HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC
SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
U.N. HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
ANNAN TO ADDRESS CLIMATE CHANGE
CONFERENCE IN NAIROBI
Secretary-General Kofi Annan arrived
this afternoon in Nairobi, Kenya, where tomorrow he will address the
high-level segment of the UN Climate
Change Conference.
Immediately after arriving, the
Secretary-General went to the State House, the seat of the Presidency, where
he met briefly with Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki.
Following that meeting, the
Secretary-General attended a ceremony in which he received Kenya’s highest
civilian honour, as he was made Chief of the Order of the Golden Heart, an
honour is accompanied by a golden chain that he was given.
In impromptu remarks afterward, the
Secretary-General lauded Kenya’s relations with the United Nations, noting
that two UN agencies are based in the country.
He also spoke about the need for
leadership and urgent action to deal with the problems posed by climate
change, a topic he will bring up again when he addresses the Climate Change
Conference tomorrow.
Speaking about
the responsibility of African leaders, he said:
“African Presidents tend to be reticent in
interfering in internal affairs of others. But these problems, these crises,
whether it is in Kenya, Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, they don't
remain internal for very long. It becomes sooner or later a problem for the
whole region. It throws up refugees, guns move into the region destabilising
societies and so, as I leave, I hope the African leaders will see a problem of
their neighbours as theirs and intervene sooner rather than later, intervene
before it becomes a regional problem.”
He will also give a press conference
in Nairobi tomorrow.
DARFUR POLITICAL PROCESS MUST BE BACKED BY SOLID PEACEKEEPING
FORCE
The
Security Council began its work this
morning by receiving a briefing in closed consultations from
Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Marie Guéhenno on
recent initiatives by the Secretary-General on Darfur.
Guéhenno spoke to reporters after he
left the Council, and said that a week of intense diplomatic activity was
underway, including the meeting in Addis Ababa on November 16 that we
mentioned yesterday, to bring nations together on ways to help the people of
Sudan.
He stressed that a real cease-fire in
Darfur is as important as the deployment of a force there, and he warned that
the intensification of military activity needs to stop. He said there is a
need for “a solid political process, backed by a solid peacekeeping force.”
After the briefing by Guéhenno, the
Security Council continued its consultations with a briefing by Juan Mendez,
the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide.
PEACEKEEPING OFFICIAL HOLDS MEETINGS ON DARFUR WITH AFRICAN
UNION AND SUDANESE GOVERNMENT
Assistant Secretary-General Hédi
Annabi arrived in Addis Ababa on 12 November, where he participated in an
African Union (AU)-United Nations-Government of Sudan meeting on Darfur,
convoked by the AU in accordance with the AU Peace and Security Council's
September communiqué.
He also held technical consultations
with officials from the AU Commission, on a draft Memorandum of Understanding
required to enable the United Nations to deploy an initial light support
package to the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS). Annabi also met with
Pekka Haavisto, the EU Special Representative for Sudan, as well as local
Ambassadors of the five permanent members of the Security Council.
U.N. CHIEF IN IRAQ STRONGLY CONDEMNS LATEST KIDNAPPINGS
Ashraf Qazi, the
Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Iraq, today
condemned in the strongest terms the kidnappings of dozens of employees
and visitors of the Ministry of Higher Education.
Qazi said that the
kidnappings were conducted in broad daylight, allegedly by uniformed
perpetrators; he warned that the crime could hurt progress in a country that
has long been known for its literary and scientific tradition.
He called on the
Iraqi authorities to pursue those responsible, free the abductees and ensure
the sanctity of higher education.
DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL TO MEET EUROPEAN, NATO OFFICIALS
The Deputy Secretary-General
Mark Malloch Brown leaves tonight
for Brussels, where tomorrow he will be participating in the first observance
of the European Development Days.
The event is part of the follow-up to
the new European Consensus on development, whose aim is poverty eradication.
While in Brussels, the Deputy
Secretary-General will address the segment on "Perspectives on Governance,”
participate in a seminar on human security hosted by the European Union’s
Javier Solana, and meet with the Secretary-General of NATO.
He will return to New York this
Thursday.
ANNAN: LEBANON’S APPROVAL OF TRIBUNAL PROPOSALS A MAJOR STEP
In response to earlier questions
regarding the UN’s response to the action taken in Lebanon regarding the
proposals the UN sent to the Government of Lebanon last week about a tribunal
dealing with the assassination of Rafik Hariri, the Spokesman said that the
Secretary-General believes that the decision of the Lebanese Council of
Ministers approving the draft agreement and draft statute regarding the
establishment of a tribunal of an international character is an important step
in fulfilling the Security Council’s mandate in
resolution 1664.
Asked whether the United Nations recognizes the
present Lebanese Government as legitimate, the Spokesman said that the
Secretary-General believes that it is the responsibility of the Lebanese
authorities to take actions they consider appropriate within the laws of
Lebanon. It is not for him to comment on these internal matters.
He added that, after review by the Security
Council, the draft instruments will again be sent to the Government of
Lebanon, and the Lebanese authorities will have opportunity to review them and
follow the process required by their laws.
Asked whether the Secretary-General, who has voiced
support for a unity government among the Palestinians, would support one among
the Lebanese, the Spokesman said that as a general rule, the Secretary-General
would like to see stable political situations in every country. As for the
current government, the Secretary-General has received a letter from the
Lebanese Prime Minister and responded to it, he said.
Asked about meetings involving
the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Lebanon, Geir Pedersen,
Dujarric said that Pedersen had been meeting with a number of Lebanese leaders
from all political groupings, as part of his regular work. He would report
back to UN officials in New York on his meetings.
AUSTRALIAN GENERAL NAMED CHIEF OF STAFF AT
JERUSALEM-BASED MISSION
The Secretary-General has informed the
Security Council of his intention to appoint Major-General Ian Campbell Gordon
of Australia as the Chief of Staff of the
UN Truce Supervision
Organization (UNTSO), which is based in Jerusalem. Maj-Gen. Gordon will
replace Maj-Gen. Clive Lilley of New Zealand who will relinquish his post at
the end of this month.
Maj-Gen. Gordon has served as Deputy
Force Commander with the UN’s Mission in Timor-Leste from 2001-2002 and, ten
years prior to that, with the UN Mission in Western Sahara.
UGANDA TRUCE MUST BE MAINTAINED
Under-Secretary-General for
Humanitarian Affairs Jan Egeland
met last
night with the President of Uganda in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, to discuss
several issues, including the Cessation of Hostilities between the Government
and the rebel Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and his meeting with the senior LRA
leadership in southern Sudan the previous day.
While agreeing with the President that
the peace talks could not continue indefinitely, Egeland emphasized the need
to maintain the Cessation of Hostilities, noting that there had never been a
quieter period in northern Uganda.
Of particular importance was the need
to improve conditions in the LRA assembly areas by ensuring basic services and
a sense of security for the LRA as they gathered there, Egeland added.
Egeland is now en route to the
Sudanese capital, Khartoum, to continue his mission.
D.R. CONGO RIVALS PLEDGE TO RESPECT NEUTRALITY OF POLICE AND
ARMED FORCES
The UN
Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo says that representatives
of President Kabila and Vice President Bemba have signed another “Acte
d’Engagement” in which they pledge to respect the apolitical character of the
Congolese Armed Forces, of the National Police and other security services.
The Mission says both parties have
agreed to respect strictly the chain of command of the armed forces and
police, to abstain from influencing these elements to act according to their
political strategies, and to encourage their supporters to cooperate with the
armed forces and the police.
The Mission notes that this latest
Acte d’Engagement is crucial in that in could help ease tensions ahead of the
official release of election results, which is expected on 19 November.
REFUGEE AGENCY CONCERNED AT RISING VIOLENCE IN CHAD
With new attacks reported daily in
southeastern Chad, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
says it is
extremely worried that the inter-communal violence there, which has left more
than 220 dead, is spiraling out of control.
UNHCR reports that a UN humanitarian
assessment mission had to flee a recently-attacked village in southeastern
Chad yesterday, when it came under fire from unseen gunmen.
KENYA FLOODS HAMPER SOMALI REFUGEES SETTLEMENT PROGRAM
In eastern Kenya, floods have greatly
hampered the UN
refugee agency’s efforts to settle thousands of Somali refugees, with rising
waters destroying hundreds of homes in the camps near the town of Dadaab. With
normal overland supply routes cut off, UNHCR is planning an emergency airlift
of supplies, including blankets and plastic sheets, to Dadaab in the coming
days.
The World Food Programme is also
reporting difficulties, with its food centres getting flooded and its trucks
getting stuck in the mud.
For its part, the World Health
Organization is discussing with the Kenyan Government a response to a
flood-related cholera outbreak.
RIGHTS COUNCIL TO CONSIDER ACTION ON ISRAELI VIOLATIONS IN
BEIT HANOUN
The Human Rights Council will
hold its third special session tomorrow, to consider and take action on
human rights violations emanating from Israeli military incursions in the
Occupied Palestinian Territory, including the most recent in Beit Hanoun.
The special session is being convened following a request by the Ambassador of
Bahrain on behalf of the Group of Arab States and the Ambassador of Pakistan
on behalf of the Organization of the Islamic Conference.
Asked whether the Secretary-General would make a
“last-ditch” effort to exercise his good offices regarding the
Israeli-Palestinian problem, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General has
been on the phone with foreign ministers and other interlocutors to that end,
and remains extremely concerned with the situation.
UN Special Coordinator for the
Middle East Peace Process Alvaro de Soto, meanwhile, remains in touch with his
partners in the Quartet, as part of the continuing effort to move the process
forward, Dujarric said.
CLOSE TO HALF A BILLION NEEDED TO REMOVE UNEXPLODED ORDNANCE
NEXT YEAR
The
UN Mine Action Service, UNICEF and the UN Development Programme are
releasing their Portfolio of Mine Action Projects 2007 in Geneva and New York
today.
The report describes how landmines and
explosive remnants of war affect 29 countries and territories and shows that
it will cost $429 million to address these problems in 2007.
The Secretary-General has issued a
message on the occasion of the report's release, calling it “timely and
relevant.” Copies of the message, the report and press materials are
available in this room. And colleagues from the UN Mine Action Team are here
today to answer any questions you might have, after the briefing.
OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
NEW KINDS OF
INSURANCE NEEDED IN LIGHT OF CLIMATE CHANGE:
New kinds of insurance and financing are urgently needed in developing countries
to assist them in adapting to current and future climate change, a new report
says. Experts of the United Nations Environment Programme’s Finance Initiative (UNEP
FI) are warning that losses from extreme weather events linked to climate change
are doubling every 12 years.
U.N. report Underscores Africa’s Potential to Boost
Agriculture Supplies: The
massive potential of rainwater harvesting in Africa is underlined in a new
report released today at the climate convention talks in Nairobi. The report,
compiled by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World
Agroforestry Center, concludes that many communities and countries suffering or
facing water shortages as a result of climate change could dramatically boost
supplies by collecting and storing rain falling freely from the clouds.
polio
immunization campaign starts in Iraq:
Despite the difficult security situation in Iraq, UNICEF, the Iraqi Ministry of
Health and the World Health Organization began a national polio immunization
drive to protect 4.8 million Iraqi children. The campaign started over the
weekend and the north already had been completed. Parts of the campaign in
other areas had to be delayed for a few days because of security concerns, but
they were now underway. Over 5,400 mobile vaccinators were participating in the
campaign to immunize every child under five against polio in order to maintain
Iraq’s polio-free status.
ARREST
OF KENYAN EMBASSY OFFICIAL A BILATERAL ISSUE:
Asked whether the United Nations had waived
the immunity of a Kenyan official in New York who was accused of alleged
domestic abuse, the Spokesman said that the United Nations was not involved in
the matter. The official, contrary to some media reports, was not a UN official
but a Kenyan one, and the matter is between Kenya and the host country, Dujarric
said.
ANNAN REMAINS CONCERNED ABOUT SITUATION IN ZIMBABWE:
Asked about a report that the Secretary-General had
intended to defer action on Zimbabwe until the President of South Africa had
acted, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General in fact has spoken
extensively about his concerns about Zimbabwe.
Office of the Spokesman for the Secretary-General
United Nations, S-378
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055
