mine information. We understand that some landmine information has yet to be handed over by Ethiopian authorities. Is that still the case, or what is the latest on that? Then you mentioned what was happening in demining so far , can you also give us a figure or percentage on what has been de-mined so far and what is still to be de-mined? Thank you very much and welcome again, Sir. About the Security Council meetings today, as you know there is a big time difference between Asmara and New York. So these meetings have not taken place yet. As you know, the General Assembly meeting of the UN is being held and this is an opportunity for many dignitaries and visitors to travel to the seat of the United Nations in New York . It is also an opportunity for the Secretary-General, the Security Council and other UN bodies to meet these visiting officials. This is why it is only normal that the Security Council and Secretary-General take this opportunity to meet them. But this is what I can say for the time being. There could be other reasons, that I don't know, so we have to wait until these meetings actually happen to see what will transpire from New York. The two officials happened to be there it is a good opportunity to discuss matters of the peace process. Regarding Mine Action, it is extremely difficult to tell you what remains to be done. What we can really tell you is what has been done in terms of demining. But we can come back to you on that. Your question is a very good one. Maybe in the next press briefing we could provide, with our MACC colleagues a compilation of what has been done so far, because it is true that every week we try to give you a breakdown of what has been done in the last days. But we may want to bring to you a compilation of what has been done so far. We are still marking other mined areas; a lot is being done on the mine fronts, and roads are being constructed as we said in this briefing, and this is very encouraging. On the question of mine information from Ethiopia, Ethiopian officials have given to UNMEE and MACC officials very useful information on mine and this is still being assessed. But, we can initially say that we are very encouraged that this information will lead to some very good consolidated results. So, let us give a bit more time to our specialists so that they assess this information thoroughly. We are quite optimistic that this will lead to a very useful compilation of information on the mines. In other words, progress really seems to have been made on mine information. Question from Addis Ababa: Don't you think that the renewal of UNMEE mandate is the priority issue for the two ministers meeting in New York? Well, UNMEE mandate was renewed last September for an additional six months. So, we will have to wait for this period to come close to its end before we start talking about the renewal of the mandate, but I do not think that the renewal of UNMEE's mandate is an issue at the moment. But I appreciate your question. I do not think that I am privy on what is going be discussed later today in New York, we will have to wait and see that. Question from Addis Ababa: This is a question on the observation, questions when your military observers in Ethiopia and in Eritrea meet with the regular people, is there any kind of impatience when it comes to the peace process or is there any change of attitude or interest in the peace process that you have observed? I would like to stick with the facts. The fact that most of the internally displaced people have returned to their home areas is significant. Those people are eager for peace and the fact that they trust this peace process and that the two countries are committed to the peace process is important. This is why more than 170,000 IDPs have returned. This, I think, is one of the best indicators. If these people had not returned, then you would know that there is a problem. But they do not only trust the peace process. They also trust UNMEE's capacity in monitoring the TSZ as well as the de-mining action that is ongoing. When you come out of a conflict that is so bitter and so destructive everybody is eager for peace, for development, rehabilitation and reconciliation. What we see in the Temporary Security Zone and what we see in the adjacent area and elsewhere, really indicates that the common people in the villages, on the streets want peace and cry for that. Wherever the Special Representative of the Secretary-General or his deputies have been, this was the case when Mr. Legwaila was visiting the Assab-Bure corridor a few days ago, or DRSRG Gaye going into the same area and in other parts of the TSZ recently, people were coming in large numbers, welcoming, singing, praising peace and sometimes even praying for peace. And I welcome the presence here today of one religious leader here who is accompanied by a representative of the Norwegian Church Aid. This also is significant. The role of the elders, religious leaders and civil society can play is crucial. We were very happy to see religious leaders on the UN Day on the Mereb Bridge on 24 October. It is encouraging to see that the civil society is being involved and I think the international community, the Special Representative and other stakeholders in the peace process very much welcome this further involvement of the civil society and the common people and this is something which the Security Council is very insistent upon -confidence-building measures. Question from Addis Ababa: You have told us that Radio UNMEE has been suspended in Eritrea and you are not transmitting in Ethiopia yet. Can you tell us the extent of not having radio transmission in Ethiopia and Eritrea? What is the implication of having a radio transmissions in both countries? Obviously we would like to broadcast as much as necessary. This is actually a standard practice in all peacekeeping missions, that the UN should be able to talk peace directly to the targeted population as well as explain our mandate, give information on humanitarian activities, demining, rehabilitation and so on. When it comes to Eritrea we have some difficulties that are being discussed and we hope that we are not going to be off the air for much longer. We hope to solve this matter very soon. We really urge the authorities that we should really come together and carry on with our transmissions. We will very much like on the Ethiopian side to also have access to airtime. As you know the commitments by the two parties really entail that we should have free access to airwaves in both countries. We are grateful for the support that we have received so far from Eritrea but we would very much like Ethiopia to move positively on this front. We are talking with authorities on both sides in order to be reinstated in the Eritrean airwaves and in order to have access on the Ethiopian airwaves, respectively. This is a very important part of our work. We need to do that and we hope to be able to announce some very positive news soon. Question from Addis Ababa: What is the impact of not having radio transmission in Ethiopia? Well, the impact is that we must have the opportunity to transmit through the radio because not everybody in some areas has access to newspapers, to Internet to other means. Through these means we would be able to reach more people quickly in their own languages and so on. And they would be able to know that this road or that road is de-mined, or this road or that road had been reconstructed so that they can be able to return to their villages, that kind of information. So that is the impact that will facilitate the peace process further, it will facilitate rehabilitation, the return to normalcy, reconciliation. In itself it is a confidence-building measure. It is an important part of the public information task in peacekeeping missions. We will relentlessly pursue these negotiations with both sides in order to have access on the radio. And we urge both sides again to understand that is it is a very positive, constructive activity: transmitting through airwaves. Question from Addis Ababa: What are the reasons, why at least the Ethiopian government didn't allow you to broadcast? I think this is a question that you could ask the Ethiopian authorities. We would like very much like to know. (Laughter) But they have committed themselves to provide us from both sides access to their airwaves, and we hope that they can fulfill as soon as possible their own commitment. And we will be very grateful if and when they do so. Question from Addis Ababa: You are talking as if UNMEE has established a TSZ, is it 25 kilometers wide or something else? We do not only talk about the TSZ being established. It has been established. It was established in April this year, and it is working. The TSZ is a reality. And we are very grateful for the cooperation that we are receiving from both sides. It is true that both sides have not formally accepted the TSZ. Nevertheless, this TSZ is functioning, and we have taken journalists, diplomats and visitors to the TSZ. It is 25 km wide but the terrain, the topography will not really allow such a place to be 25 kms wide absolutely everywhere. So it could be a bit less here and a bit more there. Question from Addis Ababa: I thought these were contested areas rather than topography problems? Well, we have noted the contentions from both sides, clearly. We appreciate that. We have recognized that. We have recognized the fact that both parties have not formally accepted the boundaries of the TSZ. But the TSZ is there, that it is functioning. It has been established by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, and I think that after so many months of it is working and functioning on the ground, we should really stop questioning the TSZ's establishment. Because it is there, it is working. You can no longer ask if a baby has been born after he is already walking. It is alive, well and kicking. Thank you all, in Asmara and Addis Ababa for coming and have a safe and nice weekend. * *** *

For additional information please contact the:

Spokesman / Chief, Public Information Office
UNMEE Headquarters Addis Ababa, telephone: 251-1-443396 ;
or UNMEE Headquarters Asmara, telephone: 291-1-151908
(E-mail: unmeepublicinformation@un.org)