DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
Press Briefing
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
19961209
FOR INFORMATION OF UNITED NATIONS SECRETARIAT ONLY
"Well today is the big day", Sylvana Foa, Spokesman for the Secretary- General, said at the beginning of today's noon briefing. This morning the Secretary-General had transmitted to the President of the Security Council his final report concerning resolution 986 (1995), on the "oil-for-food" formula. He had said he was satisfied that all activities necessary to ensure the effective implementation of the resolution had been satisfactorily concluded. The pricing mechanisms had been approved, the metering stations had been tested, the oil monitors and customs inspectors had been deployed, the Department of Humanitarian Affairs had selected observers and the escrow account was ready to get its money. Therefore, the Secretariat stood ready to carry out its responsibility as of 0001 hours eastern standard time (EST) on the day after the President of the Council informed Member States that he had received the report.
The Secretary-General had said that he wanted to thank Under-Secretary- General for Legal Affairs and United Nations Legal Counsel Hans Corell and Senior Adviser Chinmaya Gharekhan and all the people who had spent nights, weekends "working on getting this thing going", she said. The Secretary- General had said that the implementation of resolution 986 was a "victory for the poorest of the poor of Iraq -- for the women, for the children, for the sick and the disabled". He hoped that the humanitarian dimension would always prevail in the work of the United Nations.
"So it's a go", Ms. Foa said, adding "I want to say 'let it flow, let it flow, let it flow' but I wouldn't say that".
"We have a lot of stuff today", she said, as she announced that the Security Council was meeting at 3:30 p.m. for consultations of the whole on recommendation for the appointment of the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Turning to the situation in Tajikistan, she asked, "Did you all follow the drama of our plane over the weekend?" She said she was happy to announce that the leader of the United Tajik Opposition (UTO) and his delegation had arrived, by United Nations aircraft, in Qunduz in northern Afghanistan for the scheduled meeting with the President of Tajikistan under United Nations auspices. The meeting was expected to take place once President Emomali Rakhmonov and the Secretary-General's Special Representative Gerd Merrem arrived in Qunduz.
Evidently, there had been a misunderstanding with the Taliban authorities over the question of flight clearance over the weekend, Ms. Foa
said. As a result the flight carrying Syed Abdullo Nuri had first been diverted to Shindan, near Herat, in south-east Afghanistan and then to Kandahar. The misunderstanding had been cleared with the active assistance of the United Nations Special Mission to Afghanistan. "So everything is okay, they are now in Qunduz", she said.
The Secretary-General's three-monthly report on the United Nations Mission of Observers in Tajikistan (UNMOT) (document S/1996/1010) was out, she said. In the report, he had stated that the overall situation in Tajikistan had deteriorated in the last three months. The cease-fire had been frequently violated by both sides. "In other words, they have a cease-fire but they are shooting at each other like crazy", Ms. Foa said. The humanitarian situation in Tajikistan also remained critical. Currently, 620,000 people, that is about 12 per cent of the in-country population, had been classified as "most vulnerable" and therefore in need of emergency food assistance.
The United Nations consolidated appeal for urgent humanitarian needs in Tajikistan had gone out in November, she said. It had asked for $22 million for the period December 1996 to May 1997. The Secretary-General had taken note of the planned meeting between President Rakhmonov and UTO leader Abdullo Nuri, and he hoped that the encouraging progress made during the latest round of preparatory talks in Tehran would be given substance in an agreement which could give much needed impetus to the negotiating process. Therefore, he had recommended that the Security Council extend the mandate of UNMOT for a further period of six months. At the same time, he had instructed his Special Representative Gerd Merrem to withdraw the UNMOT teams from the field to Dushanbe, awaiting further developments.
The Secretary-General would report to the Council in a month's time on the issue of compliance by the parties with the provisions of the cease-fire agreement and on the results of the meeting between President Rakhmonov and Mr. Nuri, Ms. Foa said. The mandate of UNMOT was to expire on 15 December and its current strength was 44, with all the observers being military observers. The mission staff had been withdrawn to Dushanbe until the parties recommitted themselves to the cease-fire.
The Secretary-General's report on the human rights situation in Croatia had also been issued today (document S/1996/1011), she said. In it, he noted that although the security situation in the former sectors had improved slightly, ongoing looting and harassment, especially in the area around Knin, gave continuing cause for concern. Despite some positive political developments, such as the agreement on the normalization of relations between Croatia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the adoption of a new amnesty law, little progress had been noted on the issue of the return of the Croatian Serb refugees. Two developments boded especially badly for the prospect of future return. The first development concerned the Government of Croatia's continuing failure to effectively safeguard property rights. The
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second development concerned the implementation of the new amnesty law. The re-arrest of numerous persons almost immediately following their release under the law threatened to deprive the legislation of its value in building confidence and promoting reconciliation.
Regarding the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, the Secretary-General had noted with concern the failure of the Croatian Government to ensure the apprehension of indicted war crimes suspects believed to be in areas under its control, Ms. Foa said. The Croatian authorities had not investigated grave allegations made about the conduct of Croatian soldiers and civilians during the 1995 military operations in the Krajina region and in western Slavonia. That report was available on the racks on the third floor.
The Secretary-General's report on the situation of democracy and human rights in Haiti (document A/51/703) was also available, she said. The mandate of the International Civilian Mission to Haiti (MICIVIH) was to expire on 31 December. Following consultations with the Secretary-General of the Organization of American States (OAS), the Secretary-General had recommended to the General Assembly a 12-month extension with focus on assisting the Haitian authorities in their efforts to rebuild and consolidate the cornerstone institutions of a democratic society based on law and respect for human rights. Ms. Foa added that correspondents might recall that the President of Haiti, Rene Preval, had asked the Secretary-General to have the mandate of MICIVIH renewed until 31 December 1997.
In the report, the Secretary-General noted improvements in the human rights situation, Ms Foa said. He said the authorities had shown real commitment to strengthening the protection of human rights. Violations by state agents of the right to life and physical integrity remained relatively sporadic. New institutions such as the Haitian National Police and the administration of the prison system were slowly being consolidated and there was a noticeable change in the public's perception of the police. However, there were some problems, including major concerns in the judicial domain. There were glaring violations of legal and constitutional procedures as well as shortcomings in the area of respect for due process.
The Secretary-General was convinced that the implementation of an agreed judicial reform together with the need to overcome the remaining weaknesses in the police and the prisons would require continued assistance from the international community, she said, adding "So lets give them 12 more months".
"A little more news from the Great Lakes region", Ms Foa said, as she announced that about 5,534 Rwandan refugees out of a total of 535,000 Rwandan refugees in the United Republic of Tanzania had registered to go home. Last week 818 refugees had joined repatriation convoys. That had been the largest number in a very long time. However, another 15,000 Rwandan refugees had fled the camps and had moved further into Tanzania. They had told field workers of
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the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) that they wanted to avoid repatriation and they did not want to go home. Therefore, they were moving further away from the border because they were afraid that they would be pressured.
Today, the Twenty-fourth Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers was being held in Jakarta, she said. The Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), Adrianus Mooy, had read out a message from the Secretary-General. The Secretary-General has said that the Charter of the Organization of the Islamic Conference reaffirmed the commitment of its members to the Charter of the United Nations. It was therefore natural that the two organizations should work closely together to promote the ideals, principles and objectives that they shared.
The message continued by stating that regular consultations had been held with regard to ongoing peacemaking efforts, for instance in Afghanistan, Somalia and Tajikistan, Ms. Foa said. The Secretary-General had stated that "let us continue and further develop our valuable partnership. We have achieved a great deal so far and our relationship serves as a model of cooperation between the United Nations and a regional organization".
The Secretary-General had also sent a message to the Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization starting in Singapore today, she said. That message had been read out by the Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Rubens Ricupero. In it, the Secretary-General had said that the objectives of the World Trade Organization, that is, promoting economic growth and sustainable development through trade, were a crucial component for the new framework for international cooperation and development that "we are together called upon to build". Further, he had said "I am confident that the deliberations of this historic conference will serve to advance the causes of free trade and economic growth and to enhance the international community's capacity to address effectively the new global challenges facing the world".
A correspondent asked Ms. Foa if she could elaborate on the Security Council meeting to be held this afternoon. She said she could not, adding "we are not invited to these consultations on the question of the appointment of the Secretary-General. All I know is that they are scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m." Consultations would be held under the "one-plus-two" formula, which meant that each member of the Council could have only three representatives present in the meeting.
Asked if she had a list of candidates for appointment to the position of the Secretary-General, Ms. Foa responded that she did not.
Could she confirm reports that the Secretary-General had been offered the position of Secretary-General Emeritus and the leadership of a foundation?
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a correspondent asked. Ms. Foa replied that as soon as those reports had come out, she had gone to the Secretary-General and said "So what is it? And he had said 'Sylvana, I will not discuss any approaches made to me.' So, he won't even tell me".
What was the Secretary-General's reaction to other names being mentioned for leadership of the Organization? a correspondent inquired. Ms. Foa said the Secretary-General remained the candidate of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) but he certainly welcomed the entrance of new candidates into the field. "Its no fun being in a contest when there is no competition", she said, adding "So he welcomes competition". It was an open process. He believed in openness and democracy, she added.
What steps could the international community take to halt the harassment of Serbs in Croatia? a correspondent wanted to know. In his report, the Secretary-General had gone into quite a bit of detail, Ms. Foa said. He had called for more help from the Croatian authorities in getting property rights respected and had called for more encouragement to Croatian Serbs to come back home; in particular he had called for the enforcement of the amnesty law. He had emphasized that people released from jail under the new amnesty law should not be re-arrested soon after.
Samsiah Abdul-Majid, spokeswoman for General Assembly President Razali Ismail (Malaysia), said the General Committee had this morning decided to recommend two new items for inclusion in the General Assembly agenda. That would bring the total number of items to 164. The items proposed were on observer status for the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea and the proclamation of 21 November as world television day, both of which were to be considered in the plenary.
The idea of establishing a world television day had come out of the World Television Forum held at Headquarters last month, she said. Correspondents would recall that representatives from 50 countries around the world had attended the two-day meeting organized under the auspices of the United Nations.
The plenary, this morning, began considering the item on the law of the sea, Ms. Abdul-Majid said. There were three draft resolutions on that item, introduced by New Zealand. One of the drafts called on States that have not done so, to become parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Further, it called on States to harmonize their national legislation with the provisions of the Convention. It also requested the Secretary- General to convene meetings of States parties to the Convention from 10 to 14 March and 19 to 23 May 1997.
On the agreement for the conservation and management of straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks, the Assembly would emphasize the
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importance of the early entry into force and effective implementation of the agreement, she said. It would call on States and entities to ratify it and consider applying it provisionally.
A third draft on large-scale pelagic drift-net fishing (document A/51/L.29) was also being considered, she said. It called upon States to take the responsibility for measures to ensure that no fishing vessels entitled to fly their national flags, fish in the areas under the national jurisdiction of other States unless duly authorized. It also urged States to adopt policies and apply measures to reduce by-catches, fish discards and post-harvest losses.
Tomorrow afternoon, the plenary would consider the reports of the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security), she said. There were more than 20 reports available and those were listed in today's Journal. Some of the reports contained more than one draft resolution; for example, document A/51/566/Add.11 contained 21 drafts, which included drafts on the Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice on the Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons, the international agreement to ban anti-personnel land-mines and the fourth special session of the Assembly devoted to disarmament. Reports that were not yet out in hard copy would be issued either later this afternoon or early tomorrow morning.
The Assembly President and the Secretary-General would address the Assembly tomorrow morning in observance of Human Rights Day, she said. That day marked the adoption by the Assembly of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. Also, tomorrow morning, the plenary would consider the report of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) was scheduled to consider the financing of that Tribunal as well as of the Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia on Wednesday, 11 December. According to the Secretary-General's report, $46.7 million was needed from 1 January to 31 December 1997 for the Rwanda Tribunal, and $53.5 million for the former Yugoslavia Tribunal.
The Fifth Committee was also scheduled to consider the proposed programme budget outline for 1998-1999 of the United Nations, Ms. Abdul-Majid said. That report, which had been issued in August, set the preliminary estimates for those two years at $2.429 billion at 1996-1997 prices. That represented almost a 7 per cent reduction or $178.9 million compared with the current initial appropriation of $2.608 million for 1996-1997.
When would the Secretary-General address the Assembly? a correspondent asked. She said the meeting would start at 10 a.m. and the Secretary-General would address it at 10:15 a.m.
Also, correspondents had asked her about when the Credentials Committee would meet, Ms. Abdul-Majid said. She had not been able to ascertain the
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exact time but expected to find out today. If she did, the announcement would be made on the public address system. [Later in the afternoon, it was announced that the Credentials Committee would meet at 10 a.m. on Thursday, 12 December.]
Responding to a question put to her this morning vis-a-vis resolution 986 (1995), Ms. Foa said three of the overseers -- the officials charged with approving oil sales contracts -- were in New York. Those were the overseers from the Russian Federation, France and the United States. The fourth overseer, who was from Norway, would be in place tomorrow. "He is on his way back, he hopped on a plane and he will be on deck tomorrow", she said, adding "We still don't know what kind of schedule they will give themselves". The kind of shifts they would work in, whether they would work round-the-clock or just the normal working hours, was not known. Evidently, that would depend on the number of contracts that would come in and the amount of work they would have to do. As the correspondents were aware, they were under the "24-hour rule". They had to make a decision on each contract within 24 hours.
Had any contracts come and when could contracts be officially submitted? a correspondent asked. Ms. Foa said it would depend on when the Council President informed the Council that he had received the Secretary-General's report. But it would be at 1 minute after midnight the following day.
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