HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC
SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK
Wednesday, June 7, 2006
SECRETARY-GENERAL STANDS BY STATEMENT FROM DEPUTY
Asked about criticisms by U.S. Ambassador John Bolton
about a
speech
delivered on Tuesday by Deputy Secretary-General Mark
Malloch Brown, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General stands by his
Deputy’s statement and agrees with the thrust of it. In response to questions
about Ambassador Bolton’s request that the Secretary-General repudiate the
speech, the Spokesman said the Secretary-General saw no reason to take any
action.
Dujarric said in response to questions that everyone
should read the speech in full. He contended that it was not an anti-US speech,
but rather one that argued for greater U.S. engagement in the United Nations,
since it says that the United Nations cannot work without U.S. engagement and
leadership and UN reform cannot happen without the United States.
He hoped that, once everyone had read the speech, they
would understand it as a call for greater U.S. commitment, as well as cooperation
by the Group of 77 in UN reform efforts, so that the reform process will move
forward.
Asked about the thrust of the speech, the Spokesman
said that it is first and foremost a warning about the impending crisis the
United Nations is facing due to the deadlock over UN reform and the budget cap,
which poses longer-term risks to the UN's ability to deal with urgent global
challenges.
What the Secretary-General wants, he said, is a United
Nations
that is better equipped to deal with the complex emergencies it must face. The
way to do that, he added, is the reform process, which is stalled.
The Secretary-General, the Spokesman said, believes
that the Membership need to work together on the reform effort to achieve their
goals. At present, he said, the management reform effort has gotten bogged down
in questions that are not about reforming the United Nations. The debate, the
Spokesman said, had now become about power and who, amongst the membership holds
it. It is also clear, he said, that the United Nations needs strong U.S.
involvement and commitment to function effectively.
Asked whether the Secretary-General believes the U.S.
commitment has been insufficient, the Spokesman said that what is needed is
continued and sustained commitment from the United States, as it has received
from this administration on a number of issues. What is needed, he said, is for
the reform process to work; currently, it is in crisis.
Asked about the speech’s reference to how the United
States keeps Middle America “in the dark” about the United Nations, the
Spokesman acknowledged that the United Nations itself could do a better job of
highlighting the work that it does. But Member States, he added, also have a
role in keeping the public informed about the UN’s work.
Asked whether Malloch Brown violated UN rules by
making “political” references to Rush Limbaugh and Fox News, the Spokesman said
he did not see either Limbaugh or Fox as political entities.
Asked about the reference to Fox News, the Spokesman
denied that it was a criticism, but rather an observation. He noted that Malloch
Brown has in the past praised Fox for its aggressive reporting, which has
brought a number of issues to the forefront for further action.
Dujarric disputed the idea that the speech took issue
with only one side, saying that it included criticism of Democratic as well as
Republican Administrations, as well as criticism of the Group of 77 coalition of
States, just as much as the United States, for the current deadlock
Asked about complimentary comments in the speech that
were made about former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, the Spokesman
said that the speech also praises current Secretary Condoleezza Rice's
leadership and talks about the "wide number of areas" the United States is
engaged very constructively with the United Nations, from Lebanon to
Afghanistan.
The Spokesman noted that the Deputy Secretary-General
was speaking to an American audience and used terms directed to that audience.
Asked whether Malloch Brown would speak with
Ambassador Bolton, the Spokesman said he was not aware whether a conversation
would take place. He later told reporters that Malloch Brown would talk to
reporters at 2:45 p.m. today.
Asked about the circumstances behind the speech, the
Spokesman said it had been a long-standing engagement for the Deputy
Secretary-General.
Asked whether the Secretary-General knew about the
speech that his Deputy would make, the Spokesman said he was aware that Malloch
Brown would make it, but noted that it is the Deputy Secretary-General’s speech.
Asked to respond to Ambassador Bolton’s comment that
the speech was the biggest mistake by a UN official since 1989, the Spokesman
disputed that the speech was a mistake.
Asked whether Mark Malloch Brown was aligned with the
U.S. Democratic Party, the Spokesman disagreed, saying the Deputy
Secretary-General is not aligned with any one political party, and is an
international civil servant. He noted that UN officials routinely speak at the
functions of many political parties.
Asked about the Secretary-General’s knowledge of
“Middle America”, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General has made a
number of trips throughout the United States, not simply to the two coasts, and
was himself educated for some time in the Midwest.
Asked why the Secretary-General had not spoken at the
Tuesday event, the Spokesman noted that, often, when the Secretary-General is
invited, he cannot attend and someone else shows up in his place.
ANNAN WELCOMES MYANMAR'S DECISION TO RELEASE HUMAN RIGHTS
DEFENDER
SECURITY
COUNCIL AND PEACEKEEPING ASSESSMENT MISSIONS
MEET WITH AFRICAN UNION IN ADDIS ABABA
The Security Council
mission led by British Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry is in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia,
today, where it met with representatives of the African Union (AU).
Meanwhile, also in Addis Ababa today is the mission
led by Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Marie Guehenno
to assess the requirements for a possible transition from the African Union to
the United Nations in Darfur. Today, the Guehenno mission met with the
leadership and staff of the UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea.
The Security Council mission and the Guehenno mission were
meeting in Addis Ababa.
TIMOR-LESTE:
NOT A TIME FOR DESPAIR
The Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Timor-Leste,
Ian Martin, today left the capital Dili after a nine-day visit to assess the
situation around the country.
Martin told reporters that he would convey the
Secretary-General’s message that the current situation in Timor-Leste "is not a
time for despair"but a time for the people and leaders of Timor-Leste as well as
a time for the international community to act together.
He reaffirmed the United Nations’ commitment to assisting
the people and Government of Timor-Leste through the current crisis and beyond
the immediate need to restore security.
Martin and Timor-Leste Foreign Minister Ramos Horta will be
here this week to brief the Secretary-General and next week to the Security Council.
Meanwhile, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian
Affairs (OCHA) reports that it is preparing a flash appeal for Timor-Leste
because of the worsening humanitarian situation there.
The World Food Programme (WFP) today
announced that
it will provide food aid to 100,000 displaced people over the next six months. WFP is currently providing highly fortified biscuits to
6,000 children and pregnant women in camps in and around the capital, Dili.
Asked about comments from Ramos Horta about whether
the United Nations would send a police force to Timor-Leste, the Spokesman said
that the Secretary-General is keen to hear from Ian Martin, who would also brief
the Security Council as it decides on the future UN posture in the country.
What is clear to the Secretary-General, Dujarric said,
is that the UN presence will have to be increased, so that it can help to
stabilize the situation and rebuild what was destroyed in the recent violence.
Asked about comments from Special Representative
Sukehiro Hasegawa that it had been a mistake to pull out UN forces from
Timor-Leste so quickly, the Spokesman said that the focus in the weeks and
months ahead would be on how the international community can best help the
Timorese people as they move to rebuild what had been destroyed.
Asked about an investigation into killings near the UN
compound in Dili, the Spokesman said the United Nations was keen to get to the
bottom of it, and would cooperate with any investigation by the Timorese
Government.
U.N.
TRIBUNAL CHIEFS ARE CONCERNED BY LEVELS OF COOPERATION
FOR BRINGING FUGITIVES TO
JUSTICE
The Security Council today
heard from the Presidents and
Chief Prosecutors of both the International Criminal Tribunal for the former
Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).
The ICTY and ICTR officials reported to the Council on the
measures taken and the challenges they face in fulfilling their completion
strategies. In her report to the council, ICTY Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte
said speeding up
proceedings remained a top priority of her office and she reiterated her call
for concerned States to cooperate fully with her investigations.
Prosecutor Hassan Jallow of the ICTR, for his part,
reported that the Tribunal continued to faces challenges and non-cooperation in
arresting the 18 indicted fugitives while his office was able to reliably
confirm the current location of some of them. He said he was confident that the
ICTR can conclude the cases of all those currently in detention by the 2008
deadline of the Completion strategy.
LIBERIA: U.N.
MISSION REPORTS ON PROBE INTO SEX ABUSE ALLEGATIONS
The UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) has released an
update on ongoing
investigations into allegations of sexual misconduct by UNMIL staff.
After preliminary investigation, three of the cases were
found to be unsubstantiated and closed due to lack of evidence. Preliminary
investigations were completed in another 24 cases, of which 16 were found to be
substantiated. Investigations are on-going in the other 18 cases.
Disciplinary action has been taken by UN Headquarters in
six
of the 2005 cases involving UNMIL personnel. For the remaining cases if
substantiated, disciplinary action will be taken at the conclusion of the case
review.
Asked whether countries would be “named and shamed”
for abuses committed by their peacekeepers, the Spokesman noted that the United
Nations has in the past named countries involved in sexual exploitation
allegations, particularly when the countries have taken action against
offenders.
Asked about action taken today in the Netherlands
against a man found guilty of violating the UN arms embargo on Liberia, the
Spokesman said that the United Nations welcomes it when Member States take up
the responsibility of prosecuting such violations.
GLOBAL COMPACT
LAUNCHED IN NIGERIA
The Secretary-General has sent a
message to the
official launch of the Global Compact
in Nigeria, taking place in Abuja today.
In it, he says we have a shared duty to do all we can to shape globalization so
that it spreads prosperity far more broadly among the populations of less
developed countries.
Meanwhile, the Global Compact office eports on the new “Peace
through Commerce” program, which was developed by the Association to Advance
Collegiate Schools of Business with Global Compact support. The program's aim is to raise awareness of corporate
citizenship and the role of business for peace in leading business schools in
the United States and other countries.
PALESTINIANS
NEED MORE FINANCIAL SUPPORT
The Secretary-General, in a
report to the
General Assembly and Economic and Social Council, says that significant
financial support from the international community will be needed to avoid
further degradations in the quality of life within the Occupied Palestinian
Territory.
The report, which is out on the racks today, says that
Israel is strongly encouraged to resume payments to the Palestinian Authority
through an appropriate mechanism, while the Palestinian Authority should comply
with the three conditions set down by the Quartet.
HAITI: U.N.
MISSION REJECTS FALSE ALLEGATIONS SURROUNDING
DEATH OF CANADIAN PEACEKEEPER
The UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH)
responded today to recent media reports concerning the death of Canadian police
officer Marc Bourque.
According to the MINUSTAH statement, on 20 December 2005,
Bourque was shot by gunmen in Port-au-Prince and died shortly afterwards from
his wounds, in spite of medical assistance provided to him at the scene of the
shooting by two Jordanian doctors and a Jordanian nurse.
When the car Marc Bourque was driving came under fire, in
the Cité Soleil area of Haiti, a Jordanian Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC)
drove into position to protect it. But the gun fire continued from another
position, hitting Bourque.
In spite of every attempt to save Marc Bourque’s life by
the hospital staff, he died as a result of massive blood loss from the artery in
his leg, which was severed by the bullet that struck him and by metal fragments
from the door of the car he was driving.
The entire episode occurred with the space of 40 minutes,
from the moment his car came under fire to the moment he arrived at the
hospital.
This painful tragedy, which devastated Marc Bourque’s
family, friends and colleagues, has been revisited in the past few days by a
Canadian magazine, which alleges that the Jordanian military did nothing to help
Marc Bourque as he lay wounded at the scene of the shooting.|
MINUSTAH rejects as unacceptable the false allegations and
loose conclusions that have been made and drawn in recent days by professional
media in Canada. These current and inaccurate media reports have served only to
slander the Jordanian Battalion and further distress Marc Bourque’s family,
friends and colleagues.
OTHER
ANNOUNCEMENTS
ANNAN ENCOURAGES IRANIAN PRESIDENT TO CAREFULLY VIEW
EUROPEAN PROPOSALS: Asked about developments in
Iran, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General is hopeful that the Iranians
will take the time to view the proposals presented by European Union High
Representative Javier Solana carefully. He noted, in response to a further
question, that the Secretary-General had spoken to the Iranian President and
encouraged him to consider the package fully.
PUBLIC INFORMATION CHIEF’S TRIP TO MOSCOW NOTHING OUT OF
THE ORDINARY: The Spokesman disputed the premise of a question implying that
Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information Shashi
Tharoor’s travel schedule helped any bid by him to become Secretary-General.
Tharoor’s current trip to Moscow was for a media seminar on the Middle East,
mandated by the General Assembly, which he and all Under-Secretaries-General in
his job have attended since its inception.
SPOKESMAN HIGHLIGHTS ANNAN’S CALLS FOR SECURITY COUNCIL
REFORM: Asked about the way in which the five permanent members of the
Security Council had been selected, the Spokesman noted the Secretary-General’s
call for the Security Council to be reformed so that its legitimacy can be
increased.
ALL POLITICAL ACTORS SHOULD SUPPORT SOMALI TRANSITIONAL
FEDERAL INSTITUTIONS: Asked about the United Nation's concerns about Somalia following
the gains by an Islamist movement in Mogadishu, the Spokesman said that the key
for the United Nations is for all political actors to support the Transitional
Federal Institutions. He noted that Special Representative Francois Lonseny Fall
was holding discussions with a number of Somali leaders.
ANTI-TERROR ACTION SHOULD RESPECT HUMAN RIGHTS:
Asked about the Council of Europe’s report on extraordinary renditions, the
Spokesman said that the Secretary-General had not seen the report. He added that
the Secretary-General’s message was that, in countering terrorism, one has to
pay full respect for international human rights law.
Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General
United Nations, S-378
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055
