ACC DEPLORES INCREASE IN CASUALTIES AND INCIDENTS AFFECTING SECURITY AND SAFETY OF STAFF OF UNITED NATIONS SYSTEM
Press Release
ECOSOC/5804
ACC DEPLORES INCREASE IN CASUALTIES AND INCIDENTS AFFECTING SECURITY AND SAFETY OF STAFF OF UNITED NATIONS SYSTEM
19981105 NEW YORK, 31 October (Administrative Committee on Coordination) -- Twenty-three staff have lost their lives since the beginning of 1998, of whom eight were shot to death. There have also been five incidents of hostage taking involving 18 staff members, one of them still in captivity. The Executive Heads of the United Nations, its Funds and Programmes, the specialized agencies as well as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) at a meeting of the Administrative Committee on Coordination (ACC) chaired by the Secretary-General, deplored the increase in casualties and incidents affecting United Nations staff, both international and local. The Executive Heads also expressed deep concern over the increasing number of threats directed against United Nations system facilities and premises. These events reveal an unacceptable trend and call for improved and increased action to increase staff security.They expressed their appreciation for the measures taken by the membership of the United Nations to enhance the safety and security of the Organization's staff and operations, most notably in the General Assembly, the Security Council and the Diplomatic Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court in Rome in July.
The United Nations leaders reiterate their call to host countries that safety and security of the United Nations system personnel is a non-negotiable issue and that, in the absence of decisive action by the host country, the United Nations system will act to withdraw staff or suspend operations.
They urge all Member States to ensure that United Nations system personnel at all duty stations have access to, and are permitted to, utilize telecommunications equipment essential to the security and safety of United Nations system staff. They also call on all Member States who have not done so to ratify the 1994 United Nations Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel and also the Convention on Privileges and Immunities of United Nations Staff.
The Executive Heads express their appreciation to the Governments of Japan and Norway which have contributed funds for security measures, including training, and appeal to others to do likewise. They note that system-wide training has been arranged by the United Nations Security Coordinator's Office (UNSECOORD) in some duty stations and will be extended to others in early 1999. They express their appreciation for, and pledge their continued support to, UNSECOORD as the central United Nations system entity responsible for system-wide security coordination and training. * *** *