.HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON
BRIEFING
BY MARIE OKABE
DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON
U.N.
HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK
Tuesday,
April 21, 2009
BAN KI-MOON, HUMAN RIGHTS CHIEF WELCOME
ADOPTION OF OUTCOME DOCUMENT FOR ANTI-RACISM CONFERENCE
Member States
at the
Durban Review Conference adopted an outcome document by consensus about
two hours ago. Speaking to reporters in Geneva moments ago.
[In a statement
issued after the noon briefing, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is heartened
that today all Member States present in the Durban Review Conference adopted
its outcome document by consensus.
In doing so the
international community has reinvigorated its commitment to the
implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action (DDPA)
thereby giving hope to the millions of victims of racism, racial
discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance around the world. The
fight against racism is a continuous process.
He therefore
hopes that those Member States who did not participate will rejoin the
international community soon in the fight against the scourges of racism and
racial discrimination. ]
Earlier, High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay
said today’s adoption is great news and represents the culmination of
lengthy deliberations.
Pillay said the outcome document contains several
valuable elements. For example: it reinvigorates political commitment to the
implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action; it
highlights the increased suffering since 2001 of many different groups of
racism victims; it identifies best practices in the fight against racism; it
reaffirms the positive role of freedom of expression while also deploring
derogatory stigmatization of people based on their religion; and it launches
a process that will examine how incitement to hatred has been used in
various parts of the world.
Pillay also noted that, contrary to some media reports,
today’s document does not include any reference to the defamation of
religions.
The High Commissioner stressed that Durban is a
process, not an event, and not an end in itself. In that regard, she called
upon the international community – including those who decided to stay away
from the Review Conference – to continue the fight against racism.
U.N. AGENCIES GEARING UP TO HELP TENS OF
THOUSANDS OF FLEEING SRI LANKANS
The United Nations is gearing up efforts to provide
humanitarian assistance to the tens of thousands of people who had fled the
fighting in the north of Sri Lanka. Humanitarian agencies are preparing to
receive a growing number of displaced.
With regard to financing for their operations, of the
$155 million asked for, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian
Affairs (OCHA) has only received $48 million, or only 30 per cent, of which
some $10 million had been financed by the United Nations itself through its
Central Emergency Response Fund.
Although food assistance is relatively well funded at
59 per cent, requirements are likely to increase.
In addition, other sectors are not well financed at
all: shelter stands at 18 per cent; water and sanitation at 16 per cent; and
health at just 15 per cent.
The World Food Programme (WFP) says that, given
population movements, it is hard to be precise, but reportedly about 30,000
to 40,000 people have fled the no-fire zone and will be arriving in camps
for the displaced in Vavuniya over the next few days.
The Government has requested that WFP extend food
assistance for the incoming internally displaced persons, which would bring
the total in the camps to between 90,000 to slightly over 100,000 persons.
At the moment, WFP has enough food to feed 100,000
people for the next two weeks and more food is being sent from Colombo.
Meanwhile, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR)
remains deeply concerned about the plight of the civilian population
still trapped inside that conflict zone in that north-eastern coastal
pocket, where the situation was reported to be dire.
Yesterday, the Government informed UNHCR that an
estimated 35,000, 40,000, or possibly slightly more, people had already fled
areas where the military and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)
were engaged in heavy fighting. Of the anticipated 40,000 most recently
displaced, so far UNHCR has confirmed reports that some 5,500 people had
reached sites in Vavuniya, while another 2,000 new arrivals were recorded in
Jaffna yesterday. UNHCR is still ascertaining the total number of the newly
displaced in the two districts.
UNHCR is providing emergency shelter support and
non-food aid to the new arrivals and UNHCR staff are also present at the
screening point or crossing point in Omanthai on a daily basis, but does not
have direct access to the displaced.
Asked about the statement
issued on Monday by the Secretary-General, the Spokeswoman said that the
statement was clear and strong, adding that the highest priority for the
United Nations now is to gain access to those in need in the conflict zone.
The Secretary-General, she said, is doing what he can to obtain such access.
Asked whether Chef de
Cabinet Vijay Nambiar had returned to New York after visiting Sri Lanka,
Okabe confirmed that he had.
Asked whether the Security
Council would be briefed on Sri Lanka, she said that it was understood that
the President of the Security Council was working on the details of such a
briefing.
Asked about the number of
people killed in the conflict zone, the Spokeswoman said that since the
United Nations does not have access to the zone, it cannot verify the number
of deaths. In general, casualty figures are collected by local authorities
on the ground. UNHCR, she said, is trying to gain access to people leaving
the zone and is attempting
to ascertain the total
number of new internally displaced persons.
SOMALIA: ADDITIONAL FUNDS COULD HELP
ESTABLISH POLICE & NATIONAL SECURITY FORCES
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is scheduled to be in
Brussels on Thursday to co-chair the International Conference in support of
the Somalia Security Institutions and the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM).
According to the UN Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS),
if the Conference were to meet its goals of raising some $260 million, the
Somali transitional government would have the means to fund the
establishment of a national security force of 6,000 members and a
10,000-strong police force.
As to the African Union peacekeeping mission, which now
has 4300 troops, it is hoped that new funds will allow it to improve its
logistical means and infrastructure in addition to providing the necessary
training and monitoring of the planned Somali security and police forces.
The Conference is being convened by the
Secretary-General and hosted by the European Commission. The African Union,
the League of Arab States and the Organization of Islamic States will also
attend.
SECRETARY-GENERAL DISCUSSES CLIMATE
CHANGE, OCEANS & MIGRATION ISSUES WITH MALTESE LEADERS
The Secretary-General today traveled from Geneva to
Malta, where he met today with the country’s Prime Minister, Lawrence Gonzi,
and President George Abela. They discussed Malta's contribution to a number
of global issues affecting the small island nation, including climate
change, ways to use the resources of oceans, and immigration, with Malta on
the path of hundreds of refugees fleeing the Horn of Africa by boat. They
also discussed the Middle East and the Alliance of Civilizations.
This evening, he is to speak at the unveiling of a
Climate Change Monument at the International Maritime Law Institute, and he
is to draw attention to Malta’s contributions on climate change.
Tomorrow, the Secretary-General is to address the
country’s Parliament. He will also receive an honorary degree from the
University of Malta in recognition of his contribution in raising awareness
on climate change.
OVERALL SECURITY SITUATION IN DARFUR
REMAINS WORRYING
The Secretary-General’s latest 60-day
report to the Security Council on the deployment of the African
Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID)
is out as a document today. The report is scheduled to be discussed in the
Security Council next Monday.
In the report, the Secretary-General describes as an
extremely negative development the Sudanese Government decision to expel or
dissolve 16 humanitarian and human rights non-governmental organizations,
and cautioned that the removal of such a large amount of humanitarian
capacity puts well over 1 million people at life-threatening risk.
He notes that the rainy season starting next month is
likely to make the situation significantly worse, and urges the government
to reconsider its decision.
The Secretary-General also expressed his extreme
concern about the impact of this action on the work of UNAMID, complicating
its ability to perform its protection mandate.
The overall security situation in Darfur remains a
fundamental preoccupation, he says and cites continued armed clashes between
the government and armed movements, recurrent tribal fighting and the
build-up of forces along the Chad-Sudan border.
As a result of the insecurity, UNAMID has been unable
to visit locations to assess the impact of the bombardments on the civilian
population.
The Secretary-General reiterates his appeal to Member
States provide mission-critical capabilities, in particular military
helicopter assets.
He also calls on all parties to work together with the
AU-UN Joint Chief Mediator, Djibril Bassolé and continue their engagement in
the political process.
U.N. MISSION IN
CHAD & CENTRAL AFRICAN REP. HAS LESS THAN HALF THE NUMBER OF TROOPS REQUESTED
The Secretary-General, in his latest
report on the UN Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT),
says that the recently-authorized UN peacekeeping force stands at 2000
troops. That number represents less than 50 percent of the UN Mission’s
requested 5,200 troops. Even so, he expects that the force will reach
strength by the end of this year.
Meanwhile, there remain serious difficulties in
generating equipment for the force, with pledges received for only 6 out of
the requested 18 military helicopters.
The Secretary-General also renews his appeal to Chad
and Sudan to improve their relations. Such progress, he says, will go along
ways in easing the security and humanitarian situation in Darfur and eastern
Chad, which are closely interlinked.
POLITICAL DEPARTMENT PROVIDES MEDIATION
SUPPORT TO MORE THAN 20 PEACE PROCESSES
B. Lynn Pascoe, the Under-Secretary-General for
Political Affairs, today
informed the Security Council about the increased efforts by the United
Nations to employ mediation as a central part of its peacemaking,
peacekeeping and peacebuilding work. In particular, he said, his Department
has established a Mediation Support Unit which has been further complemented
by a standby team of mediation experts that can deploy around the world on
short notice.
In the past year, Pascoe said, his Department has
provided mediation support to more than twenty peace processes, with the
Mediation Support Unit exerting a multiplier effect on those efforts. He
noted that the contributions made by UN mediators in peace efforts from
Somalia to Cyprus to Iraq. He added that most of the funding at present for
the work of the mediators comes from the generosity of donors.
The Security Council’s open debate on mediation is
expected to continue into the afternoon, with 41 speakers inscribed in all.
FIJI: “BRAZEN ACTIONS” WILL FURTHER
POLARIZE SOCIETY
Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs B. Lynn
Pascoe briefed the Security Council yesterday in consultations on the
developments that have occurred recently in Fiji, including the abrogation
of the Constitution, the dismissal of the judiciary, the imposition of state
of emergency measures, and moves against both the judiciary and the press.
Pascoe called these measures.
In addition, he told the Council that as a result of
the latest developments, preparations that had been previously underway for
the United Nations and the Commonwealth to jointly mediate a process of
political dialogue in Fiji faced suspension. He said those efforts cannot
continue unless there is a change in the current state of affairs. He
concluded by reiterating the willingness of the United Nations to assist the
return to the rule of law and full respect for human rights in Fiji.
Ambassador Claude Heller of Mexico, the Security
Council President, told the press after the consultations that the
developments in Fiji were “a step backwards”.
He said that members of the Council expressed hope that
Fiji will resume “steadfast” progress towards democracy and that fair
elections will be held at the soonest possible time.
CYPRUS LEADERS MEET UNDER U.N. AUSPICES
Greek Cypriot leader Dimitris Christofias and Turkish
Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat met under UN auspices in Nicosia today.
Speaking to the press after that meeting, the
Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Cyprus, Tayé-Brook Zerihoun,
noted that the leaders started with a tête-à-tête, which lasted for a
little over an hour. The rest of their discussion centered on the economic
aspects of a solution to the Cyprus problem.
The leaders will meet again on 5 May.
GAZA: U.N. TO ASSESS ENVIRONMENTAL
DAMAGE FROM RECENT CONFLICT
The Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme
(UNEP), Achim Steiner, today
visited the Gaza Strip. And he announced that his agency will deploy a
team of experts to Gaza by the second week of May to assess the impact of
the recent conflict on the environmental infrastructure of the region.
The forthcoming environmental assessment will include
the work of experts in water and waste water management, asbestos and
hazardous wastes monitoring, and coastal and marine issues.
INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION AGAINST
IMPUNITY EXTENDED FOR TWO YEARS IN GUATEMALA
The Secretary-General has responded positively to a
request by the Government of Guatemala to extend for an additional two years
the presence of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG).
This decision was communicated to Guatemala’s Foreign Minister in writing
last week, completing an exchange of letters. The additional two years
would begin on 4 September, when the Commission’s current two-year term
comes to a close.
The Commission was established under an agreement
between the United Nations and the Government of Guatemala, with an aim to
help Guatemala identify and dismantle clandestine criminal networks linked
to organized crime and paralysis in the country’s justice system. The
Commission is headed by Carlos Castresana of Spain.
In agreeing to extend this Commission, the
Secretary-General stressed the importance of giving continuity to the
efforts already underway by the Commission, in support of Guatemalan
national efforts to fight impunity.
D.R. CONGO: NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR
RELEASE OF CHILD SOLDIERS
The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for
Children and Armed Conflict, Radhika Coomaraswamy, concluded her visit
to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) today.
In a press conference in Kinshasa, she said that the
recent political developments in the country had opened new opportunities
for the release of child soldiers. Since January 2009, about 1200 children
have been released in the process of the accelerated integration of the CNDP
(Congrès National pour la Défense du Peuple) and other armed groups into the
National Army in North Kivu. With a similar process about to begin in South
Kivu, the Special Representative asked authorities to guarantee that the UN
Organization Mission in the DRC, UNICEF and child protection partners were
part of this.
Coomaraswamy stressed that the reintegration of these
children into their families and communities remains a critical priority for
the peace process in the country. She also said that sexual violence
remained one of the most critical concerns in the DRC, devastating the lives
of thousands of girls.
ASIA-PACIFIC’S
POPULATION GROWTH AMONG THE LOWEST IN DEVELOPING REGIONS
Since the year 2000, the Asia-Pacific region’s annual
population
growth has fallen to 1.1 per cent - the lowest rate among the world's
developing regions.
That’s according to the Statistical Yearbook for Asia
and the Pacific 2008 released today by the United Nations in Bangkok which
also states that with fewer children being born and people living longer,
the population of the region is steadily growing older.
This year's report finds that death rates in Asia
and the Pacific have continued to fall but birth rates have come down
even more rapidly as families are having fewer children. Across the
region, the number of children born per woman fell to 2.4 for the period
2000-2005, down from 2.9 per woman for the previous five years.
Fertility has fallen below replacement level in 16
countries, including China, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand. In some
countries, such as Niue, Georgia, Armenia and the Russian Federation, the
population is already falling.
A number of countries still have fertility rates above
3.0 children per woman are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, the Lao
People's Democratic Republic, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Tajikistan
and Timor-Leste.
The wide-ranging Statistical Yearbook is the region's
leading compilation of statistical data which provides a detailed picture of
the major economic, social and environmental trends over the past two
decades.
OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
HUMANITARIAN CHIEF VISITS CHINA:
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs John Holmes is in China, where
he arrived yesterday for a three-day mission. He is to meet with the Chinese
Red Cross and a number of Government officials, including the Foreign Minister,
the Trade Minister, as well as the Minister charged with managing catastrophe
relief. Holmes has said that China could play a pivotal role in helping
countries of the region build their capacity to manage catastrophes, notably
through the work of its state-of-the-art urban search and rescue training
facility in Beijing. China has also become important as a donor country, having
given $10 million in humanitarian aid in 2008.
CHIEF OF PEACEKEEPING VISITS WASHINGTON:
Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Alain Le Roy will be in
Washington, D.C., on Wednesday for a series of high-level meetings with
officials from the US administration. His schedule thereon Thursday includes
meetings with representatives from the State and Defense Departments, as well as
the National Security Council, and key institutions from the non-governmental
organization and policy studies sectors. Le Roy will be back at UN Headquarters
on Friday.
GAZA INQUIRY REPORT NOT
FINALIZED YET: Asked about the Board of
Inquiry report on Gaza, the Spokeswoman noted, as Under-Secretary-General for
Political Affairs B. Lynn Pascoe said to the Security Council on Monday, that
the report has not yet been finalized. She said that the Secretary-General
awaits the final report, adding that he had received an oral report from the
Board earlier this month.
MIDDLE EAST ENVOY TO LOOK
INTO EAST JERUSALEM EVICTIONS: Asked about
reports concerning the expulsion of Palestinians in East Jerusalem, the
Spokeswoman later said that UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace
Process Robert Serry would visit East Jerusalem on Wednesday to assess the
situation firsthand.
REFUGEE AGENCY STARTS REGISTRATION OF
DISPLACED PAKISTANIS: The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
has begun to
register thousands of people who fled fighting in Pakistan's rugged north in
recent months and sought shelter in Islamabad and other urban centres.
UNHCR began the exercise on Monday at the request of the Pakistani
government, to establish the number of people who have moved to urban areas
after fleeing fighting between the army and militants in the Federally
Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and the Swat district of North West Frontier
Province (NWFP). The focus of the humanitarian response to the displacement
crisis has been in NWFP, where most people have fled, but more attention is
turning to those who have moved further a field, including towns and cities. It
has been a challenge to identify the displaced among the existing ranks of the
urban poor.
UNESCO LAUNCHES
NEW WORLD DIGITAL LIBRARY: UNESCO and 32 partner institutions will
officially
launch today the World Digital Library -- a Web site that features unique
cultural materials from libraries and archives from around the world. The site
includes manuscripts, maps, rare books, films, sound recordings, prints and
photographs. It functions in seven languages – Arabic, Chinese, English,
French, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish – and includes content in more than
forty languages. It also provides unrestricted public access, free of charge, to
this material. The World Digital Library was developed by a team at the Library
of Congress, with technical assistance from the Bibliotheca Alexandrina of
Alexandria, Egypt. According to UNESCO, the new Library offers an invaluable
platform for the free flow of information and for the celebration of cultural
diversity. The site will be accessible after 1 pm New York time at
http://www.wdl.org/en/
U.N. TAKING CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
CASE VERY SERIOUSLY: In response to
questions about a staff member accused of possessing child pornography, the
Spokeswoman confirmed that José Antonio Ortega is a staff member of the
Department of Economic and Social Affairs. He was on a personal trip and left on
9 April for Canada; he was expected to come back to the office on 13 April, but
did not show up. His office could not get in touch with him and was still trying
to find out about his status until 17 April, when the news of his court case was
announced in the Canadian press. The matter is taken very seriously by the
United Nations, Okabe said, adding that it has already been referred to UN
Security and the Office of Human Resources Management for action.
Office of the
Spokesperson for the Secretary-General
United Nations, S-378
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055
Back to the Spokesperson's Page
