HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SPOKESMAN'S NOON
BRIEFING
BY
FRED ECKHARD
SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
UN HEADQUARTERS,
NEW YORK
Wednesday, April
13, 2005
GENERAL ASSEMBLY ADOPTS NUCLEAR
TERRORISM TREATY TEXT:
ANNAN WELCOMES IT AS "VITAL STEP FORWARD"
The
General Assembly this morning adopted by consensus an
International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism.
The Assembly requested the Secretary-General to open the
Convention for signature at UN Headquarters, starting this 14 September and
lasting until the end of December 2006.
It also called on all States to sign and ratify, accept,
approve or accede to the Convention.
Secretary-General Kofi Annan, in a
statement, congratulates the General Assembly on its adoption today by
consensus of the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of
Nuclear Terrorism.
The adoption of this Convention, after many years of
negotiations, is a vital step forward in multilateral efforts to prevent
nuclear terrorism. The Convention will help prevent terrorist groups from
gaining access to the most lethal weapons known to humanity. It will also
strengthen the international legal framework against terrorism, which includes
12 existing universal conventions and protocols.
The adoption of this Convention was one of the key
recommendations contained in the
Secretary-General’s recent report, “In Larger Freedom”. He calls on all
States to become parties to the Convention without delay. They will have an
opportunity to do so during September’s Summit, when the Convention will be
open for signature as part of a special treaty event.
The Secretary-General also encourages the General
Assembly to press ahead and finalize yet another important legal instrument,
the draft comprehensive convention on international terrorism, before the end
of the 60th session of the General Assembly.
Asked how many countries would
need to ratify the Convention, the Spokesman said 22 ratifications would be
needed for it to enter into force.
OVER 10,000 COMBATANTS DISARMED IN
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
Today, the
UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo announced that the
number of disarmed militia personnel in that country has now passed the 10,000
mark.
There are now no more than 2,500 to 3,000 armed militia
members in the northeastern Ituri region.
In related news, the
Security Council yesterday issued a
presidential statement, in which it welcomed the pledge by the Forces
démocratiques de libération du Rwanda (FDLR) to renounce the use of force
and cease all offensive operations against Rwanda. The Security Council also
called on the FDLR to turn their positive words into action and to demonstrate
their commitment to peace by immediately handing all their arms to MONUC.
ANNAN CONCERNED BY TENSION IN
GUINEA-BISSAU
The Secretary-General
notes with concern the mounting political and social tensions in
Guinea-Bissau as the country prepares to hold presidential elections in
June 2005. Accordingly, he has directed his Representative in
Guinea-Bissau to promote and
facilitate dialogue between all of the country’s political actors in order to
build a more conducive atmosphere for peaceful, credible elections.
These elections are a crucial
step toward concluding the transitional process, fully restoring
constitutional order and permitting renewed engagement of the country’s
development partners. The Secretary-General calls on all political actors to
participate constructively in dialogue and to refrain from any action or
statement that could jeopardize peaceful elections and stability in the
country.
SECURITY COUNCIL BEGINS MISSION TO HAITI
There are no
Security Council meetings or consultations scheduled for today, or for the
remainder of this week.
The 15 members of the Security Council today have begun a
mission to Haiti, which will last until 16 April. The mission will be held
in conjunction with one from the
Economic and Social Council’s ad hoc advisory group on Haiti.
The Security Council mission is headed by Ambassador
Ronaldo Sardenberg of Brazil.
ANNAN WELCOMES FORTHCOMING HUMAN RIGHTS
OFFICE IN NEPAL
A
statement was issued Tuesday afternoon, saying that the Secretary-General
welcomed the signing on Monday of a Memorandum of Understanding between the
High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Nepalese Government, providing for
the High Commissioner’s Office in Nepal to establish an office to monitor the
observance of human rights and international law.
This is an important development that should help prevent
human rights abuses and contribute to the peaceful resolution of the conflict
in Nepal.
NO SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS IN FINDING
MISSING KUWAITIS IN IRAQ
Out on the racks is the latest
report from the Secretary-General to the Security Council on the
repatriation from
Iraq of all Kuwaitis and third country nationals or their remains. In it,
the Secretary-General details the work of Ambassador Yuli Vorontsov, his
High-Level Coordinator on this issue.
The Secretary-General notes that given the current
security situation in Iraq the search for missing Kuwaitis and third country
nationals has not progressed substantially, although the process of
identifying mortal remains has continued.
The Secretary-General writes that he is pleased by the
constructive stance taken by the new Iraqi authorities in relation to this
particular issue as well as the return of Kuwaiti property.
URGENT ACTION NEEDED TO REDUCE EXTREME
POVERTY
Bold and urgent action is needed to reduce extreme
poverty and improve people’s economic and social prospects in developing
countries, to meet the
Millennium Development Goals, according to a new
report by the
World Bank and International Monetary Fund.
“The credibility of the entire development community is
at stake as never before,” World Bank President James Wolfensohn said
yesterday while introducing the second annual Global Monitoring Report.
INFORMATION & COMMUNICATIONS
TECHNOLOGIES
KEY TO MEETING MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS
The world must harness the potential of information and
communications technologies to achieve the
Millennium Development Goals.
That idea is included in the Secretary-General’s
message to a meeting of the UN Information and Communications Technologies
Task Force, being held in Dublin, Ireland, today and tomorrow.
The Secretary-General adds that the use of such
technologies needs also to be improved within the United Nations itself, so
that the Organization’s collective mindset and methods of work are brought
fully into the digital age.
OTHER
ANNOUNCEMENTS
MEMBER STATES SERIOUS ABOUT
U.N. REFORM: Asked whether there was more
pessimism on whether the Secretary-General’s reform proposals would be accepted
in time for the September summit, the Spokesman said the United Nations views
the “sturm und drang” over the proposals as a sign of the seriousness with which
Member States are dealing with the issue. It remains to be seen whether they
will agree by the September summit, as the Secretary-General challenged them to
do, but the discussion on UN reform is still at the opening stages, he added.
UNITED NATIONS DEFERS
OIL-FOR-FOOD QUESTIONS TO VOLCKER COMMISSION:
Asked about the Secretary-General’s transmission of a letter concerning Cotecna,
the Spokesman said the United Nations accepts the findings of the Independent
Inquiry Committee headed by Paul Volcker.
SPOKESMAN’S REUNION TO LOOK AT EVOLVING RELATIONSHIP
BETWEEN U.N. & MEDIA: The Spokesman’s Office, with the generous support of
the UN Foundation and the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, is hosting an all-day
programme tomorrow examining how the United Nations got its message out to the
media from its inception. Participants will include UN press officers and
spokesmen, as well as some of the journalists they spoke to, from 1945 to the
present.
ALL SAMPLES OF H2N2 FLU VIRUS SHOULD BE DESTROYED
IMMEDIATELY: Regarding the news that samples of the H2N2 influenza virus
were sent out inadvertently to more than 3,700 laboratories in 18 countries, the
World Health Organization (WHO) has posted a
notice on its website, recommending that all samples containing this virus,
which is similar to the so-called Asian flu pandemic of 1957-58, be destroyed
immediately. WHO also says that the infection risk for laboratory workers and
public is low.
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