UN
HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

 

Monday, March 8, 2010

 

 

SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON: "Good morning, Ladies and Gentlemen.
It is a great pleasure to see you.

As you know, I visited Chile over the weekend.

I was there to express my solidarity, and of the United Nations and the
international community as a whole, with the people [and Government of
Chile] following the devastating earthquake.

I also had a meeting with my staff and inspected the extent of the damage of
the UN office there.

I really wanted to have a fuller picture, a clearer picture, at first-hand,
at the extent of damage, to better assess how the United Nations can help
Chile overcome.

I saw some of the worst-affected areas, in Concepción. I was able to fly
over the tsunami-hit areas.

Grief was widespread. But there was also a strong sense of unity among the
people – workers and families of the victims, and Government leaders, and
survivors. This was quite heartening for me.

That unity was reflected in the outpouring of support from the general
public, the business community and others. The telethon fundraising event in
which I participated together with President Bachelet and incoming President
Piñera raised $60 million, twice what was expected.

I met both the current President - Michelle Bachelet, and her key Cabinet
members. We had a joint meeting between the Chilean Government and the
United Nations. Then I met with the incoming President, Sebastián Piñera,
and I had another opportunity of engaging in in-depth discussions with the
incoming ministers – Foreign Minister, Planning, Finance, Public Works, and
Health Ministers. We discussed, and as a result of our discussions, we
agreed to establish a joint working group between the United Nations and the
Chilean Government, to try to identify the areas where they needed [help]
most urgently. Those areas are shelter and sanitation, mobile hospitals,
electric generators and communications and small-scale fishery support.
There are several areas which the Chilean Government wanted to have a
targeted support from the international community.

I stressed to both the strong commitment of the United Nations to help the
country pick up the pieces and build back better.

I have, as you are aware by this time, authorized $10 million from the CERF,
the Central Emergency Response Fund. The United Nations and the Chilean
Government will work very closely together.

I will brief the General Assembly on Wednesday morning, and will see how the
United Nations Member States can help the Chilean Government and how Member
States can do their part.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Let me now turn to some of the very serious situations in some parts of the
world.

In Nigeria, I am deeply concerned that there has been more inter-religious
violence, with appalling loss of life. I appeal to all concerned to exercise
maximum restraint. Nigeria’s political and religious leaders should work
together to address the underlying causes and to achieve a permanent
solution to the crisis in Jos.

On Iraq, I applaud all those Iraqis who exercised their constitutional right
to vote despite the very serious and difficult challenging security
situation. My Special Representative, Mr. Ad Melkert, will have an
opportunity of briefing you, with more to tell you at his own briefing later
today.

Finally, as you know, today is International Women’s Day. Gender equality
and women’s empowerment are among my top priorities. Women are central to
the Millennium Development Goals and all our hopes for progress and peace
and stability and human rights.

For that reason, I am pleased to announce that Ms. Ann-Marie Orler will be
the new Police Adviser for the Department of Peacekeeping Operations.

Ms. Orler brings great experience to the job, including in the Swedish
National Police.

She has been the United Nation’s Deputy Police Adviser since 2008, and has
led the global effort to recruit more female police officers for UN peace
operations.

Now, the United Nation’s top cop is a woman.

That is a wonderful way to celebrate International Women’s Day.

Ms. Orler will be at the noon briefing today to take your questions.

Thank you very much, and I am ready for your questions.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, on the subject of another trip you are about to
take, or will be taking in a couple of weeks to another conflict zone, the
Middle East, can you tell us about where you are going to be going in the
Middle East, I guess after the Quartet, and what your role is going to be,
and how you see the launch of these so-called indirect negotiations that are
resuming between the Israelis and Palestinians?

SG: As you know, during the last couple of months I have been extensively
engaged with the Americans and Israelis and Palestinians and other Arab
leaders, to facilitate the early resumption of negotiations between the
Israelis and the Palestinians. Now, this Quartet meeting which will be held
on 19 March in Moscow, will provide the Quartet principals a very good
opportunity – first of all, to assess and encourage the earliest possible
resumption of the proximity talks which will eventually, I hope, lead to
direct negotiations between the parties. I will do my part, as
Secretary-General, representing and reflecting the wishes of all the United
Nations Member States.

I am considering visiting some countries in the region, but that will be
announced soon. I am in the process of discussing this matter to engage
myself and to facilitate this Middle East peace process.

Soon after that, I will participate in the League of Arab [States] Summit
meeting which will be held in Sirte, Libya, on 27 March. There I will engage
in bilateral or group meetings with the Arab leaders, so that both Arab
leaders, and the United Nations, and all concerned parties can promote this
peace process.

This afternoon, as you know, I am meeting Vice Prime Minister of Israel, Mr.
[Silvan] Shalom.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, late last week you spoke with the President of Sri
Lanka, and said that you are going to name a panel, to advise yourself, on
accountability. Over the weekend, the President said that you had no right
to do it and had a very different read-out of the call than we received, at
least the way I hear it. Can you explain what the purpose of the Panel is
and when you think you’re going to name it? And also the Foreign Minister of
Sri Lanka, also over the weekend, confirmed that he sought a job for his son
with the UN. I wonder if you think that is appropriate, and is such a job
going to be given?

SG: As you said, I had a frank and honest exchange of views with President
[Mahinda] Rajapaksa, Thursday night, last week, over issues that were of
concern to both of us. This included moving forward on political
reconciliation, further movement on the condition of internally displaced
persons, and the establishment of an accountability process. I am concerned
with the lack of progress of the joint statement which both I and President
Rajapaksa had agreed during my visit last year. I raised this issue and
discussed [it]. I made clear to President Rajapaksa that I intend to move
forward on a Group of Experts which will advise me on setting the broad
parameters and standards on the way ahead on establishing accountability
concerning Sri Lanka. For that purpose, we have agreed that I dispatch
[Under-Secretary-General of Political Affairs] Lynn Pascoe in the very near
future.

Q: Do you think that it’s appropriate for the Foreign Minister of a country
with which you are dealing with on possible war crimes to be seeking a job
for his son with the UN?

SG: First of all, I am not aware of that particular case of job application
of the Foreign Minister’s son. As a matter of fact, any recruitment process
will have to be dealt with in a most transparent and objective manner by the
selection committee members. That is what the United Nations has been
[using] as a principle.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, on Myanmar, they’ve adopted new laws preparing for
the elections, but they’re also going to keep Aung San Suu Kyi locked up.
What do you intend to do? Are you going to go back there this year? Are you
going to appoint a new Envoy? There have been some rights experts here that
have said that even the most free and fair elections won’t solve the
problem, because they need a new constitution.

SG: I have been very closely following and monitoring the situation in
Myanmar. I have sent, about ten days ago, a letter to Senior General Than
Shwe, first of all expressing my concern about the lack of progress and also
emphasizing the importance of the election which will held this year to be a
most credible, inclusive and transparent manner. For that purpose, there
should be administrative measures taken. I took note of the report that
there was an announcement on Myanmar State media on the enactment of
election laws. That is what I had been urging the Myanmar authorities to do
as soon as possible. First of all, I have been following up on that and I
will continue to follow this matter. Most importantly, all the political
prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi, should be released as soon as
possible, so that all of them can take part in elections. That would make
the elections inclusive and credible. I repeatedly emphasized that, without
the participation of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and all key political prisoners,
the elections would not be inclusive.

Q: And on the Envoy?

On the Envoy, I am still in the process of finding a good candidate. But, at
this time, my Chef de Cabinet, Mr. [Vijay] Nambiar, who has wide experience,
knowledge and network with Myanmar, is now taking care of this job.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, the Iraqi refugees issue is becoming a big problem
for countries like Jordan and Syria. During your upcoming trip, do you plan
to bring this issue up with the Arab leaders?

SG: I have been expressing my gratitude to the leaders of Jordan and Syria
for their accommodation of Iraqi refugees. I know that, despite their
economic difficulties, they have been generously accommodating and taking
care of these refugees. For them to be able to return to their homeland,
peace and security should be restored as soon as possible. That is what the
current Iraqi Government has been trying and is going to do through a more
democraticizing process, as we have seen yesterday, through elections. We
are in a constant process of discussing this matter and providing necessary
humanitarian assistance to those refugees.

Q: Mr. Secretary-General, you have been talking about your commitment to
women’s rights and all the things that you have been pressing for, and yet
we recently had this case of sexual harassment by a UN employee – [Cynthia]
Brzak I think is her name – who was dismissed because your predecessor had
not lifted the diplomatic immunity of the man in question. Is that not a
policy you think you should tackle, to really put some teeth into your
commitment to women’s rights, lifting this policy of diplomatic immunity in
the case where UN officials are accused of sexual harassment?

SG: I think that, as far as the United Nations is concerned, we have taken
right and correct measures in that case. Now it is in the hands of the
judiciary process. I have taken note of the decision of the US court here,
not allowing for her to pursue this case by reason of immunity and
privileges. That is the court’s decision. We had taken all necessary
administrative and legal measures at that time, when it had happened. But it
will continue to be the firm policy and position of the United Nations.

Q: On Chile and Haiti. Both countries need shelter and tents, and they need
it quickly, and there don’t seem to be enough in the world. Are they
competing with each other for this kind of resource?

SG: This is a very serious challenge for the international community, when
we were actively, heavily engaged in helping the Haitian people, then
another powerful earthquake devastated Chile. The extent of destruction in
Chile was also beyond description. I was appalled by such destruction by an
earthquake. As far as these priority elements, shelter is very important and
an urgent one for both Haiti and Chile. For Haiti, we have provided almost
forty percent. My last figure was 300,000 tents had been provided, but we
need at least one million tents, because two million people have been
displaced.

The Chilean Government also appealed for the urgent provision of shelter. I
have also participated with the President-Elect in a very moving event when
young boys and girls were volunteering to build this temporary shelter –
this was called Un Techo para Chile. This was a “Roof for Chile” in English.
I was very moved by such volunteer work.

The Chilean Government told me that, as far as funding is concerned, the
Chilean Government may have the capacity to provide all this. But they need
some targeted support, like shelter, generators. There are many items which
we have received and I will discuss with Member States, and OCHA [Office for
the Coordination Humanitarian Affairs] has been working very hard to provide
as swiftly as possible all those required items. That’s why I was there and
why I will continue to work hard.

Thank you very much. "

 

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

UNITED NATIONS TO HOLD MEMORIAL SERVICE
TOMORROW FOR STAFF DECEASED IN HAITI: The United Nations will hold a
Memorial Ceremony at its Headquarters in New York tomorrow, Tuesday, 9
March, in honor of the United Nations personnel who perished in the Haiti
earthquake. The Secretary-General will address the large number of family
members of the deceased who will be in attendance, as well as UN staff
gathered for this memorial. In addition, there will be senior officials,
representatives of Member States, and representatives from the UN
Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH)
attending. The ceremony will take place at 10:00 a.m. in the Trusteeship
Council Chamber.

 

ASIA-PACIFIC HAS ONE OF THE WORLD’S LARGEST GENDER
GAPS: Asia-Pacific’s vibrant economic transformation in recent decades
has not translated into progress on gender equality, according to the
region’s Human Development Report launched today by the UN Development
Programme’s Administrator, Helen Clark, in New Delhi, India. The report
“Power, Voice and Rights: A Turning Point for Gender Equality in Asia and
the Pacific”

stresses that the region has one of the world’s largest gender gaps. It
says that women’s lack of participation is depressing economic growth and
adds that very few women hold political office in the region – figures are
lower than anywhere else in the world except in the Arab states. The report
also highlights the increasing problem of ‘missing girls’. More boys are
born than girls, as girl fetuses are presumably aborted, and women die from
health and nutrition neglect. China and India together account more than 85
million of the nearly 100 million ‘missing’ women estimated to have died
from discriminatory treatment in health care, nutrition access or pure
neglect ―or because they were never born in the first place.

 

HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE STARTS THREE-WEEK SESSION:
The Human Rights Committee began its 98th session in New York today and this
afternoon will begin examination of the fifth periodic report of Mexico
under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. During the
three week session the Committee will also examine periodic reports from
Argentina, New Zealand and Uzbekistan. A full programme of work and all
documentation are available on the Committee's

website.

U.N. TEAM
REVIEWING PLANS TO RESPOND TO DROUGHT IN SYRIA:
The UN Humanitarian Country Team in Syria is reviewing the drought response
plan which seeks funding for life-saving emergency assistance to
drought-stricken populations in north-eastern Syria. Some 1.1 million
Syrians have been affected by a three-year drought that has devastated their
livelihood and forced hundreds of thousands to migrate to urban areas where
they face very difficult living conditions, according to the Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). UN assistance focuses on
providing a comprehensive package of food aid and agricultural inputs to
farmers and herders, particularly in the area south of the town of Hassake.

 

SOME 2
MILLION PEOPLE IN CHAD WILL NEED FOOD AID THIS YEAR:
An assessment by the Government of Chad and its partners showed that around
2 million Chadians will require food assistance during 2010. The

World Food Programme has put in place a programme of assistance to
provide 47,000 tonnes of food for 750,000 people affected by drought in
regions a cross the country. Meanwhile, the Food and Agriculture
Organisation (FAO) and the government have put in a place a project to
distribute 615 tonnes of cattle food, and a project to distribute seeds for
33,000 vulnerable households is planned. The UN Central Emergency Response
Fund (CERF)
has so far allocated $3,751,801 to Chad this year. This money is focused
mainly on the health and nutrition sectors.

 

FAILURE TO CONTROL DRUGS WILL UNLEASH “HEALTH
DISASTER” IN DEVELOPING WORLD: The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
is warning that failure to control drugs will unleash a health disaster in
the developing world. In his address to the opening of the 53rd session of
the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) today in Vienna, the head of UNODC,
Antonio Maria Costa,

said that the developing world lacks the treatment facilities and law
enforcement to control drugs. He said that this seems to have been forgotten
by richer countries calling for loosening of drug controls. Referring to
health as “the first principle of drug control”, Costa said that drug
addiction is a treatable condition, but warned that inequality within and
between states marginalizes poor people who lack access to treatment. He
added that around the world, millions of people caught taking drugs are sent
to jail, not to treatment.
 

U.N.
AGENCIES ASSISTING CHRISTIANS DISPLACED FROM NINEWA:
United Nations agencies and local
authorities in the northern Iraqi governorate of Ninewa have been providing
humanitarian aid to over 860 Christian families who have recently fled their
homes in the city of Mosul as a result of targeted intimidation and
violence.

 

SPECIAL
TRIBUNAL FOR LEBANON ISSUES REPORT:
The

Special Tribunal for Lebanon on Saturday issued a report in which the
Tribunal President, Judge Antonio Cassese, voiced his confidence in the
Tribunal’s progress and said that prosecutions may begin within a year.