HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY FARHAN HAQ,
DEPUTY SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES
TUESDAY, 21 MARCH 2017
 
MARKING INTERNATIONAL DAY AGAINST RACIAL DISCRIMINATION, SECRETARY-GENERAL URGES STEPPED UP ACTION TO CLOSE DIVISIONS

• The Secretary-General spoke at the General Assembly meeting this morning to commemorate the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.
• The Secretary-General said we are living in an increasingly intolerant and ever-more divided world, with discrimination and violence on the rise. He expressed concern that migrants have become convenient scapegoats; and that far too often, hate speech, stereotyping and stigmatization are becoming normalized.
• He urged the international community to work even harder to close divisions, combat intolerance and protect human rights.

AT TRIBUTE TO LATE RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR, SECRETARY-GENERAL HAILS HIM AS ‘UNMISTAKABLE VOICE'

• The Secretary-General paid tribute to Russia’s late Permanent Representative, Vitaly Churkin, during a General Assembly meeting this morning in honour of Ambassador Churkin, who passed away last month on the eve of his 65th birthday.
• In his remarks, the Secretary-General said that although he had only worked with Ambassador Churkin for a short time, it was clear the Russian diplomat was “an unmistakable voice – as witty as he was passionate in defending Russia’s interests, while advocating for a strong United Nations”.
• He went on to call Ambassador Churkin an outstanding diplomat, a man of many talents and interests, and a human being whose friendship touched so many lives.

U.N. ENVOY CALLS FOR REVISED STRATEGY TO PROTECT CIVILIANS IN D.R. CONGO

• The Special Representative of the Secretary-General in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Maman Sidikou, is briefing the Security Council this morning.
• He said that he had requested that the protection of civilians strategy of the UN Mission, known as MONUSCO, be revised to address the threat to the civilian population from armed groups in eastern DRC, the spreading ethnic and militia violence in new areas of concern, and possible electoral violence in urban areas.
• The report of the Secretary-General also sets out a package of measures aimed at enhancing the ability of the MONUSCO Force in the current challenging security context through the adoption of a more mobile, flexible and agile posture.

U.N. MISSION SUPPORTS BOLSTERING OF AUTHORITY, SECURITY IN CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC’S BAMBARI TOWN

• The UN Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) continues to support the restoration of state authority and security in the town of Bambari in Ouaka prefecture. Yesterday, UN peacekeepers escorted a convoy of 30 national gendarmes to join another 36 who arrived in the town earlier in the month. The UN Mission also facilitated the deployment of a prison warden to Bambari yesterday as well as corrections and security officers to expedite the resumption of prison services.
• Meanwhile, armed groups continued to undertake aggressive actions on some of the road axes around Bambari and there have been reports of clashes in a number of localities over the past week.
• The Mission also reports clashes between the Mouvement Patriotique pour la Centrafrique (MPC)/Révolution et Justice (RJ) coalition and local self-defence groups in Elevage, Bavara and Tadamou villages in Ouham-Pende prefecture. The UN Mission, in line with its protection of civilians mandate, is dispatching a patrol to the areas to prevent further clashes.

U.N. REFUGEE AGENCY VOICES CONCERN OVER FORCED RETURN OF HUNDREDS OF CAMEROONIAN REFUGEES FROM NIGERIA

• The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is concerned by continuing forced return of hundreds of refugees from Cameroon’s far north region to north-eastern Nigeria despite the recent signing of the tripartite agreement aimed at ensuring the voluntary nature of returns.
• So far this year, Cameroon has forcefully returned over 2,600 refugees back to Nigerian border villages against their will.
• Inside Nigeria, UNHCR teams have heard and documented accounts about Cameroonian troops returning refugees against their will - without allowing them time to collect their belongings.
• While acknowledging the generosity of the Government of Cameroon and local communities who host over 85,000 Nigerian refugees, UNHCR calls on the Government to honour its obligations under international and regional refugee protection instruments, as well as Cameroonian law.

MEETING SOUTU SUDAN LEADER, TOP U.N. PEACEKEEPING OFFICIAL STRESSES NEED FOR POLITICAL SOLUTION

• The Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Hervé Ladsous, has told the President of South Sudan that it is clearer than ever that the problems the country faces must be solved through political rather than military means. Mr. Ladsous met President Salva Kiir on Tuesday, the second day of his two-day trip to the country, and said the President had agreed with his assessment.
• Speaking to the media later in the day, Mr. Ladsous said the UN was sparing no effort to speed up the deployment of the 4000 extra troops of the Regional Protection Force mandated by the Security Council.
• The first peacekeepers from Rwanda, Nepal and Bangladesh will begin arriving in the next few weeks. Mr Ladsous, who is stepping down as the head of UN peacekeeping at the end of the month, was joined in South Sudan by the Under-Secretary-General designate, Jean-Pierre Lacroix.

U.N. MISSION ASSISTS IN WAKE OF SOUTH SUDAN PLANE CRASH

• In response to a question about the crash-landing of a commercial plane at Wau airport in the north-west of South Sudan, the Deputy Spokesperson said that according to the UN Mission in the country (UNMISS), the plane, an Antonov 26 belonging to South Sudan Supreme Company, was flying from Juba to Wau. It crashed at 3:40 pm on Monday afternoon and immediately caught fire. Forty-three passengers were said to be on board. The local authorities initially said there were no casualties.
• UNMISS attended the scene with firefighting equipment and medical staff. Peacekeepers worked alongside local emergency personnel in a combined effort. The UN mission stands ready to assist the people of Wau.

IRAQ: U.N. ENVOY SPEAKS OUT AGAINST ‘COWARDLY’ BOMBING IN BAGHDAD

• The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Iraq, Ján Kubiš, strongly condemned the terrorist bombing in Baghdad’s southwestern al-Amil district yesterday, in which scores of civilians were reported killed or injured.
• He said that this cowardly crime adds to Daesh’s atrocious record of targeting civilians in a futile campaign intended to inflict as many casualties as possible to cause pain on the people, just as the terrorists are being routed on the battlefront.
• Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO), with logistic support from the World Food Programme (WFP), has airlifted 15 fully equipped ambulances to Iraq in order to strengthen the response to the increasing trauma and medical-related emergencies in west Mosul. These ambulances will enhance trauma care at the frontlines and ensure timely referral to field hospitals.  At the urgent request of the Ministry of Health, the ambulances were appropriately designed and equipped and will be staffed with trained paramedics to offer care to patients.

LATEST U.N. HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT URGES ACTION TO HELP MILLIONS LEFT BEHIND DESPITE PROGRESS

• Although there has been impressive progress in human development, millions continue to be left behind and there needs to be a stronger focus on dismantling barriers such as discrimination and unequal political participation, according to the latest Human Development Report by the UN Development Programme (UNDP), which was released today in Stockholm, Sweden.
• The report finds one in three people around the world continue to live in low levels of human development, as measured by the Human Development Index.
• UNDP Administrator Helen Clark said that the world has come a long way in rolling back extreme poverty, in improving access to education and health, and in expanding possibilities for women and girls.
• She stressed that those gains are a prelude to the next, possibly tougher challenge to ensure that the benefits of global progress reach everyone.

WITH LATEST PAYMENTS BY BHUTAN AND MAURITIUS, TOTAL NUMBER OF MEMBER STATES HAVING PAID U.N. DUES IN FULL REACHES 63

• Bhutan and Mauritius have made their full payments to the regular budget, bringing the number of Member States having made their contributions to 63.