HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC
SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
U.N. HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK
Monday, October 16, 2006
FOUR SECURITY COUNCIL MEMBERS ELECTED FOR TWO-YEAR TERMS
ANNAN
URGES ERITREA TO WITHDRAW ITS TROOPS FROM
ETHIOPIA-ERITREA SECURITY ZONE
This morning, the
UN Mission in Ethiopia
and Eritrea (UNMEE) reported
that the Eritrean Defence Forces
(EDF) have moved approximately 1,500 troops and 14 tanks into the Temporary
Security Zone. The EDF took over one UNMEE checkpoint in Sector West.
The Secretary-General is deeply concerned
about the incursion into the Zone, which was established under the 2000
Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities. This development constitutes a major
breach of the ceasefire and the integrity of the TSZ, and could seriously
jeopardize the peace process and undermine the Algiers Agreements between
Ethiopia and Eritrea, with potential consequences for the wider region.
The Secretary-General urges the
Government of Eritrea to immediately withdraw its troops from the Zone and
cooperate with the United Nations in restoring the ceasefire arrangements.
ANNAN IS
ALARMED BY UPSURGE OF VIOLENCE IN SRI LANKA
Secretary-General Kofi Annan
is alarmed by the
upsurge of violence in Sri Lanka in the past several months, including today’s
appalling suicide bombing of a convoy of military buses. The
Secretary-General deplores the escalation of violence.
The Secretary-General stresses
once again that a return to civil war will not resolve the conflict. He calls
upon all parties to refrain from the use of force and to return to the
negotiation table at the end of this month, as tentatively agreed between the
Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
ANNAN WELCOMES SUDAN PEACE AGREEMENT
The
Secretary-General
welcomes the peace agreement signed by the Government of Sudan and the
Eastern Front on 14 October in Asmara, following the mediation by the
Government of Eritrea.
The Secretary-General expresses the
hope that the agreement will consolidate the settlement of the conflict in
eastern Sudan, and contribute to peace and stability throughout the country.
The United Nations stands ready to support the parties in their efforts to
implement the agreement.
SUDAN:
U.N. ENVOY MEETS WITH OFFICIALS IN NORTH DARFUR
The Secretary-General’s Special
Representative for Sudan, Jan Pronk, is in North Darfur, where he is on a
three-day visit as part of his efforts to inform the population there about
the UN’s support package for the African Union Mission in Sudan.
Today he met today the state’s
governor as well as senior officials from the local government.
He informed them of the implementation
process for the support package to the African Union, and he also expressed
concern about the fighting that took place near the Chadian border recently
between government forces and rebel groups.
Yesterday, Pronk met with the U.S.
President’s Special Envoy, Andrew Natsios, at the latter’s request, and
briefed him on the current situation in Darfur.
Meanwhile, the UN Mission in Sudan
says it has received reports that an international NGO team was attacked at
gunpoint by five armed men near the Dorti camp for internally displaced people
in West Darfur this past weekend.
LEBANON:
U.N. MARITIME TASK FORCE NOW OPERATIONAL
The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL)
yesterday
began the work of its Maritime Task Force, led by Germany, which took over
from the interim task force that had been led by Italy.
The UNIFIL Maritime Task Force will
support the Lebanese Navy in monitoring its territorial waters, securing the
Lebanese coastline and preventing arms smuggling. It will include ships and
other assets from Bulgaria, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Norway, Sweden and
Turkey.
ANNAN
CONCERNED BY LATEST ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN VIOLENCE
Asked about the recent
violence between Israelis and Palestinians, the Spokesman said that the
development was of great concern to the Secretary-General, who calls on all
sides to avoid the increase in violence and to push for a return to talks.
Asked what the
Secretary-General would do in that regard, the Spokesman said he will continue
his contacts, including within the
Middle East Quartet, to advance the process as much as he can.
SECURITY
COUNCIL IMPOSES SANCTIONS ON DPR KOREA
On Saturday, the Security Council
unanimously
adopted a
resolution condemning the nuclear test proclaimed by the Democratic
People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and demanding that it not conduct any
further nuclear tests or launches of ballistic missiles.
The Council also decided to ban the
supply to the DPRK of a number of specific items, including tanks, combat
aircraft, warships, missiles or missile systems and luxury goods. The
resolution calls on all Member States to report to the Council within 30 days
on the steps they have taken.
There are no Council meetings or
consultations scheduled for today.
D.R.
CONGO: BEST WAY TO ENSURE PEACE IS TO HAVE AN INCLUSIVE GOVERNMENT
Under-Secretary-General for Political
Affairs Ibrahim Gambari left Kinshasa yesterday after a three-day visit
to the the Democratic Republic of
the Congo, satisfied and optimistic about the country’s transition to
democracy and the rule of law. Today is the official
start of the campaign for the run-off presidential election.
Before he left the country,
Gambari appealed to Congolese politicians to accept the results of the
elections and urged them not to incite their supporters to violence through
their statements or through slanted news coverage in media controlled by them
or sympathetic to them. He added that the best way to guarantee peace after
the election is to have an inclusive government.
Gambari, who was in the country to
reaffirm the UN’s support to the electoral process, met with President Joseph
Kabila and Vice-President Jean-Pierre Bemba, the two contenders in the run-off
presidential vote. Gambari also met with members of the international
community in Kinshasa as well as Congolese civil society leaders.
Asked about reports of the use
of forced labour by the Congolese Armed Forces, the Spokesman said that the UN
Mission in the DRC and its human rights office have been at the forefront of
drawing attention to human rights violations by the Congolese Army. He noted
that the Mission has worked with a number of army units to make sure that they
adhere to human rights standards.
POLITICAL
CARTOONISTS SHOULD BE AWARE OF THEIR RESPONSIBILITY
The Secretary-General this morning
attended the fifth seminar in the Department of Public Information’s
“Unlearning Intolerance” series, entitled “Cartooning for Peace: The
Responsibility of Political Cartoonists.”
In
remarks to the
gathering, the Secretary-General said that cartoons have a special role in
forming public opinion. In that regard, cartoonists need to be aware of their
responsibility, and at least to think about how their work may be seen, and
felt, by different groups of people. We have his full remarks upstairs.
WORLD
MUST RENEW ITS PLEDGE TO FIGHT HUNGER
Today is
World Food Day,
and the theme this year is: “Investing in agriculture for food security.”
In a message to mark the day, the
Secretary-General says the world has the resources and the know-how to make
hunger history. But what is needed in sufficient quantity is resolve. On this
World Food Day, the Secretary-General says, let us renew our pledge to work
together towards a day when no man, woman or child goes to sleep hungry.
Meanwhile, the Food and Agriculture
Organization today
launched
a cartoon-style storybook entitled “The Right to Food: A Window on the World”
and a companion resource and activity guide, to educate young people and
motivate them to join in the fight against hunger and malnutrition.
U.N.
STAFF STAND UP AGAINST POVERTY
UN staff members are
participating in an event today
to stand up against poverty and show support for the
Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs). Deputy-Secretary-General Mark Malloch Brown, who delivered remarks at
a related event at Times Square yesterday, led UN staff and delegates in
reciting a pledge against extreme poverty. Also attending was the President of
the General Assembly.
Today’s event was part of a worldwide
effort by the Millennium Campaign to show support for the MDGs and remind
world leaders of the commitments they made at the 2005 G8 and UN Summits.
OPIUM
CULTIVATION DROPS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime
(UNODC)
said today that opium cultivation in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic,
Myanmar and Thailand fell 29 percent in 2006, bringing the total decline in
the region to 85 percent since 1998.
UNODC Executive Director Antonio Maria
Costa said, "It represents an important step towards the goal of eliminating
the cultivation of illicit crops worldwide."
According to UNODC, the Lao People’s
Democratic Republic and Thailand have both reached such low levels of
cultivation that they are no longer exporters of opium. In Myanmar,
cultivation fell dramatically 85% since 1998. But the country remains the
world's second largest opium poppy grower after Afghanistan.
OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
ANNAN ENCOURAGES SMOOTH
TRANSITION TO NEXT SECRETARY-GENERAL:
Asked about the transition to the next Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, the
Spokesman said that Secretary-General Kofi Annan has told his staff to make that
transfer as smooth and efficient as possible. The Secretary-General, Dujarric
said, was happy that Ban’s appointment was made quickly enough as to give him
more time for a transition than the two weeks that Annan had.
U.N. AMBASSADOR NICOLE KIDMAN VISITS
KOSOVO: Yesterday, Nicole Kidman
concluded her first two-day visit to Kosovo as UNIFEM’s Goodwill Ambassador.
Together with UNIFEM Executive Director Noeleen Heyzer, she met with women who
had been victims of sexual violence, war widows and women who are still
searching for missing family members. She also met with women leaders and
representatives from civil society.
Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General
United Nations, S-378
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055
