DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
Press Briefing
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
19960829
FOR INFORMATION OF UNITED NATIONS SECRETARIAT ONLY
Sylvana Foa, Spokesman for Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali, began today's noon briefing by saying that the Security Council was facing a full plate of work. In the morning it had taken up the Secretary-General's progress report on the situation in Liberia. There was a draft resolution on Liberia, as well as a draft resolution on Burundi and a draft Presidential statement on demining in the context of peace-keeping operations.
The Council was also expected to be briefed by the Assistant Secretary- General for Political Affairs, Lansana Kouyate, on violations of international humanitarian law in the areas of Srebrenica, Zepa, Banja Luka and Sanski Most, the Spokesman said. "That seems to be a polite way of talking about the progress, or lack thereof, on the exhumation of grave sites in those areas." The Council would also be discussing pruning its documentation and procedures, in particular the recommendations of the informal working group on how to handle items that have not been brought up for the last five years.
In the morning, an armed group of Republika of Srpska policemen had attacked the village of Mahala in north-eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina, where a group of Muslim returnees were rebuilding their homes, Ms. Foa continued. The policemen had apparently opened fire and beat up some of the villagers. The number and nature of casualties was not yet known; there had been conflicting reports. United Nations police monitors had donned flak jackets and protective helmets and had entered the area immediately. Shortly afterwards, troops of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Implementation Force (IFOR) had also been called in. The IFOR had moved in with tanks and helicopters and had detained 46 Serbs who were armed with rifles and clubs. Many of those Serbs were found to be police attached to the Interior Ministry of the Republika of Srpska. The International Police Task Force (IPTF) had met with senior Serb officials to find out the motive behind what was evidently a totally unprovoked attack. No arms were found on the Muslim side. The IPTF was demanding the dismissal of all police involved.
Secretary-General Boutros-Ghali had passed on to the Security Council the ninth report of NATO on IFOR operations, she sent on. Signed by NATO Secretary-General Javier Solana, the report said that IFOR still had concerns about the continued incidence of harassment and intimidation, as well as the obstruction to freedom of movement and to freedom of return to homes of origin. The IFOR noted continued tension within the Federation, although the agreement to abolish Herzog-Bosna was welcome news. There had been some worrying indications of an intention to restrict IFOR inspection access. However, IFOR would continue to provide general security and substantial logistical support, especially to the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the IPTF. But the attitude of the parties remained crucial to preventing civil disturbances and voter harassment.
The Spokesman apologized for a breakdown in procedures that had led to her office not receiving the Secretary-General's report on human rights in Croatia, which had been passed on to the Security Council yesterday. "We didn't even know it existed", Ms. Foa said. "I think the number of people on vacation has affected our operations too."
The report said that recent reports had indicated that residents of the Krajina and Western Slavonia regions continued to suffer from inadequate security conditions and a well-founded fear that they might fall victim to theft or physical attack at any time, Ms. Foa continued. Dozens of reports of looting and harassment by uniformed military personnel and civilians had been received during the summer by both international and local observers. The spate of attacks and threats against non-governmental organizations engaged in human rights monitoring and humanitarian relief activities in the area was a new and disturbing development. Human rights workers had reported concern for their personnel safety and often felt that they were being monitored by persons opposed to their activities.
The Secretary-General had concluded his report by saying that a prevailing climate of lawlessness, which caused great fear among local residents, persisted in the former Sectors North, South and West, particularly around Knin. It was evident that the Government of Croatia still had not taken adequate measures to provide an effective police presence in the region. Looting and intimidation remained widespread. There had also been several bombing attacks. The Government of Croatia had now authorized the return to Croatia of more than 9,000 Croatian Serbs, however fewer than one quarter of those people had returned. Ten thousand applicants were still waiting. The process of the return of Croatian Serbs was thus moving slowly; and meanwhile tens of thousands of Croats, both displaced persons and refugees, were settling in the region. The manner in which the Croatian Government was approaching the matter was having a profound impact on the region's ethnic balance, transforming the population from predominantly Serb to largely Croat.
She went on to say that the Focal Point for Women had provided a chart giving the gender breakdown for the Secretariat's professional staff as of 30 June. The chart showed that of the 2,514 people holding professional posts -- which were subject to geographical distribution requirements as well -- 882 were women. That meant that 35.1 per cent of the Secretariat's professional staff were women. In 1994, the percentage had been 32.6; in 1995 it had been 33.5. "So, a little bit of progress, but as a woman I can say, not enough."
She said an information packet on the United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina was available in the Spokesman's Office.
Daily Press Briefing - 3 - 29 August 1996
At 11 a.m. tomorrow, Ambassador Prakash Shah of India would hold a press conference in room 226 on the comprehensive nuclear test-ban treaty, she continued. In addition, tomorrow was the last day for correspondents to submit their applications for the United Nations Correspondents Association (UNCA) second annual award for the best article, programme or series about the United Nations prepared from July 1995 to July 1996. The prize was $1,000.
Asked if there was any word on whether the General Assembly would hold a special meeting to discuss the comprehensive nuclear test-ban treaty, the Spokesman said the matter was still being discussed by the Assembly's regional groups. For the moment, the meeting was still scheduled to begin Monday, 9 September at 10 a.m.
To another question, Ms. Foa said she did not have information on the number of co-sponsors of the draft resolution regarding the draft treaty that Australian Ambassador Richard Butler had submitted to the General Assembly President, Diogo Freitas do Amaral (Portugal).
A correspondent said that the Under-Secretary-General for Administration and Management, Joseph E. Connor, had said that by 1 September he would submit to the Assembly a detailed report on the cuts being made in the Secretariat staff. The correspondent asked if that was being done. The Spokesman said the report would be submitted next week. She noted that Mr. Connor had already projected cuts for the 1998-1999 budget.
Asked if there had been any reaction yesterday afternoon to a United States presentation regarding Iraqi violations of the sanctions established by Security Council resolution 661 (1990), Ms. Foa said she had not seen any.
A correspondent said that the Secretary-General's report on human rights in Croatia had been distributed yesterday in Zagreb. She objected to the delay in its being distributed to the correspondents at Headquarters. "There was a very serious breakdown in procedures", the Spokesman said. "There are many people in the Secretariat grabbing a last couple of days off before we get really busy with the General Assembly. I apologize to all of you. We will make sure that this does not happen again."
Ms. Foa added that she had been promised that next week she would regret having complained about how quiet the United Nations had been for the last month and a half.
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