HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY MICHELE MONTAS
SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON
UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK
During August, the Spokesperson's noon briefings will take place on Monday's, Wednesday's and Friday's.
Developments within the UN system will be posted on the website daily during this time.
Monday, August 24, 2009
BAN KI-MOON PLANS TRAVEL TO AUSTRIA, NORWAY AND ARCTIC CIRCLE, SWITZERLAND
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is scheduled to travel
this Thursday to Austria. From Austria, he plans to go to Norway and
Switzerland.
In Austria, the Secretary-General will commemorate the
30th anniversary of the Vienna International Centre and meet with
Vienna-based UN organizations and staff. He will deliver the keynote address
at the Opening of the Political Symposium of the European Forum Alpbach. He
will also meet with the Federal President and Foreign Minister of Austria
and with the Prime Minister of Liechtenstein.
The Secretary-General will then go to Oslo, Norway for
an official visit where he is scheduled to meet on 31 August with the
Norwegian Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister.
From Oslo, the Secretary-General will travel to
Svalbard, in the Arctic Ocean, to see firsthand the impact of climate change
in the Arctic. Over the course of his two-day trip, he will visit polar
research stations and the Global Seed Vault, get the latest updates on
issues relating to the thinning ice and make his way to the Polar Ice Rim.
The Secretary-General's last stop will be Geneva,
Switzerland, where he will participate on 3 September in the opening of the
High-level segment of the World Meteorological Organization's (WMO)
Third World Climate Conference.
Asked whether the Secretary-General would discuss with
Norwegian officials an internal memo in the Norwegian Government that was
critical of him, the Spokeswoman said that the memo was an internal matter,
and she noted that the Norwegian Foreign Minister had come out with his own
statement in response. She said that the Secretary-General would have no
comment.
JEAN-MAURICE RIPERT OF FRANCE IS NAMED SPECIAL ENVOY FOR ASSISTANCE TO PAKISTAN
The Secretary-General has appointed Jean-Maurice Ripert
of France as Special Envoy for Assistance to Pakistan.
The Special Envoy will report to the Secretary-General
through the UN Development Group Chair. The position has been established by
the Secretary-General to assist the Government of Pakistan and the
international community in responding to the present humanitarian, recovery
and reconstruction needs relating to the country's displacement crisis.
The Special Envoy will promote, together with the
Government of Pakistan and relevant international partners, in particular
the Friends of Democratic Pakistan, a strategic, coherent and comprehensive
approach to supporting the humanitarian, recovery and reconstruction needs
of crisis-affected areas. As a senior UN official in the country, the
Special Envoy will work closely with the Resident Coordinator and the
Humanitarian Coordinator to implement a comprehensive UN approach to
returns, recovery and reconstruction.
Mr. Ripert has had a long and distinguished diplomatic
career with his government on UN-related issues and brings to this
challenging assignment a wealth of experience in the international fora and
a solid track record in consensus building.
Mr. Ripert currently serves as the Permanent
Representative of France to the United Nations in New York.
Asked why Ripert had been chosen, the Spokeswoman noted
Ambassador Ripert’s experience in conflict resolution. His expertise in
reconstruction issues would be particularly helpful under the current
circumstances, she added.
She noted, in response to a further question, that his
work was not related to the work of the independent Commission looking into
the assassination of Benazir Bhutto.
Montas added that the appointment would be at the level of Under-Secretary-General.
AFGHANISTAN: TOP U.N. ENVOY CALLS FOR VOTERS’ PATIENCE IN ELECTION AFTERMATH
The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for
Afghanistan, Kai Eide, today urged all the candidates in last week’s
elections, their supporters, and voters to be patient, so that the Electoral
Complaints Commission can carry out its work and make decisions on the
complaints that have been received.
“You must respect this process,” he said while visiting
the Commission’s headquarters in Kabul. “Respect also means demonstrating
patience.”
He said that the Electoral Complaints Commission has
his full confidence. Responding to a question about the volume of
complaints, Eide said that he was concerned about every irregularity but
emphasized that the Commission would do all it can to address and correct
them.
Asked about UN comments on the electoral process, the Spokeswoman said that, as with all elections, the United Nations would await final electoral results before making further comments.
COTE D’IVOIRE: WORK GOING WELL IN DATA-PROCESSING AHEAD OF ELECTIONS
In Côte d’Ivoire, the Secretary-General’s Special
Representative, Choi Young-Jin, today visited the main centre for voter
identification in Abidjan. He said the work was going in processing data
from the identification and voter registration operation.
This visit by the Head of the United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire comes after his mission to the interior of the country last week, which we had flagged for you. As you recall, Choi then visited identification coordination centres in Bouaké, Séguéla, Daloa, Issia and San Pedro.
DAY OF REMEMBRANCE OF SLAVE TRADE IS CHANCE TO RECONCILE DUTY OF REMEMBRANCE AND OF HISTORY
Today is the International Day for the Remembrance of
the Slave Trade and its Abolition.
Marking the occasion, Koïchiro Matsuura,
Director-General of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO),
said in a message that the day provided the international community with a
unique opportunity to reconcile the duty of remembrance and the duty of
history.
He stressed the importance of respecting the diversity of memories, cultures and perceptions in the study of slavery and the slave trade, while searching for shared references. He added that this could be achieved through quality education and also through policies for safeguarding the cultural heritage that portray the diversity and complexity of this history.
“TOUR DE TIMOR” BICYCLING RACE KICKS OFF IN TIMOR-LESTE
In Dili today, the inaugural
Tour de Timor bicycling race began and 24 of the
cyclists participating come from the UN Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT).
The Mission is also providing logistical support to race organizers and
helping national police maintain security along the course.
Over the next five days, about 330 entrants from nine
countries will contest the 455-kilometre course before returning to Dili on
Friday.
The Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Timor-Leste, Atul Khare, says that the fact that the country is staging the race, following the violent unrest of 2006, “speaks volumes for the progress made over the past three years”. He said that Tour de Timor will be a showcase for the friendliness and energy of the Timorese people, and the beauty of the nation.
OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
SPOKESWOMAN CONFIRMS DEATH OF RWANDA TRIBUNAL PROSECUTOR: Asked about the
death of a cousin of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa in Tanzania, the
Spokeswoman said that he had been employed as a prosecutor for the International
Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and had been found dead at his home. Initial
investigation results indicated that he had been murdered, but the United
Nations was awaiting results from Sri Lankan and Tanzanian authorities who are
investigating.
BAN KI-MOON AWAITS REPORT ON HIRING PROCESS FROM UNDP: Asked about a UN
Development Programme (UNDP) review into the involvement of Alan Doss in a
hiring process, the Spokeswoman said that the Secretary-General has not received
a report from UNDP on this matter, but is expecting one.
HAITIANS HAD BEEN FREE TO DEMONSTRATE: Asked about protests concerning
legislation on raising wages in Haiti, the Spokeswoman said that the United
Nations did not intervene to prevent demonstrations; rather, people had been
free to demonstrate. She added that it was up to Haiti’s Parliament to decide on
the fate of that legislation, which the President had refused to sign into law.
LIBYAN LEADER WILL NOT PITCH TENT ON NORTH LAWN: Asked whether Libyan leader Muammar Al-Qadhafi would pitch his tent on the North Lawn of UN Headquarters during the next General Assembly, the Spokeswoman said that was not going to happen
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