HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC,

SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

THURSDAY, 15 JANUARY 2015

IN HONDURAS, SECRETARY-GENERAL MEETS PRESIDENT, ADDRESSES CONGRESS

• The Secretary-General is in Honduras today.
• Yesterday, he began his visit to Honduras by meeting with President Juan Orlando Hernandez-Alvarado. They discussed Honduras’s social and economic issues, as well as concerns regarding Honduras’s security and human rights situation. The Secretary-General welcomed the Government’s willingness to strengthen its relations with the United Nations through the opening of a local presence of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
• The Secretary-General also addressed the National Congress of Honduras and received the highest distinction from the Assembly, the Gran Cruz Extraordinaria con Placa de Oro. In his speech to the Congress, he said Honduras had emerged from the political turbulence of recent years but that big obstacles to opportunity remain, like poverty and inequality, violence, insecurity and impunity. He said the National Congress needed to be a space to build consensus, and effective responses. He specifically called on representatives to ensure that the Human Rights Office, which the UN will open in the next few months in Honduras, receives the support it needs to carry out its vital work. 
• The Secretary-General had a series of meetings this morning with Honduran officials and civil society representatives and is on his way to see the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Copan Ruinas. From there, he will travel to El Salvador, to attend on Friday the XXIII Anniversary of the Peace Agreements, which put an end to the civil war in El Salvador.

U.N. POLITICAL OFFICIAL VOICES REGRET THAT PALESTINIANS, ISRAELIS HAVE NOT MADE DECISIONS TO BUILD TRUST – SECURITY COUNCIL

• In the Security Council, Jens Anders Toyberg-Frandzen, Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, briefed the Security Council in its open meeting this morning on the Middle East.
• He regretted that neither the Palestinians nor the Israelis have taken the challenging steps, or made the bold decisions, required to begin the process of reversing the ever-widening trust deficit between the two sides. Instead, we have witnessed developments which may unfortunately further reduce the likelihood of talks resuming in the future, he said.

DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL COMMENDS BARBERSHOP CONFERENCE FOR CHANGING BEHAVIOR TO END VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN, GIRLS

• The Deputy Secretary-General, Jan Eliasson, spoke this morning at the Barbershop Conference, which, he said, aims to jolt our thinking, to make us dispel clichés, and to change our behaviour. He commended the Conference for its focus today on ending violence against women and girls. 
• The Deputy Secretary-General said that he and the Secretary-General are convinced that this must be the Century of Women and Girls. It is up to all of us to make that a reality.
• And he spoke about the need to change the discourse among men on the issue of gender equality. He noted that 20 years ago, 12 per cent of parliamentarians were women. Today, he added, 22 per cent of Members of Parliament are women, which, although nearly double what it was twenty years ago is still not nearly enough.

U.N. SYRIA ENGAGED IN DISCUSSIONS WITH GOVERNMENT, OPPOSITION OVER ALEPPO FREEZE

• In Geneva, Staffan de Mistura, the Special Envoy for Syria for the Secretary-General, said he was engaged in intense discussions with the Syrian Government and the opposition forces regarding a freeze in the city of Aleppo.  He added that his office will send another delegation, led by his deputy, Ramzy Ezzedine Ramzy, in an effort to reduce violence and possibly freeze all military activities in Aleppo.
• The Special Envoy said that he looked favourably on potential meetings in Cairo and Moscow as starting points for a political dialogue among Syrians. He said he would follow up on those and any other points.
• Mr. de Mistura also warned of the challenges posed by the long-running war, with 12 million people in need, 7.6 million people displaced and 3.3 million refugees. 220,000 people have been killed and one million wounded. Meanwhile, polio, typhoid and measles have now returned into Syria.

HEAD OF AFRICAN UNION-U.N. MISSION VISITS WEST DARFUR TO ASSESS SECURITY SITUATION

• The African Union-UN Joint Mission and its Acting Joint Special Representative (AJSR), Mr. Abiodun Bashua, was in El Geneina today in West Darfur as well as yesterday.
• He was there to assess the security situation, the cooperation between the African Union -United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) and local authorities and the humanitarian situation.
• During his two-day visit, he met with the West Darfur Governor (Wali) as well as with internally displaced persons in the Ardamata camp.

U.N. HUMAN RIGHTS CHIEF APPEALS TO SAUDI ARABIA TO HALT FLOGGING OF RAEF BADAWI

• In Geneva, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, appealed today to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to halt the punishment of Raef Badawi, who was publicly flogged 50 times last Friday and is reportedly due to be flogged again tomorrow and every Friday until his sentence of 1,000 lashes has been carried out.
  High Commissioner Zeid said that flogging is at the very least a form of cruel and inhuman punishment. Such punishment is prohibited under international human rights law, in particular the Convention against Torture, which Saudi Arabia has ratified.
• He appealed to the King of Saudi Arabia to exercise his power to halt the public flogging by pardoning Mr. Badawi, and to urgently review this type of extraordinarily harsh penalty.

NIGERIA: U.N. EDUCATION ENVOY GORDON BROWN URGES GLOBAL UNITY AGAINST BOKO HARAM’S USE OF YOUNG GIRLS AS SUICIDE BOMBERS

• On Nigeria, the UN Special Envoy for Global Education, Gordon Brown, said today that the world must unite to condemn Boko Haram's new barbaric low with their evil use of young girls as suicide bombers to carry out their murderous attacks. He noted three attacks over the past week using girls who blew themselves up in crowded areas.
  ?He added that, in contravention of international law, children are now being fired on indiscriminately as easy targets by Boko Haram, exploited as slaves and sex objects and deployed as suicide bombers.   ?
• ?Mr. Brown said that, as we approach the first anniversary of the kidnapping of more than 200 Nigerian girls from their Chibok school, we must resolve to do more against Boko Haram and ensure that the children are ?better protected by supporting President Goodluck Jonathan's safe school initiative.

U.N. MISSION, D.R. CONGO ARMY LAUNCH JOINT OPERATION AGAINST REBELS IN COUNTRY’S EAST

• The UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) and Congolese army launched today joint operations against the FRPI, the Force de resistance patriotique d'Ituri, in Aveba, which is in Province Orientale.
• This followed an attack by the FRPI  on the Congolese army position in Aveba.
• Two days before, the Mission visited Aveba for talks with the leaders of the FRPI on their surrender and release of child soldiers.
• MONUSCO provided support for the Congolese army to prevent the FRPI from advancing towards the base and is also doing its utmost to protect civilians. The mission continues to monitor the situation.

NEW U.N.-BACKED REPORT ON STATUS OF PROTECTION OF DISPLACED PEOPLE UNVEILED

• The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the Brookings Institute have launched a new report on key developments in the protection of internally displaced people since humanitarian reforms began in 2005.

CIVIL SOCIETY GROUPS LAUNCH U.N.-SUPPORTED DIGITAL MOVEMENT TO SPOTLIGHT IMPORTANCE OF YEAR 2015

• Civil society organizations around the world have launched an UN-supported digital movement to underscore the importance of 2015. The year provides an historic opportunity to adopt a new sustainable development agenda and a global agreement on climate change.
• The movement encourages everyone to use the hashtag #Action2015 to raise awareness to the need for world leaders to take action this year. Last week, the Secretary-General told the General Assembly that 2015 must be a time for global action.