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HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SPOKESPERSON’S NOON BRIEFING

BY FARHAN HAQ, ACTING DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

TUESDAY, 9 AUGUST 2011 

SECRETARY-GENERAL ARRIVES IN SEOUL; WILL MEET PRESIDENT OF REPUBLIC OF KOREA ON WEDNESDAY
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• The Secretary-General arrived in Seoul earlier today from Tokyo. He said that he had been inspired by the Japanese people's resilience in coping with the aftermath of the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear accident. He said he was also impressed by their determination to share the lessons they have learned in tackling the disaster.
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• The Secretary-General will spend the next six days in the Republic of Korea, on his first trip home since he was reappointed for a second term.
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• On Wednesday, he will address the Republic of Korea's Global Compact group, which brings businesses together to support the UN's work and foster corporate good governance. He will also speak at the opening of the United Nations Academic Impact Forum, a grouping of academics from more than 100 countries. He is expected to tell them that the Academic Impact initiative is helping to inject new dynamism into the work of the United Nations.
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• The Secretary-General will also meet the Speaker of the National Assembly and its Working Group on the Millennium Development Goals. In the evening, he will meet and dine with President Lee Myung-bak.

 

U.N. AGENCIES STEP UP AID EFFORTS IN HORN OF AFRICA

 

• The Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, Mark Bowden, led a humanitarian mission to Mogadishu on Monday to update the Prime Minister and the African Union Mission in Somalia, AMISOM, on the humanitarian situation and to discuss the scale-up of humanitarian operations in Southern Somalia.
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• The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that 2,000 tons of humanitarian assistance was dispatched to Somalia in July by air, boat or road. Programmes are being stepped up, but security conditions and access are still major challenges.
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• Today, the World Food Programme (WFP) started a series of nine airlifts to Mombasa, Kenya, carrying a total of 800 metric tons of High Energy Biscuits, enough to feed 1.6 million people for a day.  The biscuits are being pre-positioned for onward delivery to vulnerable people throughout the Horn of Africa.
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• Over the next two months, WFP is working to deliver a total of 2,000 metric tons of high-nutrient Plumpy Sup, 2,000 metric tons of High Energy Biscuits and up to 10,000 metric tons of a fortified blend of corn- and soya-based food by air and road to Somalia.
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• Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) is warning of the high risk of disease outbreaks in drought-affected areas in the Horn of Africa. There has been a suspected measles outbreak in the Dollo Ado camps, in Ethiopia. WHO and the UN refugee agency have been working to screen children, increase surveillance and raise awareness among refugees.
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• WHO also says that, in Somalia, there are confirmed cholera outbreaks in Mogadishu, Bay, Mudug and Lower Shabelle regions.

 

SECURITY COUNCIL CONDEMNS ATTACK ON PEACEKEEPERS IN DARFUR

 

• The Security Council received an update on the situation in Yemen in closed consultations this morning. Jamal Benomar, the Special Adviser on Yemen, discussed his recent travel to that country.
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• On Monday afternoon, the President of the Council read out a press statement in which the members of the Security Council condemned in the strongest terms the attack on peacekeepers from the UN-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) on 5 August, which resulted in the death of a Sierra Leonean soldier and left another seriously wounded. 

 

SECRETARY-GENERAL URGES STRENGTHENING OF RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES

 

• The United Nation is observing the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples today.
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• On this day, the Secretary-General has urged for the strengthening of the rights of indigenous peoples around the world.
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• He said that indigenous peoples are the custodians of a valuable and fast-disappearing cultural heritage. They must be supported to protect and develop their traditional knowledge, which benefits everybody.
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• In the lead-up to a World Conference in 2014, the Secretary-General has also urged Member States to take concrete steps to address the challenges that indigenous people face and commit to ending the human rights abuses they encounter in many parts of the world.

 

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

SECURITY COUNCIL TO RECEIVE UPDATE ON SYRIA ON WEDNESDAY: Asked whether developments in Syria constitute a threat to regional peace and security, the Spokesperson noted that the Security Council has met on the issue and that it would be up to the Council to make such a determination. He said that the Secretary-General had discussed his concerns about Syria in a phone call with President Bashar al-Assad on Saturday and that the Secretariat would provide an oral report to the Council on Syria on Wednesday.

 

RESOLUTION 1973 HAS HELPED TO PROTECT CIVILIANS, SAYS SECRETARY-GENERAL: Asked about NATO attacks on Libya under Security Council resolution 1973, the Spokesperson noted that the Secretary-General has said the actions following up on resolution 1973 had saved the lives of civilians and has emphasized the need to continue efforts to protect civilians.

 

Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General
United Nations, SA-1B15
New York, NY 10017
Tel. 212-963-7162
Fax. 212-963-7055
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