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, began today's noon briefing by announcing that the Secretary-General was working at home for the day and getting much-needed rest, but Iraq was still figuring high on his agenda. The Security Council met in a closed session at 11:45 this morning to hear a briefing by Staffan de Mistura (Sweden), Head of the Technical Team, who went to Iraq to survey the eight presidential sites. Mr. De Mistura was scheduled to brief reporters on his mission to Iraq at 1 p.m. in room 226.

The Security Council was also expected to consider a draft presidential statement on Sierra Leone and it was expected to adopt it in a formal meeting, Mr. Eckhard said. At the Council's request, the Secretariat would give a briefing on the situation in Somalia, which would cover all political, humanitarian and security aspects of the situation there.

On the Iraq situation, Mr. Eckhard said a group of approximately 60 United Nations staff members who had been temporarily relocated to Amman, Jordan, would return to Baghdad tomorrow. About 25 other staff members, who were requested to remain on special leave from Iraq, were also expected to return tomorrow. There were currently 105 staff members in Baghdad who were involved in the humanitarian operation. The United Nations Special Commission overseeing the disposal of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction (UNSCOM) had 96 members working in Iraq and there were 164 United Nations staff members based in the northern governorates.

On the hostage situation in Georgia, Mr. Eckhard said a third United Nations hostage was released yesterday afternoon and the fourth apparently escaped or was released today. Although the details were not specific, all four hostages were now safe and free.

Mr. Eckhard also said the Secretary-General had presented to the Security Council a mandate and concept of operations for a proposed United Nations mission in the Central African Republic. Those were contained in a report of the Secretary-General issued this morning, which was available at the documents counter. In presenting his report, the Secretary-General noted that while significant progress had been made in the implementation of the Bangui Agreements, and in initiating the central political and economic reforms, much remained to be done to ensure a lasting peace in the Central African Republic.

In the Secretary-General's view, Mr. Eckhard said, without a credible force to succeed the Inter-African Mission to Monitor the Implementation of the Bangui Agreements (MISAB), the situation in the country was likely to deteriorate rapidly, with serious implications for the humanitarian situation as well as for peace and security in the region. The Secretary-General was therefore recommending that the Security Council examine carefully the facts given in the present report in order to consider the establishment of a

peacekeeping mission. He was also recommending a United Nations mission for an initial period of three months, with a possible extension of 90 days after the announcement of the legislative election results. To ensure a smooth transition from MISAB to the United Nations mission, the Secretary-General was also recommending the continuation of the MISAB operation until 15 April.

Mr. Eckhard said that the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna and Executive Director of United Nations International Drug Control Programme, Pino Arlacchi, was currently on a three-country tour of Latin America to discuss matters of common interest, such as the new strategy for opium and coca eradication. That strategy would be submitted to the special session of the General Assembly on international drug control to be held in June. On 20 February, Mr. Arlacchi met with President Ernesto Samper of Colombia in Santa Fe de Bogota and also met with President Alberto Fujimori of Peru in Lima on 23 February.

Mr. Eckhard added that the United Nations International Drug Control Programme and the two major drug control agencies in Latin America, PLANTE in Colombia and Contradrogas in Peru, had developed common plans for the coordination and monitoring of alternative crop development in the two countries, as well as for the eradication of the existing crops. Mr. Arlacchi and the Peruvian Minister for Health also agreed to organize in May 1999 a conference of international investors to discuss alternative development and present to them the advantages of investing in agricultural produce, such as cocoa, rubber and palm derivatives.

Francis Okelo, Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Sierra Leone, was in Freetown today with a humanitarian officer, Mr. Eckhard said. They would spend two days there to assess the conditions in the country. The intention of the United Nations was to reopen the United Nations House in Freetown as soon as security permitted. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs was planning a flash appeal for immediate humanitarian assistance to Sierra Leone for the next three months.

United Nations Security Coordinator Benon Sevan spoke on behalf of the Secretary-General this morning at the Summit on International Security and Independence of the international civil service, Mr. Eckhard said. In the statement, the Secretary-General said the mounting threat was borne out by the numbers. Prior to 1992, no more than a handful of civilian staff lost their lives. Since then, however, 219 civilian staff had died while serving the United Nations. And since 1994, another brazen violation of civilized norms -- hostage taking -- had become a new threat: 130 staff members had been held in 43 separate incidents. The text of that statement was available in the Spokesman's office.

A high-level Conference in Support of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People concluded today a two-day meeting in Brussels, Belgium, Mr. Eckhard said. The Conference was organized by the Committee on the Exercise

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of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People of the United Nations in cooperation with the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the League of Arab States. A note on that item was also available in his office.

General Romeo Dallaire (Canada) would appear before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda today in Arusha, United Republic of Tanzania, Mr. Eckhard said. The hearing of General Dallaire was postponed on Monday because one of the judges in Trial Chamber I was indisposed. A press release of the Tribunal on the matter was available.

Also available was a press release from the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia regarding Simo Zaric, who turned himself in on 24 February, Mr. Eckhard said. The press release stated that Mr. Zaric's initial appearance was scheduled for Thursday, 26 February, at 2:30 p.m. local time before Trial Chamber I. He was indicted on 21 July 1995 with Milan Simic and Miroslav Tadic. Three other individuals still at large were also indicted for their alleged involvement in the "campaign of terror" undertaken in 1992 against Bosnian Croats and Muslims in the municipality of Bosanski Samac. That press release was available in the Spokesman's office.

The World Food Programme (WFP) announced today that it had succeeded in delivering urgently needed food to Sudan's southern region of Bahr El Ghazal, Mr. Eckhard said. A convoy carrying 120 tons of sorgho arrived after a 900- kilometre journey that took three weeks. That food would sustain a little more than 50,000 people for six days. However, one quarter of the population of the region could not be reached by road and about 100,000 people were in urgent need of food. More details on that were also available in a press release in his office.

The WFP also warned yesterday that due to continued fighting in Sierra Leone, more than 100,000 Sierra Leonean and 14,000 Liberian refugees faced a severe food shortage. A WFP official said that in Bo and Kenema, people had fled to the bush to escape the fighting, and if they were not allowed to return to plant and cultivate their rice crops in the coming months, there would be a massive food shortage in the area. A WFP press release was also available in the Spokesman's office.

Mr. Eckhard said Belize and Viet Nam had paid in full their assessed contributions to the 1998 regular budget, totalling $10,516 for Belize and $105,163 for Viet Nam. So far 36 Member States were paid in full, which was about the same number of States paid at this time last year -- 37. The mid- month contributions report showed that the total outstanding contributions as of 15 February was under $2.85 billion. Of that, $1.27 million was for the regular budget, $10.7 billion for the international tribunals and $1.56 billion for peacekeeping operations.

On press conferences to be held tomorrow in room 226, Mr. Eckhard said Muhamed Sacirbey, Permanent Representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the

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United Nations, would meet correspondents at 11:15 a.m. He would speak on an appeal to the Security Council on Srebrenica. At 1:15 p.m., Raj Karim (Malaysia), Chairman of the Commission on Population and Development, and Robert Cliquet (Belgium), a Commission Vice-Chairman, would discuss the thirty-first session of the Commission currently taking place at Headquarters (23-27 February).

Mr. Eckhard also said that the World Chronicle television programme featuring John Langmore, Director of the Division for Social Policy and Development of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, would be shown today on in-house television channels 6 and 38 at 2:30 p.m.

Mr. Eckhard said the Secretary-General's three-month progress report on the United Nations Civilian Police Mission in Haiti (MIPONUH) was issued today. In it, the Secretary-General expressed the concern of the international community that Haiti was still without a functioning government after more than eight months. He reiterated his appeal to the Haitian authorities and political leaders to negotiate an end to the crisis, including the electoral dispute, in a spirit of tolerance and reconciliation, with a view to reaching an agreement that would allow their country to start moving again towards democracy. He also urged the Haitian authorities to move forward urgently in the area of judicial reform and called on the international community to provide the necessary assistance in that regard. The current mandate of the United Nations mission in Haiti would end on 30 November.

A correspondent asked about whether a telephone call took place between the Secretary-General and United States President William Clinton. He also asked how long it would take before the first presidential sites in Iraq would be inspected by UNSCOM. Mr. Eckhard said he was not aware that the Secretary- General had spoken with President Clinton this morning. Concerning the presidential sites, he said it was now a matter for UNSCOM and the Secretary- General to work out the procedures that were mentioned in the Memorandum of Understanding presented to the press yesterday. It could be just a matter of days to make the necessary appointment of a Commissioner and to spell out the procedures, he added.

Mr. Eckhard was then asked if the appointment of a new Commissioner and the new procedures under the agreement would be subject to Security Council approval. He responded that those decisions did not require Council approval, it was a matter for the Secretary-General and UNSCOM. It was too early to say how soon UNSCOM would call for an inspection of the presidential sites.

Asked if he could find out more information about a phone call between the Secretary-General and President Clinton, Mr. Eckhard said he would ask if that phone call had taken place.

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A correspondent asked if the Secretary-General had a meeting with the Executive Chairman of UNSCOM, Richard Butler, and Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs and United Nations Legal Counsel, Hans Corell. Mr. Eckhard said that meeting was scheduled for mid-day today to discuss the practical details of the new inspection process.

Another correspondent asked if the Secretary-General planned to give a further explanation of the Iraq agreement to the Security Council. Mr. Eckhard said he was not aware of any plan to give any further explanation, but the Council could call him back if they had further questions.

Asked if the details of the new inspection process would be spelled out in a document to the Security Council, he said that once those matters were agreed to by the Secretary-General and his advisers, there would likely be an announcement to the Council and to the press. Mr. Eckhard said he did not know if the decision would be made in writing, but he would try to find out more information on that matter.

Asked how many different inspection regimes there were now in Iraq, Mr. Eckhard said that, with the agreement, there were three sets of procedures for inspecting sites. There was a general agreement for the standard sites; there was one for sensitive sites that was determined by Rolf Ekeus, the former UNSCOM Executive Chairman; and there was the Secretary-General's latest agreement for the presidential sites. There were, at present, three regimes and three sets of procedures.

In response to a question on whether Mr. Butler would be speaking to the press, Mr. Eckhard said that his office had not asked Mr. Butler to make a press appearance but he would do that today.

Was the Secretary-General still in a position to defend the agreement? a correspondent asked. Mr. Eckhard said the Secretary-General stated yesterday that he had done his job and the agreement was now in the hands of the Security Council.

Mr. Eckhard was then asked if inspections to sensitive sites had continued throughout the crisis. He said he would have to check with UNSCOM on the details of its inspections. However, inspection activity had been going on regularly throughout the crisis. The only areas UNSCOM was excluded from were the eight presidential sites and that situation was resolved by the agreement.

Another correspondent asked if a representative of UNSCOM could accompany the Spokesman during the press briefings for the next few days. Mr. Eckhard said he would ask if Ewen Buchanan of UNSCOM could address the press.

On the situation in Georgia, Mr. Eckhard was asked if there was any ransom paid to free the hostages. He said that, according to reports on the

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situation, there was no ransom paid. The hostage takers were surrounded by troops and they eventually gave in.

Referring to the Secretary General's statement delivered by Mr. Sevan before the Summit on International Security, a correspondent asked if there was a way to find out where the 130 United Nations employees taken hostage since 1994 had been taken. Mr. Eckhard said he would ask Mr. Sevan if his office could provide those details.

A correspondent asked how many peacekeeping missions the United Nations would have if the mission in the Central African Republic was added. Mr. Eckhard said there would be 16 peacekeeping operations if the mission in the Central African Republic was approved by the Security Council.

In response to a question about whether there were any United Nations employees being detained in Freetown, Mr. Eckhard said that except for the visit of the Secretary-General's Special Envoy, Mr. Okelo, there were currently no staff members in Sierra Leone.

He was asked if the Secretary-General had any comments about the European Union's condemnation of an agreement reached between Mr. Arlacchi and the Taliban in Afghanistan. Mr. Eckhard said he was not aware of that European action and he would look into the matter.

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