HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC, SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

TUESDAY, 14 JUNE 2016

SECRETARY-GENERAL HIGHLIGHTS COOPERATION WITH EUROPEAN UNION IN BRUSSELS TODAY

• The Secretary-General is in Brussels today where he will participate in the European Development Days tomorrow. Upon arrival, he met with Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, and he mentioned the need for stronger international cooperation in the face of emerging challenges related to terrorism.
• He also appreciated the efforts of the European Union to manage the large movements of migrants and refugees to Europe, including through the expansion of legal pathways. The Secretary-General then met refugees and volunteers working at a soup kitchen in Brussels.
• He later met with Martin Shultz, the President of the European Parliament, with whom he also discussed large movements of refugees and migrants, development cooperation and the prevention of violent extremism.
• Following a meeting with Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, and a number of EU Commissioners, the Secretary-General gave a joint press conference with President Juncker. In his remarks, he said that the challenges that the EU and the international community face today require strong partnerships.
• Reiterating his solidarity with the people and Government of Belgium after the 22 March terrorist attacks in the country, the Secretary-General stressed that leaders and communities have to be steadfast in opposing xenophobia, discrimination and violence. He also said that he remained deeply distressed at the high number of deaths in the Mediterranean and that we must work together to address the root causes of displacement and ensure better protection.
• Finally, he commended EU member states for taking steps to align their national development plan with the 2030 Agenda and urged the European Union to work to accelerate the process for the early entry into force of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. 

U.N. ENVOY FOR GUINEA-BISSAU CALLS FOR PEACEFUL RESOLUTION OF POLITICAL STAND-OFF

• The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Guinea-Bissau, Modibo Touré, today briefed the Security Council on the work of the United Nations office in that country.
• Mr. Touré said that the appointment of the new Prime Minister triggered a political stand-off, whereby members of the dismissed Cabinet led by Carlos Correia had refused to leave the Government Palace.
• However, he said, the situation was resolved on 9 June, when the remaining members of the dismissed Cabinet and their supporters peacefully vacated the Government Palace, ending a 14-day stalemate. He said that the peaceful resolution of this stand-off may have helped avert a potentially serious crisis, but further challenges loom ahead.
• Later in the day, the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Hervé Ladsous, is expected to brief the Security Council in consultations on Darfur.

OVER 14,000 IRAQS DISPLACED BY VIOLENCE IN MOSUL

• The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has said that more than 14,000 Iraqis have been displaced from their homes and registered in camps following a renewed offensive by the Iraqi Security Forces against Da’esh south-east of Mosul since late March this year. 
• There are no safe routes for internally displaced people escaping the violence and families use secondary routes, mostly at night, crossing dangerous terrain. There are reports that some IDPs are trapped, severely injured or killed in minefields on their way to safety.
• An eventual assault on Mosul could result in a massive displacement, upwards of 600,000 people. UNHCR and other humanitarian agencies have been drawing up contingency plans to respond.
• In addition, there has been an influx of around 6,700 Iraqis who have entered Syria’s north-eastern Hassakeh governorate, using local smuggling networks, since April. They include families who have managed to escape Mosul and those who have left surrounding areas, anticipating more fighting.  The journey is hazardous, with families often travelling at night.
• UNHCR teams and partners in Syria are identifying new arrivals, and carrying out regular needs assessments to coordinate assistance. They include some 5,400 who arrived in the past few months and are staying at the newly reactivated Al-Hol camp in Syria.

YEMEN: U.N. ENVOY CONVENES MEETING WITH YEMENI DELEGATIONS

• The Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, convened a meeting in Kuwait with the heads of delegations yesterday. The discussions focused on security and military issues, including the need to establish military and security committees to oversee any agreed upon security arrangements.
• He also welcomed the release of 130 detainees by Ansar Allah in Ibb, and urged the parties to release as many detainees as possible as soon as possible. He reiterated his strong condemnation of all unlawful arrests or detentions, as well as the bombing of houses.

SECRETARY-GENERAL TRANSMITS LATEST PROGRESS REPORT ON CHEMICAL WEAPONS INVESTIGATION IN SYRIA

• The Secretary-General has transmitted the latest progress report of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons-United Nations (OPCW-UN) Joint Investigative Mechanism to the Security Council. The Secretary-General commends the Mechanism for conducting its work in a professional, independent and impartial manner.
• The Secretary-General appreciates the support provided by the OPCW and the Office for Disarmament Affairs to the Mechanism, as well as the financial and other assistance provided by the Member States to the Mechanism.
• Full cooperation from the Syrian Government, and all parties in the Syrian Arab Republic, remains essential in the discharge of the Mechanism’s mandate.

U.N. RIGHTS OFFICE WELCOMES GUATEMALA’S EFFORTS TO FIGHT CORRUPTION

• The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) today welcomed the significant and extremely courageous steps taken by the Guatemalan authorities in the fight against corruption and impunity over the past few weeks.
• Last Saturday, three former ministers were arrested and detained for their alleged involvement in money laundering and unlawful association. Two other former ministers are also the subject of arrest warrants on similar charges.
• The Human Rights Office hopes that the country's remarkable efforts to overcome corruption and impunity, including the reforms to the justice system currently being promoted, will set an example for other States.
• The Human Rights Office in Guatemala will continue to support the ongoing efforts towards reinforcing the independence of the justice system and the rule of law in the country.

ONE IN THREE LATIN AMERICANS RISK SLIDING BACK INTO POVERTY – NEW REPORT WARNS

• According to the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) latest Regional Human Development Report, one in three Latin Americans who left poverty since 2003 —that is 25 to 30 million women and men – risk sliding back into poverty, but a new generation of public policies in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can boost resilience and prevent setbacks.
• This at-risk group is part of an even larger set of people: 220 million people (almost two in every five in the region) are “vulnerable”, according to the report.  Although they are not officially classified as poor they have been unable to rise to the middle class.
• The report recommends social protection, care systems (especially for children and older persons), labour skills and closing historic gender, racial and ethnic gaps.

MAKE RIGHTS A REALITY FOR ALL PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES, URGES SECRETARY-GENERAL

• The Secretary-General today welcomed delegates to the Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
• In remarks delivered on his behalf by Edmond Mulet, Chef de Cabinet,  the Secretary-General said the convention is one of the most widely ratified international treaties, with 164 ratifications.
• He commended the delegates for their work, and said there is still much more to be done to fully implement the CRPD and make rights a reality for the more than one billion persons with disabilities around the world.

NEW REPORT HIGHLIGHTS PLIGHT OF UNACCOMPANIED MIGRANT CHILDREN

• The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) today published a report on the plight of unaccompanied migrant children arriving in Europe through Italy.
• The agency said the children generally rely on human smugglers, often under a system of ‘pay as you go’, which opens them to exploitation, including sexual exploitation and other abuse.
• The report, called Danger Every Step of the Way, says that more than 7,000 made the journey in the first five months of the year, twice as many as last year.

1.5 MILLION PEOPLE IN MOZAMBIQUE AFFECTED BY EL NIÑO-INDUCED DROUGHT

• The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned that at least 1.5 million people are in need of assistance in Mozambique due to El Niño induced drought. An estimated 95,000 of them are children who are acutely malnourished.
• Nearly 460,000 farmers have been affected by drought and failed harvest. In the southern region of the country almost all planted crops for the main season have been lost due to drought.
• United Nations agencies and their partners issued a 12-month response plan but have only received $13 million of the $203 million requested, so far.

NEW STUDY STRESSES IMPORTANCE OF FISHERIES IN AFRICA’S DRYLANDS

• According to a new report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on fisheries in the drylands of sub-Saharan Africa, small, fast growing wild fish could be crucial allies in the race to end hunger in some of the world's most chronically poor and underfed regions.
• Water is an ephemeral resource in Africa's dryland regions, with water bodies forming and disappearing in a relatively short period of time.
• Despite this, fish - some of which weigh as little as a few grams at maturity - can survive and thrive in these environments, making the continent's dryland fisheries highly productive and resilient, added the report.

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION CONVENES MEETING ON STATUS OF ZIKA

• The World Health Organization (WHO) convened its 3^rd meeting of the Emergency Committee on Zika and observed increase in neurological disorders and neonatal malformations.
• At the meeting, the Committee will consider whether the Zika virus and related complications still constitute a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, review the implementation and impact of earlier recommendations made by the Committee, and determine if new recommendations are needed.