HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STEPHANE DUJARRIC, SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

FRIDAY, 1 APRIL 2016

SECRETARY-GENERAL HIGHLIGHTS ROLE OF INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY AT NUCLEAR SECURITY SUMMIT

• At the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, D.C., the Secretary-General is to attend a working lunch with other dignitaries. In his remarks, he intends to bring attention to the crucial role played by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in the area of nuclear security.
• Many states lack sufficient capacity to act on nuclear security threats and this is where the IAEA role is indispensable in providing expertise, advice and technical assistance.
• The Secretary-General will also highlight the importance of the Security Council Resolution 1540, requiring the states to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and of the UN Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism.

SECRETARY-GENERAL MEETS FRENCH PRESIDENT IN THE MARGINS OF NUCLEAR SECURITY SUMMIT IN WASHINGTON D.C.

• The Secretary-General met today with the President of the French Republic, Mr. François Hollande. The Secretary-General and the President discussed the situation in Western Sahara.
• The Secretary-General and the President also exchanged views on the situation in Mali. The Secretary-General thanked France for its continued support to the implementation of the peace agreement in Mali, for the review of the mandate of the UN Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) and for tackling issues of insecurity and the re-establishment of State authority throughout the country.
• The Secretary-General thanked France for its continued support to the democratically elected Government of the Central African Republic, underlining the need to maintain international attention on the situation in the country.
• On the allegations of misconduct by peacekeeping troops in the Central African Republic, the Secretary-General and the President agreed on the imperative of a thorough investigation to ensure that perpetrators be brought to justice.
• The Secretary-General and the President also discussed preparations for the 22 April signing ceremony of the Paris Agreement on climate change.

SECRETARY-GENERAL COMMENDS UKRAINE’S IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTION TO GLOBAL NUCLEAR SECURITY

• The Secretary-General met today with the President of Ukraine, Mr. Petro Poroshenko. The Secretary-General commended Ukraine for its important contribution to global nuclear security.
• Regarding the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine, the Secretary-General expressed his deep concern over the precariousness of the security situation and reiterated the urgent need for full implementation of the Minsk agreements.
• President Poroshenko also updated the Secretary-General on the domestic political situation in Ukraine.

HEAD OF U.N. PEACEKEEPING URGES MILITARY PERSONNEL TO BE PERSONALLY COMMITTEED IN COUNTERING SEXUAL ABUSE

• The UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA)-led integrated team made up of staff members of the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), Human Rights, Child and Women’s Protection, Conduct and Discipline, as well as the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), continued to interview victims.
• Protection and assistance to victims remains the UN's top priority. Today, the Under-Secretary General for Peacekeeping Operations, Herve Ladsous, held meetings with personnel from the UN Mission in Bangui and with staff from the field through video conference.
• Addressing military personnel commanders and police officers, Mr. Ladsous reminded them firmly of the need for them to be personally committed to countering sexual exploitation and abuse.
• Speaking to reporters, Mr. Ladsous also stressed the responsibility of Police and Troops Contributing Countries to provide military and police staff personnel that have been sensitized, trained and fully aware of sanctions they will face if allegations are confirmed.
• He condemned the scourge of sexual exploitation and reiterated the proposals to establish martial courts in situ.

PREPARATIONS UNDERWAY FOR YEMENI PEACE TALKS SLATED TO BEGIN ON 18 APRIL

• The Office of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen said that preparations are currently underway for Yemeni-Yemeni peace talks, which are expected to be held under the auspices of the UN in Kuwait starting 18 April.
• UN Special Envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed urged Yemeni delegations to seize the opportunity to provide a mechanism for a return to a peaceful and orderly transition.
• He encouraged the parties to engage constructively in the talks, including on the areas of the withdrawal of militias and armed groups, interim security arrangements, the restoration of state institutions and the resumption of inclusive political dialogue.
• The parties to the conflict have agreed to a nation-wide cessation of hostilities beginning at midnight on 10 April.
• The World Food Programme (WFP) said that the humanitarian situation in Yemen is rapidly deteriorating due to a year-long conflict that has worsened the living conditions of Yemen’s poor population, adding more than 3 million people to the ranks of the hungry in less than a year.
• In March, WFP reached over 3 million people in 17 governorates with emergency food assistance. Nine of those governorates are in the grip of severe food insecurity at ‘Emergency’ level – one step below famine based on the five-point Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) scale.
• Last month, WFP distributed through a local supplier vouchers to nearly 190,000 people in Sana’a city and Aden in a new initiative. By using vouchers, the agency aims to speed up the delivery of food assistance and boost local markets – and plans to reach 1 million people in this way by the end of 2016.

LIBYA: SECRETARY-GENERAL URGES ALL PARTIES TO ENSURE SAFETY AND SECURITY OF PRESIDENCY COUNCIL

• In a statement issued yesterday, the Secretary-General welcomed the arrival of the Libyan Presidency Council in Tripoli on 30 March, saying that this marks an important step in the implementation of the Libyan Political Agreement.
• The Secretary-General urged all political actors and public institutions to facilitate an immediate and peaceful handover of power.
• He also reminded all security actors of their responsibility to ensure the safety and security of the Presidency Council and urged them to refrain from any action that could undermine their work.
• The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said today that there were an estimated 32 civilian casualties during March 2016, including 21 deaths and 11 injuries. Victims included seven children who were killed and another four injured.
• The majority of civilian deaths and injuries were caused by gun shots, followed by shelling. Civilian casualties were also recorded in Tunisia as a result of the armed conflict in Libya.  
• UNSMIL reported that from 1 January to the end of February 2016, it had documented an estimated 66 civilian casualties, including 28 deaths and 38 injuries.  

U.N. SPECIAL ADVISER URGES MORE HUMANITARIAN ACCESS IN SYRIA

• The Special Advisor to the UN Special Envoy for Syria, Jan Egeland, spoke to reporters yesterday in Geneva following the latest Task Force meeting on Humanitarian Access in Syria.
• Despite some humanitarian access, he warned that aid agencies continue to face a number of administrative problems and security issues.
• Stressing the need for more unhindered access, Mr. Egeland said that next ten days will be crucial because April is expected to be the first month under a new procedure which will allow the UN and its partners to get clearance and green light within seven working days.
• The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that despite the welcome approval of six locations requested by the UN on 23 March by the Syrian Government, other requests to deliver assistance to the besieged locations of Darayya, Duma, East Harasta, Moadamiya and Zabadani were not granted.
• The UN urges the Government to allow access to these areas without delay to enable the provision of life-saving assistance to those in need. It calls for unconditional, unimpeded and sustained access to all the 4.6 million people in besieged and hard-to-reach locations across Syria.

OVER A THOUSAND PEOPLE KILLED IN IRAQ IN MARCH – U.N. MISSION

• The UN Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) released its latest casualty figures today saying that a total of 1,119 Iraqis were killed and another 1,561 were injured in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in the country in March.
• The overall casualty figures are up from February, where a total of 670 were killed and 1,290 were injured.
• The Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Iraq, Mr. Ján Kubiš, has expressed his deep concern at the continuing violence and loss of life and injury in Iraq.

HUMANITARIAN AND DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR HIGHLIGHTS PALESTINIANS’ RIGHT TO FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT

• Humanitarian and development partners today joined thousands of Palestinian and international runners in the annual Palestine Marathon in the city of Bethlehem in support of Palestinians’ right to freedom of movement.
• Addressing the occasion, the UN Coordinator for Humanitarian Aid and Development, Robert Piper, said that we remain acutely of the many barriers to freedom of movement faced by Palestinians every day.
• He stressed that freedom of movement is not only a right in itself, but is essential for the enjoyment of many other human rights.

U.N. AGENCY STRESSES NEED TO IMPLEMENT ALL SAFEGUARDS BEFORE RETURN OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES

• The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has urged parties to the recent European Union-Turkey agreement on refugees and migrants to ensure that all safeguards are in place before any returns begin.
• UNHCR Spokesperson Melissa Fleming stressed in Geneva today that the agency does not object to returns of people without protection needs and who have not asked for asylum, provided that their human rights are being respected.
• The EU and Turkey struck a deal which went into effect on 20 March and allows EU authorities to return to Turkey asylum seekers without well-established fear of persecution or risk to their lives. Most of those refugees and migrants are entering the EU through Greece.
• In Turkey, UNHCR has requested access to people returned from Greece, to ensure people can benefit from effective international protection and to prevent risk of refoulement.
• The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that for the first three months of 2016 at least 170 thousand refugees and migrants have entered Europe by sea-routes - eight times more compared to the figures for the same period in 2015.

SECRETARY-GENERAL COMMENDS CHINA AND U.S. ON ANNOUNCEMENT TO SIGN PARIS AGREEMENT

• In a statement issued yesterday, the Secretary-General commended the leaders of China and the United States for announcing that both countries will sign the Paris Agreement on 22 April, the first day the Agreement opens for signature.
• The Secretary-General also welcomed the announcement that both countries commit to taking steps in their respective countries to join the Agreement as early as possible this year, while urging other countries to do so, so that the Paris Agreement can enter into force as soon as possible.
• The 22 April Signature Ceremony will build on the strong political momentum from Paris for urgent global action on climate change by all countries – we will have more details on this later in April.

DISCRIMINATION AGAINST PEOPLE WITH AUTISM IS A HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATION - SECRETARY-GENERAL AHEAD OF INTERNATIONAL DAY

• Ahead of World Autism Awareness Day, to be observed on 2 April, a special event, titled “Autism and the 2030 Agenda: Inclusion and Neurodiversity” is taking place right now in the Trusteeship Council Chamber at the United Nations headquarters.
• The event is co-organized by the Permanent Missions of Argentina, Armenia, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Denmark, Ecuador, Israel, Italy, Kazakhstan and Poland, the Department of Public Information (DPI) and the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA).
• In his message to commemorate the Day, the Secretary-General emphasizes that, while autism as a psychological condition is not yet well-understood, to discriminate against people with autism “is a violation of human rights and a waste of human potential.”
• The Secretary-General reminds all that as we celebrate the 10^th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, we should take the opportunity to advance the rights of individuals with autism and to ensure their full participation in all areas of life.

DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL TO TRAVEL TO SWEDEN

• Over the weekend, the Deputy Secretary-General, Jan Eliasson, will depart New York for Stockholm where he will have bilateral meetings with senior Government officials on 4 April.
• During the visit, he will also participate in the 5th Global Meeting of the International Dialogue on Peacebuilding and State-building, and the 2016 Stockholm Forum on Security and Development.

U.N. AGENCIES STRESS HEALTH INEQUALITIES AS URBAN POPULATION CONTINUES TO GROW

• New data from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Human Settlement Programme (UN-Habitat) says that as the world’s urban population continues to grow, health inequalities between the richest and poorest remains a persistent challenge.
• An estimated 3.7 billion people live in cities today and by 2030, this number is expected to increase by another billion. Ninety per cent of the growth is in low- and middle-income countries.