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)

Juan-Carlos Brandt, Senior Associate Spokesman to the Secretary-General, began today's noon briefing by welcoming the Director of the Freedom of Expression and Democracy Unit of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Alain Modoux. He was there to brief correspondents on the 1998 World Communication Report. (Those briefing notes are issued separately.)

Mr. Brandt told correspondents that the Security Council was meeting this morning to discuss Angola. The Council had before it the report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Observer Mission in Angola (MONUA), which was highlighted at the briefing two days ago. The Council might take up Kosovo and Brcko under other matters.

He also announced the release of the Secretary-General's report on the United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was available on the racks today as document S/1998/227. According to the report, there had been progress in the work of the International Police Task Force, which had officially inaugurated the new police force in eight out of 10 cantons in the Federation.

The report noted, however, that political issues were holding up the police restructuring in the remaining two cantons, which were Croat-dominated. There had been obstruction to the implementation of recent elections results in the Croat-majority areas, and there were barriers to refugee returns there as well.

The Secretary-General further stated that "political obstacles to the implementation of election results, refugee return and police reform could not be tolerated". He also called for a serious effort to include Serb officers in the Federation police.

Noting that there was a continuing need for closely monitoring the local police, the Secretary-General recommended that the Security Council approve a modest increase of 30 posts in the overall strength of the International Police Task Force. That would raise the total strength of the force from 2,027 to 2,057.

The Secretary-General also called for 26 additional staff members for the Mission to carry out legal work in connection with the reform of Bosnia's judicial system, Mr. Brandt said.

The Senior Associate Spokesman read out a press release issued late yesterday by the Spokesman's office on behalf of the Secretary-General on the crash of a United Nations helicopter in Guatemala. The statement read:

"The Secretary-General has learned with deep sorrow that a helicopter leased by the United Nations Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA) and carrying nine staff members crashed today on a trip in the north of the country. Five of those staff members -- from Australia, Bolivia, Guatemala, Spain and Uruguay -- are dead and four are wounded, two of them in critical condition.

"Details of the circumstances of the crash are still being investigated. The families of the victims are being notified. The wounded have been flown to the capital city and are being given immediate medical attention. The Secretary-General wishes to express his profound regret and condolences to the wounded and to the families and governments of those who lost their lives in the service of the United Nations". (See Press Release SG/SM/6493 of 17 March.)

Mr. Brandt said four of the five bodies had been transported to Guatemala City yesterday. The body of a Guatemalan staff remained in Huehuetenango, as he was from that area. The cause of the crash was still not known. The site was guarded by the Guatemalan Army.

He said the Department of Peacekeeping Operations had sent an air expert to the United Nations Mission in Guatemala to start the investigation of the crash. The Chief of Mission, Jean Arnault, who was initially planning to visit the crash site, decided to stay in Guatemala City, as the casualties were being brought back there.

Still on the crash, Mr. Brandt said the President of Guatemala, Alvaro Arzu Irigoyen, who happened to be in the area yesterday, sent his military staff to assist in the rescue efforts. The crashed helicopter was a Bell 212 and was leased from a Canadian company.

Mr. Brandt read out a statement attributable to the Spokesman for the Secretary-General regarding government subsidies to United Nations staff. That was not permitted under regulations adopted by the General Assembly, the Secretary-General said in the statement, which reads as follows:

"In answer to recent press reports relating to a payment that had been made to Klaus Topfer, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, by the Government of Germany, the Secretary-General wishes to stress that this payment was made to Mr. Topfer, a former German Cabinet Minister, before he joined the service of the United Nations and that, as such, it is a purely internal German matter that does not directly concern the United Nations. However, he notes that Mr. Topfer returned the payment to his Government in order to avoid any appearance of impropriety.

"This issue, however, points to the larger question of alleged payments by governments of subsidies to United Nations staff. The Secretary-General would like to recall that any such payments or subsidies are not permitted under staff regulations adopted by the General Assembly, with which all staff

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are expected to comply. This principle is also reflected in the draft code of conduct submitted to the General Assembly, under which Under-Secretaries-General and Assistant Secretaries-General will be required to file financial disclosure statements on appointment and at intervals prescribed by the Secretary-General.

"At the same time, we must recognize that the problem is not new; indeed, it has been raised by many of the Secretary-General's predecessors and been addressed in the General Assembly in the past. The United Nations is a public service institution; no staff member is here in order to make a fortune. However, the Secretary-General is concerned that the Secretariat must retain the ability to draw upon highly qualified and experienced staff from all regions of the world.

"The Secretary-General is therefore asking the Under-Secretary-General for Management to review all aspects of this question. He intends to pursue this issue with the Member States both in the context of the forthcoming discussion in the General Assembly on the code of conduct, as well as during its ongoing consideration of conditions of service for United Nations staff." (See Press Release SG/SM/6494 of 18 March.)

On Iraq, the Senior Associate Spokesman said the Executive Chairman of the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) on the disarmament of Iraq, Richard Butler, would be visiting Vienna on Friday, 20 March. He would meet with the leader of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Action Team on Iraq, Gary Dillon, the new Director-General of the IAEA, Mohammed el-Baradei, as well as the Austrian Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs and Vice Chancellor, Wolfgang Schussel.

Mr. Butler might also attend the technical evaluation meeting on biological weapons, which opened today and would continue until 27 March, the Senior Associate Spokesman said. He described as untrue some news reports that Mr. Butler would discuss with the Iraqi delegation the forthcoming inspections of the Presidential sites.

Mr. Brandt also informed correspondents that Weekly Report No. 56 on the implementation of the "oil-for-food" programme was available in the Spokesman's office. The 661 Committee (Iraq Sanctions Committee) last week approved 49 humanitarian sales applications, blocked none and put seven applications on hold, all under Phase III. Phases I and II were over, he added.

Mr. Brandt said the Secretary-General had arrived in Amman, Jordan, last night at the start of his visit to the Middle East. He woke up this morning to a blinding snowstorm that disrupted his programme for the day. "A guest who brings rain and snow to this water-starved land is said to be blessed", Mr. Brandt quoted a popular Jordanian saying.

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He said a helicopter trip to visit Umm Quais opposite the Golan Heights, where the borders of Jordan, Syria and Israel met, was cancelled. Instead, the Secretary-General had breakfast with Crown Prince Hassan, after which he, together with the Crown Prince and Peter Hansen, Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), made an impromptu visit to two Palestinian refugee camps. At the Marka camp just outside Amman, the party walked about, spoke to residents, then took tea with a refugee family in their temporary home.

Mr. Brandt said he had been informed by Fred Eckhard, the Spokesman travelling with the Secretary-General, that press coverage of the visit to the camp was already being reported by some international news media. "In fact I saw some of it this morning on CNN International", he added. He said the refugee family visited by the Secretary-General and his team was quite surprised. "They sat on the floor of this humble home, chatted with them for a little while and drank tea", Mr. Brandt went on to say.

He said the Secretary-General and his party were briefed at the Royal Palace in the early afternoon by the Crown Prince and his advisers on a series of subjects. They were the Middle East peace process, regional economic cooperation, Jordan's economic performance, and finally, regional perspectives on the problems of water scarcity, security and refugees.

Following a banquet at the Royal Palace, the Secretary-General flew to Cairo, where he would be the dinner guest of the Egyptian Foreign Minister, Amre Moussa, Mr. Brandt continued.

Mr. Brandt said he did not expect any more information today on the Secretary-General's visit to Egypt. "But I will make an announcement if I do", he said.

On Deputy Secretary-General Louise Frechette's appointments for the day, Mr. Brandt said they included courtesy calls by the Permanent Representative of New Zealand, Michael John Powles, at 3 p.m. and the Permanent Representative of Mexico, Manuel Tello, at 3.30 p.m., as well as a meeting with Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management, Rafiah Salim, at 4.30 p.m.

Responding to requests for an update on the work of the investigative team in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mr. Brandt said the forensic team had arrived in Mbandaka yesterday. The team might stay for two weeks for the evacuations of several sites that had already been identified. Daniel O'Donnell was supervising the operations in Mbandaka. Paul Laberge was meanwhile expected to leave tomorrow for Goma with an advance team, he added.

Mr. Brandt also told correspondents that the Executive Director of the Office of Drug Control and Crime Prevention, Pino Arlacchi, was in Luxembourg today where he signed an agreement with that country's Government to receive

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$1.7 million for United Nations drug control efforts. That money would be used to support alternative development projects in the Lao People's Democratic Republic and Viet Nam.

Drawing the attention of correspondents to an interesting aspect of Luxembourg's contribution, he said it came from seized assets of drug-related crimes. That was in accordance with the 1988 United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances. Luxembourg was the only country so far to comply with the Convention's call for seized assets to go to international drug control efforts.

While in Luxembourg, Mr. Arlacchi met for over an hour with Luc Freidan, Minister of Budget and Justice, and Yves Mersch, President of the Fund for the Fight against Drugs. They discussed issues of common concern, including the forthcoming General Assembly special session on international drug control, to be held this June here in New York, Mr. Brandt continued.

The Senior Associate Spokesman informed correspondents that the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) had issued a press release calling attention to threats to food security in Kosovo province due to an upsurge in violence. The release was available at the Spokesman's office.

Also available at the Spokesman's office was a speech being delivered today by the Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), Carol Bellamy, on vaccine development and delivery, Mr. Brandt said. In the speech, given on behalf of both UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO), she said the poor should not have to pay for most basic preventive health needs. She also outlined a commitment by both agencies to make vaccines available to the poorest developing countries and others. The occasion for the speech was a meeting in Washington, D.C., this afternoon convened by the World Bank under the theme, "Vaccine Development and Delivery -- New Leadership for the Twenty-first Century".

Mr. Brandt said El Nino had struck Guyana, causing an unprecedented drought. That country had missed already two rainy seasons since September because of the weather phenomenon. There was a severe shortage of drinking water throughout that country. Georgetown was among the most affected areas. The population was also faced with the problem of unsafe drinking water and the risk of water-borne diseases. In the hinterland, spring wells had dried up, he added.

Continuing, he said the Government of that country had taken emergency measures to improve water supply and had requested the assistance of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in evaluating the impact of the drought and to prepare an action plan and mobilize additional resources from donors. The magnitude of the emergency assistance required exceeded the Government's capacity. A situation report from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs was available.

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Mr. Brandt reminded correspondents that the Permanent Representative of Nigeria, Ibrahim A. Gambari, would hold a press conference at 11;15 a.m. tomorrow. He would speak on the situation in Sierra Leone and Liberia, as well as on issues pertaining to the democratization process in Nigeria, the fight against narcotic drugs and others.

Asked if there was any information on the proposed mission of a representative of the Secretary-General to Kosovo, Mr. Brandt said the Department of Peacekeeping had told him that the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Bernard Miyet, was due to visit the region in April. He said he did not have additional information about a trip to the region before then.

A correspondent wanted comments on Japan's policy of supplementary payments to its nationals seconded to the United Nations. Mr. Brandt indicated that this issue in general was something that needed to be sorted out by Member States. On the one hand, the United Nations rules and regulations stated clearly that supplementary payments were not allowed and it was the responsibility of the Secretary-General as custodian of those regulations to ensure that they were not violated.

But on the other hand, the Secretary-General should not be put in a situation where his ability to attract the best qualified personnel into the Organization was impeded. A code of conduct had been submitted to the General Assembly and would be discussed. Hopefully, an agreement would be reached, Mr. Brandt said.

Asked if there was any other senior member of the Secretary-General's cabinet in similar situation as Mr. Topfer, Mr. Brandt responded in the negative.

The same correspondent wanted to know if the Secretary-General had asked his senior appointees whether they were receiving supplementary payment. Mr. Brandt said he did not know, but promised to find out.

Mr. Brandt reminded correspondents that Mr. Modoux would be at the United Nations Correspondents Association (UNCA) Club at 2 p.m. for further briefing on the World Communication Report. Refreshment would be served. A briefing on education and employment of women in Afghanistan would be held at 1:30 p.m. tomorrow at the UNCA Club, he added.

Alex Taukatch, spokesman for General Assembly President Hennadiy Udovenko, said the tenth emergency special session had yesterday adopted a resolution by a vote of 120 in favour to 3 against (Federated States of Micronesia, Israel and the United States), with 5 abstentions (Australia, Bulgaria, Marshall Islands, Romania and Switzerland).

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He said the Assembly had reiterated its recommendation that the High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Convention convene a conference on measures to enforce the Convention in the occupied Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem. The Government of Switzerland, in its capacity as depository of the Convention, was again asked to undertake preparations for such a conference, including the convening of a meeting of experts.

Aware that its earlier recommendation for such an expert meeting to be held no later than the end of February had not been fulfilled, the Assembly extended that target date until the end of April, Mr. Taukatch continued.

He said the Assembly had decided to adjourn the session temporarily and had authorized the President to resume the session at the request of Member States.

Mr. Taukatch drew the attention of correspondents to a statement from the Assembly President on the crash of a United Nations helicopter in Guatemala. The statement, attributable to the spokesman, was released late yesterday afternoon.

"The President of the General Assembly was distressed to learn about the fatal crash in western Guatemala earlier this morning of a helicopter of the United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA). He is hoping for the speedy recovery of the survivors and wishes to convey his sincere condolences to the families of the victims. He would also like to underscore once again the invaluable contribution to the cause of peace and justice of all those who have given up their lives in the service of the noble ideals of the United Nations." (See Press Release GA/SM/35-CA/14.)

Stressing the great importance which Mr. Udovenko attached to continuous and regular consultations with the Presidents of main United Nations bodies as a way of enhancing cooperation between them, Mr. Taukatch said the Assembly President had met this morning with the Security Council President, Abdoulie Momodou Sallah (Gambia). He briefed Mr. Sallah on the emergency special session, as well as the work of the open-ended working group on the reform of the Security Council.

Mr. Udovenko also met this morning with the new Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, Kensaku Hogen. The President stressed the importance of the department in promoting an informed understanding among the world's public of the work of the United Nations. He pledged his full support and cooperation towards Mr. Hogen and his department, Mr. Taukatch said.

The Assembly President had also met with the Chairman of the Second Committee (Economic and Financial), Oscar de Rojas (Venezuela), on the work of the Committee. The Committee would hold its resumed session on 19 and 20 March. It was called for in Assembly resolution 52/179, entitled "Global

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partnership for development: high-level international intergovernmental consideration on financing for development".

He said the Preparatory Committee for the special session of the General Assembly on illicit drugs was under way right now in Vienna. Mr. Udovenko had been in touch with the Chairman of that Committee regarding a variety of organizational matters dealing with the session, which would be held in New York from 8 to 10 June.

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Note: In the briefing notes of 17 March, the third sentence in the first complete paragraph of page 2 should read:

"The newly recreated Department of Disarmament Affairs strengthened rather than weakened the work of the Geneva-based Conference on Disarmament."

On page six of the same briefing notes, the second sentence in the third complete paragraph should read:

"The Secretary-General said he was in touch with the Government of Algeria and that Algeria had submitted a report to the Human Rights Committee".