HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SPOKESMAN'S NOON BRIEFING

BY FRED ECKHARD
SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Wednesday, 23 March, 2005

 

LEBANON: ANNAN “DEEPLY DISTURBED” BY BOMBING ATTACK  

• The Secretary-General was deeply disturbed to learn of yet another bombing in Lebanon, this time near the port of Jounieh, which killed three people and injured eight others in the early morning hours of 23 March.  He sends his condolences to the families of the dead and wishes the injured a speedy recovery.  
   

• The Secretary-General calls on the Government of Lebanon to bring to justice those responsible for such murderous attacks, and to prevent the situation from deteriorating.  He urges all concerned parties to do their utmost to safeguard Lebanon’s stability and national unity.  
   

• The Secretary-General believes strongly that the Lebanese people should be allowed to decide the future of their country peacefully and democratically.

 

U.N. TO KEEP WORKING WITH ARAB STATES TO ACHIEVE DEMOCRACY  

• The Secretary-General told the Summit of the League of Arab States in Algiers that Arab men and women are growing more determined to make their diverse voices heard. In recent months, he noted, Iraqis, Palestinians and Lebanese have shown a strong appetite for democratic solutions to their problems.
   

• He said that democracy is the best means to solve problems, promote peace, nurture development and create inclusive and cohesive societies. He added that the United Nations will continue working with Arab countries to achieve these objectives.
   

• On Lebanon, the Secretary-General said that he expects to release within the next few days the report of the fact-finding commission he established in the wake of the killing of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, and that he believes “a comprehensive investigation may well also be necessary.”
   

• He said the United Nations is also committed to helping Iraq in its transition, and that it will continue to press for full Israeli and Palestinian implementation of their Road Map obligations.
   

• Asked about the Secretary-General’s comments regarding the need for a “comprehensive investigation” in Lebanon, the Spokesman said that more details would be available once the report of the team headed by Peter Fitzgerald goes to the Security Council, as it is scheduled to do on Thursday.

 

ANNAN MEETS WITH ARAB LEADERS IN ALGIERS; SAYS SYRIA WORKING ON TIMETABLE FOR WITHDRAWAL FROM LEBANON  

• The Secretary-General held a number of bilateral meetings with Arab leaders on the sidelines of the summit, including meetings yesterday evening with the Presidents of Egypt, Sudan and Syria.
   

• He said, at a press encounter late yesterday, that he had a very constructive meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad who, he said, is working out a timetable for Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon, and will withdraw troops and security services completely into Syria. He added that he will send Special Envoy Terje Roed-Larsen to the region in the first week of April, and expects him to come back with a well-defined and credible timetable.
   

• After meeting Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, the Secretary-General stressed the need for a political agreement between the Sudanese Government and Darfur rebels, and security for people to go back to their villages there.
   

• He also discussed with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak the implementation of resolution 1559, the situation in Darfur and the President’s recent announcement to allow multiple candidates in Egyptian presidential elections.
   

• Today, the Secretary-General spoke to Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, with whom he discussed Western Sahara, Resolution 1559 and terrorism.
   

• The Secretary-General met this morning as well with Arab League Secretary-General Amre Moussa. He also had one-on-one meetings with Lebanese Foreign Minister Mahmoud Hamoud and Iraqi President Ghazi al-Yawer, as well as with Libya’s leader Muammar al-Qaddafi and Morocco’s King Mohammed.
   

• He was asked before he left Algiers why he had asked for another inquiry into Hariri’s death, and responded that, often, in these cases, you would want a broader investigation, more than the work of the fact-finding team he sent. 
   

• The Secretary-General will return to New York tonight, and is expected back at UN Headquarters tomorrow.

 

LIBERIA: PEACE PROCESS STILL FACES MANY CHALLENGES

• A report by the Secretary-General on the UN Mission in Liberia is out on the racks today, and it notes that the overall security situation in the country has stayed calm. It also says that preparations for the October elections have remained on course, with former armed factions joining the political process, and that increased numbers of internally displaced persons and refugees have returned to their homes.
   

• At the same time, however, the report notes that, despite gains, the peace process still faces many challenges, with only limited progress being made to entrench the rule of law and improve the human rights situation. In addition, there continues to be concern about the National Transitional Government because of its lack of transparency.
   

• To help prevent sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers, the Mission has designated a focal point to address the issue, and it has established a public hotline for reporting misconduct.

 

SECURITY COUNCIL BRIEFED ON BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA  

• Paddy Ashdown, the High Commissioner for Bosnia and Herzegovina, today briefed the Security Council in an open meeting about recent developments in that country. After the briefing, Council members continued to discuss Bosnia.
   

• Once that ended, the Security Council held closed consultations to discuss a draft resolution on Sudan.

 

IRAQ: ALL POLITICAL FORCES MUST BE INVOLVED IN WRITING CONSTITUTION  

• Ashraf Qazi, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Iraq, met today with the President of the Association of Muslim Scholars, Sheikh Harith al-Dhari, for talks that addressed recent political developments in Iraq and efforts to advance the political process.
   

• Qazi underlined that all Iraqi political forces need to be involved in the writing of the country’s constitution, and asserted the United Nations’ commitment to helping the Iraqi people during the transitional process.

 

 

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS  

U.N. DEPUTY TSUNAMI ENVOY LEAVES SRI LANKA FOR INDONESIA: Erskine Bowles, the UN Deputy Special Envoy for Tsunami Reconstruction, has wrapped up a two-day visit to Sri Lanka , where he met with Sri Lankan government officials, the UN country team on the island, and representatives of civil society. Bowles also visited hard-hit areas to see tsunami relief and recovery efforts firsthand. He is now in Indonesia.  

PRESS BRIEFING ON SEX ABUSE TO BE HELD AFTER TALKS WITH TROOP CONTRIBUTING COUNTRIES: The Spokesman, in response to a question concerning why Prince Zeid of Jordan will brief the press two weeks after the release of his report Thursday on sexual exploitation allegations, said that Prince Zeid felt he should not talk to press until he finishes consultations with troop contributing countries. The Secretary-General, he noted, had asked the Permanent Representative of Jordan to consult with the troop contributing countries on the comportment of their peacekeepers.

ROOSEVELT DISABILITY AWARD GIVEN TO JORDAN: King Abdullah of Jordan today accepted the Franklin Delano Roosevelt International Disability Award in the Economic and Social Council chamber, on behalf of his country. In a message delivered earlier today by Nane Annan, the Secretary-General notes that Jordanian society is pursuing the universal goal of creating a just and equitable society for all persons - regardless of disability. The message adds that Jordan’s overall achievement in the field of disability draws inspiration from a rich variety of material – ranging from Arab-Islamic tradition to the Universal Declaration on Human Rights.

U.N. ENVOY WELCOMES NEW KOSOVO GOVERNMENT: The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Kosovo, Søren Jessen-Petersen, today welcomed the election of Bajram Kosumi as Prime Minister and of the new government by the Kosovo Assembly. He added that he also welcomed Kosumi’s expressed intentions to reach out to the opposition, and that it was critical that the new government build upon the hard work of the past few months and maintain both the momentum and focus on the priority Standards.

WORLD METEOROLOGICAL DAY TODAY: Today is World Meteorological Day, an annual event to celebrate the entry into force of the Convention of the World Meteorological Organization, on 23 March 1950.

 

** Chef de Cabinet Mark Malloch Brown was the guest at the noon briefing. He answered questions pertaining to the oil-for-food programme.

 

 

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