HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY MICHELE
MONTAS
SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON
UN
HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK
Monday, October 20, 2008
BAN KI-MOON CONDEMNS KILLINGS OF AID WORKERS IN SOMALIA AND AFGHANISTAN
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
condemns the killing of aid workers in Somalia and Afghanistan, and
offers his condolences to their families, friends and colleagues. He is
deeply distressed to learn that two aid workers in Somalia and one in
Afghanistan have been killed over the past three days.
The Secretary-General deplores these acts of deliberate
violence against those who are making every effort to alleviate the dire
suffering of Somali and Afghan citizens. He is alarmed at the increasing
trend of killing and abduction of aid workers in both countries.
He calls upon all parties to respect the neutral and
impartial status of humanitarian staff, to allow them to do their work
bringing vital life-saving assistance to the millions Somalis and Afghans
who are counting on this support for their survival.
BAN KI-MOON
OFFERS TO FACILITATE GLOBAL MEETING ON FINANCIAL CRISIS
The Secretary-General is back from Quebec City, where
he attended the 12th Summit of the Francophonie.
He met with a number of leaders, including French
President Nicolas Sarkozy with whom he
discussed the international financial crisis and its serious impact on
all nations, particularly the poorest among them.
In an ensuing letter to Sarkozy, parts of which were
reflected in a
statement issued on Saturday afternoon, the Secretary-General said that
the international community must act together. We must do so, above all, to
ensure that the negative impact of the financial crisis on the world’s
economies does not undermine the major UN efforts to achieve the
Millennium Development Goals. We must also ensure that we keep up the
fight against the effects of climate change and address the food crisis. He
offered the UN facilities in New York for a meeting on the crisis, saying
that holding it there will lend it universal legitimacy.
In his exchanges with the world leaders in Quebec City,
the Secretary-General also noted that the urgent need to devise a concerted
and decisive response to the financial crisis should be reflected in the
consultations at the International Conference on Financing for Development,
which is due to take place on 29 November in Doha.
The Secretary-General intends to make the financial
crisis and its possible impact on all nations and on all UN development
initiatives, including the Millennium Development Goals, the main focus of
the planned meeting of the UN System’s Chief Executive Board. That meeting
is due to take place in New York on Friday.
FINANCIAL
CRISIS COULD PUT 20 MILLION PEOPLE OUT OF JOBS
The global financial crisis could
increase world unemployment by an estimated 20 million people, from 190
million in 2007 to 210 million in late 2009, the Director-General of the
International Labour Organization (ILO), Juan Somavia, said today.
Somavia added that the number of working poor living on
less than a dollar a day could rise by some 40 million. And he said the
current crisis would be especially hard on such sectors as construction, the
automotive industry, tourism, finance, services and real estate.
“We need prompt and coordinated government actions to avert a social crisis
that could be severe, long-lasting and global,” he added.
NEPALESE POLICE UNIT ARRIVES IN DARFUR
The 108 first officers of
the Nepalese Formed Police Unit have
arrived in Nyala, in Sudan, where they will be based for a one-year tour
of duty as part of the
African Union-United Nations mission in Darfur. They will be followed by
the rest of the 147-member unit this week.
The Formed Police Units are
specialized, self-sufficient and fully mobile rapid reaction police units,
entirely composed of police officers from a single contingent, with
expertise in crowd-management and other police tactical operations.
They may be called upon to
engage in high risk assignments and the protection of people in imminent
danger, preventing attacks and threats against civilians, and in monitoring
and providing security and protection in camps for internally displaced
persons, threatened villages, and migration routes.
Besides providing security,
they will also assist national authorities and UN agencies in delivering
humanitarian assistance in times of need and conducting escort duties in
order to build the confidence of the local population in the rule of law.
The Nepalese Formed Police
Unit is the third to be deployed, after the Bangladeshi and Indonesian ones,
out of the 19 such units mandated by the Security Council resolution
creating UNAMID.
GROUPS OF
EXPERTS ON COTE D’IVOIRE RELEASES FINAL REPORT
The final
report of the Group of Experts on Côte d’Ivoire describes the latest
cases of movement of weapons and ammunition, in particular in western Côte
d’Ivoire. It also details violations of the ban on the export of rough
diamonds and gives an update on 2 individuals facing assets freeze.
The report notes a lack of government administration in
regions controlled by the Forces Nouvelles rebel group. This situation has
hampered any real progress in restoring and unifying the state treasury.
On the arms embargo, the report deplores a lack of
adequate customs checks at border posts, insufficient inspections by the
Government and the UN Mission in the countryu (UNOCI)
and an overall lack of government cooperation.
PALESTINIAN
CHILDREN STAND UP AGAINST POVERTY
The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees
in the Near East (UNRWA)
reports that more than 490,000 children stood up against poverty on Sunday
as UNRWA schools marked the International Day for the Eradication of
Poverty.
The activities organized at UNRWA schools across the
agency’s five fields of operation - Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank
and Gaza – were designed to give children the chance to discuss and protest
against their own poverty.
In Syria, UNRWA school children commemorated the day
with drawing and essay writing competitions alongside group discussions of
poverty.
In Jordan, there was a performance of “The Thief,” a
play about a poor young girl who steals money and jewelry in order to
support her impoverished family.
In Gaza, where thousands of students stood up and
shouted “No to poverty,” John Ging, UNRWA’s director of operations in Gaza,
said, "Our message is clear. We must simply lift the blockade to ensure a
respectful life for Gaza's people in order for them to exercise basic human
rights."
NATIONAL
ELECTION COVERAGE NETWORK LAUNCHED IN IRAQ
The UN Mission in Iraq (UNAMI)
today announced the launching of a nationwide Election Coverage Network,
aimed at supporting the provincial electoral process. The newly launched
network will provide Iraqi citizens with timely, fair and balanced
information and reporting on elections.
The 6-month project includes
the production and dissemination of “Voter Education Radio Programmes”
countrywide, to provide objective information on the provincial elections
and in-depth analysis of campaign issues, as well as elections results.
These materials will be made available to a network of FM radio stations
throughout the country.
SECRETARY-GENERAL ENCOURAGES IRAN TO REVISE NATIONAL LAWS
The Secretary-General, in a
report made available today, reviews the human rights situation in Iran,
noting some concerns over the rights of women and of minorities, as well as
on the death penalty, including juvenile executions and stoning.
The Secretary-General
encourages Iran to continue to revise national laws, particularly the new
Penal Code and juvenile justice laws, to ensure compliance with
international human rights standards and prevent discriminatory practices
against women and ethnic and religious minorities. He welcomes the recent
steps taken by the Iranian Government to explore cooperation on human rights
and justice reform with the United Nations and encourages the Government to
ratify major international human rights treaties, including those on women’s
rights and on torture.
SECRETARY-GENERAL EXPRESSES FRUSTRATION OVER MYANMAR
In his
report to the General Assembly on the human rights situation in Myanmar,
the Secretary-General stressed that it remains a source of frustration that
meaningful steps have yet to be taken by the Myanmar Government in response
to the concerns and expectations of the United Nations and the international
community in the context of the good offices process.
Underlining that the future
of Myanmar ultimately rests with the Government and its people, the
Secretary-General reiterated that the role of the United Nations is to
ascertain the positions of all parties and facilitate their efforts to work
together through dialogue towards a mutually acceptable process of national
reconciliation and democratization, in full respect for Myanmar’s
sovereignty and in accordance with the expectations of the international
community.
Adding that there is no
alternative to dialogue to ensure that all stakeholders can contribute to
the future of their country, the Secretary-General stresses that the release
of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners will be key for the
resumption of an enhanced, all-inclusive substantive and time-bound
dialogue.
“CARING FOR
CLIMATE” SIGNATORIES MEET IN GENEVA
Representatives of more than 150 corporations, civil
society organizations, governments and UN agencies from around the world are
gathering in Geneva today and Tuesday for the first meeting of signatories
to Caring for Climate.
The meeting will showcase and discuss new business
solutions to the climate challenge. It will set the stage for a World
Business Summit on Climate Change, to be convened in Copenhagen next May.
Caring for Climate is a voluntary global action
platform that was launched in 2007 by the UN Global Compact, the UN
Environment Programme and the World Business Council for Sustainable
Development.
OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
SECURITY COUNCIL MEETS WITH SECRETARY-GENERAL: The
members of the
Security Council held their monthly luncheon with the Secretary-General
today.
U.N. URGES FOR GREATER COOPERATION WITHIN ASIA FOR
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: The Executive Secretary of the UN Economic and
Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), Noeleen Heyzer, has
said that there is a need for greater cooperation between Central Asia and
the rest of Asia, in order to achieve inclusive and sustainable development in
the current climate of global financial instability and food and energy
insecurity. Heyzer was addressing the Governing Council of the UN Special
Programme for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA).
UNITED NATIONS SUPPORTS MBEKI AS MEDIATOR FOR ZIMBABWE:
Asked about UN support for former South African President Thabo Mbeki’s role as
the mediator dealing with the parties in Zimbabwe, the Spokeswoman said that the
United Nations would continue to support him as mediator as long as the parties
agree to it. The United Nations, she noted, was part of the “reference group”
supporting the mediation in Zimbabwe, and the Secretary-General continues to
encourage a resolution of that conflict through dialogue.
SECRETARY-GENERAL SHOCKED AT BEHEADINGS IN AFGHANISTAN:
Asked about reported beheadings in
Afghanistan, the Spokeswoman said that the Secretary-General was aware of
the reports and was shocked at the methods that had been used.
U.N. NOT INVOLVED IN COMPOSITION OF E.U. MISSION IN KOSOVO:
Asked about the inclusion of US officials in the European Union mission in
Kosovo, known as Eulex, the Spokeswoman said it was not up to the United
Nations to decide on the composition of the Eulex mission.
KOFI ANNAN SPEAKS IN HIS ROLE AS MEDIATOR IN KENYA DISPUTE:
Asked about comments made by former Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Kenya, the
Spokeswoman noted that the comments were made in his role as mediator in the
Kenya dispute, not as a UN official. Montas said that the United Nations had
supported Annan’s role, and Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has traveled to Kenya
to express his support for that mission.
UNDP TO LAUNCH REPORT ON POST-CONFLICT ECONOMIC
RECOVERY: On Wednesday at 11 a.m., UNDP
Administrator Kemal Dervis will hold a press conference to launch UNDP’s report
entitled “Post-Conflict Economic Recovery: Enabling Local Ingenuity.” This
report examines how countries rebuild the foundations and establish the
conditions for self-sustaining, inclusive growth after emerging from violent
conflict.
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