HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY STÉPHANE DUJARRIC​,
SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTÓNIO GUTERRES
FRIDAY, 8 MAY 2020
 

SECRETARY-GENERAL/HATE SPEECH
The Secretary-General today released an appeal to address and counter COVID-19-related hate speech.
The Secretary-General said the virus does not care who we are, where we live, and what we believe or about any other distinction, and yet, the pandemic continues to unleash a tsunami of hate, xenophobia, scapegoating and scare-mongering.
He stressed that we must act now to strengthen the immunity of our societies against this virus of hate. He called on political leaders to show solidarity with all members of their societies and build and reinforce social cohesion.
The Secretary-General also called on educational institutions to focus on digital literacy. He called on media companies to do more to flag and remove harmful content. And he called on civil society to strengthen outreach to vulnerable people, and he called on religious actors to serve as models of mutual respect.
Finally, Mr. Guterres asked every citizen to stand up against hate, to treat each other with dignity and to take every opportunity to spread kindness.
 
ERADICATION OF SMALLPOX
Today, as you may know, is the 40th anniversary of the eradication of smallpox. It is the first and only human disease eradicated on a global scale through the collaboration of countries worldwide. Until it was wiped out, smallpox had plagued humanity for at least 3,000 years, killing 300 million people in the 20th century alone – that’s four million people annually.
Just moments ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) held a press briefing to commemorate this milestone. WHO Executive Director Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that many of the tools used to tackle smallpox are the same tools that were used to fight Ebola and now COVID-19.  He added that the WHO is working with partners to develop a vaccine, the tool that ultimately helped eradicate smallpox.
Like smallpox, he said, COVID-19 is giving us an opportunity to change the trajectory of global health and to build a safer, healthier world for everyone.
The UN Postal Administration unveiled a stamp today to honour the millions of people working together, from world leaders and international organizations to rural doctors and community health workers, to eradicate smallpox.
 
REMEMBRANCE AND RECONCILIATION
At 5:30 p.m. this afternoon, we will release a message from the Secretary-General for the Time of Remembrance and Reconciliation for those who lost their lives in the Second World War. That will be an occasion to pay tribute to the millions of people who lost their lives during the war and remember their sacrifices. As you know, this year is the 75th anniversary of the end of the war.
 
IRAQ
In a statement issued yesterday, the Secretary-General welcomed the formation of the new Government of Iraq, led by Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi.
The Secretary-General expressed his support to the new Government. He called for the implementation of meaningful reforms that make tangible improvements in people’s lives and strengthen Iraq’s democratic institutions. He also reiterated the importance of acting in the interest of all Iraqis through a political process in which women, youth and all of Iraq’s diverse communities, including ethnic and religious minorities, can participate actively.
That full statement is online.
 
COVID-19/SECRETARY-GENERAL/U.N. RESIDENT COORDINATORS
The Secretary-General and the Deputy Secretary-General yesterday afternoon spoke with our Resident Coordinators who cover 162 countries and territories. As we’ve been telling you over the past few weeks, Resident Coordinators are leading the UN teams working day and night with Governments to flatten the curve and address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Secretary-General underscored the magnitude of the challenge and the critical role of steering the UN response on the ground as the virus spreads in the global South.
In remarks to them, he stressed that global challenges can only be addressed through cooperation, solidarity and multilateralism.
 
E.C.O.S.O.C.
I want to flag that, at 10 a.m. on Monday, the President of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Ambassador Mona Juul of Norway, is convening a virtual informal briefing on “Joining Forces: Effective Policy Solutions for Covid-19 Response.” ECOSOC will bring the expertise of the wider UN system to discuss policy solutions that countries can use to combat the pandemic, preserve advances made and get back on track to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. You can follow that on the UN Web TV page.
The Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed, will be there, as well as various heads of UN agencies and the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet.
And, on a related note, the ECOSOC Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Haiti today issued a statement expressing solidarity towards Haiti during the pandemic. The Group called on the UN, Member States, donors and international financial institutions to act together with determination and urgency to prevent and respond to the spread of COVID-19 and to mitigate its humanitarian and socio-economic consequences.
 
COVID-19/PACIFIC APPEAL
From the Pacific, two UN Resident Coordinators – Sanaka Samarasinha and Simona Marinescu – who are leading UN teams covering 14 countries and territories, yesterday launched a $35.3 million COVID-19 response plan.
It addresses immediate needs in education, food security, livelihoods, water and sanitation, nutrition, protection, logistics, as well as emergency telecommunications. Although existing UN resources have been redirected towards the pandemic response, there is still a $19 million funding gap.
Although some Pacific countries have no confirmed cases of the virus, their economies are already deeply impacted, with a massive slowdown in tourism, imports, exports, and remittances.
The Governments, the UN, as well as all of our partners, are focusing on a speedy recovery that protects the most vulnerable, especially women and children, as well as jobs and small businesses.
An additional Pacific health plan, led by WHO, requires $42 million for procurement, training of medical personnel and risk communications.
These funds will complement resources from the Multi-Partner Trust Fund for COVID-19 Response and Recovery which, you will recall, was launched by the Secretary-General to address the impacts in highly fragile, climate-vulnerable and tourism-dependent economies. Some of these countries of the Pacific are still recovering from the impacts of recent Cyclone Harold.
 
LEBANON
In Lebanon, the acting UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Claudio Cordone, as well as our humanitarian partners, launched yesterday the Lebanon Emergency appeal, requesting $350 million.
The appeal will address critical areas of humanitarian intervention to people at risk due to the virus outbreak and its immediate socio-economic impact.
The onset of the pandemic in Lebanon has come at an extraordinarily difficult time, compounding pre-existing vulnerabilities. The outbreak has added pressure to an already overburdened and under-resourced national health system.
 
SYRIA
Turning to Syria, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, expressed serious concerns today about continuing human rights violations and abuses and a sharp rise in killings of civilians in the country. She says that the deteriorating situation is a ticking time-bomb that must not be ignored.
She said that her office is receiving more reports every day of targeted killings and bombings from one end of the country to the other. Many of these attacks are taking place in populated areas.
 
SOMALIA
In Somalia, our colleagues at the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) today warned that the safety and welfare of the country’s 2.6 million internally displaced people are being threatened by heavy flooding, conflict, a crippled economy, impending desert locust swarms and the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
UNHCR calls for a strong and coordinated response from the international community, national and local Somali authorities as well as humanitarian actors to meet the massive humanitarian needs.
Earlier this week, UNHCR and the Government airlifted emergency supplies – including soap, blankets, sleeping mats, kitchen sets and plastic sheets – to help more than 8,000 people in Baidoa, Bardheere and Qardho. A second airlift is set to take place as early as today, with UNHCR’s assistance expected to reach a total 37,000 people.
Continuing with Somalia, the International Organization on Migration (IOM) warned today that hundreds of migrants are stranded in Bossaso in Puntland due to border and sea-crossing closures as a result from the pandemic.
Every year, scores of migrants, mainly from landlocked Ethiopia, pass through Bossaso to cross the Gulf of Aden to Yemen, hoping to proceed onwards to Gulf countries.
 
EAST AFRICA/HORN OF AFRICA
Staying in the region and the Horn of Africa, the IOM said that the number of internally displaced people there has dropped in the past six months. This is largely due to 1.3 million Ethiopians who were uprooted by communal violence in 2019 having returned home.
 
CENTRAL MEDITERRANEAN/HUMAN RIGHTS
Today, our colleagues at the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said they are deeply concerned about recent reports of failure to assist migrant boats in the central Mediterranean.
The central Mediterranean continues to be one of the deadliest migration routes in the world.
 
FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION
Ending on some good news: I am delighted to thank our friends in Port Louis, Mauritius, for their full payment to the UN’s regular budget. So far, 89 Member States have paid in full for 2020 and all previous years.