Noon briefing of 25 May 2012

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY MARTIN NESIRKY, SPOKESPERSON FOR

SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

FOR

FRIDAY 25 MAY, 2012

ELECTIONS IMPORTANT MILESONE IN EGYPT’S DEMOCRATIC TRANSITION – SECRETARY-GENERAL

• In a statement, the Secretary-General said that he has been following with interest Egypt’s presidential election process. These historic elections, in which Egyptians will freely choose their President from amongst numerous candidates, are an important milestone in Egypt’s democratic transition.
• The Secretary-General commends the Egyptian authorities for their organization of polling and the people of Egypt for their participation, and he welcomes initial reports of a strong turn-out of women voters. He also notes the calm and positive atmosphere in which the voting took place and looks forward to the credible and peaceful conclusion of this process.

SECRETARY-GENERAL SET TO DEPART FOR TURKEY, SAUDI ARABIA

• The Secretary-General will be travelling to Turkey and Saudi Arabia next week.
• He will arrive in Istanbul late on Wednesday 30 May. The next day he will take part in a Partners Forum for the Alliance of Civilizations, which is being held at the invitation of the Turkish Prime Minister and which is designed to broaden public and private support for the initiative. He will also have a meeting with his High Representative on the Alliance of Civilizations and the Foreign Ministers of Turkey and Spain, co-chairs of the Forum, to discuss the way forward.
• The Secretary-General will meet with the Prime Minister of Turkey. While in Istanbul, he will attend a separate event on sustainable energy linked to the forthcoming Rio+20 conference on sustainable development.
• On Friday 1 June, the Secretary-General will co-chair a major international conference on the future of Somalia and hold a range of bilateral meetings with other leaders attending the conference.
• The Secretary-General will travel to Jeddah on Saturday 2 June and is scheduled to hold meetings with Saudi leaders, including the Custodian of the Holy Mosques and King of Saudi Arabia.
• On Sunday 3 June, the Secretary-General will co-chair the second meeting of the Advisory Board of the newly-established UN Counter-Terrorism Centre together with the Saudi Foreign Minister.
• The Secretary-General will return to New York the same day.

SECRETARY-GENERAL WELCOMES RECENT TALKS ON IRAN

• In response to questions, the Spokesperson said that the Secretary-General welcomes the talks between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the E3+3 recently concluded in Baghdad. The Secretary-General is encouraged by the willingness of both sides to continue engaging in discussions to resolve the differences and, in that regard, welcomes the decision to hold a next round of talks in Moscow, from 18-19 June.
• Nesirky said that the Secretary-General has consistently advocated a comprehensive and negotiated political solution to the Iranian nuclear issue. He strongly supports the efforts of the E3+3 in promoting dialogue and diplomacy and hopes that Iran will take the necessary measures to build and sustain international confidence in the exclusively peaceful nature of its nuclear programme.
• In doing so, it is important for Iran to fully cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), including on the implementation of the recent agreement between Iran and the IAEA during the visit of the IAEA Director General to Iran.

SECRETARY-GENERAL WELCOMES ANNOUNCEMENT OF RESUMPTION OF TALKS BETWEEN SUDAN, SOUTH SUDAN

• In a statement we issued on Thursday evening, the Secretary-General welcomed the announcement of the Governments of Sudan and South Sudan to resume talks in Addis Ababa next week under the auspices of the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel.
• He encourages the parties to reconvene in an atmosphere of good will and calls on them to demonstrate the flexibility necessary to reach agreement on outstanding issues. And he reiterates the readiness of the United Nations to assist the parties in implementing their agreements and supporting the mechanisms established by them.

U.N. ENVOY WELCOMES PROGRESS TOWARDS END OF TRANSITION PERIOD IN SOMALIA

• Augustine Mahiga, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Somalia, briefed the press today following three days of meetings in Addis Ababa with the principal signatories of the Roadmap to end Somalia’s transition.
• He said the meetings in Addis were ultimately successful, and that the agreements made there cleared away any political obstacles, allowing for the transition to go forward as planned. That transition period is scheduled to end on 20 August.
• Mr. Mahiga said that there is no time to lose, as the Somali parties work to ensure a process that is participatory, legitimate, inclusive, transparent and Somali-owned.

POLITICAL POLARIZATION IMPEDING RIGHTS ADVANCEMENT IN ZIMBABWE, SAYS TOP U.N. OFFICIAL

• The political polarization in Zimbabwe is acting as a major impediment to the advance of human rights, the top United Nations human rights official said today, wrapping up her first visit to the country.
• During her visit, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, met with President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, as well as with other top officials and civil society organizations.
• Speaking to the press, Ms. Pillay said that one very positive development during her visit had been the news that the Government is proposing to sign and ratify the Convention against Torture.
• She also welcomed the establishment of a Human Rights Commission, but expressed her deep regret that the bill which would enable the body to function properly is stuck in Parliament. She urged the Commission to deal with the human rights issues surrounding Zimbabwe’s forthcoming elections.

U.N. CHILDREN’S FUND CALLS FOR FIGHTING MALNUTRITION TO BE TOP PRIORITY IN YEMEN

• The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has called for fighting malnutrition to be the top priority in Yemen.
• This call follows a meeting of the “Friends of Yemen” in Saudi Arabia, which recognized the dire humanitarian situation in Yemen and resulted in $4 billion in pledges to address the crisis.
• With more than half of children under the age of five stunted, Yemen has the second highest rate of stunting in the world.
• Nearly 1 million children under the age of five are acutely malnourished.
• The Fund said that the extremely poor humanitarian situation in Yemen is a result of both chronic underdevelopment and the violence last year.

DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL SPOTLIGHTS CRUCIAL ROLE OF PARTNERSHIPS IN EDUCATION

• The Deputy Secretary-General highlighted the valuable role that public-private partnerships can play in achieving quality education for all.
• Speaking at a panel discussion this morning, she stressed that inclusive, relevant, quality education is a key condition for building more sustainable societies.

SENIOR U.N. OFFICIALS HAIL PROGRESS IN RATIFICATION OF KEY CHILD PROTECTION TREATIES

• Two senior United Nations officials have welcomed progress made since the launch of a campaign two years ago to encourage universal ratification of global treaties to protect children.
• However, the Secretary-General’s Special Representatives on Violence against Children and on Children and Armed Conflict said that while steady progress is being made, much remains to be done. Dozens of Member States have yet to ratify the Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict.

U.N. TO MARK PEACEKEEPERS DAY

• Next Tuesday is the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers and there will be an official celebration in New York.
• The Secretary-General will oversee a wreath-laying ceremony in honour of all fallen peacekeepers in the United Nations Visitors Lobby. He will also preside over a ceremony awarding the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal posthumously to the military, police and civilian personnel who lost their lives while serving in peacekeeping operations in 2011.
• On the occasion of the Day, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Herve Ladsous and Assistant Secretary-General for Field Support Anthony Banbury will be the guests at the noon briefing.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

SECRETARY-GENERAL HAS FULL CONFIDENCE IN WESTERN SAHARA ENVOY: Asked whether a new Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General for Western Sahara would be named, the Spokesperson said that the Secretary-General has full confidence in his Personal Envoy, Christopher Ross.

U.N. READY TO ASSIST IN BANKING DISPUTE: Asked about a dispute concerning nine Member States and US banks, the Spokesperson said that the matter is primarily to be dealt with bilaterally between the US authorities and the concerned Member States. The United Nations has made itself available to assist the parties where it can in finding a solution.

SECRETARY-GENERAL ADVOCATES L.G.B.T. RIGHTS: Asked about differences in benefits for same-sex domestic partners at the United Nations depending on their nationality, the Spokesperson said that the Secretariat, on the Secretary-General’s instructions, is looking into the matter. The Secretary-General has been a strong advocate for the rights of the LGBT community.

THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UNITED NATIONS

26 MAY – 1 JUNE 2012

(This document is for planning purposes and is subject to change.)

Saturday, 26 May

There are no major events scheduled for today.

Sunday, 27 May

There are no major events scheduled for today.

Monday, 28 May

Today is an official holiday at UN Headquarters in New York.

Tuesday, 29 May

Today is the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers. To commemorate the Day, the Secretary-General will oversee a wreath-laying ceremony and preside over a ceremony to award the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal posthumously to the military, police and civilian personnel who lost their lives while serving in peacekeeping operations in 2011. At 12 p.m., in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Herve Ladsous, and Assistant Secretary-General for Field Support, Anthony Banbury, will be the guests at the Noon Briefing, on the occasion of the Day. In Geneva, a flag-raising and wreath-laying ceremony will take place at the United Nations Memorial in the grounds of the Palais des Nations.

Today, the annual session of 2012 of the Executive Board of UN-Women begins in Conference Room 4 of the North Lawn Building.

This morning, the Security Council will receive a briefing and hold consultations on the Middle East. In the afternoon, the Council will hold consultations on Yemen.

At 1:15 p.m., in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium, there will be a press conference with Andres Johnsson, Secretary-General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, on “interaction between the United Nations, national parliaments and the Inter-Parliamentary Union.”

At 2 p.m. local time in Geneva, there will be a press briefing on the launch of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) report, The State of the World’s Refugees. Volker Türk, Director, Division of International Protection, will be the speaker. This briefing is embargoed until Thursday, 31 May, at 6 p.m. in Geneva and 12 p.m. in New York.

Wednesday, 30 May

Today, the Secretary-General will arrive in Istanbul, Turkey, where he will take part in a Partners Forum for the Alliance of Civilizations, meet with the Prime Minister, and attend a separate event on sustainable energy linked to the forthcoming Rio+20 conference on sustainable development.

This morning, the Security Council will hold consultations on the United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS).

Thursday, 31 May

Today is World No-Tobacco Day [World Health Organization (WHO). On the occasion of the Day, there will be a press briefing in Geneva with Douglas Bettcher, Director of the Tobacco Free Initiative, and Armando Peruga, Programme Manager of the Tobacco Free Initiative.

This morning, the Security Council will receive a briefing on its recent mission to Africa and hold consultations on Sudan/South Sudan.

At 12 p.m., in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library Auditorium, Antonió Guterres, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, will be the guest at the noon briefing. He will launch the report, The State of the World’s Refugees.

Friday, 1 June

Today, the Secretary-General will be in Istanbul, Turkey, where he will co-chair a major international conference on the future of Somalia and hold a range of bilateral meetings with other leaders attending the conference.

Today, the International Labour Organization (ILO) will launch its 2012 global estimates on forced labour in Geneva. Participants will be Beate Andrees, Head of the ILO Special Programme to Combat Forced Labour, and Aurélie Hauchère, ILO Senior Expert on Forced Labour.

At 10 a.m., there will be a panel discussion on the “Impact of public-private partnerships in education: An evidence-based approach” in Conference Room 6 (NLB). This event is being co-organized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the United Nations Office for Partnerships (UNOP) and the IDP Foundation.