PRESS BRIEFING BY UNICEF EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Press Briefing

PRESS BRIEFING BY UNICEF EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

The Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), Carol Bellamy, briefing correspondents this afternoon on her recent trip to Afghanistan, told about a group of women that, asked to talk about their hopes and desires, said that they hoped for peace and for their children to be allowed to go to school. They were also very much interested in freedom, she added.

Ms. Bellamy said that in her role as Executive Director of UNICEF, she had been planning a visit Afghanistan for some time. Last year she had planned a trip to see how UNICEF programmes were doing in that country, but she had been unable to go because of deteriorated security conditions in the Kabul area.

In the week prior to her trip there she had attended a series of meetings of United Nations agency heads in Geneva, she continued. In the course of discussions it had been realized that common concerns were shared on a number of issues. Those concerns included: recent activities in Afghanistan affecting United Nations staff; a physical attack on one staff member; deteriorating conditions; and a lack of adherence to the privileges and immunities of United Nations personnel. There had also been shared concern over a recent edict issued by the Taliban authorities which only allowed non-Afghan Muslim women to work if they were accompanied by their husbands or a male blood relative.

She said that after having consulted with the heads of the United Nations agencies, as well as with representatives of the Department of Political Affairs, the Office of the Coordinator for Humanitarian Affairs, and with the Secretary-General, she had been authorized to convey to the Afghan authorities some very clear and strong messages expressing a common United Nations position. Those messages had been sent in order to lay the groundwork for the United Nations negotiating team that would go to the area in approximately two weeks.

One of the purposes of her mission had been to seek a better understanding of the situation in Afghanistan, she said. Another had been to discuss the issue of equal access to education and health services for girls and boys, as well as men and women. Another purpose of her mission had been to apprise Taliban authorities, as well as local United Nations staff, of the recent United Nations decision regarding the Organization's activities in the area. She had also laid out the common United Nations position regarding: the necessity for adherence to the privileges and immunities of United Nations personnel; the unacceptability of the edict restricting the movement of Muslim women working in Afghanistan; and the need to recommence negotiations regarding equal access to education on health. She added that she had not travelled to the north of Afghanistan and that was why she was limiting her

comments to the Taliban authorities. The issue of security for the United Nations was, however, an area of concern both in the north and in the areas controlled by the Taliban.

During her mission she had met with a number of high-ranking Taliban authorities, including Mullah Mohamed Rabbani, Chairman of the Taliban supreme shura, she said. She had raised all of the topics at each of the meetings, which she characterized as "generally cordial, generally positive". Since she had not been in Afghanistan to negotiate, but rather to convey a message, she had no specific breakthroughs to report.

In response to her message, she had been told by the authorities that they recognized that all Afghan children -- including boys and girls -- had a right to education, and that within Islam there was a responsibility to provide it, she said. On that point there had been agreement. There had not, however, been agreement about when that responsibility would be implemented. When pressed to outline what was needed for equal access to education, the authorities provided a variety of reasons -- ranging from the need to first establish peace, to the lack of adequate schools and teachers. Her response had been that the majority of teachers in the area -- 70 to 80 per cent -- were women, and that they needed to be teaching. She added that she had been informed that the edict restricting the movement of non-Afghan Muslim women was currently under review by the Emir.

She had also held discussions with local representatives of United Nations agencies, as well as with representatives of non-governmental organizations operating in the country, she said. The issues under consideration had been discussed and there had been strong agreement that there should be a common United Nations position on basic minimum working conditions. There had been some differences of opinion on how some of the work should be carried out.

The United Nations was trying to create a coherent framework of operation -- called "assistance strategy" -- which would be led by Deputy- Secretary-General Louise Frechette, she said. The local representatives had asked Ms. Bellamy to convey their general support for the idea, along with their request that it be done gradually to allow for adequate field implementation.

She had made some site visits, the Executive Director went on to say. She had visited some maternal and child health clinics; projects involving clean water, hygiene and sanitation; and an informal school attended by girls. Authorities had told her that she should not be concerned about education because there were non-governmental organizations (NGOs) providing it. It had been mentioned that the Swedish Committee -- characterized by the Executive Director as a very respectable and effective NGO -- was educating about 30,000 girls. However, Ms. Bellamy's response had been that that should not be seen

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as an excuse for the authorities not to provide formal education -- informal education did not necessarily assure quality or the kind of sustainability that was necessary in education.

In at least two instances she had had an opportunity to meet alone with women, she said. Those meetings had lasted approximately an hour each. One was a group of women in health services, who had explained how little access there was for women to health services because they could only be treated by other women. By UNICEF statistics -- which were United Nations statistics -- Afghanistan ranked the lowest in the world in maternal mortality. One out of every seven Afghan women died giving birth, and for every woman who died, many were injured. That was to be contrasted with the maternal mortality rate in countries like Canada or Norway, where one out of 2,500 women died.

Ms. Bellamy said she had spoken with the Special Envoy of the Secretary- General for Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, before her trip and had attempted to reach him upon her return. He had been in meetings with leaders of some of the countries surrounding Afghanistan and was now back in Islamabad. She would try to reach him today or tomorrow. This morning she had reported to the Executive Committee of the humanitarian agencies. The next step would be to put together the United Nations negotiating team, which was expected to be a team of four or five individuals. The team would leave within the next couple of weeks.

Asked to provide information regarding the number of United Nations personnel in Afghanistan, the Executive Director said that about half of the personnel -- or about 50 people -- were in the country and about half were outside. Those numbers were in the process of changing, as two weeks ago the United Nations had decided to withdraw its presence in the Kandahar region.

One of UNICEF's Jalalabad offices was headed by a woman, she said. In terms of numbers of women working in the country, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) was doing the best. The UNICEF was working with a number of Afghan women in the country, but they could not be in the office with men. The UNICEF had attempted to bring other women into the country, but Muslim women were caught in the edict restricting the movement of non-Afghan Muslim women.

Asked for clarification regarding United Nations policy in the area, Ms. Bellamy said that for the period of time allocated for the negotiations, there was common agreement on the necessity for adherence to United Nations privileges and immunities; on the fact that the edict must be repealed; on the fact that the issue of equity in access to health and education had to get back on the table for negotiations; and on the fact that should there be no movement on those negotiations. The agencies would look to reduce their activities in the area to what was determined to be "life-saving". The

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definition of what would be considered a "life-saving" activity was being made in the field by the humanitarian coordinator in the country.

In response to another question, the Executive Director said she had been told that she was the first high-ranking woman that the Taliban authorities had met with. There had been some question about whether or not they would meet with her, or even be in the same room. Generally, however, the meetings had been cordial and they had met in the same room, face to face. The authorities had said that they were interested in the United Nations continuing to work in Afghanistan, and she had told them that the United Nations, also, was interested in doing so, and that there was no desire on its part to withdraw its humanitarian programmes from the country. She had stressed, however, that there were basic minimum working conditions in all of the countries in which the United Nations worked.

A correspondent asked a question on UNICEF's activities in Uganda and also for clarification regarding the role of Olara A. Otunnu, the Special Representative for Children in Armed Conflict. Ms. Bellamy said that her office worked very closely with Mr. Otunnu. He was someone who could take leadership, serve as a spokesman and identify specific projects. The UNICEF was supportive of his activities and also, through its own programmes, continued to focus in many countries on the issue of children caught in armed conflict. In that regard, she added that UNICEF was very committed to its offices in Uganda and in Sudan.

Asked for further clarification regarding the education system, the Executive Director said she was told that in the north of the country schools were still functioning. In the areas controlled by the Taliban authorities women were not being allowed to teach in formal schools. There was an increasing network of informal schools, some of which were being supported by non-governmental organizations. Before the decision not to allow women to work, some 70 to 80 per cent of teachers were women. Girls and young women were not going to school at the university level.

Asked if there was any effort being made by the United Nations to determine the exact number of children attending school in Afghanistan, Ms. Bellamy said there was. While it had maintained a number of its programmes in the area, UNICEF had suspended its education programme. It would, however, restart the programme should there be any move on the part of the Taliban authorities to include the participation of girls in formal schools.

In response to another question, Ms. Bellamy said that the decision about the edict was under review by the Emir. That edict was unacceptable to the United Nations. Regarding the definition of life-saving activities, she said that the process had started in the field. Each agency had been asked to make recommendations. The process was still under review.

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A correspondent asked for further information in the area of health care and education. The Executive Director said that she had been given no reason by the authorities for the decision to deny women the right to teach. They had asked for understanding of their customs, and had stressed that Western ideas could not be imposed upon them. Ms. Bellamy had stressed that she was in Afghanistan representing the United Nations, and it was not suggesting that any particular model be adopted. The United Nations understood that conditions changed from country to country, she had told the authorities. However, she had said that she knew of no other country where the official position was that girls were not allowed access to education.

Some women were being allowed to participate in the delivery of health services, she continued. Because women could only receive care from other women, there had been a major restriction in the availability of services. She had visited two very crowded clinics staffed by women, she concluded.

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