Secretary-General

Noon briefing of 23 September 2011

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY MARTIN NESIRKY, SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

FRIDAY, 23 SEPTEMBER 2011

SECRETARY-GENERAL RECEIVES PALESTINIAN APPLICATION

  • President Mahmoud Abbas handed the Palestinian application to the Secretary-General on Friday morning.
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  • Asked about further details on this application, the Spokesperson said that, on receipt of the letter, the appropriate procedural reviews will be quickly undertaken in the Secretariat, after which it will be transmitted to the President of the Security Council and to the President of the General Assembly.
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  • Nesirky added that following the handover, the Secretary-General held a very brief meeting with Mahmoud Abbas and his delegation. He reaffirmed that he would be carrying out his role as set out in the provisional rules of Security Council and would transmit the application to the President of the Security Council as well as a copy to the President of the General Assembly.
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  • Asked about a meeting by the Middle East Quartet this afternoon, the Spokesperson said there had been meetings at the envoy level throughout the week.

BAN KI-MOON TAKES PART IN GATHERINGS OF GROUP OF 77, NUCLEAR-TEST-BAN TREATY

  • The Secretary-General participated in several events at United Nations Headquarters on Friday, including the annual meeting of Foreign Ministers of the Group of 77 and China. He told that group that, in this volatile and changing world, we cannot disappoint the many millions who look to the United Nations with hope. Amid all the uncertainties, we are sure of one imperative: that is to promote sustainable development.
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  • The Secretary-General then spoke at the meeting of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), saying that we know that a comprehensive ban on nuclear tests is an indispensable stepping stone to a nuclear-weapon-free world. He urged all remaining States to sign and ratify the Treaty without further delay.
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  • On Friday morning, he told a breakfast meeting of many of the visiting Foreign Ministers that, in the six short years since its endorsement by the World Summit, the doctrine of the Responsibility to Protect has gone from crawling to walking to running.
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  • The Secretary-General is also scheduled to speak at meetings on the Alliance of Civilizations, Somalia and the Yasuni-ITT initiative in Ecuador.

U.N. RIGHTS OFFICE VOICES ALARM AT PROTEST CRACKDOWN IN SYRIA

  • The United Nations human rights office is extremely alarmed at continued reports of the increasingly brutal crackdown against protestors by Syrian authorities.
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  • It cites reports of prominent human rights defenders – both inside and outside Syria – being targeted.
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  • The office is also concerned by reports of attacks against families and sympathizers of the protestors by security forces.
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  • It again urges Syrian authorities to end their crackdown against peaceful demonstrators, to end acts of reprisals against activists and their families, and to allow for an independent and impartial investigation of the situation in Syria.

SUDAN: U.N. FOOD AGENCY CALLS FOR ACCESS IN BLUE NILE, SOUTH KORDOFAN

  • The World Food Programme (WFP) is appealing to the Sudanese Government to allow the organization access to Blue Nile State and South Kordofan in order to distribute food aid and control food distributions amid great concern about the situation there.
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  • The World Food Programme has managed to deliver some food assistance, but thousands of people were yet to be reached and food stocks need replenishment.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

JOINT AFRICAN UNION-U.N. DARFUR MISSION VERIFYING REPORTS OF VIOLENCE: Asked about violence in Darfur, the Spokesperson said that the UN was aware of these reports and the African Union-United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) was working to verify them. He added that the UN had called on all parties to refrain from violence and work to ensure calm in the area.

SECRETARY-GENERAL TO MEET WITH IRANIAN PRESIDENT: Asked about comments made on Thursday by the President of Iran, Nesirky said that the Secretary-General would be meeting with the President this evening and would make his views very clear to the President.

UPCOMING SECRETARY-GENERAL/UNITED NATIONS ACTIVITIES

23 - 30 SEPTEMBER 2011

(This document is for planning purposes and is subject to change.)

Friday, 23 September

At 2:00 p.m., in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium, there will be a press conference with Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, Secretary-General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC).

At 2:30 p.m., in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium, there will be a press conference with Mahmoud Gebril, Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Libya.

At 3:00 p.m., the Secretary-General will attend a Mini-Summit on Somalia.

At 4:00 p.m., in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium, there will be a press conference with Baburam Bhattarai, Prime Minister of Nepal,

At 5:00 p.m., the Secretary-General will attend the High-Level Meeting on the Yasuni-ITT Initiative with Rafael Correa, President of Ecuador, in Conference Room 5 (NLB).

Saturday, 24 September

At 8:30 a.m., in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium, there will be a press conference with Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Valerie Amos; Bob Geldof; Prime Minister Raila Odinga of Kenya; and Michael Elliott, Chief Executive Officer of the non-governmental organization ONE.

At 10:00 a.m., the Secretary-General will attend the Ministerial Mini-Summit on the Humanitarian Response in the Horn of Africa in Conference Room 4 (NLB).

Sunday, 25 September

Today is World Heart Day (World Health Organization).

Monday, 26 September
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This morning, the Security Council will receive a briefing and hold consultations on Libya and the Libya Sanctions Committee.

Tuesday, 27 September

This morning, the Security Council will receive a briefing and hold consultations on the Middle East.

At 3:00 p.m., the Secretary-General will attend a Ministerial Meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the United Nations in Conference Room 5 (NLB).

At 5:00 p.m., the Secretary-General will attend the High-Level Meeting of the “Group of Friends” on Myanmar in Conference Room 6 (NLB).

Today is World Tourism Day.

Wednesday, 28 September

At 10:00 a.m., the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1373 (2001) concerning counter-terrorism will hold a special meeting commemorating the tenth anniversary of the adoption of Security Council resolution 1373 (2001) and the establishment of the Committee, in the Economic and Social Council Chamber (NLB).

At 1:30 p.m., a civil society side event on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the adoption of Security Council resolution 1373 (2001) and the establishment of the Counter-Terrorism Committee will be held in the ECOSOC Chamber (NLB).

At 3:00 p.m., in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium, there will be a press conference by Assistant Secretary-General Mike Smith, Executive Director of the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate.

Thursday, 29 September

This morning, the Security Council will receive hold a debate on the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA). In the afternoon, the Security Council will hold consultations on the Sudan Sanctions Committee.

At 10:00 a.m., the Fifth Committee will hold its organizational meeting in Conference Room 3 (NLB).

At 10:00 a.m., the Special Political and Decolonization Committee (Fourth Committee) will hold its first meeting in Conference Room 4 (NLB).

Today is World Maritime Day.

Friday, 30 September

At 4:45 p.m., the Secretary-General will make remarks on the occasion of the International Day of Non-Violence in the ECOSOC Chamber (NLB). The event is being organized by the Permanent Mission of India.

Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General

United Nations, SA-1B15

New York, NY 10017

Transcript

The United Nations human rights office is extremely alarmed at continued reports of the increasingly brutal crackdown against protestors by Syrian authorities. It cites reports of prominent human rights defenders being targeted, and is also concerned by reports of attacks against families and sympathizers of the protestors.

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