DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Press Briefing

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Juan-Carlos Brandt, Senior Associate Spokesman for the Secretary-General, began today's noon briefing by welcoming the Secretary-General's Special Representative to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Elizabeth Rehn, to the briefing. She had briefed the Security Council yesterday. She would make a few remarks here by way of introduction and then take questions.

Mr. Brandt told correspondents that the Security Council had approximately 50 speakers in the formal meeting currently taking place on Libya and the Lockerbie incident. The list was available at the Spokesman's office.

Before that meeting, Mr. Brandt continued, the Council had met to adopt a resolution on Angola, in which it called unanimously on all Member States to implement fully and without delay the travel and other restrictions imposed on the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) in its resolution 1127 of 28 August 1997.

The Council endorsed the planned visit by the Chairman of the Angola Sanctions Committee, Njuguna M. Mahugu, to discuss the full and effective implementation of those measures, Mr. Brandt said. Mr. Mahugu was leaving for Angola and its neighbouring countries this evening.

Continuing, he said the Council had also endorsed the Secretary-General's recommendation to resume the gradual downsizing of the military component of the United Nations Observer Mission in Angola (MONUA), and decided to increase gradually the number of civilian police monitors of the United Nations Mission.

Still on Angola, Mr. Brandt told correspondents that UNITA had begun to demobilize its senior military officers in accordance with the Lusaka Protocol. At a ceremony in Bailundo yesterday, they demobilized 56 high-ranking UNITA officers. Out of that group, 23 were generals, 33 were brigadiers. The ceremony was attended by the representatives of the Angolan Government, UNITA, MONUA, and the troika observer countries. An estimated 171 officers were scheduled to be demobilized. That exercise was continuing today, Mr. Brandt added.

He said the Executive Chairman of the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM), Richard Butler, had arrived in Vienna where he held a meeting with the Foreign Minister of Austria, Wolfgang Schussel. They discussed general issues about the situation in Iraq and the work of the Special Commission. They also discussed the cooperation provided by the Austrian Government to the activities of UNSCOM, in particular the provision of experts, which was welcomed by Mr. Butler.

At 1 p.m. local time, Mr. Butler had held a press conference at the Viennese International Centre where his discussions with the Foreign Minister were reviewed. Mr. Butler also mentioned that he was in Vienna to meet with the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mohammed El Baradei, whom he would be meeting for the first time in his new capacity. Mr. El Baradei took over as IAEA Director-General in January, Mr. Brandt said.

Still on Mr. Butler's programme in Vienna, Mr. Brandt said the UNSCOM Chairman had met at 3:30 p.m. with IAEA's action team dealing with Iraq, with whom he discussed the issue of the next mission to the presidential sites. That visit would be conducted jointly by UNSCOM and the IAEA, with the participation of diplomats headed by the Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs and head of the special group for the inspection of the presidential sites, Jayantha Dhanapala.

On the Secretary-General's activities in the Middle East, Mr. Brandt told correspondents that he had arrived in Beirut, Lebanon, this morning local time. He had a meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Fares Bouez. From 3 p.m. to 5:45 p.m., the Secretary-General had a series of meetings at the United Nations House in Beirut, which he inaugurated. The United Nations House was the common premises for the United Nations system in that city. Remarks by the Secretary-General on the occasion were available.

Later in the afternoon, the Secretary-General was scheduled to meet with the Speaker of the Lebanese Parliament and the Prime Minister of Lebanon, Rafic Hariri, who would hold a dinner in his honour, Mr. Brandt added.

On the appointments of Deputy Secretary-General Louise Frechette, Mr. Brandt said she had met this morning with Jim Swire and John Mosey, representatives of "United Kingdom Families Pan Am Flight 103". She was also scheduled to meet with the Permanent Representative of Uruguay, Jorge Perez-Otermin, at 11 a.m.; the Special Adviser in the Cyprus Mission, Andreas Jacovides, at 12 noon; the newly appointed Director-General of Multilateral Cooperation in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Hideaki Ueda, at 4 p.m.; and with the Swedish Secretary of State, Jan Eliasson, at 5 p.m.

Under-Secretary-General Iqbal Riza, the Chef De Cabinet in the Office of the Secretary-General, had landed in Guatemala City at about 8:45 p.m. yesterday, the Senior Associate Spokesman said. He had visited those wounded in the helicopter crash at the hospital, met with senior officials of United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA), and would also meet with the Truth Commission. At a mass for the victims of the accident at 12:30 p.m., Mr. Riza would deliver a message on behalf of the Secretary-General. The message would be available for correspondents later.

Daily Press Briefing - 3 - 20 March 1998

Mr. Riza would meet with MINUGUA staff in the afternoon, with heads of United Nations agencies at 4 p.m., and with heads of MINUGUA field offices. He would also meet tomorrow with the Foreign Minister Eduardo Stein Barillas, and then visit two field offices before returning to New York.

Giving an update on the wounded staff members, Mr. Brandt said two were severely burnt while one had a back injury that would probably require surgery. They were expected to be evacuated by a United States medical team in a military hospital plane by late morning. They would be taken to Galveston, Texas, where there was a facility for their treatment.

Regarding investigation into the crash, he said there was nothing to report at this time. The National Civil Aviation Authority in Guatemala was responsible for the investigation and it would be assisted by the United Nations. A list of the deceased with biographical information was available at the Spokesman's office. The deceased were Lisa Malone of Australia, Omar Wilfredo Aguirre Heredia of Bolivia, Luis Escoto Zalve of Spain, Celso Martinez of Guatemala, and Pablo Gorga of Uruguay.

Mr. Brandt also announced the release today of the Secretary-General's three-monthly report on Afghanistan. In it, the Secretary-General indicated that he was in close consultation with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, with a view to launching investigations into the reports of mass killings of prisoners of war and civilians and incidents of rape in Afghanistan.

The report of the forensic expert, who accompanied the United Nations Special Rapporteur for Afghanistan, and the reports of the United Nations Support Mission in Afghanistan on those allegations, were fully examined in that connection. The Secretary-General also repeated his plea for the cessation of supply of war-making materials by Member States to the warring Afghan factions.

Included in the annex of the report was the final text of "talking points" on Afghanistan, which was agreed on by the so-called "Six plus Two" neighbouring countries, as well as the Russian Federation and the United States. They should be using those "talking points" when they spoke to Afghan factions.

The "talking points" referred to the United Nations as a universally recognized intermediary, which must continue to play a central and impartial role in international efforts towards a peaceful resolution of the Afghan conflict.

Mr. Brandt said the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan, Lakdar Brahimi, had arrived in Islamabad today. He would be visiting Afghanistan as well as countries in the region during his three-week mission to the area.

Daily Press Briefing - 4 - 20 March 1998

He also announced that the United Nations Security Coordinator, Benon Sevan, and the Director-General of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), James N. Purcell, Jr., had concluded a Memorandum of Understanding regarding the inclusion of IOM staff in United Nations security arrangements at each duty station where IOM staff were present.

Although the primary responsibility for security of United Nations personnel and their dependents rested with the host Government, the United Nations had established, on an inter-agency basis, a unified system to ensure effective implementation of security arrangements on a worldwide basis. At the field level, the United Nations security arrangements covered more than 30,000 staff belonging to United Nations agencies, programmes and funds at over 170 duty stations, Mr. Brandt continued.

Mr. Brandt also told correspondents that the Commission on Narcotic Drugs had endorsed in Vienna a number of initiatives proposed by the Executive Director of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme, Pino Arlacchi. Mr. Arlacchi told reporters today that recent political changes and improved global communications had paved the way for substantially reducing the dangers of drug abuse and trafficking. He emphasized that cutting the demand for illicit drugs will be key to the United Nations overall approach.

Continuing, Mr. Brandt said the Commission was preparing for the forthcoming General Assembly special session on international drug control this June which would adopt a comprehensive strategy for addressing the drug scourge. A round-up press release on the Commission's work was expected on Monday.

The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) yesterday was the first humanitarian agency to access the village of Donjil Prekaz in the Drenica area in Kosovo, a collection of four predominant ethnic Albanian hamlets, which had borne the brunt of the Serb police crackdown on 5 March, Mr. Brandt said.

The UNHCR officials found the four hamlets almost completely deserted. One of them had been flattened, in another village further up the hill, an old man had told them that he and another old person were the only ones who dared to stay in the village overnight, according to Mr. Brandt.

Jamaica had become the fiftieth country to pay its regular budget dues, with a cheque for over $63,000, he said. Last year at this time, 45 Members had paid up, Mr. Brandt said. "Thank you Jamaica, for this landmark payment."

Also on the subject of money, he said the latest report on the status of contributions, document ST/ADM/SER.B/522, was available for correspondents.

Daily Press Briefing - 5 - 20 March 1998

He also announced that the list of reports and other documents issued for the Commission on human rights taking place now in Geneva was available at the Spokesman's office. It also had an internet address.

As it was its tradition on the first day of Spring, the United Nations would be marking Earth Day at Headquarters. A ceremony would be held at the Peace Bell under the theme of the "International Year of the Ocean". Assistant Secretary-General Gillian Sorenson would ring the Bell at the moment of equinox, "that's 2:55 p.m.". Participants also included a representative of the Bahamas, which was sponsoring the event, and Earth Day Founder John McConnell. Seven-year old singer Georgia Goldfine would perform. In case of rain, the event would be moved to the United Nations Church Centre across the street, Mr. Brandt said.

In celebration of this year's World Water Day, Mr. Brandt said the Secretary-General had issued a message. "It might be that because we could not see this precious resource, some of us fail to appreciate its immense importance", the Secretary-General said. "Yet if we excluded fresh water locked up in polar ice caps and glaciers, groundwater aquifers hold 97 per cent of the world's fresh water."

Stressing the vulnerability of ground water to pollution, the Secretary-General added: "Prevention is the key word ... We sometimes hear that in the third millennium, wars will be fought over water. But we also know that to be forewarned is to be forearmed. Let us act now to protect this precious and undervalued resource. We owed it to our children and our grandchildren, and to the survival of the planet."

In that connection, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) had also released a joint statement with the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, which stated that World Water Day was not only an occasion for celebration, but that there needed to be an urgent reflection on the danger ahead -- especially for the well-being of children and families in the developing world, Mr. Brandt said.

On the same issue, the Executive Director of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Klaus Topfer, also gave a message in which he drew attention to the scarcity of fresh water resources. He said: "Remember, we can make other things; we can't make water; we can only work to conserve and protect it. If not, nature will take care of the problem for us, and sometimes, nature is a cruel taskmaster".

Mr. Topfer would tomorrow attend the International Conference on Water and Sustainable Development in Paris, Mr. Brandt said. In his speech, Mr. Topfer would stress the need for an early warning system to warn us of imminent conflicts over scarce water resource and indicated that UNEP would include continuing identification of potential "hotspots" as a preventive action for that problem.

Daily Press Briefing - 6 - 20 March 1998

Tuesday, 24 March, was World Tuberculosis Day, Mr. Brandt told correspondents. The World Health Organization (WHO) and leading public health and tuberculosis experts held a meeting in London from 17 to 19 March. A press release on the subject was available from WHO. The WHO had announced that global tuberculosis control target for the year 2000 would not be met and that 16 countries were the source of over half of the world's 7 million annual tuberculosis cases.

Mr. Brandt also told correspondents that they had been invited by UNICEF to a presentation this afternoon on a new study entitled "Development with a Human Face: Experiences in Social Achievement and Economic Growth". It would be held in Conference Room 7 from 1:30 to 2:45 p.m.

He said the UNICEF representative in Sierra Leone, Tony Bloomberg, would be a guest at the noon briefing on Monday, 23 March. He had been running UNICEF operations from Conakry, Guinea, at the height of the recent crisis in Sierra Leone during which he also acted as United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator.

Asked when UNSCOM Chairman Richard Butler would be arriving in Baghdad, Mr. Brandt said he believed that he was expected to arrive at midday on Sunday.

A correspondent asked if it was not disproportionate for UNICEF to have sent a humanitarian convoy to four hamlets. Mr. Brandt replied that the agency had a responsibility to look after the well-being of every human being they could get to. It did not matter if there were just a few people in those hamlets. They were just as important

Alex Taukatch, spokesman for the President of the General Assembly Hennadiy Udovenko, said the President had met this morning with the Chairmen of the regional groups whom he briefed on a number of current matters facing the Assembly. The Chairmen of the regional groups served as an important channel of communication between the President and the membership.

The Assembly President had informed the group Chairmen about the status of preparation of the reports requested by the Assembly last December regarding reform measures proposed by the Secretary-General. Those reports were scheduled to be submitted to the General Assembly by the end of March. The President hoped that that would give Member States the time to review them carefully in advance of the Assembly's consideration of the reports, which at that point was tentatively scheduled for the end of April, Mr. Taukatch continued.

Recalling that the Assembly President had discussed that issue at a working luncheon yesterday with Deputy Secretary-General Louise Frechette, Mr. Taukatch said the Assembly President felt it was a very productive

Daily Press Briefing - 7 - 20 March 1998

discussion and he actually met with Mrs. Frechette one more time later in the afternoon for another round of consultations on reform-related matters.

Mr. Taukatch said it was the first time Mr. Udovenko had met Mrs. Frechette since her appointment. Mr. Udovenko used the occasion to congratulate her on her important assignment and wished her every success in her new job.

Returning to today's meeting with the Chairmen of the regional groups, Mr. Taukatch said the Assembly President had also informed them about the ongoing preparations for the special session on narcotic drugs. In correspondence with the Chairman of the Preparatory Committee, the President proposed arrangements for the organization of the session, including the number of plenary meetings, creation of the list of speakers by the drawing of lots, precedence in the speaking order, duration of speeches and participation of observers and non-governmental organizations.

The Preparatory Committee had been meeting in Vienna to discuss all of those issues. The final report on the results of those deliberations was expected early next week.

On the activities of the Working Group on Security Council reform, he said the Group had decided at its last meeting on 13 March to proceed to the consideration of the next items of its programme of work in accordance with the principle under which all the aspects of the comprehensive Security Council reform should be dealt with on an equal footing. At its last session the Group was considering the working methods of the Security Council and transparency of its work. On 20 April, it was scheduled to resume its work, focusing on decision making in the Security Council, including the veto.

Mr. Taukatch said the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) had, after considering the issue of financing for development, concluded its work of the fifty-second session yesterday. The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) had a busy schedule for the day. It was scheduled to consider, among other items, the issue of financing of peacekeeping operations and the issue of office accommodation at the Palais Wilson in Geneva.

The spokesman also announced that Mr. Udovenko would be leaving for Kiev, over the weekend. He would return to New York in the second half of April. The President's statement in connection with the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination would be available later today.

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