SECRETARY-GENERAL TO
ATTEND NATO SUMMIT ON AFGHANISTAN IN PORTUGAL

• The Secretary-General
  will travel to Lisbon, Portugal, this weekend.  He will attend
  the Meeting on Afghanistan, to be held there under the aegis of
  NATO at the level of Heads of State and/or Government. 
  Following the meeting, he will participate in the joint press
  conference with President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan and NATO
  Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen. 
   

• The Secretary-General
  will also hold a number of bilateral meetings with world leaders
  gathered in Lisbon, including President Karzai, to discuss the
  situation and the
  
  UN's efforts in Afghanistan, as well as other key issues.
  
   

• The Secretary-General
  will be back in the office on Monday.

 

NIGERIAN HEALTH OFFICIAL
NAMED NEW HEAD OF U.N. POPULATION FUND

• Following consultations
  with the Executive Board of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA),
  the Secretary-General today
  
  announced the appointment of Babatunde Osotimehin of Nigeria
  as the agency’s new Executive Director. Mr. Osotimehin replaces
  Thoraya Obaid for a term of four years.
   

• The Secretary-General
  expressed his gratitude to Thoraya Obaid for her services to the
  Organization and her commitment in championing the cause of
  women's and young people's health and empowerment. The
  Secretary-General is particularly appreciative of the exemplary
  leadership displayed by Ms. Obaid in the implementation of
  UNFPA’s mandate over the two terms she has led the Organization.
   

• Mr. Osotimehin will
  bring a wealth of experience and passion to the work of UNFPA
  coupled with extensive knowledge and understanding of the global
  and national framework and processes, that are critical to the
  work of UNFPA. Mr. Osotimehin previously served as Minister of
  Health of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.  He was also the
  Director General of the National Agency of Nigeria for the
  Control of HIV and AIDS, the body which coordinates all HIV/AIDS
  activities in Nigeria.
   

• Ms. Obaid said that “Dr.
  Osotimehin’s qualifications and extensive experience position
  him well to lead the global agenda for population and
  development and to promote the right to sexual and reproductive
  health. We will work closely with him to ensure a successful
  transition.”

 

SECRETARY-GENERAL HAS
CONSTRUCTIVE MEETING WITH CYPRIOT LEADERS

• The Secretary-General
  held what he
  
  called a constructive meeting on Thursday afternoon with the
  leaders of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities.
   

• Governance and
  power-sharing, the economy, European Union matters, property,
  territory and security were among the issues discussed.
   

• Speaking to reporters
  after the meeting, the Secretary-General said that he invited
  the leaders to New York because the peace talks on Cyprus were
  losing momentum and needed a boost if the two sides are to reach
  a settlement while there is still the time and the political
  opportunity to do so.
   

• He stressed that only
  the leaders of the two communities can arrive at a solution,
  noting that the UN respects these talks as a Cypriot-led
  process. The people of Cyprus and the international community
  want a solution, not endless talks, he said.
   

• The Secretary-General
  expressed hope that yesterday’s meeting has helped to restore
  momentum to the process. Although serious differences remain,
  both leaders expressed their commitment to work together to
  reach a settlement.
   

• He added that he will
  meet again with the leaders at the end of January next year in
  Geneva.

 

HAITI: U.N. ENVOY CALLS
FOR DEMONSTRATORS TO ALLOW MEDICAL, RELIEF ASSISTANCE TO THOSE IN
NEED

• In Haiti, the
  Secretary-General’s Special Representative, Edmond Mulet, asked
  demonstrators to stop blocking roads, bridges and airports to
  allow medical and humanitarian assistance to get to those who
  need it.
   

• In a statement issued
  Thursday night, he said that if this situation went on, more and
  more cholera patients who need medical care would die, and more
  and more people who need assistance would be affected by
  cholera.
   

• Meanwhile, a French
  epidemiologist met with the senior management of the UN Mission
  in Haiti (MINUSTAH)
  on Thursday, and they had an exchange of ideas.
   

• MINUSTAH is willing to
  participate in any further investigation into the source of the
  cholera outbreak, and this was part of that effort. MINUSTAH has
  actually met with several epidemiologists who are in the
  country. The goal is to see how to contain and prevent the
  further spread of cholera.
   

• Asked about the French
  epidemiologist, the Spokesperson added that he specialised in
  dealing with how diseases originate, and, although there
  continues to be no conclusive evidence about the origins of the
  cholera outbreak, these discussions were part of MINUSTAH’s
  ongoing efforts to obtain information about how the outbreak
  started.

 

U.N. RIGHTS OFFICE DEEPLY
CONCERNED AT USE OF EXCESSIVE FORCE BY GUINEAN SECURITY FORCES

• The Office of the High
  Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
  is deeply concerned at the use of excessive force by Guinea’s
  security forces in response to rallies linked to the
  presidential election. The Office says that between 15–17
  November, security officers fired live ammunition on
  demonstrators, leaving four people dead and another 300 injured.
   

• OHCHR says its own staff
  in Conakry and members of the international press witnessed the
  violence at various locations and that their presence was
  willfully ignored by security forces as they abused
  demonstrators.
   

• The High Commissioner’s
  Office urges the Guinean authorities, security forces and
  political leaders to refrain from violence and from inciting
  ethnic hatred. It also calls on the Government to ensure that
  members of the security forces respect international standards
  on the use of force and firearms.

 

SUDAN: U.N. REFERENDA
PANEL VISITS ABYEI

• Today, the three members
  of the Secretary-General’s Panel on the Referenda in the
  
  Sudan visited Abyei, where they met with the Chief
  Administrator of Abyei and other senior local officials, as well
  as with Dinka chiefs. They also received a briefing from UN
  officials based in Abyei on the latest developments on the
  ground.
   

• Panel chairperson
  Benjamin Mkapa stressed to the Dinka chiefs that the problems in
  Abyei can and must be resolved peacefully, and he urged them not
  to lose hope that ongoing negotiations will result in an end to
  the dispute.
   

• The Secretary-General’s
  Panel is scheduled to travel Saturday to Wad Medani in the north
  of Sudan to visit voter registration centres and speak with
  local officials. Their latest visit to Sudan will conclude on
  Monday.
   

• Asked whether the Abyei
  referendum can be held on schedule, the Spokesperson said that
  the referendum is due to be held on 9 January, and that schedule
  is unchanged; however, some if the infrastructure to hold that
  referendum has not yet been established.

 

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

DPI CONCLUDES CONFERENCE ON
ANTI-SEMITISM:
The Department of Public Information (DPI) co-sponsored an
international conference on Holocaust Denial and Anti-Semitism in
Dublin, which concluded today. Hosted by Holocaust Education Trust
Ireland, with the support of the Government of Ireland and other
partners, the Conference examined anti-Semitism in both historical
and contemporary contexts and considered questions regarding
Holocaust denial, including as a form of hate speech.  Kiyo Akasaka,
Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information,
issued a message for the event, which opened on 17 November 2010.

 

U.N. ISSUES GUIDELINES TO
PROTECT HEALTH WORKERS FROM HIV/AIDS, TUBERCULOSIS:
New UN

guidelines issued today seek to protect health workers, at the
frontline in treating HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis, from contracting
the diseases themselves. They were

launched jointly by the International Labour Organization (ILO),
the World Health Organization (WHO)
and the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).
While the three agencies have been championing universal access to
prevention, treatment, care and support for HIV and TB, they noted
that not enough attention has been paid to the needs of the world’s
60 million health workers around the world.

 

*** The
guests today at the Noon Briefing were George Assaf, Representative
of the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)
to the UN, and Ambassador Tete Antonio, Permanent Observer of the
African Union to the UN.

 

THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UNITED NATIONS[1]
20 November-26 November 2010

 

Saturday, 20 November

 

The Secretary-General will
be in Lisbon, Portugal, to participate in the Afghanistan meeting of
the NATO Summit.

 

Today is Africa
Industrialization Day.

 

Today is the Universal
Children’s Day.

 

Sunday, 21 November

 

Today is the World Day of Remembrance for Road
Traffic Victims.

 

Monday, 22 November

 

This morning, the Security
Council will hold a debate on the protection of civilians in armed
conflict.

 

The guest at the noon
briefing will be Robert Orr, Assistant Secretary-General for Policy
Planning who will brief on the forthcoming COP-16 in Cancun, Mexico.

 

This afternoon, the
Secretary-General will receive an honorary degree from Seton Hall
University and will give an address as part of the John C. Whitehead
School of Diplomacy and International Relation’s World Leaders
Forum. 

 

Starting today and until 26
November, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights
in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), Mr. Marzuki
Darusman, will carry out an official visit to the neighbouring
Republic of Korea.

 

Tuesday, 23 November

 

Today, the Security Council will hear a briefing
and hold consultations on the Middle East. It is also expected to
adopt a resolution on piracy off the coast of Somalia.

 

At 11:00 a.m., Cheick Sidi Diarra,
Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for the Least
Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small
Island Developing States will hold a press conference about UNCTAD's
Least Developed Countries Report 2010. Participants include: Charles
Gore Special Coordinator for cross-sectoral issues in the Division
for Africa, Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Special Programmes;
and Tim Wall, Department of Public Information, who will moderate
the press conference.

 

From 10.00 a.m to 12.00 p.m., the official
observance of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence
Against Women on "Leadership of the Corporate Sector in Ending
Violence against Women and Girls" will take place in Conference Room
1 (NLB). The Secretary-General will deliver the keynote address.

 

At 12:30 p.m., in the Dag Hammarskjold Library
Auditorium, a press conference will be held to mark the
International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women,
with: Michelle Bachelet, UN Women Under-Secretary-General and
Executive Director; Sharon D’Agostino, Vice President, Corporate
Contributions, Johnson & Johnson; Shupe Makashinyi, Equality Now,
Zimbabwe; Debi Nova, artist, Costa Rica; moderated by Margaret
Novicki, Department of Public Information.

 

Today, UNAIDS will launch the 2010 Report on the
global AIDS epidemic. The report will feature the latest global,
regional and country estimates on HIV and new trends in the
epidemic’s evolution.

 

Wednesday, 24 November

 

This morning, the Security
Council will hold consultations on sanctions on the Democratic
Republic of the Congo and on UN peacekeeping operations.

 

Thursday, 25 November

 

Today is an official UN
holiday. UN Headquarters in New York will be closed.

 

Today is the International Day for the
Elimination of Violence against Women.

 

Friday, 26 November

 

There are no major events
scheduled for today.