Noon briefing of 21 August 2015

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOON BRIEFING BY ERI KANEKO,

ASSOCIATE SPOKESPERSON FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON

FRIDAY, 21 AUGUST 2015

SECRETARY-GENERAL TO TRAVEL TO NIGERIA AND FRANCE

• The Secretary-General will travel to Abuja, Nigeria, over the weekend. During his visit, he will meet with President Buhari and other Federal and State government officials.
• He will also meet with leaders from human rights, religious, civil society and business communities. The Secretary-General is expected to discuss development, climate change, human rights and countering violent extremism while he is in Nigeria. He will also mark the anniversary of the 26 August 2011 attack on UN House in Abuja.
• The Secretary-General will then travel to Paris, France, where he will address the annual gathering of French Ambassadors from around the world on the issue of climate change, ahead of COP 21 which will take place in Paris in December. He will also meet with President Francois Hollande, as well as the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and of Finance.
• The Secretary-General will be back in New York on Wednesday evening.

SECRETARY-GENERAL STRESSES IMPORTANCE OF SUPPORTING YOUTH TO BUILD PEACE AT GLOBAL FORUM

The Global Forum on Youth, Peace and Security, hosted by the Kingdom of Jordan in Amman under the patronage of the Crown Prince, opened today.

• The Forum is organized in partnership with the United Nations system, represented by the UN Inter-Agency Network on Youth Development and civil society partners, and has 500 participants from over 100 countries.
• In his message to the Forum, the Secretary-General stressed the importance of supporting youth to "build peace, foster reconciliation and achieve democratic governance."
• The Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth, Ahmad Alhendawi, said this is timely because the world has realized that there is no peace without development, and there is no development without peace; and there is neither peace nor development without investing in youth.
• The Forum will continue tomorrow and is expected to adopt the Amman Youth Declaration.

SERIOUS HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN DARFUR LARGELY UN-INVESTIAGED, UNPUNISHED, WARNS U.N. RIGHTS OFFICE

• The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said that serious human rights violations and abuses that occurred in Darfur in 2014 have largely gone un-investigated and unpunished.
• The report by the Office, based on information provided by the African Union-UN Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), released cases of human rights violations and reveals widespread impunity.
• Of the 411 cases documented by UNAMID of alleged violations and abuses of the right to physical integrity by all parties to the conflict, very few were investigated or resulted in arrests. Of these, 127 involved the use of sexual violence. These 411 cases are illustrative of a much broader pattern of violence, the report states.
• The High Commissioner for Human Rights says that the report paints a very grim picture of the systemic failure, or outright refusal, by the authorities to take human rights violations seriously.
• The High Commissioner urged the Government of the Sudan and the armed opposition groups to take the findings of this report very seriously and to prioritize the fight against impunity.

U.N. YEMEN ENVOY HOLDS TALKS IN SAUDI ARABIA

• The Secretary-General’s Envoy for Yemen, Ismael Ould Cheikh Ahmed, arrived yesterday in Riyadh for talks with the Government of Yemen regarding their response to proposals from the Houthis and the General People’s Congress.
• He expects to wrap up those conversations on Saturday and return to Muscat, where he is set to meet again with both General People’s Congress and the Houthis.

GUINEA: U.N. ENVOY WELCOMES POLITICAL AGREEMENT

• The Special Representative of the Secretary-General for West Africa, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, welcomed today the signature of a political agreement in Guinea.
• He congratulated all involved for their shared determination to move towards inclusive, credible and peaceful elections in the country. Presidential elections in Guinea are planned on October 11.
• The UN system and its regional and international partners also issued a press release in which they say that this agreement shows that the Guinean political actors have the resources to permanently stop the cycle of political instability in the country.

HEAD OF U.N. CULTURAL AGENCY CALLS FOR INVESTIGATION INTO KILLING OF JOURNALISTS IN SOUTH SUDAN

• The Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Irina Bokova, called today for an investigation into the killing of newspaper journalist Peter Moi Julius in Juba on 19 August.
• She condemned the killing of the journalist, saying that citizens rely on the media to make informed choices, which is why journalists must be able to practice their profession in safe conditions.

U.N. ENVOY COMMENDS KOSOVO’S INCREASING DETERMINATION TO MEET FUNDAMENTAL OBLIGATIONS

• The Security Council heard today from the Secretary-General’s Special Representative and Head of the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), Farid Zarif.
• Mr. Zarif commended the step taken by the Kosovo institutions on 3 August, when the Assembly of Kosovo passed the requisite constitutional amendment and the laws on the establishment of the Specialist Chambers and Specialist Prosecutor9;s Office.
• He said this stood as a sign of Kosovo9;s increasing determination to meet its fundamental obligations and commitments.
• He also said that respect, protection and preservation of the Serbian Orthodox cultural heritage in Kosovo are fundamental duties that test the responsibility of Kosovo9;s governing institutions.
• Mr. Zarif will be replaced by Zahir Tanin of Afghanistan as Special Representative of UNMIK. Mr. Zarif said he was departing with strong confidence in the leadership he had observed from each side, as well as from the people.

SOMALIA: HUMANITARIAN COORDINATOR CONCLUDES ASSESSMENT OF REGIONS AFFECTED BY INSECURITY

• The Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, Peter de Clercq, concluded an assessment mission to towns in Somalia’s Gedo and Bay regions, visiting families in need of humanitarian assistance. With an improvement in the security situation, these areas are now easier for humanitarians to access.
• He said he was particularly concerned about displaced people affected by military operations in the region. Only limited humanitarian assistance has been provided for many years, and many hospitals have been looted or burnt.
• Moreover, this year9;s El Niño phenomenon looms gravely over the fragile country, potentially affecting over 900,000 people, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), including in areas that are still hard to access.
• Mr. de Clercq also met with local authorities and aid partners to discuss ways to improve humanitarian assistance. There are currently more than 14 humanitarian organizations in the towns, and more are expected to start providing assistance, as the security situation improves.

U.N. REFUGEE AGENCY WELCOMES BELIZE’S DECISION TO JOIN CONVENTION ON REDUCTION OF STATELESSNESS

• The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) welcomed today Belize9;s landmark decision to join the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, the second accession by a Caribbean Community member state after Jamaica and setting a strong example for the region.
• The 1961 Convention, which with Belize will have 64 states parties, provides concrete and detailed safeguards that states parties must implement through their nationality legislation to prevent and reduce statelessness.
• At least 10 million people worldwide are currently stateless and a child is born stateless every 10 minutes. Without a nationality, they are often denied basic rights and services normally afforded to citizens, such as access to healthcare and education.

IRAQ: SECRETARY-GENERAL REITERATES NEED FOR PEACE, STABILITY AND UNITY

• In response to a question about the UN’s participation at a meeting in Iraq, the Spokesperson said that the UN Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) has relayed the Secretary-General’s hope that whatever solution the parties agree to will further peace, stability and unity in Iraq, and will be in the best interest of all Iraqis.