DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

Press Briefing

DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL

The following is a near verbatim transcript of today's noon briefing by the Spokesman for the Secretary-General, Fred Eckhard.

Hans Von Sponeck, the Humanitarian Coordinator in Iraq, is here with us, thanks to a break in the meeting of the panel that he is attending. And because he's got to go back to that panel meeting, I would like to start the briefing with Mr. Von Sponeck and then to go to the regular briefing. So, Hans, you want to tell us something about what you reported to the Security Council on the status of your operation? [Mr. Von Sponeck's briefing is issued separately.]

After Mr. Von Sponeck's briefing, Mr. Eckhard said: Now for the regular briefing:

**Anti-Landmine Treaty Enters Into Force:

Today the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction entered into force.

Around the world, people are marking the occasion by ringing bells. To emphasize his personal commitment to the cause, the Secretary-General will ring a bell of his own -- the Peace Bell -- and that will happen at 1 o'clock this afternoon. On coming into the building, he welcomed the entry into force of the treaty, saying, "It couldn't have been possible without the support and enthusiasm of grass-roots movements -- people around the world who work with governments and NGOs -- to make this Convention come about." He also said, "I think that lots of people around the world today are happy, and I hope that it will be fully implemented and we will keep on removing landmines."

The United Nations is currently working to raise awareness all over the world, and to remove mines in countries such as Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Lao People's Democratic Republic and Mozambique. For example, we helped clear 1.42 million square metres of land in Cambodia, destroying over 12,000 anti-personnel mines, 229 anti-tank mines and nearly 37,000 pieces of unexploded ordnance over a one-year period, 1997-1998. Through nearly 1,800 mine-awareness courses, over 350,000 Cambodians were educated. We have a background note with more details in our office. We also have copies of the Secretary-General's message, as well as those by the heads of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the World Health Organization (WHO), in our office. In addition, we have the latest status of the treaty.

Because that is happening at 1 o'clock, the press conference that was planned here at 1 o'clock by the Commissioners of the Historical Clarification Commission of Guatemala has been put off to 1:15 p.m.. So, the Secretary- General in the garden at 1 o'clock; Guatemala Commissioners here at 1:15 p.m.

**Guatemalan Historical Clarification Commission:

On the Guatemalan Historical Clarification Commission, the Secretary- General met this morning with Christian Tomuschat and Otilia Lux de Coti, two of the members of the Guatemalan Historical Clarification Commission. This meeting takes place four days after the unveiling of the report of the Commission on human rights violations and other acts of violence during the 36-year internal conflict in Guatemala, which produced a series of recommendations, mainly directed at the Government, to prevent the recurrence of the conflict.

The Secretary-General congratulates the Commission on the conclusion of its work. The parties to the Guatemalan peace agreements recognized that lasting peace and genuine national reconciliation should be built on three pillars: truth about the conflict, justice for the worst crimes and reparation to the victims. The Commission's report will no doubt further these goals. For it to benefit Guatemalan society as a whole, it is now critical that its findings be widely disseminated and its recommendations be accorded the importance that they require.

**Ethiopia/Eritrea:

Saturday afternoon, the Security Council issued a presidential statement welcoming the acceptance, that same day, by Eritrea, of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) Framework Agreement for the settlement of the border dispute with Ethiopia. The Council recalled the prior acceptance of the Framework Agreement by Ethiopia, and said that this Framework Agreement remained a viable and sound basis for a peaceful resolution to the conflict. The Council also demanded an immediate halt to all hostilities between Ethiopia and Eritrea, in the wake of a recent escalation in fighting over disputed border territory near the Badme area. Humanitarian agencies are trying to get to war-affected areas. We understand that the OAU is now intensifying its consultations with both sides in order to obtain a rapid ceasefire as a first step for a peaceful settlement of the dispute.

**Nigeria:

The Secretary-General has been informed of the provisional results of the presidential elections in Nigeria on Saturday as published by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). As you know, the United Nations has been providing technical assistance to INEC throughout the electoral process and has also provided coordination and support to international observers, who have not yet reported on their observations. It appears that Mr. Olusegun Obasanjo has received a majority of the votes cast.

As you are aware, the Secretary-General has closely followed the ongoing process of democratization in Nigeria, particularly following his visit to Abuja last year. He attaches the highest importance to Nigeria's return to

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civilian rule and hopes that the elections will constitute a major positive step in the transition to democracy.

**United Nations Preventive Deployment Force (UNPREDEP):

The United Nations Preventive Deployment Force in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia known as (UNPREDEP), ended its operation at midnight last night. This was the first United Nations peacekeeping operation deployed in a preventive fashion, that is, before a conflict has erupted. The mandate could not be extended due to a negative vote of a permanent member of the Security Council.

The peacekeepers are now preparing for a withdrawal, which will commence as soon as practical arrangements are in place. The whole process will take some time to complete as over a thousand peacekeepers and a large amount of equipment are involved.

As UNPREDEP halted operations across the border from Kosovo today, the UNHCR reported that about 3,000 people (mostly ethnic Albanians) who had escaped renewed clashes in the Kacanic area were gathered at the border. Only those with proper documents were allowed to cross the border. Since Friday, about 1,200 people became refugees when they crossed into the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia from Kosovo, which UNHCR reported as tense with new skirmishes and displacements. A group of some 30 made it across the border today.

**Peacekeeping Operations Now Down to 14:

With the closure of two United Nations peacekeeping missions, the one in Angola, and the one we just mentioned in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, we now have 14 peacekeeping missions current, and the total strength of all peacekeeping missions is about 14,000. The number will go down to approximately 12,000, as our peacekeepers are being withdrawn from these two countries in coming months.

**Security Council:

Today China assumes the presidency of the Security Council for the month of March. As the President will be holding bilateral meetings today and tomorrow, no consultations are scheduled for these days.

**Otunnu Africa Trip:

Olara Otunnu, the Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, is now undertaking the last leg of his Africa trip. He will be leaving Nairobi on 2 March for a visit to the Sudan, lasting about 10 days. His issues will be child soldiers, abducted children,

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neighbourhood initiatives to halt the movement of abducted children -- and of small arms. And there's a press release that we have in my office.

**Secretary-General Meets Washington, D.C. High School Students:

Finally, you'll notice on the Secretary-General's appointments for this afternoon that he's meeting with Washington, D.C. High School students who are participating in the Department of State's Model United Nations Programme. The school promotes special emphasis on international affairs -- this is their first trip to the United Nations. United States Ambassador Peter Burleigh is expected to accompany them.

**Question-and-Answer Session:

Question: Do the 14 peacekeeping missions include Angola and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia?

Answer: The 14,000 is the figure today. The missions had been 16 and two of them have now gone out of business, leaving 14, and the 14,000 troops will drop to 12,000 as the troops are withdrawn from Angola and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

Question: What happened at the meeting between Ambassador Dorda (Libya) and the Secretary-General?

Answer: I'm still waiting for a readout on that meeting.

Question: I understand that a Haitian Senator was shot this morning in Port-au-Prince, and some of the United Nations people were seen carrying arms. Can you tell us the rules of engagement, since the United Nations Police were the only ones carrying arms? Also American troops were deployed this morning. What is the rules of engagement since there was heavy unrest in Haiti this morning? Students were on the streets.

Answer: The responsibility for those riots lies with the Haitian police. The International Police have been trying to increase the professional competence of the Haitian police, and I think that they have made a lot of progress with that programme. We don't know who killed the Senator and we don't know if it was a criminal act or a political act. And of course, we do hope that the perpetrators will be apprehended and justice will be served through proper legal procedures. That's all I have on that. You asked for the rules of engagement? We never make public rules of engagement. But, of course, the reason for the arms in the case of the United Nations Police is self-defence, primarily.

Question: When do you think the United States will join in the Anti- Landmine Treaty?

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Answer: I think you better ask them, I'm sorry. The Secretary-General did make a comment on that. He had repeatedly said that he hopes that eventually the United States and the other countries that haven't ratified it would do so.

Thank you very much.

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