ARCHIVES
ARCHIVES
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY MARIE OKABE
DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON
Monday, November
12, 2007
BAN KI-MOON CALLS U.N.-FACILITATED D.R.C.-RWANDA ACCORD
A “SIGNIFICANT BREAKTHROUGH”
- Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
commends the
Governments of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda on their joint
communiqué, signed in Nairobi, Kenya, on 10 November, through the United
Nations.
- The agreement between them on a common approach and immediate, concrete
steps to carry it out marks a significant breakthrough.
- This approach offers an opportunity for the comprehensive resolution of
the fundamental problems posed by irregular armed groups in the eastern
Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
- It is also an important step towards restoring peace and security
for the populations that have suffered for so long.
- The Secretary-General reiterates his calls on all irregular groups
operating in the DRC to lay down their arms, and seize the opportunity for a
normal life.
- The Secretary-General notes that the agreed steps include actions to fight
impunity.
- He urges both Governments to act urgently to implement all the agreed
measures and calls upon their international partners to support these efforts
and to increase humanitarian assistance to respond to the dire situation on
the ground.
- For its part, the United Nations is committed to supporting both
Governments in their implementation of their common approach, and to help
ensure the protection of civilians.
MYANMAR: BAN KI-MOON HOPES FOR
MEANINGFUL AND SUBSTANTIVE DIALOGUE
- The Secretary-General has been
briefed today by
his Special Adviser, Ibrahim Gambari, on the outcome of his recent visit to
Myanmar.
- As a result of this visit, a process has been launched that will hopefully
lead to a meaningful and substantive dialogue with concrete outcomes within an
agreed timeframe. The Secretary-General welcomes the willingness expressed by
both sides to work with the United Nations to this end.
- The Secretary-General reiterates that the return to the status quo that
existed before the crisis is not sustainable and he encourages the Government
and all relevant parties to redouble their efforts towards achieving national
reconciliation, democracy and full respect for human rights.
- He looks forward to his Special Adviser’s early return to Myanmar, as part
of an open and regular process of mutual engagement.
- Asked how the Secretary-General was briefed, the Spokeswoman said that he
and Gambari, who is in New York, had spoken by phone.
- She added, in response to further questions, that Gambari would speak to
the press after he has briefed the Security Council. The briefing has not yet
been scheduled.
INDEPENDENT HUMAN RIGHTS
EXPERT BEGINS VISIT TO MYANMAR
- Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human
rights in Myanmar,
arrived in that country yesterday and then held consultations with senior
Government officials.
- Later, he met with the senior abbots of the State Governing Body of the
Buddhist Clergy, and he later visited two monasteries involved in the recent
demonstrations.
- Among his other travels, Pinheiro visited the former Government Technical
College, where he met with the personnel in charge of the detainees held there
during the days of the demonstrations. The Special Rapporteur also visited the
Insein Jail. He is expecting to interview detainees before the end of his
mission.
- The Special Rapporteur is expected to travel to Nay Pyi Taw on Tuesday.
SECRETARY-GENERAL MEETS WITH BRAZILIAN PRESIDENT
- Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is in Brasilia today, where he met with and
held a working luncheon with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
- The Secretary-General spoke to reporters after meeting Lula, and said that
he and the Brazilian President had discussed the strong partnership between
the United Nations and Brazil; his appreciation for Brazil’s role in UN
peacekeeping, especially in Haiti; and
plans to hold a high-level meeting on the Millennium Development Goals (NPT)
early next year.
- The Secretary-General discussed climate change, and he also asked for a
greater Brazilian contribution to the Central Emergency Revolving Fund (CERF),
in light of the growing number of natural disasters.
- The Secretary-General was asked about Pakistan, and he said that he
expects President Pervez Musharraf to meet the expectations of the
international community regarding the democratization of the country. He
reiterated his hope that Pakistan will do more to release political detainees,
including the UN special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief.
- Yesterday, he visited an ethanol plant in Ribeirão Preto, Brazil, and in a
press encounter afterwards
told reporters
that he was very much impressed by the efforts of
the Brazilian Government and business enterprises to address global warming
issues by developing renewable and clean energy sources.
- He said that the ethanol plant was one of many
green technologies that show promise in offsetting global warming. The
Secretary-General underscored that biofuels have great potential for good and,
perhaps, also for harm. It is up to national governments to responsibly
balance the social costs and benefits.
- On Saturday, the Secretary-General was in Chile, where he flew by
helicopter over the Grey Glacier to see firsthand the effects of climate
change. Afterwards, he told reporters that he felt both sad and alarmed when
he saw the deep cracks in the glacier and how quickly the glacier was melting.
- Before leaving Chile, the Secretary-General delivered a
statement
alongside President Michele Bachelet, saying that his travels through Chile
and Antarctica had been “an eye-opener on many levels.” As a result of those
travels, he now believed, more than ever before, that a global calamity awaits
us if we did not act.
- In a statement
issued over the weekend following his visit Friday to Antarctica, the
Secretary-General said that Antarctica is on the verge of a catastrophe for
the world, with the glaciers on King George Island having shrunk by 10
percent. He said that he had seen Antarctica's beauty – and the danger global
warming represents, and the urgency that we do something about it. “I am
determined that we shall,” the Secretary-General said.
CLIMATE CHANGE PANEL MEETS AHEAD OF RELEASE
OF MAJOR SYNTHESIS REPORT
- The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
opened its 27th
session in Valencia, Spain, today. Over the next five days, delegates will
synthesize the information gathered by the IPCC’s various working groups and
released in a series of three reports earlier this year.
- The Fourth Assessment Report will constitute the core source of factual
information about climate change for policy-makers in the years to come.
- The Secretary-General will be in Valencia when the Report is released on
Saturday.
SECRETARY-GENERAL IS CONCERNED OVER DELAY
IN DEPLOYMENT OF DARFUR FORCE
- The Secretary-General, in his latest
report on
the deployment of the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur
(UNAMID), says he is concerned that the security incidents over the past month
and the continuing delays in the deployment of UNAMID could lead to a further
deterioration of the situation on the ground.
- It is urgent, he said, that at this time, those Member States which are in
a position to contribute the missing transportation and aviation capabilities
for UNAMID do so. Without these critical units, the mission will not be able
to implement its mandate, he said.
- He also urged the Sudanese Government to agree to the troop composition of
UNAMID jointly submitted by the African Union and the United Nations.
- He reiterated that the deployment of a robust peacekeeping force will make
a difference and help to improve the security conditions on the ground.
However, it is only through political dialogue and inclusive consultations
that the parties will be able to reach a viable, sustainable and comprehensive
solution to the crisis there.
SOMALIA: DEPLOYMENT OF U.N. PEACEKEEPERS “NOT REALISTIC”
- In his latest
report on
Somalia, the Secretary-General says that overall security, political and
humanitarian conditions there have worsened.
- Under the prevailing conditions, he says that the deployment of a UN
peacekeeping operation is not a realistic and viable option. Nevertheless, a
strategic assessment of UN interventions in Somalia has begun, with a view to
provide an integrated approach for continued UN engagement in that country.
- While the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO)
reviews and updates existing contingency plans to assist the African Union
Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), the Secretary-General says it might be advisable
to consider, among other options, the deployment of a robust multinational
force or coalition of the willing. Such a force could start as a small and
self-sustaining one, and then grow over time by meeting specific milestones.
In due time, he says, such forces could reach a level that would allow for a
gradual withdrawal of Ethiopian forces.
- Among the report’s recommendations, the Secretary-General proposes a
two-tracked approach based on political dialogue within the transitional
government and between it and its opponents, as well as the strengthening of
the existing African Union Mission in Somalia.
- He adds that a coherent peacebuilding strategy is being crafted and an
integrated task force is being established to support peacebuilding efforts.
- In an update, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
says that another 24,000 people fled Mogadishu last week due to fighting
between insurgent and government forces. This brings to 114,000 the number of
Mogadishu residents who have fled since October.
- Meanwhile, in Nairobi, the Special Representative of the
Secretary-General, Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, this weekend completed a series of
consultations with Somali officials, including President Adullahi Yusuf and
the Chairman of the National Reconciliation Congress.
- This morning Ould-Abdallah began a meeting with representatives from civil
society and non-governmental organizations involved in Somalia to discuss the
difficulties they face in working there.
NEW U.N. ENVOY TAKES UP DUTIES IN IRAQ
- The Secretary-General’s new Special
Representative for Iraq, Staffan de
Mistura, arrived in Baghdad yesterday and immediately assumed his
responsibilities.
- Upon arrival, de Mistura said, “I look forward
to carrying out my responsibilities in light of the newly adopted Security
Council resolution
1770,
which extended and expanded the U.N. Assistance Mission in Iraq’s (UNAMI)
mandate, in the service of the Iraqi people.”
- He added that he intends to ensure the maximum
UN engagement with both the government and people of Iraq.
U.N. TRIBUNAL ARRESTS
CAMBODIA’S EX-FOREIGN MINISTER AND HIS WIFE
- Today, the Extraordinary
Chambers in the
Courts of Cambodia announced that former Cambodian Foreign Minister Ieng Sary
and his wife Ieng Thirith have been arrested in execution of an arrest
warrant, delivered by the Court’s Co-Investigating Judges.
- Ieng Sary was charged with crimes against humanity and war crimes and Ieng
Thirith with crimes against humanity.
- They have both been brought to the facilities of the Extraordinary
Chambers. Further details are expected to be released tomorrow.
FLOOD RELIEF EFFORTS IN DOMINICAN REPUBLIC CONTINUE
AS U.N. APPEAL REMAINS UNFUNDED
- As part of U.N. flood relief efforts in the Dominican Republic, the World
Food Programme has so far
distributed 14 tons of high-protein biscuits. Another 44 tons are to arrive
within a week, while nearly 200 tons of rice, beans, corn and vegetable oil
are being purchased for distribution.
- UNICEF is providing water and
sanitation, hygiene, health and nutrition services.
- While several governments are also providing assistance, the Office for
the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs notes that it has yet to receive any
pledges for its $14 million flash
appeal, which was launched almost a week ago.
NEW REPORT NOTES FALTERING PROGRESS
TOWARDS CLEARING LANDMINES BY 2010
BAN KI-MOON STRESSES U.N. ROLE IN
ENSURING GLOBAL REACH OF THE INTERNET
- The second meeting of the UN Internet Governance Forum opened today in Rio
de Janeiro.
- In a message
to that gathering, delivered by Under-Secretary-General for Economic and
Social Affairs, Sha Zukang, the Secretary-General said that although the UN
does not have a role in managing the Internet, the Organization embraces the
opportunity to provide, through the Forum, a platform that helps ensure the
Internet's global reach.
- He hailed the Forum as a unique opportunity to develop an innovative
dialogue freed from the constraints of negotiating a text. He also noted that
it brought together people who normally do not meet under the same roof, as an
example of how Internet technologies can help unite the human family.
GLOBAL FUND GIVES OUT MORE THAN $1 BILLION IN GRANTS
- The Board of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria today
approved the largest funding round in its five-year history, in the form
of 73 new grants worth more than $1.1 billion over two years.
- More than 80 percent of that money is for low-income countries, with two
thirds of the funds going to Africa.
- The West Bank and Gaza also joined the Fund’s portfolio for the first
time, having successfully applied for support for an HIV-prevention
programme.
U.N. SHARES NYC MAYOR’S CONCERNS ABOUT HEADQUARTERS SAFETY
- The Spokeswoman, in response to a question concerning a story reported in
the Washington Times, later confirmed that the United Nations had received a
letter on the safety of UN Headquarters from New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
- But she said that the United Nations shares the Mayor’s concerns, and
noted that the article had detailed what the United Nations has done in
response to the City’s concerns.
- The long-term plan to improve the building’s security, Okabe said, is the
refurbishment detailed in the Capital Master
Plan, which is
currently being discussed by the General Assembly’s Fifth
Committee. Meanwhile,
improvements in fire safety and other areas requiring urgent attention are
being actively pursued in close coordination with New York City.
OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
BERLIN PHILHARMONIC NAMED UNICEF GOODWILL AMBASSADOR: The Berlin
Philharmonic has become
UNICEF’s latest Goodwill Ambassador. A formal ceremony marking the appointment
will take place on Saturday at the United Palace Theater, where more than 100
New York City schoolchildren will join the orchestra for a dance project based
on Igor Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring”.
WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME CHIEF TO FOCUS ON “SILENT EMERGENCIES” DURING TRIP TO
WEST AFRICA: Josette Sheeran, the Executive Director of the World Food
Programme, today began a five-day
visit to Mali
and Senegal, during which she plans to highlight the need for renewed attention
to West Africa’s “silent emergencies”. She notes that a
gathering storm of factors, including desertification,
land degradation, spiralling food prices in the face of the rise of biofuels,
child malnutrition and low school enrolment rates is making life for the
region’s rural poor more challenging than ever.
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