DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Press Briefing

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

(Incorporates briefing by spokesman for General Assembly President.)

Fred Eckhard, Spokesman for the Secretary-General, opened today's briefing by introducing the Secretary-General, who had just returned from a State visit to Canada. The Secretary-General wanted to present to correspondents the new Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Klaus Topfer (Germany), his nominee for the position who had been elected by the General Assembly on Wednesday. (The remarks of the Secretary-General and Mr. Topfer will be issued separately.)

Following that presentation, Mr. Eckhard said that the Secretary-General had this morning briefed the Security Council on the implementation of the "oil-for-food" programme for Iraq. He had stressed that, despite the progress made in the programme, the Iraqi population continued to face a serious nutritional and health situation. He reiterated his suggestion to the Council to re-examine the adequacy of oil revenues and to consider the possibility of increasing those revenues to address priority requirements. He also indicated his intention to submit to the Council a supplementary report, containing specific recommendations, by the end of January.

After the Secretary-General left the Council, Mr. Eckhard continued, the Council resumed discussion on the draft resolution on the "oil-for-food" issue, which had been revised by the United Kingdom last night. The Council's intention was to adopt the resolution today, extending the programme for another 180 days. It was also expected to adopt another resolution today, which would extend the mandate of the United Nations Preventive Deployment Force (UNPREDEP) in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, for the final period until 31 August 1998. It would request the Secretary-General to submit his recommendations for the type of international presence that would be most appropriate for that country following the expiration of UNPREDEP's mandate. Still on the Council's agenda today, he noted that it would take up again the subject of Iraq at 3 p.m.

The Spokesman announced that the Donors Conference of the "Friends of the Congo" on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, organized by the World Bank was ending today in Brussels. A joint press conference was taking place at about the same time by the Bank's Vice-President for Africa, Callisto Madavo, who was head of the World Bank delegation; and the head of the Congolese delegation and Minister for Finance, Mawapanga Mwana Nanga. One hundred and fifty delegates and close to 100 journalists had attended. As soon as the final press release was received, Mr. Eckhard said, it would be made available to correspondents.

Turning to the Ottawa Landmines Conference, he noted that it would be ending today as well. Yesterday, 82 Member States had signed the Convention

Daily Press Briefing - 2 - 4 December 1997

on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti- Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction and three -- Canada, Ireland and Mauritius -- ratified it. Fifty more countries were expected to sign today; the Convention would then be brought to the United Nations Treaty Section where it would open for signature next week until its entry into force. Mr. Eckhard reminded correspondents that that would happen on the first day of the sixth month after the fortieth instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession had been deposited. The treaty, which was negotiated in Oslo last September, bans the production, stockpiling, transfer and use of anti-personnel landmines and provides for their destruction. He stressed that once the treaty came into force, the parties had four years to destroy the mines and 10 to remove those planted within their borders.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, had arrived in Kigali, Rwanda, the Spokesman said, after spending a day in Uganda, where she met with President Yoweri Museveni in a private meeting, Mr. Eckhard said. She had also attended a private lunch with heads of United Nations offices and the World Bank. While in Uganda, a United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) representative gave her a description of the large- scale abduction and brutal treatment of young teenagers by the Lord's Resistance Army there. In one district, an average of two children were abducted daily, and UNICEF estimated that about 8,000 children had been abducted by that group.

Mr. Eckhard drew attention to a press release from the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, available in the Spokesman's Office, concerning the Aleksovski case. It stated that his trial would be discussed at a closed status conference on 9 December.

The Spokesman said that following the ministerial meeting of the Security Council in September, and the 1 November report of the Secretary- General on "Improving Preparedness for Conflict Prevention and Peacekeeping in Africa", there would be a meeting on enhancing African capacity for peacekeeping tomorrow, 5 December, at 3:30 p.m. in the Trusteeship Council Chamber.

He reminded correspondents of the United Nations Correspondents Association (UNCA) briefing today by Benjamin Muhammad, the East Coast Regional Minister of the Nation of Islam at 2 p.m. in the UNCA Lounge.

Alex Taukatch, spokesman for the President of the General Assembly, Hennadiy Udovenko (Ukraine), said that the Assembly this morning began its debate on the reform of the Security Council. At the last count, a total of 68 speakers were inscribed on the list. In his opening remarks at the beginning of the debate, Mr. Udovenko said that he wanted to confirm his understanding that the General Assembly would not be taking any decision on the item at that stage of its consideration, following the assurances that he had received to that effect. Referring to his consultations with the Office of Legal Affairs of the Secretariat, he also advised the Assembly that there

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was no requirement for proposals submitted under a particular agenda item to be introduced at the beginning of the consideration of that item by the Assembly.

In accordance with the established practices of the Assembly, proposals submitted under a particular agenda item were introduced by the sponsors immediately prior to the General Assembly proceeding to taking a decision on them, the spokesman said. He reminded correspondents that there were two documents before the Assembly as it considered the item: a draft resolution (document A/52/L.7) and amendments to it (document A/52/L.47). With the view to the considerations he had mentioned, the President also stressed that it was his understanding that the statements made by Member States in the course of the debate on agenda item 59, without prejudice to their substance, should not be considered as formal introduction of the above-mentioned proposals. It was also his understanding, Mr. Udovenko said, that the introduction of the proposals under the item, if and when that took place, would be in the order they had been submitted, in accordance with, among others, rules 78, 90 and 91 of the rules of procedure of the Assembly. Those rules dealt with proposals and amendments and voting on them, Mr. Taukatch noted.

Concerning questions asked by correspondents about the order of speakers in the debate, the spokesman said that Japan had been scheduled, initially, to speak as the fifth speaker, but had swapped places with Indonesia. It would now speak after Argentina.

Mr. Taukatch, referring to yesterday's consideration by the Assembly of the situation in the Middle East, and the question of Palestine, noted that late in the afternoon the Assembly decided to postpone the introduction of those draft texts and action on them until 9 December.

He also pointed out that, tomorrow morning, the General Assembly would continue its consideration of Security Council reform; in the afternoon, it was expected to take up all the reports of the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security).

The Credentials Committee was scheduled to meet in a closed session tomorrow at 3 p.m., Mr. Taukatch said. Also tomorrow, informal consultations on reform by the two "Friends on Reform" of the President of the General Assembly would continue. They were the Permanent Representative of Botswana, Legwaila J. Legwaila, and the Permanent Representative of Ireland, John Campbell.

Mr. Udovenko this morning met with the President of the Security Council in continuation of his regular meetings with the presidents of the main United Nations bodies in an effort to improve coordination and cross-fertilization of ideas, the spokesman said. Also this morning, Mr. Udovenko had a meeting with the former President of the Assembly, Stoyan Ganev (Bulgaria), who was visiting Headquarters with a group of students from Bridgeport University, in Connecticut, where he taught a course on the United Nations. This afternoon,

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Mr. Udovenko would hold a working luncheon with the Chairmen of the Main Committees to discuss the work of those Committees and the consideration of their reports by the Assembly.

Mr. Taukatch was asked about the forthcoming meeting of the Credentials Committee: did the agenda include only "the three main controversies on Cambodia, Sierra Leone and Afghanistan", or was there more? The spokesman said the Committee was resuming its first meeting which had been suspended. As to its agenda, he noted, we would have to wait and see how the Committee would decide to proceed.

He was also asked why action had been postponed yesterday on the question of Palestine and the situation in the Middle East. In addition, would he clarify what he had said about the Assembly's handling of the issue of Security Council reform? The spokesman noted that the debate on the situation in the Middle East had been concluded late in the afternoon. There were a total of eight draft texts before the Assembly: three on the situation in the Middle East, and five on the question of Palestine. Added to those were two documents with amendments. As a result of consultations among the parties concerned and the President, it was agreed that more time was needed for further action on those items.

On the subject of Security Council reform, he reiterated that there were two documents before the Assembly: one was a draft, and the other, amendments to it. Drafts had to be formally introduced before action could be taken on them in the Assembly. The understanding which Mr. Udovenko was referring to was to the effect that there would be no decision on that item at this stage of its consideration. He added that the Assembly was not planning to close consideration of the item; the Assembly's working group on Security Council reform was expected to continue its work sometime in January.

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