U.N. MISSION
WORKING TO PROTECT CIVILIANS IN COTE
D’IVOIRE; BAN KI-MOON SAYS LAURENT
GBAGBO MUST CEDE POWER

• Asked about the
  protection of civilians in Cote
  d’Ivoire, the Spokesperson said that
  the UN Mission (UNOCI)
  is doing its best to protect
  civilians and ensure that heavy
  weapons are not used against
  civilians, in line with its mandate.
   

• At the same time,
  he noted that the Mission was itself
  facing attacks, including at its
  Sebroko headquarters. The Mission is
  doing its best to accomplish its
  tasks while under fire.
   

• Asked about
  accountability for Laurent Gbagbo,
  Nesirky said that the accountability
  issue is first and foremost a matter
  for the people of Cote d’Ivoire and
  their justice system. Anyone who has
  committed crimes should be held
  responsible.
   

• Asked about
  Gbagbo’s protection, the
  Spokesperson noted that, under
  Security Council resolutions, the UN
  Mission is to protect key political
  stakeholders, in coordination with
  the Ivorian authorities. That would
  include Laurent Gbagbo.
   

• The UN Mission,
  he said, is doing what it can to
  provide protection, in coordination
  with the Ivorian authorities. He
  again stressed the need for a
  peaceful resolution to the situation
  in the country.
   

• Asked about a
  handover of power by Mr. Gbagbo,
  Nesirky said that discussions are
  going on about that matter.
   

• He noted that the
  Secretary-General said today, in
  remarks to a reporter, that we
  are doing our best to have a
  peaceful resolution of this. He said
  that it is totally unacceptable that
  Mr. Gbagbo is still persisting
  against the will of the total
  international community, and now he
  must cede his power peacefully.
   

• 
  The Spokesperson said that in recent
  days, the UN Mission has had
  contacts with the heads of the
  Defense and Security Forces, the
  gendarmerie and the Republican
  Guards, as well as with Alassane
  Ouattara’s side.
   

• 
  Asked about actions by Alassane
  Outtara’s forces, Nesirky said that
  the UN Mission is impartial and
  even-handed in its works. In the
  case of mass crimes, all of them
  need to be investigated. The
  Secretary-General over the weekend
  spoke to President Ouattara to
  express his alarm at crimes that may
  have been committed by pro-Ouattara
  forces and was assured that they
  would be investigated.
   

• 
  Senior UN officials, including
  Valerie Amos and Ivan Simonovic,
  have visited Duekoue, where crimes
  against civilians may have been
  committed.

HAITI LOOKING AT
NEXT GOVERNMENT AND PARLIAMENT TO
DELIVER, SAYS SECRETARY-GENERAL

• The
  
  Security Council is holding a
  high-level debate on
  
  Haiti today, chaired by the
  President of Colombia, Juan Manuel
  Santos Calderon.
   

• The
  Secretary-General
  
  said that he was encouraged that
  the second round of polling was
  peaceful. He urged the next
  Government to build on President
  René Préval’s legacy of political
  tolerance and respect for human
  rights.
   

• The
  Secretary-General also said that
  recovery and reconstruction are
  slowly gathering momentum.
   

• He added that the
  number of earthquake-affected people
  living in camps has decreased from
  more than 1.5 million in July of
  last year to 680,000 today.
  Unfortunately, he said, some of this
  reduction has not been entirely
  voluntary, and many camp dwellers
  are at risk of forced eviction.
   

• The
  Secretary-General also said that the
  people of Haiti were looking to the
  next Government and Parliament to
  deliver. As a signal of its
  commitment to change, the incoming
  Parliament should complete the
  process of amending the constitution
  before the next President is
  inaugurated.
   

• President René
  Préval and former U.S. President
  Bill Clinton, the
  Secretary-General’s Special Envoy
  for Haiti, also addressed the
  Security Council.
   

• The Office of the
  Special Envoy for Haiti (OSE)
  has conducted a new analysis of
  pledges made for post-earthquake
  recovery activities, revealing a
  disbursement rate for the 2010-2011
  period among public sector donors of
  37.2 percent.

SECRETARY-GENERAL
PAYS TRIBUTE TO STAFF LOST IN RECENT
DAYS

• The
  Secretary-General today marked the
  passing of several dozen UN and
  associated personnel in recent days
  by laying a wreath in their memory
  and vowing to continue their work.
  He
  
  said that the roster of the
  fallen, in recent days, has been
  shocking and profoundly sad.
   

• He noted that
  more than 40 UN staff have died in
  service so far this year, in places
  ranging from
  
  Afghanistan and the
  
  Democratic Republic of the Congo,
  to
  
  Haiti,
  
  Sudan and
  
  Côte d’Ivoire.
   

• The
  Secretary-General said that we stand
  in solidarity with their friends and
  families, united in sorrow, but
  united also in our mission.
   

• He added that the
  United Nations has been asked to
  take on greater and greater
  responsibility, at greater and
  greater risk. In light of these
  evolving realities, the
  Secretary-General has instructed
  senior managers to undertake an
  immediate review of the UN’s
  security needs and policies.

LIBYA IN DIRE NEED
OF FURTHER HUMANITARIAN ACTION

• 
  The Office for the Coordination of
  Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
  says that there remains a dire need
  for further access and humanitarian
  action in conflict-affected areas in
  northwestern Libya, and particularly
  in Misrata.
   

• While access to
  information is limited, the
  humanitarian community is extremely
  concerned about the protection of
  civilians, including from
  gender-based violence, landmines and
  human rights violations.
   

• 
  The Office for the Coordination of
  Humanitarian Affairs adds that
  between 13,200 and 13,600 people
  remain stranded at camps and transit
  points in Tunisia, Egypt, Niger and
  Algeria.
   

• Meanwhile, the
  High Commissioner for Refugees,
  António Guterres and UNHCR Goodwill
  Ambassador Angelina Jolie expressed
  deep shock today at the reported
  drowning of 213 people in rough
  waters some 60 kilometres off the
  southern coast of Italy.
   

• According to
  survivors, the group, including
  Somalis, Eritreans and Ivorians,
  departed Libya three days ago in an
  attempt to reach the Italian island
  of Lampedusa. They told
  
  UNHCR that many women and three
  children were among the dead. The
  Italian Coastguard rescued 47
  people, including two women, one of
  them pregnant.
   

• Asked
  further about the humanitarian
  situation, the Spokesperson said
  that the $310 million Flash Appeal
  for the Libyan Crisis is currently
  funded at 36.5 per cent, with $113
  million committed and $1.4 million
  in pledges.
   

• Asked
  about problems for humanitarian
  access, the Spokesperson said that
  security is a major concern.
   

• Asked
  about the situation in Misrata, he
  said that, to his knowledge, the
  United Nations has no one there at
  this moment.

LEBANON: U.N.
SPECIAL COORDINATOR METS WITH PRIME
MINISTER-DESIGNATE

• Michael Williams,
  the
  
  UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon,
  met with the Lebanese Prime
  Minister-designate, Najib Mikati,
  today.
   

• 
  Mr. Williams expressed to the Prime
  Minister his concern over the
  abduction two weeks ago of seven
  Estonian cyclists in the Beqaa
  Valley.
   

• 
  He welcomed the diligent efforts of
  Lebanon’s security forces and the
  Lebanese army to secure their
  release.

CYPRIOT LEADERS
DISCUSS INTERNAL SECURITY

• The leaders of
  the Greek Cypriot and Turkish
  Cypriot communities met today in
  Nicosia and continued their
  discussion on the internal aspects
  of security.
   

• Following the
  talks, the Secretary-General’s
  Special Representative, Lisa
  Buttenheim,
  
  told reporters that the
  hour-long meeting was held in a
  positive atmosphere.
   

• The leaders,
  together with their Representatives,
  will hold a working dinner next
  Thursday, 14 April.

U.N. ENVOY FOR
CHILDREN AND ARMED CONFLICT VISITS
PHILIPPINES

• Radhika
  Coomaraswamy, the
  Secretary-General’s Special
  Representative for
  
  Children and Armed Conflict, is
  in the Philippines to meet with
  representatives of the Government to
  seek support for the inclusion of
  child protection provisions in the
  ongoing peace talks.
   

• While in the
  country, she will also meet with
  representatives of the Moro Islamic
  Liberation Front (MILF) to follow-up
  on the progress made on the United
  Nations-MILF agreement, signed in
  2009, on the release of girls and
  boys associated with the group.

SECRETARY-GENERAL
TO STRESS NEED TO RESPOND TO AUTISM
EFFECTIVELY

• Today, between
  4:00 and 6:00 p.m. in Conference
  Room 2, the Permanent Mission of
  Bangladesh and a US-based NGO,
  Autism Speaks, will host a panel
  discussion on autism.
   

• The
  Secretary-General will deliver
  opening remarks, and he intends to
  say that we can respond to autism
  effectively, with the right tools
  and schools.
   

• He will highlight
  that more and more children and
  people are being diagnosed with
  autistic conditions.  Meanwhile,
  people living with autism can suffer
  intolerable discrimination that must
  stop.
   

• The event will
  include a Panel Discussion and a
  question and answer session with
  international experts in the field
  of autism and mental health.