DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Press Briefing

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Fred Eckhard, Spokesman for the Secretary-General, informed correspondents at today's press briefing that the Secretary-General had this morning announced to the Security Council his intention to send a new human rights investigative team to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The discussion in the Council had been extensive, but, in the end, there had been broad support for the Secretary-General's intention. The Council had also reaffirmed its support for the Geneva-based investigative team. With that, he added, the Secretary-General's next step would be to select three of the best qualified people from a list of potential investigators that he and his staff had been studying, and send them into the field as quickly as possible.

On Cambodia, Mr. Eckhard read the following statement:

"The Secretary-General is gravely concerned about the recent events in Cambodia, where fighting broke out over the weekend. He deeply regrets the loss of life that has ensued, including that of the daughter of the United Nations Security Unit Radio Operator. He was dismayed to learn today of the death in custody of Hor Sok, co-Secretary of State for the Interior Ministry. Security of members of the Legislative Assembly must be guaranteed so that democratic processes can resume. He calls on both First Prime Minister Ranariddh and Second Prime Minister Hun Sen to resolve the current political crisis through negotiations, in accordance with the Paris Agreements and the Cambodian Constitution. These documents, which are in force, state that 'the Kingdom of Cambodia adopts a policy of liberal democracy and pluralism'.

"The Secretary-General was gratified to note the earlier commitment of the coalition Government to hold national elections in May next year. The United Nations stands ready to coordinate international observers for those elections, as the Secretary-General was requested to do by the two Prime Ministers. The Secretary-General wishes to express in the strongest manner the vital importance of making every effort to ensure that these elections, the first to be held by the Cambodians themselves since the departure of the United Nations peace-keeping force in 1993, are free and fair." (Press Release SG/SM/6281.)

Mr. Eckhard said that the Security Council also had Albania on its agenda for today. It would be considering the seventh and eight fortnightly reports of Italy on the multinational protection force for Albania.

He further told correspondents that a statement out of Geneva today by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Human Rights in Cambodia, Thomas Hammarberg, was available in the Spokesman's Office.

Mr. Eckhard said that the Cyprus talks would get under way unofficially this evening, at a dinner to be hosted by the Secretary-General for the

leaders of the two communities. The Spokesman was seeking to release to correspondents the names of the other invitees. He said he understood that for the bus trip to the Troutbeck conference centre venue of the talks, 37 correspondents had signed up, but only 15 had paid so far.

Mr. Eckhard announced that Japan would this afternoon at 4:30 p.m. deposit its instrument of ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), becoming the fourth country to do so. The others were Fiji, Qatar and Uzbekistan; 144 nations had signed the Treaty.

He informed correspondents of a note from the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, available in the Spokesman's Office, which stated that Defence Counsel Toma Fila had yesterday filed a preliminary motion on various matters on behalf of the accused Slavko Dokmanovic, the former President of the Vukovar community that was arrested last week.

Mr. Eckhard also announced the availability of the twentieth weekly report on the implementation of Security Council resolution 986 (1995), given by the Secretariat to the Iraqi Permanent Mission yesterday. He noted, however, that the Government of Iraq had not yet submitted its proposed distribution plan for the second round of implementation of the "oil-for-food" plan.

On the question asked yesterday about how the World Health Organization (WHO) elects its Director-General, he said that nominations would be made from 19 July to 19 November. Details of the process, which would culminate in the selection of the head of the WHO next January, were available in the Spokesman's Office.

At 11 a.m., on Wednesday, 9 July, the Spokesman announced, Prince Sisowath Sirirath, Permanent Representative of Cambodia to the United Nations, would address a press conference. The President of the Security Council for July, Peter Osvald (Sweden), would meet with correspondents today at the United Nations Correspondents Association (UNCA) club at 4:30 p.m.

A correspondent wanted to know when Cambodia First Prime Minister Ranariddh would meet with the Secretary-General on Thursday. Mr. Eckhard said that it had been agreed between the Cambodian Permanent Representative and the Secretary-General yesterday that Thursday would be mutually convenient; the Secretary-General expected to be consulting with Member States between now and then, concerning the options available to the United Nations, if any. He added that although he had seen press reports that he hoped to meet with the Security Council, he did not know whether the Council had made any arrangements yet.

Asked whether dates were available yet for the resumption of the tenth emergency special session of the General Assembly, the Spokesman replied that

Daily Press Briefing - 3 - 8 July 1997

the Assembly President had proposed 15 July and was waiting to see if that was agreeable to Member States.

A correspondent noted that the Secretary-General had emphasized that his new human rights mission would not replace the Geneva mission, and then added: if it was going in to do the same assignment that the Geneva mission had been charged with, how could it not be seen as a replacement? Mr. Eckhard said that the Geneva mission had an ongoing mandate, and the Commission on Human Rights, when faced with unacceptable conditions by the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, found itself stymied. It had the option of redefining the mandate and the composition, but chose instead to pass the ball to the Secretary-General. "He is out to achieve the same objective, with a different cast of characters, and, as he sees it, they all have the same objective: to establish the truth."

Mr. Eckhard was also asked the exact role of Richard Holbrooke in the Cyprus talks, to which he explained that both the United Kingdom and the United States had expressed an interest last fall in putting fresh energy into the Cyprus talks. When the new Secretary-General was elected, there were some concrete decisions taken regarding how they would support a fresh effort by him. He had then named Diego Cordovez his Special Adviser to lead a new round of talks -- which had now been scheduled beginning tomorrow -- and those two countries each had named a high-level facilitator for the talks: Ambassador Holbrooke on the part of the United States, and Sir David Hannay, on the part of the United Kingdom. The feeling, he added, was that that would be a United Nations effort with strong support from Member States.

Had the Democratic Republic of the Congo imposed conditions on the new mission? a correspondent asked. Mr. Eckhard said the Congo had agreed to the modalities of an investigative mission with the advance party from Geneva. The joint communique stated there were only two elements that could not be agreed upon: the composition of the team and the time-frame. Once those were resolved through the creation of a new mission by the Secretary-General, the rest was in place.

Asked to confirm a visit of some west African Foreign Ministers to discuss Sierra Leone, and the hopes for that, Mr. Eckhard said he had nothing on Sierra Leone, but would check for the correspondent.

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