Secretario General

Noon briefing of 21 June 2005


HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SPOKESMAN'S NOON BRIEFING

BY MARIE OKABE
ASSOCIATE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Tuesday, June 21, 2005

ANNAN APPALLED BY ASSASSINATION OF LEBANESE LEADER

  • The Secretary-General was appalled to learn of yet another assassination in Lebanon. He strongly condemns the murder, in a bomb blast in Beirut, of Mr. George Hawi, a long-time leader of the Communist Party.

  • His sympathies and condolences are with the family of the victim and, indeed, all of the people of Lebanon. The Secretary-General stands with the Lebanese today in their determination to shape a peaceful, independent and sovereign future.

  • The Secretary-General urges the Lebanese authorities to bring promptly to justice the perpetrators and the instigators of today's callous crime and to put an end to impunity and acts of intimidation. He calls on all concerned parties to contribute to the unity and stability in Lebanon.

  • Asked about any Council response to today’s bombing, the Spokeswoman said that was in the hands of the Security Council, and she noted that Council members would be busy with today’s open debate on the protection of civilians.

ANNAN WELCOMES MEETING BETWEEN
ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER AND PALESTINIAN PRESIDENT

  • As the announced date for Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and the northern West Bank, 15 August 2005, approaches, the Secretary-General has been following events concerning the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory carefully.

  • He welcomes the meeting today between Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, and looks forward to evaluating the situation at the meeting of the Quartet in London later this week.

IRAQ: MONEY FOR WEAPONS INSPECTORS
TO BE TRANSFERRED TO DEVELOPMENT FUND

  • The Secretary-General this morning sent a letter to the President of the Security Council informing them of his intention, subject to the Council’s concurrence, to transfer the amount of $220,256,697 from the escrow account set up under the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission for Iraq (UNMOVIC).

  • Of that amount, $200,000,000 would be transferred to the Development Fund for Iraq, bearing in mind the resources required to be retained in the account for UNMOVIC.

  • The balance of $20,256,697, the Secretary-General says, would be credited against Iraq’s arrears in its contributions to the UN Regular Budget, Peacekeeping Operations and Tribunal activities.

ANNAN ARRIVES IN BRUSSELS FOR IRAQ CONFERENCE

  • The Secretary-General arrived in Brussels today, one day in advance of the International Conference on Iraq.

  • A few hours after arrival, the Secretary-General was briefed on the preparations for the conference by Ashraf Jehangir Qazi, his Special Representative for Iraq.

  • Later in the evening, he will attend an official dinner for the conference participants, hosted by European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.

  • The Secretary-General is expected to deliver the opening and closing remarks at the conference tomorrow. On the sidelines of the conference, he is expected to hold a series of bilateral meetings with a number of other conference participants.

WORLD MUST DO MORE TO PROTECT CIVILIANS IN ARMED CONFLICT

  • The Security Council held a meeting on the protection of civilians in armed conflict.

  • Briefing the Council this morning, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Jan Egeland, said that key challenges in that area involved addressing displacement and the needs of children, as well as ensuring humanitarian access and the safety and security of humanitarian personnel. He also said that sexual violence was one of his biggest concerns, because of its scale, prevalence and profound impact.

  • To better protect civilians, Egeland said the world must: fight impunity by supporting the International Criminal Court and strengthening national judicial systems; include the protection of civilians in all peacekeeping mandates; strengthen engagement with regional and intergovernmental organizations; and improve humanitarian funding.

SECURITY COUNCIL EXTENDS DIAMOND SANCTIONS ON LIBERIA

  • Prior to the meeting on civilians and armed conflict, the Council unanimously adopted a resolution on Liberia, by which it decided to renew sanctions on diamonds for a further six months, and urged Liberia’s National Transitional Government to work harder to establish authority over diamond-producing areas.

SUDAN: BANDITRY & ARMED ATTACKS CONTINUE IN DARFUR

  • The UN Mission in Sudan reports that banditry activities and looting, including armed attacks, continued to be reported in Darfur. The Mission also says that non-governmental organizations still continue to face difficulties in certain areas of the Darfurs.

  • It also reported an attack in eastern Sudan that was repelled by the Sudanese army. UN commercially rented trucks carrying food were in the area during the incident.

  • The Mission reports that the fourth round of a polio vaccination campaign was completed in the three Darfur States.

AFGHANISTAN: U.N. MISSION ASKS ALL ELECTION CANDIDATES
TO TURN IN THEIR WEAPONS

  • The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan today welcomed the news that a number of candidates for legislative and provincial elections are handing in their weapons, answering a call made by the country’s electoral authorities.

  • The UN Mission joins the Afghan Government and the electoral authorities in appealing to all those candidates who still possess weapons and ammunition to hand them in voluntarily at designated collection points. That step, the Mission says, would be a major contribution to restoring peace in Afghanistan.

WORLD HAS “ONCE-IN-A-GENERATION” CHANCE TO REFORM U.N., ANNAN SAYS

  • The Secretary-General last night spoke to the international councilors of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and he told them that this September’s summit represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reform the United Nations. “If we miss it this time, I don’t know when they are going to get the opportunity again,” he said.

  • The Secretary-General said that an expanded Security Council with a broader membership would allow the Council to be more democratic. At the same time, he said, he has made concrete proposals for renewing the UN architecture, by which we should be willing and able to abolish institutions that are no longer required, such as the Trusteeship Council.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY BEGINS TO MEET ON
SEPTEMBER SUMMIT’S FINAL DOCUMENT

  • The General Assembly (GA) is conducting its first informal meeting of the plenary today, and possibly tomorrow, on the draft outcome document of the September summit, which GA President Jean Ping submitted to Member States in early June.

  • On Thursday and Friday, 23-24 June, the GA will hold informal interactive hearings with civil society representatives, as part of the preparations for the September summit. Approximately 200 civil society organizations are registered to take part in the hearings, which consist of plenary meetings and interactive roundtable sessions focusing on the four theme clusters of the Secretary-General’s “In Larger Freedom” report.

  • Jean Ping will give a press briefing tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. with a civil society representative, to give a preview of the non-governmental organization hearings, and also to give an early assessment of the consultations today and tomorrow on his draft outcome document.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

U.N. INTERNAL WATCHDOG LOOKING INTO NEPOTISM ALLEGATIONS: Asked about the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) investigation into procurement officer Alexander Yakovlev, the Spokeswoman noted that the officer-in-charge of OIOS is Barbara Dixon. She said the OIOS would look into allegations that Yakovlev had sought an internship for a relative from a company that did business with the United Nations.

U.N. PEACEKEEPING HEAD TO VISIT HAITI: Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Jean-Marie Guéhenno, will be leaving tomorrow for Haiti, to visit the UN peacekeeping mission there and consult with senior leadership on the ground. He will return to New York on Sunday.

U.N. MISSION IN BURUNDI CALLS FOR AN END TO RECENT CRIMINAL ACTS: The UN Operation in Burundi (ONUB) reports that there have been serious incidents in and around the capital, Bujumbura, over the past five days that have tried to derail the electoral process. ONUB calls for an immediate end to all criminal and barbaric acts and urges the new National Police force, the National Defence Force and all civil society organisations to do everything possible to denounce or facilitate the arrest of the perpetrators of these acts so that they can be prosecuted.

IRAQI SCHOOLS TO GET UPGRADED SANITATION FACILITIES: Nearly half a million children in Iraq will benefit from upgraded sanitation facilities at schools across the country this year, thanks to UN-backed efforts to improve conditions at some 800 schools. Staffan de Mistura, the Secretary-General’s Deputy Special Representative for Iraq, said that protecting schoolchildren and enabling them to receive an education is “the best possible investment in the future development of a stable and peaceful Iraq.”

AGRICULTURE EXPORT COMPETITION TO INTENSIFY: Global competition among exporters of wheat, rice, oilseeds, sugar and livestock is expected to intensify over the next ten years among both developed and developing countries, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's latest Agricultural Outlook - produced for first time in collaboration with the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Policy reforms could help improve agricultural markets, the Outlook adds.

TSUNAMI WARNING SYSTEM TO BE LAUNCHED DURING SESSION THAT STARTS TODAY: The Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System will be launched during the 23rd Session of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission Assembly of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), to be held at UNESCO’s Headquarters from June 21 to 30. The Assembly, which meets every two years, will approve the Plan of Action for the Warning System and establish an Intergovernmental Coordination Group to govern it.

HEALTH GROUPS RECOGNIZE ROTARY INTERNATIONAL’S ROLE IN THE FIGHT AGAINST POLIO: On the occasion of Rotary International’s 100th anniversary, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative today paid tribute to the humanitarian service organization’s commitment to ending polio worldwide. As a key partner in the Initiative – the world’s largest health drive which also includes the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) – Rotary is the leading private-sector contributor second only to the United States Government.