HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC
SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
U.N. HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK
Monday, September 25, 2006
SECURITY COUNCIL TAKES UP LIBERIA AND
SOMALIA
The Security Council this morning is
holding consultations on Liberia,
following a meeting with troop contributing countries to the UN Mission in
that country.
Security Council members were briefed
by Alan Doss, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for the country,
on the Secretary-General’s recent
report on
Liberia. That report, which came out last week, says that the authority of the
Liberian state is being consolidated throughout the country.
This afternoon, the Security Council
is holding a closed meeting on
Somalia. Council members are to hear a briefing by the Minister for
Foreign Affairs of Kenya and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the
Inter-Governmental Authority on Development.
Asked when the Council would
get Serge Brammertz’s
report, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General had met with
Brammertz, and the Council would get the report shortly.
Asked what would happen to the
report, the Spokesman said it would not be edited, but a cover letter was
being drafted and the report would then be physically transmitted to the
Security Council.
Asked when Brammertz would
speak to the press, the Spokesman expected it would happen after he briefs the
Security Council on Friday.
U.N.
MISSION IN LEBANON OFFERS HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE
The Indian, Ghanaian and Italian
battalions of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)
over the weekend provided medical assistance to 64 people, as well as
veterinary help. In addition, several thousand liters of water were
distributed by UNIFIL to three Lebanese checkpoints.
Asked about comments that one
reporter said suggest that UNIFIL’s ground rules have not changed, the
Spokesman said that the UN Mission’s mandate is more robust than the mandate
previous to
resolution 1701.
There are operational
decisions that UN commanders on the ground will have to take, he said, but it
is clear that if there are violations of resolution 1701, UNIFIL has the
authority to take appropriate measures. The aim of the resolution, Dujarric
said, is to assist the Lebanese army is creating a zone where the only weapons
are those held by UNIFIL or the Government of Lebanon.
In response to further
questions on the rules of engagement, the Spokesman said that the General
Randhir Kumar Mehta of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations and General
Giovanni Ridinó, who heads the strategic cell for the Lebanon mission, are
being sent to the region, where they will have discussions on how the rules
are to be implemented.
The strategic cell, he noted
in response to a further question, is designed to deal with the key strategic
issues in Lebanon and is not intended as a filter between UN Headquarters and
the mission in Lebanon. It will not slow down the decision-making process, he
stressed.
Asked about the work of a UN
Board of Inquiry that was looking into the deaths of four UN military
observers in Khiam last July, the Spokesman said that report was in the
process of being finalised and examined by various UN offices. He said that
there could be a briefing on that report later this week. Such reports are
standard practice when UN peacekeepers have died, he added.
Asked about the deployment
level of UNIFIL, the Spokesman said that the next big deployment was expected
in about three weeks, with the second phase of new troops entering the Force,
along with the arrival of a German naval contingent. That, he said, would
bring the force closer to 12,000 from its present 5,000.
Already, Dujarric said, UNIFIL
is operational, having overseen the withdrawal by Israeli forces from more
than 80 percent of Lebanese territory.
IRAQ:
U.N. ENVOY CONCERNED BY USE OF DEATH PENALTY
Ashraf Qazi, the Secretary-General’s
Special Representative for Iraq,
expressed deep concern that more than 140 persons have been sentenced to
death and that over 50 persons have been executed in Iraq since 2004.
He noted that the Secretary-General
has consistently encouraged States to abolish the death penalty, which he
rejects in all circumstances, including in cases of war crimes, crimes against
humanity and genocide. Qazi recalled that UN Commission on Human Rights has
called on States to abolish capital punishment completely and, in the
meantime, to establish a moratorium on executions.
The United Nations urges the
Government of Iraq to commute all sentences of capital punishment and to base
its quest for justice on the protection and promotion of the right to life.
U.N. APPALLED BY KILLING OF WOMEN’S AFFAIRS LEADER IN
AFGHANISTAN
The UN Mission in
Afghanistan today expressed its sorrow
that Safia Annajan, the Director of Women’s Affairs in Kandahar, was shot and
killed this morning outside the front gate of her home as she left for work in
that southern Afghan city.
The UN Mission in Afghanistan is
appalled at what it called “the senseless murder of a woman who was simply
working to ensure that all Afghan women play a full and equal part in the
future of Afghanistan”. The Mission expressed its sincere sympathies to her
family, friends and colleagues.
SUDANESE
PARTIES URGED TO REFRAIN FROM VIOLENCE DURING RAMADAN
The Secretary-General’s Special
Representative for Sudan,
Jan Pronk, has sent a letter to the leaders of the Government of Sudan and all
movements involved in military action in Sudan’s western region of Darfur
urging them to refrain from hostilities and resume dialogue during the month
of Ramadan.
He urged them to embrace peaceful
dialogue as a gesture of sincerity and goodwill to the innocent civilians who
have silently borne the brunt of the violence and insecurity.
ANNAN
IS DEEPLY CONCERNED BY RESTRICTIONS BY
ERITREA
Available today is the latest
report of
the Secretary-General on Ethiopia and
Eritrea, in which he notes that the situation in the Temporary Security
Zone between the two counties remains generally stable. However, the
Secretary-General is deeply concerned about the continued restrictions by
Eritrea on the freedom of movement of the UN Mission in many areas of the
Temporary Security Zone and the prolonged ban on helicopter flights.
In an annex to the report, the
Secretary-General presents an update on the proceedings of the
Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission, which reopened its office in Addis Ababa
in August while it still seeks Eritrea’s permission to reopen its Asmara field
office.
HUMAN RIGHTS CHIEF
URGES THAI AUTHORITIES
TO ENSURE RESPECT FOR FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS
The High Commissioner for Human Rights
Louise Arbour is
urging the leaders of the Council for Democratic Reform under
Constitutional Monarchy (CDRM) in Thailand to ensure respect for human rights
and fundamental freedoms and reinstate the country’s
human rights commission.
The forcible and unconstitutional
replacement of Thailand’s freely-elected Government on 19 September, the
establishment of martial law, the abolition of the 1997 Constitution, the
dissolution of Parliament and the Cabinet as well as the disbanding of the
Constitutional Court, have raised important human rights concerns, she said in
a statement issued in Geneva.
HUMAN
RIGHTS COUNCIL TO TAKE UP SOMALIA, CUBA, PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES
In Geneva, the
Human Rights Council
is continuing its discussions on a number of thematic reports presented by
UN-appointed human rights experts. Today, Council members heard presentations
by: the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and
child pornography; the Independent Expert on the effects of economic reform
policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights; and the
Chairperson of the Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of
violating human rights.
The Council also heard from: the
Special Rapporteur on adequate housing; the Special Rapporteur on the right to
education; the Secretary-General’s Special Representative on the issue of
human rights and transnational corporations; and, lastly, the Special
Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental
freedoms while countering terrorism.
Tomorrow, the Council will take up its
consideration of country and regional reports, starting with Somalia, Cuba and
the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
U.N. COURT STARTS
TRIAL FOR FORMER RWANDAN PROSECUTOR
The International Criminal Tribunal
for Rwanda (ICTR) reports that it has begun the
trial of former Rwandan Deputy Prosecutor Siméon Nchamihigo, who is charged
with four counts of genocide, extermination, murder and other inhumane acts as
crimes against humanity.
The former Rwandan prosecutor is
accused of distributing weapons and ordering the killing of Tutsi civilians in
1994. He was arrested in Arusha by Tanzanian authorities in 2001 at the
request of the ICTR Prosecutor.
ANNAN
APPOINTS NEW DEPUTY SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR BURUNDI
The Secretary-General has
appointed Youssef Mahmoud of Tunisia as his Deputy Special Representative for
Burundi.
Mahmoud, who will also serve as United
Nations Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator as well as the UNDP
Resident Representative, has had a long and distinguished career with the United
Nations. He served most recently as the UN Resident
Coordinator in Guyana. Previously, he has served with the United Nations in
various capacities, including as Director of the Africa II Division of the
Department of Political Affairs
. ANNAN
CALLS FOR DOHA ROUND OF TRADE TALKS TO RESUME QUICKLY
Secretary-General Kofi Annan
today sent a
message to the
World Trade Organization’s Public Forum in Geneva.
In it, the Secretary-General says that
setbacks in the Doha talks have led some to consider settling for something
less than a true development round -- or for no round at all. That must not
happen, he stresses.
The Secretary-General adds that he
joins developing and least developed countries in calling for the Doha round
of trade talks to resume as soon as possible.
UNITED
NATIONS TRIES TO HELP UNITED STATES AND
VENEZUELA
MOVE BEYOND AIRPORT INCIDENT
Asked about an
incident over the weekend at JFK Airport involving the Foreign Minister of
Venezuela, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General had been informed of
the incident and had asked his Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs,
Nicolas Michel, to gather the facts and help the United States and Venezuelan
Governments get past this unfortunate incident.
The Spokesman
noted that an appropriate channel to address the affair would be the Host
Country Committee, although he noted that Venezuela had not brought the matter
to that committee’s attention.
At this stage, he
said, the United Nations was trying to help both parties move beyond this
incident.
He noted that the
rules for how to deal with these situations are clearly laid out in the Host
Country Agreement.
Asked how the
United Nations had been made aware of the incident, the Spokesman said that
Venezuela had contacted the United Nations, which then contacted the United
States. However, he added, the Host Country Committee is really the
appropriate body to deal with the matter.
In response to further questions, he said that he
was not aware of the present location of the Foreign Minister of Venezuela.
OTHER
ANNOUNCEMENTS
SOMALI ARMS EMBARGO A MATTER
FOR THE SECURITY COUNCIL: Asked whether
the Somali Prime Minister asked the Secretary-General to call for a lifting of
the UN arms embargo on Somalia, the Spokesman later said they had not spoken.
That issue, the Spokesman said, is one for the Security Council to consider.
UNITED NATIONS SUPPORTS
DIALOGUE BETWEEN CHRISTIANS & MUSLIMS:
Asked about the Pope’s call for a “genuine dialogue” between Christians and
Muslims, the Spokesman said that the United Nations encourages such efforts at
dialogue, which is in line with what the Alliance on Civilizations initiative is
supposed to do.
HUMAN RIGHTS DEPUTY SELECTED
IN COMPETITIVE PROCESS: Asked about the
appointment of a new Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Spokesman
said that she was selected in a competitive process, and was appointed by a
panel headed by the High Commission because she was felt to be the best
candidate among a shortlist of five people. He said there was no link between
her appointment and the race for the next Secretary-General.
NEW PARTNERSHIP WILL PROMOTE MOVE TO
BIOENERGY: The Secretariat of the Global Bioenergy
Partnership opened for business in New York this week. Located at the Food and
Agriculture Organization’s headquarters in Rome and supported by the Italian
Ministry for the Environment, Land and Sea, the Secretariat’s mandate is to
facilitate a global political forum to promote bioenergy and to encourage the
production, marketing and use of “green” fuels, with particular focus on
developing countries.
*The guest at today's briefing was Alan Doss,
Secretary-General's Special Representative for Liberia.
Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General
United Nations, S-378
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055
