Secretary-General's Press Conference (unofficial transcript)

SG: Monsieur Baker continue de poursuivre cet affaire pour moi. Comme vous le savez, dans le dernier rapport que j'ai soumis au Conseil de SecuritT, on a proposT une troisieme voie pour essayer de faire avancer le dossier. J'espFre que dans trFs peux, de temps M.Baker va inviter tous les parties pour une rTunion, pour commencer a discuter. J'espFre que ca marchera parce qu'on a besoin d'une solution.

Q: (inaudible)

SG: I can only speak for the UN. You would recall even when the Agreement was signed and general amnesty was offered we entered a reservation that we did not accept, that as far as we were concerned, the amnesty could not apply to those who had committed crimes against humanity and gross crimes against the people. And of course we believe that we should go ahead with the establishment of the Court to try people like Foday Sankoh and we are not party to any plans or any discussions to free Foday Sankoh and those who committed these crimes.

Q: [inaudible]

SG: I think the decision to transform the OAU into an African Union should be seen as an attempt to broaden the image of the Organisation because the OAU has to date by and large focused on political issues and I would hope that this transformation into a Union would bring the leaders also to focus on economic and social issues. As far as the question of political crisis is concerned, I hope that the leaders will redouble their efforts and work together to resolve conflicts and crisis on this continent because without that, they are not going to make much progress with the Union. Union implies stability, union implies a certain harmony, and if the are looking at the European Union, we should all remember that after World War II, they did resolve to settle their differences through dialogue and political means and Europe has had more than 50 years of peace and that has allowed the development of the European Union. If Africans want to go that route, the first business is to end conflicts and crises and work together to resolve the differences through political means and dialogue. And as I said yesterday, each leader must be concerned with the crisis on this continent. No one can say that my country is at peace and therefore conflict in this or that country is not my business. The crisis has disfigured Africa. When you talk about Africa today, people see a continent in crisis. It makes it difficult for governments to attract investments. No one wants to invest in bad neighborhoods so we need to clean up our neighborhood, we need to come together and pool our efforts and focus on the concerns of our people to be able to move forward and make the Union meaningful.

Q: In your address yesterday, Mr Secretary, you said that you're going to give attention to Africa, the sort of attention that it deserves. Could you just elaborate to me what form this attention is going to get and what Africa has not been able to get in the past?

SG: Let me perhaps remind you precisely what I said, that Africa will get the same focus and attention from me as it did during my first term. I think the United Nations has given quite a lot of attention to Africa. In fact 60% of the Security Council's agenda focuses on Africa. I don't think that is something we should be proud of and this is why I hope the work our leaders are being urged to do will perhaps take the African issues off the Security Council agenda in the sense that they will be resolved. The world community has focused recently on the question of AIDS, which is of great importance to this continent. As we speak there is a conference in New York on small arms, attempting to prevent illicit transfer of small arms which is doing most of the killing on our continent today. There have been serious attempts to give debt relief to the African continent. We are pressing for increased ODA. Recently the European Union decided to remove tariffs for all imports coming from least developed countries, everything except arms, and most of these least developed countries are in Africa, about 33 of them are here, and these are all attempts to assist Africa and move African issues ahead. Not to mention the major humanitarian assistance that we are providing for the continent. Thank you.

Q: [inaudible question on slave trade]

SG: I think slavery is something my organization condemns and we've been active through our agencies on the ground, not only in the Sudan and in other areas, and we've been extremely concerned about today's version of the slave trade, not only what you are referring to in Sudan, but also trafficking in human beings, which is going on around the world. The transport across borders of young women across borders for prostitution and young children who are drafted into armies or shipped across borders to work on farms and others. These are areas that we are fighting against through UNICEF and our other agencies.

Q: [inaudible in French on Western Sahara]

SG: Pas forcement, pas forcement parce que M. Baker va rTunir toutes les parties pour discuter la troisiFme voie. Cette troisiFeme voie, au dTbut prTvoit une autonomie substentielle envisage aussi un referendum au but de 4 a 5 ans pour l'indTpendence. Et si les parties n'arrivent pas a se mettre d'accord pendant cette pTriod de 5 mois, on sera obligT de retomber sur les plans qui sont deja qui est acceptTs par les 2 parties. Evidemment j'ai encouragT M.Baker a chercher une 3Fme voie, parce que depuis 10 ou 11 ans on n'a pas pu mettre les plans en application. Donc, j'en suis arrive a chercher une 3Fme voie qui peut-Otre sera pourra accellerer et faciliter une solution si on n?arrive pas a faire ta evidemment il faudra revoir le dossier et dTcider dans quelle mesure on va mettre en les plans application.

Q: [Question in French on DRC]

SG: Je crois qu'on a eu une trFs bonne rTunion. Les deux chefs d'Ttat on decidT de coopTrer, de se tTlTphoner assez souvent et puis de travaller ensemble sur le terrain pour calmer la situation et evidemment il vont essayer d'Ttablir une relation de confiance entre eux et avec leurs collaborateurs. Je crois que ta aussi ta va aider. Je les avais aussi encouragTs a Tviter de faire genres des dTclarations qui a caractere provocateur soit a Kinshasa ou bien a Kigali et je crois qu'ils ont acceptT de faire ta aussi. Mais en tous cas va voir une cooperation plus detendue entre les deux. [Response in French]

Q: [inaudible question on Angola]

SG: Let me first start with the humanitarian situation, which is very tragic and there are lots of people in need where we cannot get assistance to them because of security and because of access. But I think the basic problem is the continuation of the war, -- the war that has destabilised whole regions and created untold misery to the people of Angola. I have with me Mr. Ibrahim Gambari who is following that file for me. We are in touch with the Government, with the civil society, in Angola, who are becoming more and more active and who are demanding ever louder peace for the country, and for the people to carry on with their lives. And we will be working with the governments in the region and beyond to try and break the impasse that now exists and move forward. Thank you.

Q: [inaudible]

SG: Both parties maintain that they stand by the Lusaka Agreement and that they will respect the Lusaka Agreement, so at least that gives us a basis eventually to move them forward.

Q: Has there or has there not been any significant progress on Burundi?

SG: I think I will leave President Mandela to make the announcement on any breakthrough or progress on Burundi. There was a useful meeting, as I said, Sunday, and President Mandela is following it up with other consultations with the signatories to the accord and eventually also with the leaders of the region on the 23rd of July and I think he'll be in a position to make an announcement after the consultations he's having with the parties, but I think the meeting was helpful. Perhaps we are beginning to move in the right direction, but the outcome will depend on the consultations that President Mandela is undertaking at the moment. The Professor is getting impatient! Professor? (Laughter)

Q: [largely inaudible statement on HIV/AIDS on a natural cure in Lusaka]

SG: I have a suggestion. I have Dr. Peter Piot. Peter, why don't you join me here. Peter is the head of UNAIDS. Peter will look after you afterwards.

Q: [question on Zimbabwe]

SG: I think a great deal of the responsibility rests with the Government of Zimbabwe. I agree with the Government that land reform is necessary, but I also believe that land reform has to be handled in a legal manner with fair compensation paid to those who lose their property. And earlier on in the game we have had discussions with the Government about the UN becoming involved, becoming involved in the sense of working with the Government on a credible land reform and pulling in donor countries who would make funds available for compensation. But things have moved on much faster, before we could come to an agreement on this. And I hope that even though things have moved as fast as they have that it is not too late to take measures to calm the situation so that agricultural production can be continued and those who would need to be resettled, can be settled.

Q: [on Zimbabwe]

SG: I think I have answered that question in the earlier question.

Q: [inaudible on crimes against humanity and a second inaudible one]

SG: Just one question if you don't mind. Let me start with your second question. I think the least developed countries will attend or should attend the new round. UNCTAD, the UN trade organization in Geneva, working with WTO has been trying to help them prepare for the Conference and I think they had a meeting in this region with trade ministers to discuss that issue and I hope they will attend in their numbers, because I think it is important for the developing countries to participate in world trade. The more open the markets are, the easier it is for them to join. In my own discussions with leaders of the developing countries, most, almost all of them, would much rather trade themselves out of poverty rather than live on handouts and I think the only way to do that is to gain access to world trade and we need to be part of these negotiations to open up the market and I hope they will be there in their numbers.

Q: [inaudible on Foday Sankoh]

SG: I don't think he can be taken to any of the courts that you have referred to because they are all very specific. Rwanda, the tribunal in Arusha, is for the Rwanda genocide, the one in The Hague is for the Balkans, and in Serbia there will be a special court set up to try those who committed atrocities there. In fact your question links up with the first part of the question, which I'm afraid I didn't get to. There is an agreement to set up an International Criminal Court. That court will be able to bring them to dock and prosecute those who have committed heinous crimes or crimes against humanity. It will be a standard court. We will have to set up specific courts for Rwanda, for the Balkans, for Sierra Leone. The Rome Statute requires that we set up the court when we have 60 ratifications. As of today we have about 40 ratifications. My expectation is that by the end of next year the International Criminal Court will come into existence and we will then put in place a missing link in international law, which will send out a powerful message that criminals cannot act with impunity and that they could be brought to justice in an international court.

Q: What measures are the United Nations putting into place for child soldiers?

SG: I have a special representative who is fighting against the recruitment of children into the army. His name is Olara Otunnu -- some of you may know him. And we are working with governments, not only to dissuade them from recruiting boys and girls into the army in the first place but also to demobilize those who are already in the armies and recently you have seen that we have been able to get several of them released from the armies and in our own conventions and treaties we have set a very rigid guideline that anyone under 18 should not be drafted into the army and quite a lot of the governments have accepted that and we hope it will become international standard.

Q: [inaudible on African membership in the Security Council]

SG: I think it will depend on the agreement the member states come to. There are several proposals on the table when it comes to Security Council reform and there is no consensus yet. But all the proposals, which includes additional permanent seats, also envisages a permanent seat for Africa. And I suspect that when the time comes for the Council to move ahead with a reform and permanent seats are created, there will be one for each region: Africa, Asia and Latin America, although the OAU request is for Africa to be given two seats, two permanent seats.

Q: [inaudible on what the UN is doing for refugees in Africa]

SG: I think on the refugee issue, let me first clarify how we fund refugee programmes. We do it on voluntary contributions. We make appeals to governments for money. It's not just for the refugees but most of our humanitarian operations. We note that there is a kind of donor fatigue and governments respond more positively to some appeals that to others. In some situations we get about 90% of the appeal, the amount of money we need to undertake these operations. In others, the appeals may be oversubscribed and this determines the amount of resources that we are able to apply. We do have UN programmes, like the World Food Programme, that makes food available to the nations from governments and we provide sustenance and relief to these refugees. But there are times that we do not get the resources to do all that we would like to do. But we do pursue our efforts, in fact the High Commissioner for Refugees, Mr Ruud Lubbers, is here with me in Lusaka and one of his biggest problems is getting resources to carry ou t his mandate and he is indeed cutting back, reducing staff, rolling back programmes and we are making all attempts to governments to get stronger support for this essential part of our work.

Q: In the meeting on HIV/AIDS with African leaders, did you also discuss an (economic) plan of action to be adapted at the OAU summit?

SG: The question is if I have discussed the economic plan, the first one put forward by Presidents Mbeki, Obasanjo and Bouteflika of Algeria, the Map Plan, and the second one, OMEGA, proposed by President Wade of Senegal. Both plans were intended to give African economic development an impetus and propel us forward into the 21st century with certain specific actions that they recommend. Attempts have been made to merge the two plans and that has been presented to the OAU, which will be discussed and I think it is a worthwhile effort and I am really proud that the African leaders are taking the lead on major economic and social development of the continent and I hope that the OAU will be able to discuss the document even though further refinement may be necessary. But I think that it is a very positive development.

Q: [on next month's Durban conference]

SG: I know that that is one of the hot issues as we prepare for this conference. I think no one, no rational person, can accept slavery as something which is human. It was abhorrent, and we should all condemn it. But the Conference I hope will be forward looking and come up with recommendations and solutions that will then show that we take steps to eliminate racism, in our current society, take steps to ensure that we do not engage in trafficking women and human beings, that we do not pursue activities of the kind to which reference was made to current day slavery, but I think slavery should be discussed. It should be discussed and brought to closure. It was a tragedy. It should not be condoned. We should confront it head on. But we should not use it to hold the Conference back or hold the Conference hostage. We should discuss it in the manner that makes everyone realize how terrible and abhorrent that was and determine not to ever repeat those grave errors of the past.

Q: [inaudible on Middle East]

SG: I did speak to President Arafat last night and also spoke to Prime Minister Sharon, late last night, to discuss the situation on the ground and to urge them to really move ahead with the implementation of the Mitchell Plan. Both sides of course believe the other side is not implementing the Plan and this is what President Arafat said here. In my discussions with Prime Minister Sharon he also believes that the other side is not implementing the Plan. What is important is that both sides have accepted the Mitchell Plan in its entirety. And we need to move ahead, and find a way of moving ahead and implementing it in its entirety within a firm and reasonable timetable, and move ahead to the peace talks. I urge all the parties to do whatever they can to end the violence and move on for the sake of their people to resolve this conflict. Thank you very much. *****