Secrétaire général

Noon briefing of 15 November 2007

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING

BY MICHELE MONTAS
SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

Thursday, November 15, 2007

BAN KI-MOON ARRIVES IN LEBANON TO HELP SECURE ITS DEMOCRACY

  • Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has arrived in Beirut, Lebanon, where he told reporters upon arrival that he will meet with a series of Lebanese leaders in order to assist Lebanon in securing its democracy.

  • This afternoon, he will meet separately with Speaker of the Parliament, Nabih Berri, and leader of the March 14 movement, Saad Hariri, before having a working dinner this evening with Prime Minister Fuad Siniora.

  • The Secretary-General said that Lebanon now stands at an important crossroads in its modern history. A free and fair election of a new President according to constitutional rules without foreign interference is a milestone in the development of Lebanon as a vibrant democracy. He asserted that the new Lebanese President should enjoy the broadest possible acceptance, so that he or she can represent all Lebanese.

  • Earlier today, the Secretary-General had been in Tunis, where he had addressed the international conference on counter-terrorism taking place in Tunisia.

  • He told the conference that the UN’s 192 Member States made history just over one year ago when they adopted the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy as a visionary yet practical guide for international activities to counter terrorism. However, he added, our work together is just beginning. Now we must implement the Strategy in all its dimensions.

  • Before leaving Tunisia, the Secretary-General also met with that country’s President, as well as with the Secretary-General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference.

  • Following his meeting with Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the Secretary-General said that they had discussed, among other topics, Tunisia’s sustained economic growth, its progress in meeting the Millennium Development Goals, and how to counter terrorism.

  • In response to a further question, the Spokeswoman said that, following his trip to Lebanon, the Secretary-General would travel to Valencia, Spain, to participate in the launch of the next report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

DARFUR HYBRID FORCE DEPLOYMENT RUNS RISK OF FAILURE

  • The Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean Marie Guehenno, after his briefing to the Security Council on the joint UN-African Union operation known as UNAMID yesterday afternoon, told reporters that the clock was ticking.

  • If that force does not have the necessary capacities in critical areas by the start of next year, when it is due to take over from the existing AU mission, he said, "it means that the mission in 2008 will not be able to really meet the expectations, [and] that it will not be able to make the difference that the world wants it to make, and that it may become a failure, so this is a very important moment.”

  • The Security Council President, Indonesian Ambassador R.M. Marty M. Natalegawa told reporters after that briefing that Security Council members underlined the importance of full cooperation by all parties, including the Government of Sudan, and the urgent need for remaining capability gaps to be filled towards the formation of the hybrid force

DARFUR PEACE ENVOYS STEP UP EFFORT

  • The AU-UN Darfur Peace Process Envoys returned back to Khartoum from Asmara where they had held consultations with representatives of governments neighboring Sudan including Eritrea's president.

  • The two Envoys held a press conference at Khartoum Airport and said they were now stepping up efforts to encourage some of the larger rebel forces to find common ground and attend the second round of negotiations with Sudan's government in December.

  • The UN Special Envoy Jan Eliasson spoke on the progress of the peace talks saying they wanted to start in greater glory with a lot more people present. He went on to say that the discussions that now go on with such intensity in Juba, in Darfur and elsewhere are because we now have at least the beginning of the process.

SECURITY COUNCIL MEETS ON BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA

  • The Security Council held consultations this morning on Bosnia-Herzegovina.

  • The, the Council held a private meeting on Bosnia and Herzegovina, in which it heard from Nikola Spiric, the Acting Chairman of that country’s Council of Ministers, and from the High Representative dealing with the country, Miroslav Lajcák.

U.N. ENVOY SAYS CLARITY ON KOSOVO'S FUTURE IS CRITICAL

  • The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Kosovo, Joachim Rücker, today said that clarity on Kosovo’s future is critical for the communities in Kosovo and to ensuring stability in the region.

  • He also said he continued to have faith in a positive outcome to the Troika-led negotiations process.

  • On the general elections, scheduled to take place this Saturday, Rücker said that preparations were fully on track, and that the UN Mission in Kosovo was ready to help deploy mobile polling stations, in case certain voters were refused access to polling areas.

  • Rücker was speaking to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Permanent Council in Vienna.

HUMAN RIGHTS EXPERT COMPLETES MYANMAR VISIT

  • Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, the human rights rapporteur for Myanmar, today ended his five-day visit to that country, at the invitation of the Government.

  • As he departed, Pinheiro spoke to reporters, telling them that, among his other stops, he visited the Insein Jail twice, with the second visit taking place this afternoon, when he met some political prisoners.

  • He also provided details of his meetings with Myanmar officials, the UN country team, monks, detainees and representatives of ethnic groups over the past five days.

SIERRA LEONE FACES AN ERA OF HOPE

  • The Secretary-General has extended his warmest congratulations to President Ernest Bai Koroma, on his inauguration as President of Sierra Leone.

  • In a message delivered by Assistant Secretary-General for Peacebuilding Support Carolyn McAskie, he also congratulated the country’s people on a peaceful and transparent electoral process.

  • He added that Sierra Leone faces an era of hope; its people are looking to their new Government to consolidate peace, ensure sustained economic growth and heal ethnic and national wounds. The road ahead will not be easy, he said, but the United Nations stands ready to provide continued support, including through the Peacebuilding Commission.

COCAINE TRAFFICKERS SPREAD THEIR REACH ACROSS WEST AFRICA

  • The head of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is warning that high demand for cocaine in Europe is creating dangerous insecurity in West Africa.

  • Addressing the Conference on Cocaine in Madrid, Antonio Maria Costa said security in West Africa is “under attack” by criminals who are using the region as a hub for trafficking drugs from South America to Europe.

  • He urged cocaine users to take greater responsibility for the consequences of their addiction. And he especially called on celebrities to stop glamorizing cocaine use and the lifestyles of “stars turned junkies”.

  • In other news from UNODC, we also have an embargoed copy of a press release on its Afghan Opium Survey for 2007. That press release is embargoed until 4 a.m. tomorrow New York time.

INTERNET GOVERNANCE FORUM CLOSES IN RIO

  • The second meeting of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) wrapped up today in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Nitin Desai, the Secretary-General’s Special Advisor on Internet Governance, in response to questions at a closing press briefing, said organizers had been “by and large very happy” with the Forum.

  • He noted that there had been many initiatives on child protection and much discussion on free access to knowledge including, for example, access to government databases.

  • It had further been recognized that censorship was not just an issue for governments, but also for corporations, he added.

DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL TO VISIT ISRAEL, SWITZERLAND

  • The Deputy Secretary-General, Asha-Rose Migiro, will depart for Israel tomorrow to attend, as a guest of honour, an international conference in Jerusalem on “Women’s Leadership for Sustainable Development”.

  • While there, she will also meet with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, as well as with UN staff, and pay a visit to Yad Vashem.

  • Then, next Monday, the Deputy Secretary-General will travel to the occupied Palestinian territory for meetings with the Palestinian Foreign Minister and Minister of Women's Affairs. She will also visit a UN project there.

  • The Deputy Secretary-General will then travel to Geneva to deliver an address to the 16th Session of the General Assembly of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. While in Geneva she will also be meeting with local Government officials and heads of UN agencies and staff.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

SPOKESWOMAN CLARIFIES ANSWER ON QUESTION ABOUT "PKK TERRORISM": Yesterday, a journalist posed a question on “terrorism by the PKK”. We now have additional guidance in response, which is as follows: The Secretary-General fully understands Turkey’s national security concerns. In that regard, he continues to urge Iraqi authorities to do everything possible to curtail armed groups using Iraqi territory to launch cross-border attacks on Turkey. At the same time, he reiterates his previous appeals to Turkey to avoid any actions that might exacerbate an already tense situation in the region.

SECURITY COUNCIL CONFIRMS CANADIAN LAWYER TO LEAD HARIRI INVESTIGATION: On the racks today is an exchange of letters between the Secretary-General and the Security Council concerning the appointment of Daniel Bellemare as the Commissioner of the International Independent Investigation Commission for Lebanon.

CAMBODIA COURT UPHOLDS DETENTION ORDER FOR FORMER FOREIGN MINISTER: Yesterday, the Co-Investigating Judges of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia held consecutive adversarial hearings to examine the question of the provisional detention of former Cambodian Foreign Minister Ieng Sary and his wife, Ieng Thirith. After deliberations following those hearings, they decided to provisionally detain both of them.

FARMERS COULD PROVIDE CARBON STORAGE FOR A FEE: In its annual report on “The State of Food and Agriculture,” the Food and Agricultural Organization says targeted payments to farmers could help promote environmental protection and mitigate the effects of climate change. FAO says financial incentives could be used to encourage farmers to provide carbon storage, flood control, and clean water, as well as to conserve biodiversity. It cautions that such payments are not the best solution in all situations, as they could result in a reduction in demand for agricultural employment or increases in food prices.

POSITION OF MIDDLE EAST PEACE PROCESS COORDINATOR STILL VACANT: Asked whether a successor had been found to replace the departed UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Michael Williams, the Spokeswoman said there was no appointment to announce yet.