DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICES OF THE SPOKESPERSON FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

AND THE SPOKESPERSON FOR THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT

The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today’s noon briefing by Michèle Montas, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, and Frehiwot Bekele, Special Assistant to the Spokesperson for the President of the General Assembly.

Briefing by Spokesperson for the Secretary-General

Good afternoon.

**Security Council

The Security Council has decided to extend the mandates of two peacekeeping missions -– for Sudan and Western Sahara -– which had been otherwise set to expire by the end of the day. Both missions will now be extended by six months, until the end of October.

The Council has also adopted a presidential statement on Somalia, which, among other things, demands that the relevant authorities there do all they can to facilitate the free movement of aid and humanitarian workers throughout Somalia.

Today is the last day of the United Kingdom presidency of the Security Council. The United States will assume the Council’s rotating presidency for the month of May.

Meanwhile, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Liberia, Alan Doss, welcomed the Council’s decision last Friday to lift the sanctions on the export of rough diamonds from Liberia. We have that statement upstairs.

**Sanctions

The Secretary-General this morning addressed a symposium here at Headquarters on enhancing the implementation of Security Council sanctions.

He said that, to strengthen compliance and increase effectiveness, sanctions must be understood to show the international community’s strong and unified political will. Moreover, sanctions should include carrots along with sticks -- not only threats, but inducements to elicit compliance. We have the full text of his remarks in my office.

** Sudan

On Sudan, the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Darfur, Jan Eliasson, attended a meeting hosted by Libya on the situation in Darfur over the weekend, which was attended by Sudan, Chad, Egypt, Eritrea, Libya, China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Netherlands, Norway, the African Union (AU), the European Union and the League of Arab States.

The meeting reconfirmed support for the Addis Ababa conclusions of 16 November 2006, subsequently endorsed by the AU Peace and Security Council and the UN Security Council.

The participants also underlined the urgency of finding a comprehensive and sustainable solution to the Darfur crisis.

They also expressed grave concern over continued violence and insecurity in Darfur and urged all parties to immediately cease hostilities and act upon their commitment to uphold a ceasefire without delay.

The full text of the so-called “Tripoli Consensus on the Political Process for Darfur” is available upstairs.

Meanwhile, World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director Josette Sheeran says WFP has made dramatic progress in reducing malnutrition in Ethiopia, Sudan and Chad, but the achievements risk being diminished by constantly shifting security conditions.

**Kosovo

On Kosovo, the Security Council has wrapped up its mission to the Balkans. After visiting Brussels and Belgrade, the mission arrived in Kosovo, where its head, Belgian Ambassador Johan Verbeke, spoke to the press.

In that encounter, Verbeke said that the Security Council delegation saw in Kosovo a willingness to build a strong multi-ethnic society. Asked about divisions in the Council over Kosovo, he said there was enough potential for mutual confidence and cooperation to move towards the international community’s collective aim for Kosovo -– namely, a multi-ethnic society where everybody is at ease. Verbeke also said that there were no firm deadlines in the status process. We have the full transcript of that encounter in my office.

Following its visit to Kosovo, the team went to Vienna, where it met with the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Kosovo status process, Martti Ahtisaari.

** Iraq

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will be travelling to Egypt this week where he and the Prime Minister of Iraq, Nouri al-Maliki, will co-chair the launch of the International Compact with Iraq (ICI) on 3 May 2007 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.

The International Compact is an Iraqi initiative co-sponsored by the United Nations. It seeks to consolidate peace in the conflict-torn country and pursue political, economic and social development over the next five years.

The Secretary-General attaches great importance to the ICI and considers this process to be one of the most critical means of helping Iraq to build a “secure, unified, federal and democratic nation, founded on the principles of freedom and equality, capable of providing peace and prosperity for its entire people”.

The Secretary-General will also attend a meeting of the foreign ministers of the expanded Iraq neighbours, representatives of the permanent members of the Security Council and members of the G-8 countries.

Meanwhile, Ashraf Qazi, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Iraq, said today that the process of selecting new Iraqi electoral commissioners complied with the relevant legal process and allowed Iraqis from all over the country and the diaspora to submit applications. We have his statement upstairs.

** Somalia

On Somalia, Eric Laroche, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, has written an open letter to Somali leaders, military commanders, elders and community representatives, in which he expressed grave concern at reports of abuse, harassment, theft and rape perpetrated on civilians displaced by the latest round of violence in Mogadishu.

Laroche deplored the fact that, while the country is in the middle of a major human tragedy, military activity continues to hamper the provision of humanitarian assistance to those in critical need. He appealed to the Somali leaders to ensure the safe passage of relief goods and workers through the regions under their control, and urged them, and the Ethiopian forces backing the Government, to respect the provisions of international humanitarian law. Copies of the letter are available upstairs.

** Haiti

From Haiti, the Special Representative of the Secretary General for Haiti, Edmond Mullet, has expressed his satisfaction at the successful conduct of the rerun of the local, municipal and legislative elections held this weekend in Haiti.

The UN Mission in that country says that more than 300,000 voters in 25 communities cast their ballots in 69 voting centres and 770 polling stations to choose their representatives.

The elections were organized with logistical and security support provided by the UN Mission to the Haitian Provisional Electoral Council and the National Police. We have a press release from the mission upstairs.

**Timor-Leste

The United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) said in a statement today that, while it recognizes that the first round of elections was not perfect, the consensus assessment was that they were free and fair, reflecting the will of the voters.

In response to the sixth report of the Electoral Certification Team, UNMIT also said this first national election conducted by Timorese authorities should be seen as a significant achievement.

The UN Mission adds it will continue to encourage calm and respect for the outcome of the elections, as announced by the national electoral authorities.

**Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)

The Secretary-General, in a message to the first session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2010 NPT Review Conference, said the NPT review process offers an appropriate forum for creative responses to development, and expressed encouragement that the meeting will help in establishing regional nuclear-weapon-free zones.

** Nepal

The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Nepal reports that in many parts of the country, Maoist local cadres are not complying with the Party’s formal commitments to allow displaced persons to return to their homes in safety.

In a statement released today, the United Nations Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) called on the Maoists to support the return of internally displaced persons (IDPs) and to ensure that they allow unconditional, dignified and safe return of all persons recognized as IDPs. The Mission also urges that local cadres return all land and property confiscated from IDPs.

** Cambodia

On Cambodia, the international judges of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, in a statement we have upstairs, expressed their pleasure at the recent decision of the Cambodian Bar Council to institute a flat registration fee of $500 US dollars for all international lawyers appearing before the court.

The international judges are confident that this fee will not hinder international lawyers, particularly those working in a pro bono capacity, from registering with the Cambodian Bar and taking part in the historic work of the Extraordinary Chambers.

With this decision, the international judges believe that a successful plenary can now be called to adopt the internal rules of the Extraordinary Chambers.

**Forests

The Secretariat of the UN Forum on Forests announced that, after 15 years of negotiations on a global approach to protect the world’s forests, representatives of Member States adopted a landmark agreement just after dawn on Saturday.

The agreement, copies of which will become public in the course of today, is described as a milestone in international forest policy and cooperation for sustainable forest management. And we will alert you to the publication of the document as soon as it is available.

**Sustainable Development - Climate Change

The Commission on Sustainable Development began its current session this morning at Headquarters.

For the next two weeks, more than 2,000 representatives and experts will discuss long-term energy solutions that can fuel development while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Meanwhile, the third working group of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is meeting all this week in Bangkok.

On Friday, it is expected to issue its report on mitigating climate change through preventing and limiting greenhouse gas emissions.

**Exhibit on Rwanda Genocide

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will open the travelling exhibit entitled, “Lessons from the Rwanda genocide” at 6 p.m. this afternoon in the South Gallery of the Visitors’ Lobby here at Headquarters.

The exhibit, which will first be shown at UN Headquarters over a period of three weeks, highlights the role of States in preventing genocide, educates viewers on the warning signs and examines the genocide in Rwanda. It also emphasizes the plight of victims and the needs of survivors of sexual violence.

**Press Conferences

At 11:15 a.m. tomorrow, Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro will brief you on her recent trip to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo.

The guest at the noon briefing tomorrow will be UN High Commissioner for Refugees, António Guterres, who will brief you on the results of the International Conference on Displacement of Iraqis and his recent mission to Sudan.

This is all I have for you. Thank you.

**Questions and Answers

Question: Is this Rwanda genocide exhibition going to be only a one-time event or is it going to be some kind of regular collaboration for such kind of occurrences in history, if I can say?

Spokesperson: This exhibit, as I said, will last three weeks, but there will be other events around this. As you know, it was a decision by the General Assembly to commemorate these events on a regular basis. So there will be more events of that kind.

Question: And if I can only ask one technical question. It seems to be a conflict of schedule again. I have a paper saying that the Bosnian Foreign Minister is coming and that he is a participant of the event organized by the World Jewish Committee, saying that Mr. Ban Ki-moon is participating also, and Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice. I am not sure whether this is tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. Is that possible?

Spokesperson: I will check for you on the schedule.

Question: One follow-up on the Rwanda exhibit. Now that its’ opening today, is it possible to say what the process was? We know that it was postponed, and then reconsideration of the language was given. Was the reconsideration totally in-house of the UN? Were any Member States consulted? If you can say something about this for stories about the exhibit, what the process between postponement and opening was about?

Spokesperson: As you know, when the exhibit was assembled, DPI had noticed problems with some of the references in the text and it realized that it has not been sufficiently reviewed by the relevant experts in the Secretariat. So the process was that it be reviewed by a group of experts in the Secretariat, legal experts as well as political ones. No Member State was involved in the review. The exhibit is part of DPI’s -– as you know –- one of their outreach programmes. The review process included contributions from, as I said, the Legal Office, the Department of Political Affairs, the Office of the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General for the Prevention of Genocide, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Department of Public Information. And they also consulted DPI’s partner in this exhibit, which is the AEGIS, as you now.

Question: Does the reopening of the exhibit make any reference to Turkey and Armenia, or not?

Spokesperson : It does make a reference to the mass killings of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire during World War I and other events in history. I’m quoting.

Question: A couple of questions about the audit of the North Korean office by the UNDP. First of all, it’s been now a little longer after the 90 days expiration. Is there any idea, when will the audit be completed?

Spokesperson: I don’t have that answer for you. I don’t have an answer on the date for you.

Question: Have the auditors been admitted into North Korea? Do they have access to the [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea]? Have they asked for a visa?

Spokesperson: Ok, we’ll have an update on you for that. As you know, you were fully briefed on that by David Morrison, on some aspects of it. But on the time, I will get back to you on this.

Question: But the auditors are not meant to be UNDP guys, they’re meant to be Secretariat.

Spokesperson: No, they are not. But he did say that they were through consulting all the elements that they had here at Headquarters. And that they were heading toward… I will find out for you if there was no problem. I will get that.

Question: Is there any visa issue? Have the North Koreans been hospitable?

Spokesperson: We’ll check on that for you.

Question: You said there was a mass killing of the Armenians and genocide too?

Spokesperson: Well, the text that they used is “mass killings”, the wording for the exhibit –- mass killings of Armenians.

Question: Today, only technical questions for me. It became almost tradition that the new President of the Security Council gives us a briefing. It seems to me that we are not having that tomorrow from Mr. Khalilzad.

Spokesperson: Well, we asked and they told us that there would not be one. But you can ask all the questions that you want to him at the stakeout.

Any other questions? Ok, please. Freh is going to brief you on the General Assembly.

Briefing by Spokesperson for the General Assembly

Good afternoon. I have a few items.

**Security Council Reform

On Security Council reform, the Assembly President Sheikha Haya Rashed Al Khalifa will chair a meeting this Thursday afternoon -- an informal meeting of the General Assembly Open-ended Working Group on Security Council Reform. This will be the first opportunity for Member States to express their views on the facilitators’ report, which was circulated earlier in the month, on 20 April. In the lead-up to the meeting, the President is having consultations with all key players, including representatives of the G-4, Uniting for Consensus, the P-5 and the African Group.

**Thematic Debate

Another item, as we announced in an e-mail circular on Friday, the Assembly President will convene next week, on Thursday and Friday, 10 and 11 May, an informal thematic debate of the Assembly, which will focus on “Civilizations and the Challenge for Peace: Obstacles and Opportunities”.

The main objective of the debate is to explore the reasons behind the growing level of mistrust between people of different religions and cultures; and to examine how and why cultural and religious differences increasingly fuel and are used to justify conflicts. A number of prominent commentators, academics and political figures will be participating over the two days in four separate panel discussions on the following themes: Respect for Cultural Diversity as a Prerequisite for Dialogue; Religion in Contemporary Society; the Responsibility of the Media; and Civilizations and the Challenge for Global Peace and Security.

Panellists and moderators will include: Turkey’s Minister of State and Religious Affairs, H.E. Dr. Mehmet Aydin; the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, Mr. Amre Moussa; Mr. Riz Khan, news reporter/interviewer of Al Jazeera –- English; Ms. Karen Armstrong, author on religion and television broadcaster. And moderators include the former UN Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, Mr. Shashi Tharoor; and Robert Thurman of the Department of Religious Studies at Columbia University.

Detailed lists of the panellists and the concept paper for the debate are available on the web site of the General Assembly.

Question: When is that again?

Spokesperson: Next week, Thursday and Friday, the 10^th and 11^th.

Question: What is the full title of this conference?

Spokesperson: Civilizations and the Challenge for Peace: Obstacles and Opportunities.

There will also be two side events. On Thursday evening there will be a concert by a Lebanese pianist and composer, Abdel Rahman El Bacha, in the General Assembly Hall. And on Friday the 11th there will be a lunch time round table discussion on the arts as a tool for bridging gaps between cultures.

**Secretary-General briefing

One more item, this afternoon, the Secretary-General will brief an informal plenary meeting of the General Assembly on his recent trip to the Middle East and on his meeting with the UN system Chief Executives Board.

That’s all I have. Yes?

**Questions and Answers

Question: There was a town hall meeting by Under-Secretary-General Bárcena and the staff on Friday about mobility, at the end of which she said we have to go forward with mobility starting 1 May because the General Assembly has mandated it. So, I’m wondering, is that set in stone that it has to go forward? Is in fact 1 May going to be the date, or as Ms. Bárcena sort of indicated, might it be a little bit later?

GA Spokesperson: I’ll have to find out.

Question: And do you know if the mobility is starting 1 May?

SG Spokesperson: Yes, it’s starting 1 May. It’s a very small group, as Ms. Bárcena indicated.

Question: But she said something about publishing a rule first, that some rule has to be put out. That’s what she seemed to indicate.

SG Spokesperson: We will get the information for you on what will be put out.

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