HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING
BY MICHELE MONTAS
SPOKESPERSON FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
UN HEADQUARTERS,
Friday, November
6, 2009
BAN KI-MOON TO BRIEF SECURITY COUNCIL ON
AFGHANISTAN
At 3:00 this afternoon, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
will brief the Security Council in
closed consultations on Afghanistan.
He will discuss the security situation and his recent
trip to Kabul. And afterward, he will talk to reporters briefly at the
Security Council stakeout.
U.N. Chef du Cabinet, Vijay Nambiar, will over the
weekend attend the funeral in Florida of Louis Maxwell, one of the five U.N.
personnel killed in the Afghan capital, Kabul, on Wednesday 28 October.
SECURITY COUNCIL TAKES UP NEPAL
This morning, Council members heard a briefing in an
open meeting from Karin Landgren, the Secretary-General’s Representative
for Nepal.
She said that much of the past three months has offered
the semblance of calm in the country. But the past few days have seen
low-level clashes between the Maoist-affiliated Yong Communist League and
the Unified Maoist-Leninist Youth Force in some eastern districts.
Landgren said that moving forward through consensus is
the central challenge for the parties at the moment.
The Security Council followed the meeting on Nepal with
consultations on the same subject, and the Council President is expected to
read a press statement on Nepal following consultations.
Yesterday afternoon, the Council adopted a
Presidential Statement on Guinea-Bissau, welcoming the peaceful
presidential elections and the inauguration of the President in that
country.
Asked about criticism made by some political parties in
Nepal to the Secretary-General’s recent report on the UN Mission in that
country, the Spokeswoman said that the observations in the
Secretary-General’s report are consistent with his repeated calls for unity
and consensus amongst the political parties in order to ensure the success
of the peace process.
She said that the report is intended to encourage
Nepal's political parties to achieve what they themselves have expressed
about the desirability of a unity government and does not in any way
represent a form of “interference”.
LEBANON: TOP U.N. OFFICIAL DISCUSSES
FORMATION OF NEW GOVERNMENT WITH POLITICAL LEADERS
Michael Williams, the
UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon,
today met with Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri and Speaker of
the Parliament Nabih Berri.
He discussed the formation of a new government in that
country, as well as the Secretary-General’s new report on the implementation
of resolution 1701.
That
report is out as a document today, and in it, the Secretary-General
expresses his serious concern at the recent incidents that have taken place
in the area of operations of the UN Interim Force,
UNIFIL.
The Secretary-General
condemns all violations of resolution 1701 and calls for increased
vigilance. He urges all parties to continue to act with maximum restraint
and to respect the cessation of hostilities and the Blue Line.
The Secretary-General
expresses particular concern about the firing of rockets from Lebanon into
Israel on 11 September and 27 October.
He adds that, four months
since legislative elections were held in Lebanon, a new government has yet
to be agreed upon and to assume office. He hopes that the process of
consultations led by Hariri will soon result in the formation of a
Government that will gain the Parliament’s confidence.
Williams will brief the
Security Council on the report next Tuesday.
D.R. CONGO: CONCERN OVER KILLINGS AND
DISPLACEMENT CAUSED BY CLASHES RELATED TO FISHING RIGHTS
The UN Refugee Agency is gravely
concerned about last
week’s intense interethnic violence in the Equateur province of the
Democratic Republic of the Congo. Clashes over fishing rights between rival
ethnic groups have reportedly killed 60 people, injured 40, and caused
16,000 more to flee into the neighboring Republic of Congo.
UNHCR says that
houses in a number of villages were also burned down.
In response, the agency has sent an assessment team to
the region, which is already reporting a widespread need among survivors for
proper shelter, food and household items such as blankets, kitchen sets and
jerry cans.
KENYA: EFFORTS TO ASSIST SOMALI REFUGEES
FACING CAMP FLOODING
The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, is
asking donor countries for
$2.8 million to deal with the threat of flooding facing more than 300,000
mostly Somali refugees in two camps in Kenya.
The Kakuma camp in northwestern Kenya and the Dadaab
camp in the east, on the Somalia border, are prone to flooding for three
months of the year.
When heavy rains started three weeks ago, UNHCR began
digging trenches and placing sandbags around hospitals, boreholes and other
strategic locations in both camps.
In Kakuma, the camp worst hit by floods in the past,
UNHCR has diverted two seasonal rivers, the Tarach and Lodoket that have
often inundated lower grounds. Without these measures many sections of these
camps would have been inundated.
But urgent funding is needed to pre-position essential
items such as fuel, blankets, plastic sheets, and to respond to possible
outbreaks of disease.
SOMALIA: FLOODING DISPLACES THOUSANDS
According to the Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs, (OCHA), at least 16,000 people have been displaced by
flooding in Somalia’s Hiraan, Gedo and Lower Shabelle regions.
Meanwhile, the distribution of the ready-to-use
therapeutic food known as Plumpy’ Doz is expected to continue in almost all
project locations in South-Central Somalia in November.
In the Afgooye and Mogadishu, more than 55,000 children
aged 6-59 months have been provided with UNIMIX, a blended fortified food,
since August.
Over the past week, UNICEF, the World Health
Organization (WHO) and their partners also concluded a campaign of
life-saving health services that targeted over 54,000 children under the age
of five and more than 62,000 women of child bearing age in Afgooye district,
including internally displaced persons.
PAKISTAN: ASSISTANCE STEPPED UP FOR
PEOPLE DISPLACED BY MILITARY OPERATIONS
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR)
says that it is stepping up its assistance to people displaced by military
operations in South Waziristan, Pakistan, including by distributing tents to
families who have been staying with host communities in the nearby region.
UNHCR says that it will distribute some 35,000 tents, with distribution
expected to start in the coming days.
Since September, the Refugee Agency has assisted some
175,000 displaced people so far by distributing relief items such as kitchen
sets, jerry cans, quilts and sleeping mats. Security constraints have led to
some intermittent disruptions of aid efforts, but distribution is continuing
through the Agency’s local partners.
YEMEN: DISPLACED PERSONS LIVING IN
DIFFICULT CONDITIONS
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
(OCHA) says that a United Nations cross-border assessment last week to
Al-Mandaba, in northern Yemen, has provided a clearer picture of
humanitarian needs in the immediate border region. It is estimated that
8,000 to 10,000 internally displaced persons are sheltered in the area, with
140 to 210 new persons arriving daily. Contingency planning will now begin,
in case of a further deterioration of the situation.
More than 110,000 internally displaced persons had been
registered by humanitarian actors as of 31 October, and the registration
process is still continuing. The internally displaced persons in some
locations were reported to be living under plastic sheeting in open areas,
with no proper shelter and in unhygienic conditions.
Asked about reported Saudi air strikes in Yemen, the
Spokeswoman said that the United Nations did not have any independent
information about the matter. She said that the Secretary-General is
following the situation.
MORE THAN $120 MILLION DAMAGE CAUSED BY
TYPHOON MIRINAE IN VIETNAM
In Viet Nam, initial damage estimates following Typhoon
Mirinae from United Nations agencies and the Government of Vietnam show that
a total of 1,261 houses collapsed, 57,743 are flooded and 25,695 have been
damaged.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that 10
hospitals and 50 Community Health Centres in Phu Yen Province have been
damaged by floods.
The initial total cost of damages is estimated at US$
122 million, while the death toll has reached 104, with 16 people missing
and 99 injured.
WHO is working with the local government in the
affected provinces to monitor the public health situation and provide
technical support if needed.
COMMITMENT AND COMPROMISE NEEDED TO MOVE
CLIMATE NEGOTIATIONS FORWARD
The last negotiating session before the Climate Change
Conference in Copenhagen in December is ending today, in Barcelona, Spain.
Speaking at a press conference, the Executive Secretary of the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC),
Yvo de Boer, said that Copenhagen can and must be the turning point in the
international fight against climate change.
A powerful combination of commitment and compromise can
and must make this happen, he added.
De Boer said that the Barcelona talks had seen progress
on adaptation, technology cooperation, reducing emissions from deforestation
and mechanisms to disburse funds for developing countries.
However, he also said little progress was made on two
key issues: mid-term emission reduction targets of developed countries and
financing. In that regard, de Boer stressed that leadership at the highest
level was required to unlock the pieces. Between now and Copenhagen,
governments must deliver the clarity required to help the negotiators
complete their work, he added.
TOUGHER LAWS MUST BE ENFORCED TO PROTECT
THE ENVIRONMENT DURING CONFLICT
Laws protecting the environment in times of conflict
should be strengthened, enforced and clarified as a way to protect a
country’s natural assets during wars.
That’s according to a new
report by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), released today.
Among others, the report recommends determining and
designating critical natural resources and areas of ecological importance as
“demilitarized zones” at the outset of any conflict.
The report also says that it might be necessary for a
permanent UN body, perhaps under the General Assembly or the Security
Council, to monitor violations and process compensation for environmental
damage.
UNICEF PRAISED FOR EXTRA FUNDING FOR
MOSQUITO NETS
The Secretary-General’s Special
Envoy
for Malaria, Ray Chambers, is commending UNICEF for the allocation of $8.5
million in new funding to support net distribution campaigns across eight
countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
Chambers says that
UNICEF’s contributions will lead to the protection of 40 million people
from malaria.
Over 150 million long-lasting insecticidal mosquito
nets are set to be delivered by next year.
Chambers adds that the Fund’s commitment to ensure the
effective distribution of nets establishes a critical link in the path to
universal access to these life-saving interventions by the end of 2010.
U.N. BODIES LAUNCH CAMPAIGN TO HIGHLIGHT
IMPACT OF CORRUPTION ON DEVELOPMENT
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the UN
Development Programme (UNEP) have
launched a new campaign to raise awareness about the impact of
corruption on development.
The campaign, entitled “Your NO Counts”, It highlights
how corruption hinders efforts to achieve the internationally agreed upon
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), obstructing people’s access to
education, health and justice, limiting their opportunity to prosper and
undermining democracy.
The campaign is launched ahead of the International
Anti-Corruption Day, on 9 December. It also comes as the Parties to the
United Nations Convention against Corruption – the only global, legally
binding anti-corruption instrument – gather in Doha next week.
THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UNITED NATIONS
Saturday, 7 November
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay will
start her first visit to Brazil today. She will stop in Salvador, Rio de Janeiro
and Brasilia and will be in the country until 13 November.
Sunday, 8 November
Starting today, the Special Rapporteur on violence against
women, its causes and consequences, Rashida Manjoo, will visit Kyrgyzstan from
until 17 November.
Monday, 9 November
Today, the Security Council will hold a meeting and
consultations on the Great lakes region.
In Geneva, the World Health organization (WHO) will launch
its report “Women and health: today's evidence tomorrow's agenda.” This report
provides the latest and most comprehensive evidence available to date on women's
specific needs and health challenges over their entire life-course.
In Doha, Qatar, the Conference of the States Parties to the
United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) will hold its third
session, starting today and until 13 November.
Tuesday, 10 November
This morning, the Security Council will hold consultations
on the 1701 report.
In Bamako, Mali, UNCTAD's 13th African Oil, Gas, Minerals,
Trade and Finance Conference, will explore the role information can play in the
natural-resource sector. The conference will run through 13 November.
Wednesday, 11 November
Today, the Security Council will hold an open debate on the
protection of civilians in armed conflict.
In Rome, FAO Director General Jacques Diouf will give a
press conference, five days before the World Summit on Food Security, at which
he will present an FAO report on success stories in agricultural production and
food security.
Thursday, 12 November
There are no major events scheduled for today.
Friday, 13 November
This morning, the Security Council will hold a meeting on
its 1267, 1373 and 1540 Committees.
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