DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Press Briefing

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

(Incorporates briefings by the spokesman for the General Assembly President and Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict.)

Fred Eckhard, Spokesman for the Secretary-General, announced at the beginning of today's noon briefing that Olara Otunnu, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, would brief correspondents on his recent visit to Sierra Leone.

On Angola, Mr. Eckhard said the Special Representative of the Secretary- General, Alioune Blondin Beye, was expected to arrive in New York on Thursday, 4 June, and to brief the Security Council the following day. His briefing to the Council followed the delay of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) in completing its handover of four provinces -- Bailundo, Andulo, N'Harea and Mundo -- to government administration by 31 May, and its subsequent rescheduling of that operation to 25 June. The Council had announced on 22 May, in its presidential statement on Angola, that it would be willing to adopt additional sanctions against the UNITA if the crisis resolution plan -- to have been implemented by both parties by 31 May -- had been further delayed. (The Spokesman later announced to correspondents that, following consultations, Mr. Beye was postponing his trip to New York until mid-month and that an exact date would be communicated later.)

The recent nuclear tests carried out by India and Pakistan had been discussed today at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, the Spokesman said. The representative of New Zealand had read out a statement -- available in the Spokesman's Office -- on behalf of 46 countries, which condemned all nuclear testing by India and Pakistan, calling such testing totally irreconcilable with claims by both countries that they were committed to nuclear disarmament. The statement called on both countries to immediately cease all testing and renounce their nuclear weapons programmes. India and Pakistan were also called on to become parties to the Comprehensive Nuclear- Test-Ban Treaty and the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

The Security Council was, this morning, discussing its programme of work for the month of June, Mr. Eckhard said. The draft resolution on the Indian and Pakistani nuclear tests, which had been introduced last Saturday, was not likely to be taken up until after the five nuclear Powers had met in Geneva -- at the ministerial level -- on Thursday, 4 June.

The Spokesman went on to say that the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) briefing to Council members on the so-called "road map" to the disarmament of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, tomorrow, would take place

in Conference Rooms 5 and 6. It was scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m. and would continue into the afternoon.

The Secretary-General had approved his report on the United Nations Preventive Deployment Force (UNPREDEP) in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Mr. Eckhard said. The report was now being transmitted to the Security Council and was expected to be issued shortly.

The 661 Committee overseeing the sanctions on Iraq had approved 29 contracts last week, according to the weekly report on the implementation of the "oil-for-food" programme, Mr. Eckhard continued. The Committee had put on hold five applications and had blocked none. To date, 529 applications had been submitted to the Committee, of which 468 had been approved -- an 88.4 per cent approval rate. The total oil proceeds now stood at $1.5 billion for Phase III of the programme. Of that amount, $981 million had been made available to finance humanitarian assistance. No new oil contracts had been approved by the United Nations oil overseers last week, he added. The total revenue generated from the beginning of Phase III at current prices was about $2.065 billion.

Mr. Eckhard said the Deputy-Secretary-General, Louise Fréchette, was scheduled to leave New York this afternoon for an eight-day trip that would take her to Switzerland and Burkina Faso. In Bern, on behalf of the Secretary-General, the Deputy-Secretary-General would participate in the ceremonies of the 150th anniversary of the Swiss Confederation. Her remarks would be made available before hand with a "check against delivery" and "embargoed until delivery" designation.

The Spokesman went on to say that in Geneva -- together with the President of the Swiss Federation, Flavio Cotti -- the Deputy-Secretary- General would attend the presentation of the Palais Wilson on behalf of the Secretary-General. Again, her remarks would be made available in advance. Background information on the historic building, which had been home to the League of Nations, was available in his Office. The building had been thoroughly renovated by the Government of Switzerland and had been presented as a gift to become the home for the United Nations human rights establishment in Geneva.

The Deputy-Secretary-General would then go to Ouagadougou where she would head the United Nations delegation to the Organization of African Unity (OAU) summit, Mr. Eckhard continued. She was expected to arrive back in New York on Friday, 12 June.

The next 30-day report of the Secretary-General relating to the situation in Kosovo was being worked on and was expected to be issued by the end of this week, the Spokesman went on to say. In response to a question posed yesterday on who was firing at whom in Kosovo, he said, "As I said, we do not have a

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political presence there. In the case of these reports of the Secretary-General, he told the Security Council he would base them on information he received from the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and other regional groups. So we have no independent confirmation of who's doing what to whom."

The spokesman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said today in Geneva that the exodus of refugees from Sierra Leone had created a new emergency in Guinea, Mr. Eckhard continued. The Assistant High Commissioner for Refugees, Soren Jessen-Petersen, who had been in Guinea over the weekend and had visited survivors in make-shift hospitals, said he had been shocked by the extent of the atrocities that the junta forces had been committing. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) had today launched an emergency appeal for $7.3 million to enable it to deliver relief to the new refugees from Sierra Leone in both Guinea and Liberia. Meanwhile, the World Food Programme (WFP) had requested 30 trucks from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to face the new emergency. A WFP press release was available upstairs, as were the UNHCR briefing notes from Geneva and a press release on the appeal.

The eighty-sixth session of the International Labour Conference had opened this morning in Geneva and would remain in session until 18 June, Mr. Eckhard said. Delegates would debate the text of a declaration on "fundamental human rights at work". The declaration would solemnly commit the organization's member States to work towards the realization of several fundamental principles -- freedom of association and collective bargaining, elimination of all forms of forced or compulsory labour, and effective abolition of child labour. The Conference would also debate the first draft of new international instruments to eliminate the most intolerable forms of child labour, including child slavery, trafficking, prostitution and work in hazardous industries, such as mines, plantations and manufacturing. A press release from the International Labour Organization (ILO) and a background paper on child labour were available in the Spokesman's Office.

Mr. Eckhard said the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Geneva had released a statement on behalf of its Executive Director, Carol Bellamy, affirming that the new Convention proposed by the ILO, if adopted, would be an important milestone in the worldwide campaign to eliminate all forms of hazardous child labour. That release was also available upstairs.

In Bangkok, the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) was hosting a week-long meeting on the elimination of sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children and youth in the region, the Spokesman said. Participants would identify practical measures for the regional implementation of the World Programme of Action for Youth to the Year 2000 and Beyond. More than 200 representatives from over 35 countries, United Nations bodies, and other organizations were participating. A press release was available in the Spokesman's Office.

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Mr. Eckhard said that six months after adopting the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, officials from over 150 countries were meeting in Bonn from today to 12 June to debate how the landmark agreement should work in practice. The meeting would prepare for the fourth session of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention to be held in Buenos Aires in November. According to a press release from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), while there was widespread political momentum behind the Kyoto results, the Buenos Aires Conference would be pivotal to ensuring that the Protocol enters into force at an early date. A UNEP press release was available.

Friday, 5 June, was World Environment Day, Mr. Eckhard continued. The 1998 theme was "The Year of the Ocean". Press kits were available at the documents counter.

Today, Egypt had become the seventy-third country to pay its regular budget dues in full with a cheque for over $725,000, the Spokesman said. At this date last year, there had been 10 fewer Member States paid in full.

Available upstairs was a WFP press release on emergency food aid to Sudanese refugees in Chad, Mr. Eckhard continued. Also available was an update from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs on the recent earthquake in Afghanistan.

A correspondent asked the Spokesman to provide information on the contents of the Secretary-General's report on UNPREDEP. Mr. Eckhard said that he could not comment until the report had been released to the Security Council.

Another correspondent asked Mr. Eckhard to comment on whether the United Nations was considering censoring the report of the Investigative Team which had left the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Mr. Eckhard said that the report was being considered by the Secretary-General, who expected to take action on it in the next few days. There was no question of suppressing, censoring or "toning down" the report.

Asked to provide information on Mr. Beye's position in light of the deadline that had not been met, Mr. Eckhard said, "He wants to discuss it with the Security Council, that's why he is coming here."

The correspondent then asked what Mr. Beye's recommendations were. Mr. Eckhard said Mr. Beye had not as yet said whether he had any specific recommendations to make. He wished to report to the Council and get the Council's reaction. He had not mentioned anything concerning his own plans.

Would the Investigative Team's report be released? a correspondent asked. The Spokesman said that was one of the things the Secretary-General was considering. "When I say that it will not be suppressed, censored or toned down, that suggests that it is going to be released", he added.

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Would the Security Council take action on that report? a correspondent asked. Responding, Mr. Eckhard said, "Let's see what the Secretary-General's decision is on how he will handle it, and then we will go from there."

Alex Taukatch, spokesman for the President of the General Assembly, said the Assembly had met this morning in plenary to take action on a wide range of issues. General Assembly President Hennadiy Udovenko (Ukraine) was back at Headquarters and had presided over the Assembly meeting.

Before beginning the meeting, the President -- speaking on behalf of all the members of the Assembly -- had extended his deepest sympathy to the Government and the people of Afghanistan for the tragic loss of life and extensive material damage which had resulted from the recent earthquakes. In the same context, the President had drawn attention to his press statement released yesterday.

A cluster of items taken up this morning had dealt with the session's agenda and organization of work, Mr. Taukatch said. For example, the Assembly had decided to include two additional items on its agenda. One of those items concerned the election of judges of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. The inclusion of that item had been necessitated by a decision of the Security Council to establish a third Trial Chamber for the Tribunal. The Council had made a similar decision regarding the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, which had made it necessary to elect, as soon as possible, three additional judges. Given the important and urgent nature of those items, the Assembly had agreed to consider both items in plenary, waiving the procedural requirement of first considering the items in the General Committee.

In a related organizational action, the Assembly had decided to consider agenda item 106 in plenary, even though it had originally been allocated to the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural), Mr. Taukatch said. Under that item, the Assembly would act on a draft resolution entitled, "Follow-up to the Fourth World Conference on Women and full implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action". The adoption of that text had been recommended by the Economic and Social Council.

Mr. Taukatch then drew correspondents' attention to an item he thought might be of interest to the computer enthusiasts among them. The Assembly had decided to reopen consideration of sub-item (c) of agenda item 95 -- on science and technology for development -- to deal with implications of the year 2000 date conversion problem of computers. The Assembly had decided, on a proposal by Pakistan, to consider the item directly in plenary.

The Assembly had filled vacancies in two of its subsidiary organs -- the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) and the Committee on Contributions, Mr. Taukatch continued. The Assembly had also taken up two related items -- revitalization of the work of the General

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Assembly and strengthening of the United Nations system. There were two related reports of the Secretary-General (documents A/52/856 and A/52/855) which dealt, in part, with the crucial matter of when to end the current session and to begin the next one. After hearing several statements on the matter, delegates had retired to Conference Room 3 for informal consultations. Mr. Taukatch would keep correspondents informed of any developments.

A correspondent asked Mr. Taukatch when the General Assembly would be meeting this fall. Mr. Taukatch said this was exactly the question currently being discussed in informal consultations. The issue was slightly complicated. Previously, the session had opened on the third Tuesday of September. However, according to Assembly resolution 51/241, the session should begin on the first Tuesday after 1 September, which would fall on 8 September this year. Traditionally, the previous session had ended the day before the new one began. This year, however, under the scenario put forth by resolution 51/241, the closing day of the session would fall on a holiday. In his report, the Secretary-General had proposed a solution to the problem, and that was something that the delegates were discussing right now.

Another correspondent asked if there had been a date set for the election of the judges for the Tribunals. Mr. Taukatch said, "Not yet, a decision had been made to consider it. We will let you know when the date has been set."

Mr. Otunnu, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, briefed correspondents on the situation of the children of Sierra Leone upon his recent return from a four-day visit there. His discussions with government leaders, the leadership of the Economic Community of West African States' Monitoring Observer Group (ECOMOG), and of the Civil Defence Forces (Kamajors) resulted in a number of important commitments. Those included an agreement to stop recruiting children as combatants, as well as to establish and oversee a systematic procedure for their demobilization and reintegration. Moreover, the Government had announced plans to establish a new national army, and it had agreed to receive assistance from United Nations agencies in providing training materials on human rights standards concerning the protection of civilians, particularly women and children. (For more details, see Press Release AFR/69-HR/4363.)

To a question regarding his level of confidence about the implementation of agreed commitments, he said a number of things impressed him, particularly the Government's determination to address the needs of children affected by war, a central theme of its reconstruction efforts. Indeed, following his discussion with Sierra Leonean President Alhaji Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, the President himself called for the creation of a coordinating group charged with the task of proposing and overseeing the Government's response to the children's needs.

He was also very impressed with what the Sierra Leoneans called "the crisis of the youth", he said. Clearly, the needs of the street children,

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child soldiers and displaced children, including those who were unaccompanied, constituted the country's most pressing single challenge. That challenge was compounded by the demobilization process, as well as by educational and medical concerns. "The road to national recovery" lay in rehabilitating the children and giving them a sense of renewed hope.

Even though peace had not been fully restored to Sierra Leone, the conduct of the ECOMOG had been very impressive, especially with regard to its rapport with the civilian population. There were other encouraging elements on the scene, as well. Overall, Sierra Leoneans displayed a sense of confidence stemming from the success of their efforts, as well as those of neighbouring countries, in restoring democracy to their country. "We must help them to consolidate that sense of self-confidence", he said.

Another correspondent asked him to elaborate on his proposal to create three pilot cases to serve as models for aiding children in post-conflict reconstruction efforts. He said he sought a concerted response by all parties responsible for post-conflict reconstruction, especially for a country's economic and social rehabilitation. That included, among others, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), bilateral donors, the European Union and the World Bank. Those parties had expressed the need to carefully choose situations on which to concentrate their efforts in order to ensure sustainable success in a few countries, rather than to superficially address the situations in so many places around the world. The situation required that the elements for sustainable success be in place, pending the engagement of the international community, and Sierra Leone was just such a place.

Asked in a follow-up question about who would initiate such a proposal, he said he had introduced that item in the Executive Committee for Humanitarian Affairs this morning, adding that the United Nations Development Group would be taking up the matter promptly. He had also had prior discussions with members of the European Union, the World Bank and the UNDP. He also intended to present the case of Sierra Leone at the upcoming meeting in June of the Union's development ministers.

To a question about whether he would be briefing the Security Council on a regular basis, he said he had been informally speaking to Council members on that possibility with a view to increasing their level of awareness on the importance of the issue, and on some of the measures the Council might undertake in that respect. It would be helpful for the Council to express its concern on that issue, given the atrocities being committed in so many parts of the world. Such a public position would also support his efforts by alerting government or insurgent leaders that the Council was watching with concern the experiences of children in conflict.

Asked in a follow-up about the political and financial response to his mandate, he said that the political support had been very good, particularly from concerned countries. The material response had been generous, although

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such an ambitious agenda could always use more resources. The outcomes of his visits, including to Liberia and Sri Lanka, and the concrete initiatives fashioned on the ground were also encouraging. He planned to visit the Sudan from 15 to 19 June, and Afghanistan in the very near future, as well as Uganda.

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