HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY EDUARDO DEL BUEY, DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

THURSDAY, 22 MARCH 2012

• On Thursday, the Secretary-General issued a statement on Mali, strongly condemning the rebellion by the elements of the Malian armed forces who have announced the dissolution of government institutions and the suspension of the Constitution. 
• He calls on those responsible to refrain from any actions that could increase violence and further destabilize the country.
• The Secretary-General calls for the immediate restoration of constitutional rule in Mali. 
• The United Nations is ready to engage with all relevant stakeholders, including the leaders in the sub-region and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) toward this end, so as to preserve the democratic gains made by Mali over the past two decades.
• In response to questions on the situation in Mali, the Deputy Spokesperson reiterated the concern of the Secretary-General.
• He said the United Nations was in close contact with the African Union and regarding developments in the country. He also said the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for West Africa, Said Djinnit, was also following the situation.

• On Thursday, the Secretary-General arrived in Singapore from Malaysia.
• Earlier in the day, the Secretary-General visited Kuala Lumpur's Institute of Respiratory Medicine to meet tuberculosis patients and help highlight Saturday's World Tuberculosis Day and this year's campaign to stop TB in our lifetime.
• He also delivered a speech at the Institute for Diplomacy and Foreign Relations before driving to Putrajaya, about an hour from Kuala Lumpur, to meet the Malaysian Prime Minister at his office there.
• In his speech at the institute, the Secretary-General commended Malaysia for making great strides towards meeting the Millennium Development Goals and urged the country to help share its experiences with other countries in the global South. He also said Malaysia and its neighbours face common challenges related to human rights, including protecting the rights of migrants.
• After his meeting with Prime Minister Najib, the Secretary-General and the Prime Minister gave a press conference during which the Secretary-General took questions on Syria, Myanmar and the DPRK.
• Before flying to Singapore, the Secretary-General visited the Malaysian Peacekeeping Training Centre at Port Dickson. He paid tribute to the thousands of Malaysian peacekeepers who have served in UN missions since 1960 and the 28 who have lost their lives.
• On Friday in Singapore, the Secretary-General will meet Government and State leaders and deliver the inaugural Fullerton lecture to the Asia branch of the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

• On Thursday morning, the Security Council adopted a resolution on Afghanistan that extends the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Afghanistan (UNAMA) until 23 March 2013.
• As well, Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Michael von den Schulenberg, briefed the Council on developments in Sierra Leone, noting that the forthcoming elections in November will be the major challenge for the country’s nascent democracy.
• He noted that Sierra Leone’s political elites carry a heavy responsibility to not let these elections derail the country’s future.
• He raised reports that the government is importing assault weapons for the police and urged the government to fully clarify these reports. He called on all sides to refrain from extreme and unsubstantiated accusations.
• The Security Council then held consultations on Sierra Leone and other matters, and will be briefed by the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Lynn Pascoe, in consultations.

U.N. URGES SRI LANKA TO ENSURE ACCOUNTABILITY FOR ALLEGED WAR CRIMES

• Asked about the resolution adopted this morning in Geneva by the Human Rights Council on promoting reconciliation and accountability in Sri Lanka, the Deputy Spokesperson noted that, as the Secretary-General had said previously, this was a matter for Member States to decide.
• He added that given the Panel of Experts' assessment that a number of allegations of serious violations of international humanitarian and human rights law were credible, the Secretary-General felt it was incumbent on him to share the report of the Panel of Experts with the UN’s Human Rights Council and the High Commissioner for Human Rights. 
• Del Buey also said that the Secretary-General believed that the support of the international community in helping Sri Lanka move forward the accountability issue was be critical, given the serious concerns raised by the Panel about violations of international humanitarian and human rights law.

• The General Assembly and the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) held a thematic debate on cross-cultural understanding on Thursday.
• The Deputy Secretary-General said that today's emerging generation is at home in a world of diversity and cross-cultural connection. They are adept at technology and new forms of social mobilization. They have been admirably courageous in putting issues such as inequality and injustice on the global agenda.
• They are creating the conditions for the global community to go from respect and understanding at a distance to real dialogue and close collaboration on a wide range of common challenges.
• The Deputy Secretary-General said our job is to help youth build the future they want. And the UN is moving both youth and cross-cultural understanding to the forefront of the agenda.

WORLD WATER DAY: U.N. CALLS ON ENSURING ACCESS TO WATER AND INVESTMENT ON RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

• In a message marking World Water Day on Thursday, the Secretary-General says that nearly one billion people suffer from hunger and some 800 million still lack a safe supply of freshwater.
• With this year’s theme for the day being “Water and Food Security,” he emphasizes that guaranteeing food and water for all will require countries’ full engagement. And investments in water infrastructure, rural development and water resource management will be essential.
• For her part, Irina Bokova, Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) says that we must increase water productivity and wastewater reuse in agriculture to produce ‘more food per drop.’ We must put in place more efficient irrigation and rainwater harvesting systems and we must integrate our management of water and land, including also women’s voices.
• Meanwhile, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is urging governments to pay particular attention to those who are being left behind in their countries' progress, especially with regard to access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation.
• To mark the day, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is hosting a series of events at its headquarters in Rome, which include discussions on improving water management, reducing food and water waste, and building up communities’ resilience to climate change.

• On Thursday, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Associate Administrator Rebeca Grynspan and Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan inaugurated the first Global Human Development Forum in Istanbul, Turkey.
• Recommendations from the 2011 Human Development Report and the Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Global Sustainability will be analyzed in depth at the Forum, which will examine key issues on the agenda at the Rio+20 Conference in June.  
• In a message to the Forum, the Secretary-General says that sustainable development recognizes that our economic, social and environmental objectives are not competing goals that must be traded off against each other. Rather, they are interconnected objectives that are most effectively pursued together in a holistic manner.
• The event will conclude on Friday with an “Istanbul Declaration” which will contain commonly-agreed goals and priorities for the Rio+20 Conference.

 
U.N. CONDUCTS INTERNAL INQUIRY REGARDING BREACH OF STAFF REGULATIONS BY AN EMPLOYEE: Asked about a letter sent by the Mission of Israel to the United Nations regarding tweets of an employee of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the Deputy Spokesperson said that the United Nations was aware of the letter. We understand and take seriously the concerns raised by them and others regarding this matter, he noted, adding that an internal inquiry was underway regarding any breach of UN staff rules and regulations.

FAO ALARMS FOOT-AND MOUTH DISEASE OUTBREAK IN EGYPT: According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), more than 40,000 suspected cases of foot-and-mouth disease have been reported in Egypt, with some 5,000 animals, mostly calves, having died. The agency said on Thursday that 6.3 million buffalo and cattle and 7.5 million sheep and goats in Egypt could be at risk. FAO pointed out that although the disease has been endemic in the country for years, the current outbreak is linked to a new strain of the virus for which the country’s livestock have no immunity. FAO warned that urgent action is needed to control a major outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Egypt and prevent its spread throughout North Africa and Middle East, with serious implications for food security.