Secretario General

Noon briefing of 24 March 2005


HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SPOKESMAN'S NOON BRIEFING

BY FRED ECKHARD
SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Thursday, 24 March, 2005

Friday, March 24, is Good Friday, and the UN will be closed. There will be no noon briefing.

TEAM INVESTIGATING LEBANON KILLING PRESENTS REPORT

  • Peter Fitzgerald, the head of the team that went to Lebanon to examine the circumstances, causes and consequences of the killing of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, today presented his team’s report to Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

  • The Secretary-General will transmit that report, with an accompanying cover letter, to the President of the Security Council.

  • Asked whether the Lebanon report will come out today, the Spokesman said that the intention was to send it to the Security Council this afternoon.

  • Asked why its submission to the Council had been delayed from earlier in the afternoon, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General wanted a little more time to prepare the ground for the report. He added that the Secretary-General’s sole focus this morning was the report.

ANNAN CONSIDERS CANDIDATES FOR REFUGEE AGENCY CHIEF

  • Under the new senior recruitment procedures, the Secretary-General has today decided on the shortlist for the incoming United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

  • The following candidates will be called for interview in the next few weeks: Ms. Emma Bonino (Italy), Member of the European Parliament, Committee on Foreign Affairs, Committee on Budget, Sub-Committee on Human Rights; Mr. Hans Dahlgren (Sweden), State Secretary for Foreign Affairs; Mr. Gareth Evans (Australia), President and Chief Executive of the Brussels-based International Crisis Group; and Mr. António Guterres (Portugal), Former Prime Minister.

  • Also: Mr. Søren Jessen-Petersen (Denmark), Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo; Mr. Bernard Kouchner (France), Former Minister of Health and former Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Kosovo; Mr. Kamel Morjane (Tunisia), Assistant High Commissioner for Refugees; and Mr. Mark Verwilghen (Belgium), Minister of Economy, Energy, Foreign Trade and Scientific Politics.

  • The criteria that these candidates will be evaluated against at interview will include: strong diplomatic, political and fund-raising skills; thorough knowledge of refugee issues, including basic refugee law and debates about forced migration and internally displaced persons (IDPs); and proven skills in the management of complex organizations.

  • Also, the candidate must be a leader who will unflinchingly champion the cause of refugees, understand and respect basic refugee law and the rapidly evolving debates about voluntary and forced migration and IDPs, and possesses the communication and coalition-building skills to create consensus and stimulate effective campaigns.

  • Fluency in English is required, and French is highly desirable, with other UN languages being an asset.

  • The views of the refugee community on the candidates will be sought informally. The candidates will then be interviewed by a panel of senior management officials, who will refer the finalists to the Secretary-General and the Deputy Secretary-General for final interview. The Secretary-General will then forward his nominee to the General Assembly.

  • The Secretary-General feels that this is a very strong shortlist of candidates and looks forward to selecting the right person for the position.

  • Asked whether the candidates were all nominated by governments, the Spokesman noted that the United Nations had solicited suggestions from non-governmental organizations that specialize in refugee work, as well as from all governments. He was not aware whether the short-listed candidates were nominated exclusively by governments or also by civil society.

U.N. RELEASES REPORT ON SEX ABUSE BY PEACEKEEPERS

  • This morning, the UN released the report of the Secretary-General’s adviser on sexual exploitation and abuse by UN peacekeeping personnel, Prince Zeid Ra’ad Zeid Al-Hussein, the Permanent Representative from Jordan.

  • In a statement, the Secretary-General says that acts of sexual exploitation and abuse are abhorrent, and a violation of the fundamental duty of care that all UN peacekeeping personnel owe to the local population they are sent to serve.

  • He noted that the report issued today makes a number of concrete recommendations, including the standardization of rules against sexual exploitation and abuse for all categories of peacekeeping personnel; the provision of a professional investigative capacity for all missions; and the strengthening of individual accountability, including financial, and, where appropriate, criminal accountability.

  • The Secretary-General calls upon Member States to act with determination and due haste to provide the necessary resources to put in place the important changes that are required.

  • Prince Zeid will appear at the Noon Briefing to speak about the report on Monday, April 4.

  • Asked what the Secretary-General will do to follow up on the Zeid report, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General would do anything that he could within his specific powers, and would work, through the efforts of Prince Zeid, to obtain cooperation from Member States on any measures that require their support. He added that the whole point of Prince Zeid’s negotiations with States is to make it clear that they need to establish a consensus on how to deal with this issue.

  • Reporters voiced their dissatisfaction with press arrangements concerning Prince Zeid, but the Spokesman made clear that his office’s policy was to ensure that all reporters would be briefed at the same time on the report, adding that it would not be fair to play favorites among the journalists.

DEADLOCK BROKEN IN MIDDLE EAST, U.N. POLITICAL CHIEF SAYS

  • There are many obstacles and challenges to the Middle East peace process, but the deadlock has been broken. That is what Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Kieran Prendergast, told the Security Council in its open meeting on the Middle East this morning.

  • He said that the Secretary-General had met with the parties this month during his visit to Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory.

  • The Secretary-General was left with the strong impression of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s determination to proceed with the disengagement plan, even in the face of serious domestic opposition. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas assured the United Nations that the Palestinian Authority would cooperate fully in preparations for the withdrawal.

  • At the same time, Prendergast stressed the UN’s concern over Israel’s failure thus far to dismantle settlement outposts and freeze settlement expansion. He noted the unofficial reports of a government decision to approve the building of at least 3,500 new settlement housing units this year, and added that the Road Map states clearly that Israel should dismantle outposts and freeze settlement activity.

  • Prendergast also discussed the situation in Lebanon, expressing pleasure that, to date, all demonstrations in Beirut have occurred in a calm and orderly manner without major incidents.

  • The Council today held consultations, also on the Middle East .

AFGHANISTAN: SECURITY COUNCIL EXTENDS U.N. MISSION IN AFGHANISTAN

  • The Security Council this morning unanimously extended the mandate of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan by one year.

  • This afternoon at 4:15, after Council members meet with the troop contributing countries for the UN Operation in Cote d’Ivoire, the Council will hold consultations on Sudan. They are expected to discuss draft resolutions before the Council, on which they may vote afterward.

KYRGYZSTAN: ANNAN APPEALS FOR PUBLIC ORDER

  • Asked about reports of the resignation of the President of Kyrgyzstan, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General is following closely developments in Kyrgyzstan, which have taken a dramatic turn in the past twenty four hours.

  • The Secretary-General, he said, appeals to everyone in Kyrgyzstan to maintain public order, and fully observe human rights. He also urges all concerned to resolve the current crisis through peaceful means.

COTE D’IVOIRE: DANGEROUS DELAYS IN PEACE PROCESS

  • Progress in Cote d’Ivoire’s peace process has been limited since last November, and the protracted delays are dangerous, the Secretary-General warns, in his latest report to the Security Council on that country. Cote d’Ivoire, he says, remains effectively divided, despite the laudable efforts of South African President Thabo Mbeki on behalf of the African Union.

  • The Secretary-General renews his appeal to President Laurent Gbagbo, the Forces Nouvelles and the leaders of all Ivorian political movements to carry out the African Union’s plan of action without further delay. Failure to do so, he says, increases the possibility of renewed hostilities.

  • He also warns that time is rapidly running out for holding presidential and parliamentary elections, which are scheduled to take place within the next seven months.

  • The Secretary-General asks the Security Council to approve additional military, civilian police and civilian resources to the UN Operation in Cote d’Ivoire, as he requested last year. Meanwhile, he recommends that the peacekeeping mission’s mandate be extended for another year, until April 4, 2006.

REFUGEE AGENCY TO LEAVE TSUNAMI-HIT INDONESIAN PROVINCE

  • Following discussions with the Indonesian government, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) will phase out its presence in Indonesia’s Aceh province by Friday.

  • UNHCR understands Indonesia’s desire to review the large humanitarian effort in Aceh, as the country moves from emergency relief to long-term reconstruction. And UNHCR remains ready to support future reconstruction efforts in Aceh if its help is requested by the government.

  • With a mandate for protecting refugees fleeing violence and persecution, UNHCR does not normally respond to natural disasters, and its program in Aceh was unprecedented.

U.N. MISSION IN ETHIOPIA & ERITREA TACKLES PHONE FRAUD

  • The Spokesman, in response to questions about phone fraud at the UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) said that some fraud had been perpetrated where the Mission was aware that some people were using phone access codes for calls of less than a minute, to avoid being charged for long-distance calls. UN auditors had reported on that abuse earlier this week, he noted.

  • Last year, the head of the Mission , Legwaila Joseph Legwaila, said that efforts must be made to recover the costs of that abuse of phone service through the Permanent Missions of peacekeeping contingent members who had been responsible for most of the violations.

  • UNMEE has been able to bill contingents for charges of $364,000, out of $503,381 in total phone charges. The recovery of the full amount is ongoing.

TUBERCULOSIS RATES ALARMINGLY HIGH IN AFRICA

  • Today is World Tuberculosis Day, and the Secretary-General has issued a message, noting that, even though tuberculosis is both preventable and curable, it kills 5,000 people a day.

  • He also said the international community must provide greater support to the caregivers who help locate and treat those afflicted by the disease.

  • Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) today released a report saying that, although the battle against tuberculosis is being successfully fought in most areas of the world, the disease has reached alarming proportions in Africa, with a growing number of tuberculosis cases and deaths linked to HIV.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

NEW WEBSITE ON FOREST INVASIVE SPECIES: A new website on forest invasive species in Africa will enable countries to share information on outbreaks and on ways to tackle them, the Food and Agriculture Organization said today at the launch of the web site. The site will help countries to more effectively address the problem of invasive species. Invasive species are species not native to a specific forest ecosystem, whose introduction does or is likely to cause harm to the ecosystem.

OIL-FOR-FOOD MONEY SET ASIDE FOR POSSIBLE STAFF CLAIMS: Asked about the use of the “2.2 account” of the oil-for-food program (the money from the program set aside for administrative costs), the Spokesman said that some money from that account has been set aside for possible claims by oil-for-food staff, including Iraqi personnel, who were injured in the August 19, 2003, bombing of the UN compound in Baghdad. Most of those claims, he said, are being handled by malicious acts insurance, but some staff may need longer-term medical care than the insurance could provide, so some $14 million is being set aside.

ANNAN TO DECIDE ON REOPENING INVESTIGATION INTO U.N.’S INTERNAL WATCHDOG: Asked about today’s meeting between the Secretary-General and Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight Dileep Nair, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General is to decide whether to reopen an investigation into Nair, based on written allegations received from the Staff Council. The meeting today was at Nair’s request, and followed a meeting he had earlier this week with Chef de Cabinet Malloch Brown, who received the allegations and has made a decision on Nair’s case.

KOJO ANNAN HAS NO PART IN SCHEDULING SECRETARY-GENERAL’S APPOINTMENTS: Asked whether Kojo Annan facilitated a meeting between the Secretary-General and the head of Cotecna, the Spokesman said he assumed that the Secretary-General’s son has nothing to do with the scheduling of the Secretary-General’s appointments.

ANNAN’S EXPECTATIONS FOR EXONERATION BASED ON CONSCIENCE: Asked about comments by Mark Malloch Brown that he expects the Secretary-General to be exonerated by the Independent Inquiry Committee headed by Paul Volcker, the Spokesman said that Malloch Brown was saying what the Secretary-General expects to happen, based on the Secretary-General’s own conscience and his knowledge of what he did and did not do.

THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UNITED NATIONS

Monday, March 28

The Security Council has scheduled consultations on the UN Operation in Cote d’Ivoire.

The 20th annual Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members will be marked by a ceremony at 11:00 a.m. at the UNCA Club. Speakers will include General Assembly President Jean Ping, UNCA President James Wurst and Under-Secretary-General Jan Egeland, who will deliver the message of the Secretary-General.

Tuesday, March 29

The Security Council has scheduled consultations on the UN Mission in Liberia and Liberia sanctions, and a formal meeting to consider a draft resolution on the UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In the afternoon, it has scheduled consultations on Guinea-Bissau.

The guest at the noon briefing will be Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs Nobuyasu Abe, who will discuss the May review conference for the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Wednesday, March 30

The Security Council has scheduled an open meeting on the African dimension of the Security Council’s work.

Thursday, March 31

Today is the last day of Brazil’s Security Council Presidency.

Friday, April 1

Ambassador Wang Guangya of China takes over the Presidency of the Security Council for the month of April.