HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY MICHELE MONTAS
SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

U.N. HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Friday,  June 12, 2009

SECURITY COUNCIL IMPOSES ADDITIONAL SANCTIONS ON NORTH KOREA 

• The Security Council this morning unanimously adopted a resolution imposing additional sanctions on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).
   

• Earlier today, Council members met with the troop contributing countries for the UN Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) and received a briefing on that Mission by Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Edmond Mulet. After its meeting on the DPRK, the Security Council held  consultations on Georgia.

BAN KI-MOON PROMOTES UN-US COOPERATION IN ST.-LOUIS, MO. 

• Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is in St. Louis, Missouri, today, and he will speak at St. Louis University this afternoon, to talk about the ways that the United Nations and the United States can work together in pursuit of common goals.
   

• He will talk about his visit to the American heartland and discuss the challenges that are common to all of us, from rising food prices to climate change.
   

• The Secretary-General met this morning with representatives of corporations, growers’ organizations and research institutes. They explored how to increase agricultural productivity in the developing world and how to create synergies between smallholder and commercial farming. They also talked about climate change and technology, including biotechnology. All agreed to keep the collaboration going and to explore how to bring the power of these players to the table.

NEW DEPUTY SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR LIBERIA IS APPOINTED

• The Secretary-General has appointed Moustapha Soumaré of Mali as his Deputy Special Representative for Recovery and Governance of the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL). 
   

• Moustapha Soumaré will also serve as the United Nations Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator.  He will replace Jordan Ryan, who now serves as the Assistant Administrator of the UNDP and Director of the Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery. 
   

• The Secretary-General is grateful for Mr. Ryan’s outstanding performance and leadership that greatly contributed to improved coordination and integration of the entire United Nations system in Liberia.
   

• Mr. Soumaré will bring with him a wealth of development and leadership experience.  He is currently the Deputy Assistant Administrator of UNDP and Deputy Regional Director for the Regional Bureau for Africa, New York.

 HEAD OF PEACEKEEPING MEETS WITH COTE D’IVOIRE PRESIDENT 

• Under Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Alain Le Roy continued his official working visit to Cote d’Ivoire with separate meetings with President Lauren Gbagbo and Prime Minister Guillaume Soro. They were expected to discuss the UN’s peacekeeping role in the Ivorian peace process ahead of the presidential election planned for late November.
   

• Le Roy had yesterday met with key political actors, including opposition leaders and with the Special Representative of the Facilitator of the Ivorian peace process.
   

• In addition to Côte d’Ivoire, Mr. Le Roy will travel to Burkina Faso, Liberia, Mali and Nigeria, where he will meet with Government officials and local authorities.

 CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC JOINS FIGHTS AGAINST LORD’S RESISTANCE ARMY 

• The Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) says that the Central African Republic has joined the DRC and Uganda in a meeting of military strategy coordinators working to defeat the Lord’s Resistance Army.
   

• That meeting took place yesterday in Kisangani in the presence of the UN Force Commander, Gen. Babacar Gaye.
   

• Together, the military officials and intelligence experts reviewed the Congolese army’s push to expel the LRA from the northeastern Province Orientale, an operation backed and monitored by UN peacekeepers. 
   

• In a joint communiqué after that meeting, the three armies said that current operations against the LRA have been successful in weakening it. They appealed for increased cooperation and intelligence sharing between their forces. They also commended the UN Mission for its “very important and decisive” support, and noted that the “protection of civilian populations is absolute priority and measures are being putting in place.”

NEW AID GROUPS ARE ALLOWED TO OPERATE IN SUDAN

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has clarified media reports published on 11 and 12 June 2009 reporting that four expelled non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have been granted the right to operate again in Sudan by the Sudanese authorities.
   

• The four NGOs referred to in the reports should not be characterized as “returning” NGOs.
   

• While from related organizational families, they are not the same, and have been registered in Sudan as new INGO implementing groups and authorized to open new operations in the Sudan on that basis.

GAZA: ISRAEL MAINTAINS RESTRICTIONS ON FLOW OF GOODS 

• The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports continuing restrictions on the flow of goods into and out of Gaza.
   

• During the week that ended on 9 June, a total of 512 truckloads of goods entered Gaza, less than one fifth of the weekly truckloads that went in early 2007, before the Hamas takeover. The entry of essential goods, including materials for reconstruction, spare parts for water and sanitation projects, and industrial and agricultural materials, remains either restricted to limited quantities or barred outright.
   

• No petrol or diesel fuel has been imported into Gaza through the Nahal Oz fuel pipeline since 2 November 2008, except for limited quantities for the UN Relief and Works Agency, UNRWA. Since that date, most petrol and diesel in Gaza available on the open market for public use is transferred through the tunnels under the border with Egypt.

 PAKISTAN: WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME RESUMES AID DISTRIBUTION 

• The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that the process of verifying and registering internally displaced persons in Pakistan is ongoing. According to the latest figures from the National Database and Registration Authority, 1.9 million IDPs have been registered so far, including people who had been displaced last year.
   

• The World Food Programme (WFP) restarted food distribution yesterday, after a five-day break. The break followed the completion of May food rations, and allowed the Government of Pakistan to verify and update the registration list of displaced persons.
   

• Meanwhile, six new humanitarian hubs have been set up in Mardan district as of Wednesday, to provide temporary storage and distribution facilities for food and non-food item to IDPs staying with host communities.
   

• The United Nations held a special ceremony today to pay homage to its staff members and Pakistani co-workers who lost their lives in the devastating terrorist attack in Peshawar on 9 June. 
   

• Asked about casualties among national and international UN staff, the Spokeswoman said that two international staff had been killed in the Peshawar bombing, while a number of national staff had been injured. She noted that some Pakistanis working on a project for the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) had also been killed.

 SRI LANKA: ACCESS TO DISPLACED CIVILIANS HAS IMPROVED  

• On Sri Lanka, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports access to camps housing displaced people in Vavuniya has improved, though some delays are still being experienced.
   

• OCHA also reports that construction work in Menik Farm zone 5 has commenced and that the Government of Sri Lanka has announced that an additional site (zone 6) will also be opened shortly.
   

• As of earlier this week, more than 4,000 people were moved to a new site in Vavuniya to help ease congestion, says OCHA. Land clearing is ongoing in the two other new sites in Vavuniya.
   

• OCHA also reports food distribution operations in Vavuniya and in Jaffna, as well as stepped up activities in medical assistance to displaced centers in welfare centers and the construction of new facilities and distribution of emergency health equipment and drugs.
   

• As of yesterday, OCHA says the Common Humanitarian Action Plan for Sri Lanka is 44 percent funded, with some $69 million received out the $155 million required.

 REFUGEE AGENCY PROVIDES UPDATE ON KAREN VILLAGERS FROM MYANMAR

• The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) says its staff have visited five sites in northern Thailand where Karen villagers are taking shelter after fleeing eastern Myanmar since 3 June.
   

• The agency says it has now verified the presence of 2,000 recent arrivals. The Karen villagers are taking shelter mostly in temples, in a communal hall and in private Thai homes in four villages.
   

• By and large, the Karen villagers say they fled in fear of conscription by armed forces or of forced labour as porters for armed forces.
   

• According to UNHCR, those who mentioned military action mostly said they fled in anticipation of fighting as the Myanmar army and their allies, the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, approached rebel Karen National Union bases and villages. Only a few said their villages had actually been shelled, but while UNHCR staff interviewed the recent arrivals on the Thai side of the border on Tuesday and Thursday, they heard shelling on the Myanmar side.

 WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME APPEALS TO GROUP OF EIGHT TO ASSIST THE HUNGRIEST POOR 

• Governments from the Group of Eight (or G-8) industrialised nations are being urged to remember the needs of the hungriest people worldwide and provide urgently needed assistance to deal with global hunger and other humanitarian needs. 
   

• The call was made today by the Executive Director of the World Food Programme, Josette Sheeran, to a meeting of G-8 Development Ministers in Rome.
   

• “The world’s most vulnerable are being hit by the combined effects of the global financial downturn and stubbornly high food prices in many developing world markets,” says Ms. Sheeran, as she called on the G-8 to support WFP, which depends entirely on voluntary donations.
   

• She warns that hunger can lead to dangerous destabilisation, and impact global peace and security.

 PROGRESS IS BEING MADE IN CLIMATE CHANGE TALKS 

• In Bonn today, the second of five major negotiating sessions toward a new global response to climate change is wrapping up. The latest round has advanced the process of reaching an agreement in Copenhagen this December.
   

• Yvo de Boer, the Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), said, “A big achievement of this meeting is that governments have made it clearer what they want to see in the Copenhagen agreed outcome.” He added, “In my view, an ambitious and effective agreed outcome in Copenhagen is in sight.”
   

• During the meeting, countries agreed on a set of texts that are serving as the basis of negotiations, and have been offering amendments and suggestions that will shape the Copenhagen outcome. Further drafting and refinements will be made at the next round of deliberations in August.

 DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL TO VISIT NORWAY 

• Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro will travel to Tromso, in Northern Norway, on Monday 15 June where she has been invited to address the Council of Europe’s Conference for Ministers of Justice. This year’s Conference theme is on Breaking the Silence of Domestic Violence.
   

• She will speak on the work of the United Nations to end violence against women and girls, and will in particular highlight the Secretary-General’s UNiTE Campaign, which calls on world leaders to spur action through national campaigns and to achieve five key outcomes by 2015.
   

• The Deputy Secretary-General will then proceed to Oslo where she will meet with Ministers and Officials from the Norwegian Government, with a particular focus on issues related to progress on the MDGs, the global economic crisis, the Climate Change Summit later this year in Copenhagen and Gender Equality issues. The DSG will also participate in a roundtable event with representatives from Civil Society and Academia.
   

• The Deputy Secretary-General will depart Norway on the evening of Friday 19 June.

 UNDP CHIEF BEGINS VISIT TO DR CONGO 

• UNDP Administrator Helen Clark is travelling today to the Democratic Republic of Congo, where she will meet with government and local leaders. 
   

• She will also visit UNDP programmes in Kinshasa and in the east of the country.
   

• Yesterday, Miss Clark was in Liberia, where she met with Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf. The UNDP Administrator commended President Johnson-Sirleaf for the country’s progress during her presidency. Miss Clark reaffirmed UNDP’s commitment to support Liberia’s peace building process. She attended a town hall meeting with key government ministers and local leaders in Kakata, western Liberia, where she launched the Youth for Volunteer programme, to train ‘Youth Peace Ambassadors’.  This programme aims to identify and resolve potential violent conflicts in communities.
   

• Miss Clark travels to Ethiopia Monday.

 GOLAN HEIGHTS: BAN KI-MOON SEEKS MANDATE EXTENSION FOR U.N. OBSERVER FORCE 

• In a report to the Security Council, the Secretary-General reports that the situation in the Golan Heights has remained generally quiet and that the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) has continued to perform its functions effectively.
   

• He recommends that the Security Council extend the Force’s mandate by six months, until the end of December.

 TODAY IS WORLD DAY AGAINST CHILD LABOUR 

• Today is World Day Against Child Labour - a day set aside to promote awareness and action to tackle child labour.
   

• In a message for the Day, the Director-General of the International Labour Organisation, Juan Somavia, says this year’s focus is on girls trapped in child labour, toiling in the fields from sunrise to sunset.  ILO is also highlighting the plight of girls working unseen in domestic labour or those living and working on the streets around the world.
   

• The ILO estimates that some 100 hundred millions girls are in child labour, with 53 million in hazardous work.  Most importantly, the organisation says that investing in girls’ education and training is an investment in equality and social progress.  It adds that a girl with education is better equipped to break the cycle of child labour and poverty.
   

• The UN children’s agency, UNICEF, which is also marking the day, has called for action to tackle the underlying poverty that leads to child labour.  UNICEF stresses that improving access to quality education, particularly for girls in poor and rural areas, is a key part of an effective overall approach.

 BAN KI-MOON, BILL CLINTON TO HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE ON HAITI ON MONDAY 

• The Secretary-General and former U.S. President Bill Clinton will be holding a joint press conference on Monday, 15 June, at 11:15 am in room 226, to formally announce President Clinton's appointment as UN Special Envoy for Haiti. 
   

• The Secretary-General will speak briefly about the need for a Special Envoy for Haiti and why he appointed President Clinton in this capacity. President Clinton with then deliver remarks on his vision for his role as Special Envoy.

BAN KI-MOON TO HOST GLOBAL HEALTH FORUM ON MONDAY 

• On Monday, the Secretary-General will host a forum on “Advancing global health in the face of crisis.” The forum aims elevate the global health debate and engage leaders from all sectors to build on the momentum and work in intense coordination to maximize the impact of global health interventions on the ground.
   

• The forum will open at 10 a.m. in the Trusteeship Council Chamber, with statements by the Secretary-General and the Director-General of the World Health Organization, Dr. Margaret Chan.
   

• Other participants at the forum will include ministers, heads of UN agencies, leading experts and representatives from civil society, the private sector, philanthropy and academia.
   

• At 10:30, the Secretary-General and Dr. Chan will hold a press stakeout outside the Trusteeship Council Chamber.

 100-DAY COUNTDOWN TO INTERNATIONAL PEACE DAY BEGINS TOMORROW 

• Tomorrow, the Secretary-General will launch the “WMD-WeMustDisarm” multiplatform campaign, beginning the 100-day countdown to the International Day of Peace. The General Assembly decided to commemorate the day annually on 21 September as a day of global ceasefire and non-violence. This year, the theme focuses on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation. 
   

• Joining the Secretary-General in promoting the campaign are: UN Messenger of Peace and Academy Award-winning actor and producer Michael Douglas, who has championed the cause of disarmament for the UN since 1998; and Rainn Wilson, featured actor in the American television comedy, The Office, who has more than 800,000 followers on Twitter; 
   

• Over the next 100 days leading up to 21 September, they, along with the Secretary-General, will raise awareness of the costs and dangers of nuclear weapons by issuing a daily message, via Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, email and radio, urging the world to disarm. The Secretary-General is taking the lead by issuing the first 10 ‘tweets’ of the campaign.
   

• The Spokeswoman also encouraged any one wishing to get involved to send  tweets on nuclear disarmament and non proliferation, re-tweet the Secretary-General’s messages, sign up to dedicated Facebook or  MySpace pages, or all of the above.
   

• In his message to mark the 100-day countdown to the International Day of Peace, which will be available after this briefing, the Secretary-General said, “As we observe the International Day of Peace with world leaders gathered in New York for the 64th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, I will proclaim one strong, simple message: We Must Disarm!”

THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UNITED NATIONS

This document is for planning purposes only and is current as of 12:31 Friday, 12 June, 2009. 

Saturday, 13 June

Today, Under Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Alain Le Roy, will hold a press conference in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

Today the Secretary-General will launch the “WMD-WeMustDisarm” multiplatform campaign, beginning the 100-day countdown to the International Day of Peace (21 September). This year, the theme focuses on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation.

Sunday, 14 June

Today is World Blood Donor Day.

Monday, 15 June

Today, the Secretary-General will host a forum on “Advancing global health in the face of crisis.” The Forum will open at 10 a.m. in the Trusteeship Council Chamber, with statements by the Secretary-General and the Director-General of the World Health Organization, Dr. Margaret Chan. At 10:30, they will hold a press stakeout outside the Trusteeship Council Chamber.

At 11:15 a.m., in Room S-226, the Secretary-General and former U.S. President Bill Clinton will hold a joint press conference to formally announce President Clinton's appointment as UN Special Envoy for Haiti.

From 1:15 to 2:45 p.m., the 2009 Report on the Global Campaign for the Health MDGs will be launched in the Delegates’ Dining Room.

The Security Council is expected to adopt a resolution on Georgia today.

From today to 17 June, Under Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Alain Le Roy, will be in Liberia, where he will meet with President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and other government officials. He will also be making a field visit to Gbarnga in Bong County and meeting with UNMIL’s leadership.

In Vienna, the IAEA Board of Governors will convene a regular meeting in the Agency's Headquarters at 10:30 a.m. Reports by the Director General on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the Syrian Arab Republic will be presented.

In Geneva, Margareta Walhstrom, Assistant Secretary-General for Disaster Reduction and Senator Loren Legarda, UNISDR Champion, will hold a press briefing on a new UN Index on the least and most at risk territories.

Tuesday, 16 June

From 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., the Department of Public Information will hold its 2009 Unlearning Intolerance Seminar on “Cyber Hate: Danger in Cyber Space”, in Conference Room 2. The Secretary-General will make opening remarks.

At 10 a.m., in the General Assembly Hall, the General Assembly will hold a plenary meeting on the implementation of the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS and the Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS. The Secretary-General is expected to hold a joint press stakeout with Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), at 10.30 a.m. outside the General Assembly Hall.

From 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., in the ECOSOC Chambers, the United Nations University in collaboration with UN-DESA Division for Sustainable Development, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Development Centre, and the UN Office of Special Affairs in Africa (OSAA) will host a panel discussion and presentation of the African Economic Outlook 2009.

At 11 a.m. in Room-S226, there will be a press conference by Trygve G. Nordby from Humanitarian Diplomacy Division of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Maarten van Aalst from the IFRC Climate Center, Yvonne Clarke from Jamaica Red Cross and Simon Mason from the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI). They will launch the IFRC World Disasters Report 2009.

The Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, and the UNICEF Executive Director will launch the publication of the 10-year strategic review of the study “The Impact of Armed Conflict on Children,” by G. Machel. From 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., a panel discussion entitled “Everybody has a role to play to better protect children from war” will take place, followed by a reception sponsored by the Permanent Mission of Benin and the Permanent Mission of Norway. The event will take place in the Danny Kaye Visitors’ Center of the UNICEF House.

Starting today and until 18 June, in Nairobi, Kenya, the United Nations Office on Sport for Development and Peace (UNOSDP) and the Jacobs Foundation will hold a Forum on Productive Youth Development through Sport in Africa.

Wednesday, 17 June

The Security Council will hold a debate on the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK).

Today is World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought.

Tonight, the Secretary-General will be awarded the Global Humanitarian Award by the Foreign Policy Association.

Thursday, 18 June

This morning, the Security Council will hold a debate on the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI).

The Deputy Secretary-General addresses the Council of Europe's Conference for Ministers of Justice in Tromso, Norway, on the theme 'Breaking the Silence of Domestic Violence.'

An interactive thematic dialogue of the General Assembly on “Energy efficiency, energy conservation and new and renewable sources of energy” will be held at 10 a.m. in the Trusteeship Council Chamber.

At 5 p.m., in the ECOSOC Chamber, the Secretary-General of Interpol, John Noble, will deliver a presentation to the Permanent Representatives of Missions to the United Nations on the Interpol General Assembly, which will be held in Singapore in October. Mr. Noble will be accompanied by members of the Interpol Executive Committee as well as the UN Police Advisor, Andrew Hughes.

Friday, 19 June

This morning the Security Council will hold consultations on the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) and on United Nations Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia (UNRCCA).

At 1 p.m. in Room-S226, there will be a press conference by the Permanent Mission of the Republic of the Congo on the first Sickle-cell Anaemia Awareness Day.

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