HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY FARHAN HAQ
ASSOCIATE SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON
Friday, November
9, 2007
SECRETARY-GENERAL VISITS ANTARCTICA
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon traveled today to Punta
Arenas in Chile, and from there began a trip to Antarctica, to see the effects
of climate change on melting glaciers. Yesterday afternoon, he
told a high-level
panel meeting in Santiago that this trip is intended “to raise alarm bells to
the world’s leaders” on the need to address global warming with a concerted
effort.
The Secretary-General received a briefing from scientists
at a Chilean Air Force base, “Presidente Eduardo Frei”, in Antarctica, before
visiting the Collins Glaciers and then the Sejong Research Centre. He and his
team will return to Punta Arenas this evening.
On Thursday evening, the
Secretary-General met with Chilean President Michele Bachelet, and they
discussed Chile’s contributions to peacekeeping operations, notably to help
stabilize the security situation in Haiti. The Secretary-General praised
Chile’s success in meeting the
Millennium Development Goals and appreciated the President’s efforts to
promote South-South cooperation and to help developing countries.
He then
addressed the
Ibero-American Summit.
On Sunday, the
Secretary-General will travel to Brazil, where he will meet with President
Luis Inacio Lula da Silva next Monday.
Asked if arrangements have been made to offset carbon emissions during the
Secretary-General's trip to Antarctica, the Spokesman said that carbon
offsetting is a complex and long-term challenge that will require creative
thinking and a firm commitment to address.
The Secretary-General very much wants the UN to lead by example, he said, and
that’s why, during the last meeting of the Chief Executives Board, he obtained
the commitment of all the heads of funds, programmes and specialized agencies
to move their organizations towards climate neutrality in their daily
operations.
As
for this specific trip to Antarctica, Haq added, it is being organized by the
Chilean government so the United Nations will be checking with them if any
carbon offsetting arrangements have been made.
ECRETARY-GENERAL CONCERNED AT DEVELOPMENTS IN
PAKISTAN
Asked if the Secretary-General had any comments on the detention of opposition
supporters and the house arrest order against Pakistani opposition leader
Benazir Bhutto, the Spokesman said that Ban Ki-moon earlier this week
expressed concern
at developments in Pakistan.
The Secretary-General in particular expressed strong dismay at the detention
of hundreds of human rights activists and opposition supporters. The same
concerns expressed earlier this week apply to the current situation, Haq
noted.
The Spokesman also affirmed that the Secretary-General continues to urge the
Pakistani authorities to release those detained, to lift restrictions on the
media and to take early steps for a return to democratic rule.
Asked how the situation affect UN operations in the region, including
Afghanistan, the Spokesman replied that UN operations continue unabated.
Peacekeepers from the UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP)
maintain their presence and continue to carry out their activities without
undue effects. The same is true for other UN staff, he added.
FIGHTING BETWEEN GOVERNMENT AND REBEL GROUPS
RESUMES IN DR CONGO
UN peacekeepers in the North Kivu province of the
Democratic Republic of
the Congo have confirmed reports that fighting has resumed between
government forces and rebel troops in and around the town of Karuba, northeast
of Goma.
Meanwhile, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is stepping up efforts
to curb the spread of cholera, which has spread in five camps for internally
displaced persons (IDP) camps near Goma since October. The camps provide
shelter to 45,000 Congolese civilians from violence-affected North Kivu.
Health workers say that there are now some 440 suspected cases of cholera
among the IDPs. They are encouraged by the assessment that few cases have been
reported in recent weeks.
UNHCR says that violence in North Kivu has caused some
375,000 civilians to flee their homes since December 2006.
SOMALI
PRESIDENT MEETS U.N. OFFICIAL IN NAIROBI
Accompanied by a large delegation, Somali President
Adullahi Yusuf arrived in Nairobi yesterday to meet with the Special
Representative of the Secretary-General, Ahmeddou Ould-Abdallah, and other UN
officials.
The UN Political Office for Somalia says that the
Ould-Abdallah and President Yusuf will discuss the ongoing selection process
for Somalia’s next prime minister. Earlier today, Ould Abdallah held talks
with Ali Mahdi Mohammed, the Chairman of Somalis’s National Reconciliation
Congress.
Meanwhile, our humanitarian colleagues report that some
50 civilians were killed and another 30 were wounded in the last 24 hours in
the Somali capital, Mogadishu, due to fighting between insurgents and
Ethiopian troops. And this situation has caused a further deterioration of the
humanitarian situation, with as many as 114,000 Mogadishu residents forced to
flee their homes.
This brings to an estimated 850,000 the number of
civilians displaced by the intermittent violence this year alone.
Asked if a hybrid peacekeeping force was being considered for Somalia, Haq
replied that Ban Ki-moon is expected to say in a report, to be issued soon,
that conditions do not exist at this time for the possibility of deploying a
UN force. He added that concepts such as a “coalition of the willing” might
also be considered.
Asked which countries the Secretary-General believes would be members of such
a coalition, the Spokesman said that would depend on decisions taken by the
countries themselves.
Asked if there had been expressions of interest from Member States to support
a UN peacekeeping force for Somalia, Haq replied that UN experts on Somalia,
including the UN Political Office for Somalia, have been trying to determine
existing levels of support for a variety of options and their views are
reflected in the Secretary-General's upcoming report.
In
response to a question about the plight of Somalis displaced by the continued
violence, the Spokesman noted that the United Nations continues to monitor the
situation and to implore all sides to avoid the fighting that has
characterized the situation in and around Mogadishu.
FRANCE HANDS
OVER COMMAND OF U.N. FORCE IN LEBANON TO ITALY
The UN Interim Force in Lebanon
(UNIFIL) today
held a ceremony to mark the handover of responsibility for security at
UNIFIL’s headquarters in Naqoura from French peacekeepers, who had been doing
the job for the past 29 years, to Italian troops.
UNIFIL’s Deputy Force
Commander, Brigadier-General Jai Prakash Nehra, praised the efforts of
the French soldiers, commending their professionalism, which helped to keep
the Force’s Headquarters secure.
French peacekeepers will
continue to serve with UNIFIL in other existing capacities, ranging from its
Quick Reaction Force to the French Contingent currently operating in UNIFIL’s
western sector of operations.
CONDITIONS
PRECARIOUS FOR PALESTINIAN REFUGEES
ON IRAQ-SYRIA BORDER
The
UN Refugee Agency
says that the situation in the Palestinian camps at the Iraq-Syria border
remains very precarious for nearly 2,000 Palestinians trapped there. In recent
weeks, the camps have been blasted by sandstorms, making life even harder.
UNHCR continues seek better
solutions, including resettlement options, for the refugees -- both within and
outside the region. It has been working closely with its partners to improve
the living conditions of the refugees in the camps. The Agency estimates that
some 13,000 Palestinians are still living in Baghdad, and facing ongoing
threats.
UNEP LAUNCHES
GLOBAL THINK TANK ON RESOURCE EFFICIENCY
The U.N. Environment Programme
(UNEP) today launched a new global think
tank on resource efficiency. The International Panel for Sustainable Resource
Management will provide scientific assessments and advice on the worldwide use
of selected products and services, as well as their environmental impacts.
The panel will focus on
breaking the links between economic growth and environmental degradation,
according to UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner. Among the issues it is
expected to address are the environmental risks of biofuel production and
metal recycling.
AMPUTEE
ATHLETES IN SIERRA LEONE
TO JOIN WORLD FOOTBALL MATCH IN TURKEY
In a show of solidarity with amputee sportsmen, the
Executive Representative of the Secretary-General, Victor Angelo, on Thursday
hosted them at a reception ahead of their departure for Turkey, where they
will take part in the World Amputee Football Championship, which will kick off
next week.
Angelo hailed Sierra Leone’s amputees for their
contribution to the sensitization campaign during the recent elections.
UNDP has gracefully accepted to finance part of the
amputee football trip to Turkey as the cash-strapped Sierra Leone sport
authorities appeared unable to support the travel fees for that team.
OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
UN COORDINATOR REMAINS IN MYANMAR: In
response to a question, the Spokesman said that UN Resident Coordinator for
Myanmar, Charles Petrie, remained in that country and that the
Secretary-General's Special Advisor Ibrahim Gambari discussed the expulsion
order against him with Myanmar's leadership during Gambari's just-completed trip
there.
ONE BILLION GRAINS OF RICE
DONATED TO U.N. FOOD BODY THROUGH ONLINE GAME: An
online game that benefits the World Food Programme has reached a
milestone. Thursday marked the one billionth grain of rice donated to WFP
through FreeRice (www.freerice.com). That’s
enough to feed more than 50,000 people for one day. The site, which was launched
a little more than a month ago, donates 10 grains of rice to WFP for every
correct answer to its online vocabulary game.
THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UNITED NATIONS<![if !supportFootnotes]>[1]<![endif]>
10 November –
16 November
Saturday, November 10
The Secretary-General continues his trip to Latin America.
Through 12 November in South Omo, Ethiopia, the U.N. Office
for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs sponsors a meeting (which began on
8 November) of more than 250 pastoralists from Ethiopia’s Southern Nations,
Nationalities and Peoples Regions.
Sunday, November 11
Through 15 November, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees
Antonio Guterres travels to Central Asia. In Kyrgyzstan, he will open the first
refugee reception centre in Central Asia. In Kazakhstan, he will meet the
President and discuss the drafting of national refugee legislation.
Through 15 November, the Special Rapporteur on the
situation of human rights in Myanmar, Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro, is scheduled to
visit the country, at the invitation of the government.
Monday, November 12
This morning, the General Assembly Plenary is scheduled to
hold a joint debate on the Report of the Security Council on the Question of
equitable representation on and increase in the membership of the Security
Council and related matters.
From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Conference Room 2, the 2007
United Nations Pledging Conference for Development Activities takes place.
At 4 p.m. in Conference Room 2, the General Assembly’s
Second Committee holds a panel discussion on “Financing for gender equality
within the context of follow-up to the Monterrey Consensus”.
In Geneva, the U.N. Institute for Disarmament Research
releases its “Landmine Monitor Report 2007”.
Through 16 November, the Executive Director of the World
Food Programme, Josette Sheeran, is scheduled to visit Mali and Senegal, to
highlight the need for renewed attention on the region's “silent emergencies”.
Through 15 November, the second meeting of the Internet
Governance Forum takes place in Rio de Janeiro.
Tuesday, November 13
This morning, the Security Council is scheduled to hold
consultations on the Great Lakes region. In the afternoon, consultations on
Ethiopia and Eritrea are scheduled.
From 9.30 a.m. to 5.45 p.m. in the Penthouse of the Dag
Hammarskjöld Library, the UN University-Cornell Symposium on “The African Food
System and its Interactions with Health and Nutrition” takes place.
The guest at the noon briefing will be Erika Feller, the
U.N. Refugee Agency’s Assistant High Commissioner for Protection, who will brief
on UNHCR’s efforts to help protect more than 32
million refugees and others of concern to UNHCR, including in key operations
like Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria and Jordan.
At 3 p.m. in Conference Room 2, the General Assembly’s
Second Committee holds a panel discussion on “Addressing Climate Change in the
context of National Sustainable Development Strategies”.
Wednesday, November 14
The Secretary-General begins his trip to Spain and Tunisia.
The Security Council is scheduled to hold a briefing on its
1267, 1540, and Counter-Terrorism Committees.
Today is World Diabetes Day. From 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. in the
Economic and Social Council Chamber, there will be a panel discussion on
“Diabetes and development”
Thursday, November 15
In Tunis, the Secretary-General
opens an international counter-terrorism conference, organized by the UN, the
Tunisian Government and the Organization of the Islamic Conference.
This morning, the Security
Council is scheduled to hold a debate on Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In Santiago, Chile, the Economic
Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean launches its Social Panorama of
Latin America 2007 report, an overview of leading social trends in the region.
In Rome, the Food and
Agriculture Organization launches its publication on “The State of Food and
Agriculture 2007”.
At 11 a.m. in Room S-226, there will be a press conference
by H.E. Srgjan Kerim, President of the 62nd Session of the General
Assembly, on the work of the current session.
Friday, November 16
At 10 a.m. in Conference Room 2, the General Assembly’s
Second Committee holds a panel discussion on “Moving out of aid dependency”.
Today is the
International Day for Tolerance.
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This document is for planning purposes only
and is subject to change (current as of noon on 09 November)
Office of the Spokesperson for the
Secretary-General
United Nations, S-378
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055
