.HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON
BRIEFING
BY FARHAN HAQ
ASSOCIATE SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON
U.N.
HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK
Wednesday,
April 15, 2009
SECRETARY-GENERAL TO HEAD TO TRINIDAD FOR INTER-AMERICAN SUMMIT
The Secretary-General returned yesterday from
Washington after attending the Haiti Donors’
Conference at the Inter-American Development Bank.
He will travel again this coming weekend, after
delivering, on Friday, the keynote address for the 2009 Princeton Colloquium
on Public and International Affairs at the Woodrow Wilson School. This will
be at 9:30 am at the Princeton University Campus in New Jersey.
The Secretary-General has already announced his trip to
the Summit of the Americas in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. From
there, he will go to Geneva and then on to Valletta, Malta, on 21 April. In
Malta, he will meet with the President, and Prime Minister, before
addressing the country’s parliament. The University of Malta will confer on
the Secretary-General an Honoris causa doctorate in recognition of his
contribution to raising awareness on climate change.
The Secretary-General’s last stop, as previously
announced, will be Brussels for the Donors’ Conference on Somalia on 23
April.
The Secretary-General will return to New York the next
day.
MYANMAR:
SECRETARY-GENERAL SHARES U.S. SENATORS’ CONCERN ON CONTINUED DETENTION OF AUNG
SAN SUU KYI
The Secretary-General has received a letter signed by a
number of US Senators on the situation in Myanmar. The Secretary-General
and his Special Adviser, Ibrahim Gambari, share their concern about the
continued detention of Aung San Suu Kyi. The Secretary-General and his
Special Adviser have repeatedly called for her release and that of other
political prisoners, and will continue to do so.
The Secretary-General continues to follow closely the
situation in Myanmar, including through his Special Adviser, to promote
national reconciliation, democratic transition, and respect for human rights
in accordance with the mandate given to him by the General Assembly.
NORTH KOREA
CEASING ALL COOPERATION WITH U.N. NUCLEAR WATCHDOG
The Democratic People’s Republic of
Korea (DPRK) yesterday informed the inspectors of the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA)
in the Yongbyon facility that it is immediately ceasing all cooperation with
the IAEA. It has requested the removal of all containment and surveillance
equipment, following which IAEA inspectors will no longer be provided access
to the facility. The inspectors have also been asked to leave the DPRK at
the earliest possible time.
The DPRK also informed the IAEA that it
has decided to reactivate all facilities and go ahead with the reprocessing
of spent fuel.
SOMALIA: U.N.
ENVOY CALLS FOR INCREASED MARITIME PRESENCE TO FIGHT PIRACY
The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for
Somalia, Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, is
calling to increase concrete efforts -- such as the international
maritime presence off the Somali coast-- to fight piracy.
He said that those contributing to that international
presence were doing an “excellent job” but that they had a huge area to
cover. The Special Representative noted that today, 17 vessels are being
held and 300 persons are hostages.
Ould-Abdallah also suggested that the financial backers
of the pirates should be identified quickly and held accountable, in order
to ensure stability in Somalia and the region.
FIJI: HUMAN
RIGHTS CHIEF CALLS FOR RETURN TO RULE OF LAW AND END OF MEDIA CENSORSHIP
High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay has
expressed her deep concern about the recent sacking of the judiciary and
heavy restrictions on the media there. Those developments follow the
abolishment of Fiji’s 1997 Constitution and the imposition of a state of
emergency five days ago.
According to Pillay, the long term damage of
undermining such fundamental institutions as the judiciary and the media
cannot be underestimated. In that regard, she called for a return to the
rule of law, the reinstatement of the judiciary and an end to media
censorship.
Pillay stressed that a state of emergency should only
be used to deal with dire threats to national security -- not to undermine
the fundamental checks and balances of good government.
Asked whether the recent
actions taken in Fiji would change UN policy on accepting Fijians as UN
peacekeepers, the Spokesperson said that the United Nations would continue
to evaluate any future peacekeeping contributions by Fiji on a case-by-case
basis.
HUMAN RIGHTS
CHIEF WELCOMES REVISED DRAFT OUTCOME OF DURBAN REVIEW CONFERENCE
High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay today
welcomed the release of a revised draft outcome document for next week’s
anti-racism Durban Review Conference. The new text has been presented to
States currently participating in the Conference’s final Preparatory
Committee meeting.
Addressing that meeting today, Pillay urged delegates
to transcend their differences and find consensus. She also told them that
the future and hope of countless victims of racism rest in their hands.
The new 17-page
document is a revision of the “rolling text” that was published last
month by the working group charged with negotiating the Conference’s
outcome. The chair of that working group has expressed hope that the new
version, based on extensive consultations with States, will meet the
concerns of all delegations and can be adopted by consensus.
HIGH
COMMISIONER FOR REFUGEES CALLS FOR TOUGH ACTION AGAINST SMUGGLERS, PROTECTION
FOR ASYLUM SEEKERS
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
António Guterres is in Indonesia today where he took part in the Third
Ministerial Conference of the Bali Process – which aims at finding practical
measures to help combat people smuggling, trafficking in persons and related
transnational crimes in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.
Guterres
said that smugglers and traffickers often prey on people who are
vulnerable to exploitation and abuse, adding that "tough action against
criminal agents has to go hand in hand with the protection of those in need
of it." The High Commissioner stressed the importance of a comprehensive
approach to respond effectively to irregular movements affecting the
region. He also noted that the Bali process offered the potential to forge
mechanisms for regional cooperation.
OTHER
ANNOUNCEMENTS
SECURITY SITUATION IN DARFUR REMAINS RELATIVELY CALM:
The UN-African Union Hybrid Mission in Darfur (UNAMID)
reports that the security situation in Darfur is relatively calm. UNAMID
peacekeepers conducted 22 confidence building patrols, 17 escort patrols and
seven night patrols covering 44 villages and camps for internally displaced
people (IDPs). UNAMID police conducted a total of 92 patrols in and around the
villages and IDP camps.
SECRETARY-GENERAL CONCERNED BY
DISCRIMINATION AND VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN:
Asked about the adoption of Islamic law in Pakistan’s Swat Valley, the
Spokesperson said that the Secretary-General had not issued a statement on that
matter. He recalled, however, that the Secretary-General had in his recent
press briefing
expressed his concerns about discrimination and violence against women in the
Swat Valley.
*** The guest at the noon briefing today was John
Holmes, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, who briefed on the
humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka.
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