Secretary-General

Noon briefing of 6 November 2007

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY MARIE OKABE
DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

BAN KI-MOON STRONGLY CONDEMNS SUICIDE ATTACK
IN NORTHERN AFGHANISTAN

  • Secretary-General was deeply saddened to learn about the deplorable suicide attack that occurred earlier today in the town of Baghlan in northern Afghanistan, which has reportedly resulted in more than 40 civilian deaths and an even larger number of injured.

  • Noting that today’s attack is one of the deadliest Afghanistan has seen in recent years, the Secretary-General once again expresses his continuing anxiety regarding the unstable security situation throughout Afghanistan.

  • The Secretary-General strongly condemns this heinous attack and sends his profound condolences to the bereaved families of the victims, as well as to the Government and people of Afghanistan.

U.N. ENVOY HOLDS DISCUSSIONS WITH SENIOR OFFICIALS IN MYANMAR

  • The Secretary-General’s Special Adviser to Myanmar, Ibrahim Gambari, continued his consultations today with senior officials in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar’s capital.

  • This morning, he met with the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) Authoritative Team, composed of various ministers, including those of Foreign Affairs, Information, Culture, and Labour.

  • Gambari and his counterparts had very frank and extensive exchanges on all of the issues being addressed in the context of the Secretary-General’s good offices. This includes, in particular, the need for a dialogue to start without delay between the SPDC leadership and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and the lifting of restrictions on all political detainees as the necessary steps to that end.

  • In the afternoon, Gambari met with the Minister for Planning and Economic Development, U Soe Tha, to discuss future cooperation between the Government and the United Nations Country Team in Myanmar.

  • He also met with the Minister for Religious Affairs, Brigadier-General Thura Myint Maung, to discuss the Government response to the participation of monks in the recent demonstrations.

  • During the remainder of his visit, Gambari is scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Lieutenant-General Thein Sein, among others, and will also brief the diplomatic corps on his mission so far.

  • In Yangon, he is expected to meet Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the Central Executive Committee of the National League for Democracy, officials of the National Unity Party, and other relevant interlocutors, as well as the U.N. Country Team and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

HUMAN RIGHTS RAPPORTEUR TO VISIT MYANMAR

  • The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, has been invited by the authorities of Myanmar to visit the country from 11 to 15 November.

  • Pinheiro welcomes this invitation and notes that this sends a positive indication of Myanmar’s willingness to cooperate with his mandate and the Human Rights Council.

U.N. PARTNERSHIP WITH REGIONAL AND SUB-REGIONAL ORGANIZATIONS STRONGER THAN EVER, BAN KI-MOON TELLS SECURITY COUNCIL

  • The Secretary-General told the Security Council, in its open meeting today on regional and sub-regional organizations, that UN partnerships with such organizations are stronger and more active than ever. He noted the joint African Union-United Nations peacekeeping force and political mediation in Darfur, the cooperation with the European Union in the protection of civilians in Chad and the Central African Republic, as well as the work with ASEAN on Myanmar, among other partnerships, that have taken place this year.

  • The United Nations, the Secretary-General added, is committed to helping build up the capacity of regional and sub-regional organizations to undertake conflict-prevention, peacemaking and peacekeeping tasks in their respective regions.

  • Today’s open meeting is being chaired by Hassan Wirajuda, the Foreign Minister of Indonesia.

SECURITY COUNCIL MISSION TO VISIT TIMOR-LESTE

  • The Security Council has decided to send a mission to Timor-Leste, from 24 to 30 November. The mission will be headed by Ambassador Dumisani Kumalo of South Africa.

  • It intends to commend the people of Timor-Leste for their successful elections and to encourage all the groups in the country to continue to work together and engage in political dialogue.

DARFUR PEACE TALKS FOCUS ON WEALTH-SHARING

  • From Sirte, Libya, the site of the Darfur peace talks, our team reports that negotiations continue with workshops on wealth-sharing presentations.

  • Consultations are also continuing in Juba, as well as in Darfur, with those groups that are not present in Sirte.

  • Asked about an April letter from the acting head of the Department of Field Services concerning a sole-source contract for Lockheed, the Spokeswoman noted that the contract to the company Pacific Architect Engineers, Inc. (PAE) was a decision taken by the U.N. Procurement Division, not the Department of Field Services.

  • She recalled that the sole-source contract had been awarded because of the exigencies of the situation, in which, in accordance with a Security Council resolution, the United Nations would have to start activities by the end of October. Consequently, she said, it turned to a company with a proven track record on the ground, which was deemed to be the only one capable of carrying out the work.

U.N. ENVOY EMPHASIZES COMMITMENT TO NEPAL’S PEACE PROCESS

  • The Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Nepal, Mr. Ian Martin, today stressed that there is still very strong commitment on the part of United Nations, both the Secretary-General and the Security Council, to support Nepal’s peace process.

  • Adding that the challenges to the process must not be underestimated, Martin urged the need for a clear assessment of why the two dates for the Constituent Assembly elections have not been kept, and what now is a realistic roadmap.

  • Speaking to the press on the future mandate of the UN Mission in Nepal, he also said much discussion has taken place on areas in which the U.N. Mission is ready to be of assistance to the process, but reiterated that this is still a Nepali process. He urged that it is for the Nepalese to decide what role it wants the U.N. and the international community as a whole to play.

NEW IRAQ ENVOY STRESSES IMPORTANCE OF MEDIA’S ROLE IN RECONCILIATION

  • On his way to Baghdad to assume his newly-appointed duties as Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Iraq, Staffan de Mistura spoke to some 50 media experts, broadcasters, representatives of the judiciary and parliamentarians within the context of a UN-sponsored workshop on media law in Amman, Jordan.

  • De Mistura stressed that impartial and factual information is essential for the reconciliation process in Iraq. “We count on the media to provide a platform for open debate, and that the public remains well-informed,” he said.

SOMALIA: U.N. TEAM FINDS THOSE WHO FLED MOGADISHU LIVING IN EXTREME CONDITIONS

  • A UN humanitarian team has traveled to the town of Afgooye, west of Mogadishu, to assess conditions for Somalis displaced by the recent violence in Mogadishu. The team found that the displaced Somalis are living in extremely harsh conditions and that 15 new makeshift camps have been erected on the road to Mogadishu. UNHCR says that there are now 50 such spontaneous camps along that road. The agency said that the population of these settlements has more than doubled, putting further strain on available resources.

  • The agency also confirmed that the fighting between insurgents and Ethiopian forces in Mogadishu has now displaced 90,000 people, more than half of whom fled to Afgooye. Another 17,000 people have fled parts of Mogadishu that were considered safe and free of gun violence.

CHAD: U.N. SEEKING TO RETURN CHILDREN HELD IN ORPHANAGE TO THEIR FAMILIES AS SOON AS POSSIBLE

  • Regarding the more than 100 children being held in an orphanage in Chad, following an attempt to fly them out of the country, UNICEF, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Committee of the Red Cross continue to closely monitor the children’s health and well-being. They are also working to ensure that the families of the children are identified and that they are reintegrated into their communities as soon as possible.

  • UNICEF says health and nutritional examinations show that all of the children have been vaccinated against measles and polio, but seven of them are undernourished and two of them have malaria.

  • This week, a team is traveling to the border area where the children came from to conduct interviews and do family tracing. In the meantime, the children will remain in an Abeche orphanage, where social workers are looking after them.

U.N. REVIEWS HUMANITARIAN ACTION PLAN FOR LIBERIA

  • The U.N. has launched its mid-year review of the action plan aimed at raising $64 million for urgent humanitarian needs in Liberia. Jordan Ryan, the U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator for Liberia, notes that there is limited government capacity to provide basic social services. Priority will be given to projects in the areas of water and sanitation, health and agriculture.

  • Also, Pakistani peacekeepers from the U.N. Mission in that country (UNMIL) have renovated a school in Charlesville, about 100 kilometres northwest of Monrovia. They’ve also distributed backpacks to the children, as well as sewing machines for the making of uniforms.

  • Asked about a Russian media report that the UNMIL cargo helicopter, which crashed near Ganta on Friday, was hit by gunfire, the Spokeswoman said that UNMIL has no evidence indicating that any foul play was involved.

  • An extensive investigation, in which UNMIL is working with civilian authorities, is currently underway, she said. Until the findings of that investigation are made known, it is too early to speculate on the causes of the crash.

  • In the meantime, Okabe said, the UN Envoy in Liberia, Alan Doss, has offered the UN’s full support and assistance in all arrangements for repatriation of the bodies of the three crew members to Russia.

U.N. RESPONDS TO FLOODING IN MEXICO, CENTRAL AMERICA AND CARIBBEAN

  • The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is sending a Disaster Assessment and Coordination Team to the Mexican state of Tabasco, roughly 80 percent of which was under water in recent days. Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes says the United Nations stands ready to assist in any way it can.

  • In the meantime, UNICEF is appealing for more than $3 million to respond to the immediate needs of children, adolescents and women affected by the recent flooding in Mexico, Central America and across the Caribbean.

HAITI: U.N. EMBARKS ON COUNTRYWIDE IMMUNIZATION CAMPAIGN

  • In cooperation with international partners, the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti, the World Health Organization, UNICEF and the Government of Haiti have begun a countrywide immunization campaign, which is expected to reach some 5.7 million people (or nearly 60% of Haiti’s population). The campaign was officially launched in Port-au-Prince yesterday in the presence of Haitian Prime Minister Jacques Edouard and the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Haiti, Hédi Annabi.

  • Projected to cost $9.5 million, this mass immunization campaign is expected to help reduce the prevalence of diseases such as measles among children and young adolescents and polio among children up to the age of 4. For women aged 15 to 49, the campaign will focus on immunization for tetanus.

SECRETARY-GENERAL CALLS FOR COMPLETE ELIMINATION OF LAND MINES AND BOOBY-TRAPS

  • In a message to the 9th Annual Conference of the High Contracting Parties to Amended Protocol II to the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, the Secretary-General said landmines and booby-traps are among the most distressing and pernicious armaments used both during and after armed conflicts.

  • The Secretary-General said these weapons not only aggravate but prolong the heavy economic and human toll of war, and the developmental and humanitarian impact on post-conflict societies threatens future generations. Adding that their complete elimination remains an international priority, he said the United Nations will continue to support efforts towards the worldwide elimination of landmines, and Amended Protocol II is an essential element of this process.

SUBSTANCE FOUND AT U.N. OFFICE DETERMINED TO BE NON-HAZARDOUS

  • The fact-finding panel constituted to look into the U.N. Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission’s (UNMOVIC) discovery of items on UN premises last August has completed its work. The items have been confirmed as non-hazardous after testing by US authorities. No chemical warfare agents or related compounds were identified in the samples analyzed.

  • The panel has made a number of recommendations to ensure that policies and procedures are improved, so as to prevent similar incidents.

TECHNOLOGICAL AND CONNECTIVITY GOALS FOR AFRICA ANNOUNCED

  • Following the Connect Africa Summit which took place in Kigali, Rwanda, on 29-30 October 2007, the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) disclosed today the five goals adopted at the end of the meeting.

  • They include: interconnecting all African capitals and major cities; connecting African villages to broadband Information and Communication Technology (ICT) services by 2015; adopting key measures that promote affordable access to a full range of ICT services; supporting the development of ICT skills; and implementing a national e-strategy.

  • To help achieve these objectives, more than 54 countries and 20 leading companies participated in a series of interactive sessions, debating issues related to broadband ICT networks, rural connectivity, capacity building and the enabling environment.

SECRETARY-GENERAL'S STATEMENT ON PAKISTAN STANDS

  • Asked about reports that Pakistan’s UN Ambassador had protested the statement issued on Monday about Pakistan, the Spokeswoman said that no letter of protest has been received. She later noted that that Secretary-General had met with Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations towards the end of the day Monday .

  • Asked whether Special Adviser Ibrahim Gambari, or any other UN official, would travel to Pakistan, she said that Gambari was currently working in Myanmar, and reiterated that there was nothing to announce regarding any appointment of an envoy for Pakistan.

  • Asked whether the situation in Pakistan requires the Secretary-General’s intervention, Okabe noted the statement issued Monday on that topic.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

UNRWA CONDEMNS ARMED INTERFERENCE IN ITS FACILITIES: Asked about an incident last week in which Palestinians allegedly used a UN school to launch a rocket attack on Israel, the Spokeswoman later said that the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) condemns armed interference in its facilities by militants or during military incursions. Such interference endangers the lives of UNRWA teachers and the children in UNRWA schools, and heavily disrupts its education programme. Sound education is a basic building block of Palestinian society and is a necessity for the success of the two-state solution.

SECRETARY-GENERAL SUPPORTS ADVANCING ALLIANCE OF CIVILIZATIONS: Asked about a scheduled meeting between the King of Saudi Arabia and the Pope, the Spokeswoman said that the Secretary-General was supportive of anything that would advance the goals of the Alliance of Civilizations.