DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
Press Briefing
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
19990712
The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today's noon briefing by Manoel de Almeida e Silva, Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General:
**Kosovo
Good afternoon. The situation of the minorities continues to be of prime concern in Kosovo. The acting Special Representative of the Secretary- General for Kosovo, Sergio Vieira de Mello, today went to Kosovo Polje outside Pristina to look into the desperate situation of several thousand Roma -- gypsies -- displaced from their homes and housed in a school. It was "truly an appalling site" according to de Mello's spokesman, who accompanied him. Plans are under way to move the Romas to a new tent village being erected by KFOR and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to ease the living and sanitary conditions.
During his visit to the camp, Roma representatives told Mr. de Mello that they could not imagine resuming life in Kosovo and that they would continue to be victimized. Mr. de Mello said he understood they had been targeted and while one had to keep in mind the terror the Albanians had suffered, every effort was being made to encourage them to restrain themselves and not resort to violence. He repeatedly told the Romas that the international community had made an enormous investment in this operation by sending KFOR and the United Nations, and enormous efforts were being made to ensure that the human rights of all would be respected. He said it would not happen overnight and urged them not to give up and to remain in Kosovo.
Mr. de Mello stressed that it was up to the Albanian leadership to demonstrate that they are committed to a Kosovo where human rights and the rule of law for all was protected. It was in the interest of the Kosovo Albanians to demonstrate their commitment towards this end or risk losing the commitment and support of the international community.
In other developments in Kosovo today, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Jiri Dientsbier, at the end of a five-day visit to Kosovo, told reporters in Pristina that there was much work for the international community toward rebuilding lives in Kosovo.
Mr. Dienstbier stressed the importance of bringing perpetrators of crimes to justice and said that the international community could not allow acts of vengeance to continue. He said more needed to be done to establish freedom of movement and clarify the issue of property rights.
Mr. Dientsbier said that he would intervene with the authorities in
Belgrade on behalf of Kosovo Albanians currently in Serbian prisons.
And in what may prove to be a model for efforts to reconstitute the workforce in Kosovo's public institution, the first 58 Albanians and 54 Serbs resumed work in Pristina's municipal building. They are the first of 400 workers who will be returning to work over the next 90 days under an agreement which also provides for the return to work of members of other ethnic groups.
A United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) school survey of 16 of Kosovo's 29 municipalities, found that 43 per cent of 394 schools assessed were completely or severely damaged. Ninety-five per cent required some form of repair. Schools have made a request for 28,000 desks, 58,000 chairs and 2,000 blackboards. The UNICEF in Pristina issued a press release which is available in the Spokesman's Office, if you need more details.
The refugee return figure rose to more than 660,000.
The Deputy Secretary-General, Louise Fréchette, will lead a United Nations delegation on Tuesday to the High-level Steering Group on the Balkans, co-chaired by the European Commission and the World Bank, to be held in Brussels. The new Special Representative for Kosovo, Bernard Kouchner, will also attend the meeting. The United Nations delegation is expected to flag the importance of the pressing needs of reconstruction in the economic and social areas at the same time as the work under way on setting up of the civilian administration.
The Secretary-General's report transmitted to him by KFOR was sent to the Council and is now on the racks.
**Security Council Consultations
The Security Council, which met on Saturday on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is now hearing a briefing by the Under-Secretary General for Peacekeeping Operations Bernard Miyet on the status of the Congo peace process. He said that the situation in the country does not seem to have clarified much since his briefing to the Council last Saturday.
The agreement has been signed only by the representatives of the six countries involved: Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Namibia, Rwanda, Uganda and Zimbabwe. The two rebel groups did not sign. The Heads of State concerned are now in Algiers for the Organization of African Unity (OAU) summit. They have agreed that following the summit, President Chiluba should visit the rebels and determine who the leader really is, and who should sign the agreement.
[It was later announced that a small United Nations is now scheduled to go to Lusaka on Wednesday to liaise closely with Chiluba's office concerning the outcome of President Chiluba's mission.]
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The Secretary-General's report to the Security Council on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which was expected to be issued early this week, is now being delayed until the outcome of the peace process becomes clear. We will keep you posted.
In addition to the consultations on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Council members this morning are also holding consultations on Iraq and will continue their search for common ground on a new disarmament arrangement.
**Secretary-General in West Africa
While in Nigeria, where he arrived very late on Friday night, the Secretary-General, on Saturday morning, met with Vice-President Al Haji Atiku Abubakar and told him that he had observed "with admiration" Nigeria's efforts to democratize. They discussed cooperation between the United Nations and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Democratic Republic of the Congo, human rights, Security Council reform, and Nigeria's relations with the United Nations. The Vice-President thanked him for the role he played one year ago in Nigeria's transition to democracy.
In the afternoon, the Secretary-General met with the newly elected President of Nigeria, General Olusegun Obasanjo. They discussed the peacekeeping arrangements for Sierra Leone, following the recent peace agreement there. They also had an extended discussion on Security Council reform and issues related to the subregion and Africa in general. The Secretary-General gave a press conference following those meetings. The transcript of the press conference in now available in the Spokesman's Office.
He arrived in Algeria from Nigeria on Sunday and this morning he attended the opening of the OAU summit. In his speech, the Secretary-General cited a report issued last week by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the International Chamber of Commerce showing that Africa brings a higher return to United States and Japanese investors than any other region in the world. He praised those African governments that had taken the tough decisions to liberalize their economies, democratize their governments and strengthen the rule of law.
The full text of the Secretary-General's speech at the OAU summit is also available in the Spokesman's Office.
In the margin of the OAU summit, the Secretary-General met with former National Security Adviser Anthony Lake and Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Susan Rice. They discussed the follow-up to the peace agreements on Sierra Leone and the Democratic Republic of the Congo and peace efforts in the conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia. In the afternoon, he met with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. They discussed African issues such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Ethiopia and Eritrea war, Libyan sanctions and the proposed international conference on terrorism. He is also
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scheduled to meet with Libyan leader Muammar Al-Qadhafi and OAU Secretary- General Salim A. Salim today.
**East Timor
The Secretary-General wrote to the Security Council on Saturday to inform members that the registration of voters for the East Timor popular consultation should start on Friday, 16 July, and not tomorrow. His decision took into consideration the security situation in the territory, which remains a serious concern. The Secretary-General expressed his full confidence that the Indonesian authorities have the capacity to take meaningful steps that would allow him to make a determination to proceed with the operational phases of the consultation process. That determination is expected to happen on or before 16 July.
It was announced today in Dili, the East Timorese capital, that the Secretary-General's Special Representative Ian Martin will meet on Wednesday with the Indonesian task force to assess progress achieved in that direction.
In his letter to the Council, the Secretary-General also reiterated his earnest desire to carry out responsibilities entrusted to him with all determination so that the people of East Timor can express their wishes as to the future of the territory.
Today, during a visit of several Indonesian Cabinet members to Dili, Foreign Minister Ali Alatas and other senior Indonesian officials met with Mr. Martin, Francesc Vendrell -- Director of the Asia Division of the Department of Political Affairs, and recently appointed Deputy Personal Representative of the Secretary-General -- and the Police Commissioner of the United Nations Mission in East Timor (UNAMET), Alan Mills. The meeting lasted for some 45 minutes, and Minister Alatas said that a number of people were being investigated by the Indonesian authorities for their alleged involvement in the recent incidents in Maliana and Liquiçá.
If you wish more details, please look at the transcript of the briefing held this morning in Dili. It is available in the Spokeman's Office.
**Secretary-General's Prevlaka Report
The report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Mission of Observers in Prevlaka (UNMOP) is out today. In it, the Secretary-General notes that the military observers have not been able to patrol fully or freely the UNMOP area of responsibility on either the Croatian or the Yugoslav side. He recalls that the authorities of both countries are requested to allow the United Nations military observers unrestricted access to all areas of the demilitarized zone.
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He also expresses his disappointment at the fact there has been no substantive progress in the talks between the two parties, and offers his good offices to the parties, should they require assistance in their search for a peaceful settlement. Given the importance of ensuring that the situation on the ground remain stable and as free of tension as possible, the Secretary- General recommends that the Security Council extend the mandate of the mission for a further six months, until 15 January 2000 without change to its current concept of operations.
**Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)
The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is conducting a training course in Pakistan today. Experts from the OPCW will meet with over 30 Pakistani officials on issues related to protection against chemical weapons, including detection and decontamination.
The training course will also include practical exercises on how to recognize chemical weapons and how to deal with a threat or attack.
We have a press release from the OPCW in our office with more details.
**Bosnia and Herzegovina Report
Also available on the racks is the monthly report of the operations of SFOR, the Stabilization Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was transmitted to the Secretary-General by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and he forwarded it to the Security Council.
Drug Control
Also available is a round-up press release from the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention on Executive Director Pino Arlacchi's visit to Jordan and Lebanon from 8 to 11 July.
**1999 Human Development Report
Today, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) launched its latest Human Development Report. It argues that globalization is outpacing the governance of markets and the repercussions on people. It offers a number of recommendations aimed at capturing opportunities in the global marketplace and translating them more equitably into advances for people.
It also contains several special contributions, including one from Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen, who assesses the Report's Human Development Index, which measures a country's progress not by gross national product (GNP), but by longevity, education and income per head.
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You should have already received copies of this report. We have a reference copy in the Spokesman's Office and we expect to receive some more later today.
**Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
We have a press release from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Rome informing that more than 100 countries have begun a week-long conference dealing with a new convention on dangerous chemicals.
The treaty, know as the Rotterdam Convention, covers the trade of hazardous chemicals and pesticides. It requires that countries give consent for the import of these dangerous substances.
**United Nations Correspondents Association (UNCA)
Finally, I have an announcement from the United Nations Correspondents Association (UNCA) telling us that today at 3 p.m. there will be a briefing on Muslim militancy and world peace with focus on Kashmir and Afghanistan. The speaker is Qazi Hussain Ahmad, Chief of the Islamic Movement of Pakistan. All UNCA members are cordially invited. Refreshments will be served.
**Question-and-Answer Session
Question: Could you tell us about Bernard Kouchner's schedule?
Deputy Spokesman: He will be in the Brussels meeting and we are expecting him to be arriving in Pristina probably on Thursday. Afterwards, his schedule would be determined on the ground. I don't think we would have it.
Question: Where is Ambassador Marker?
Deputy Spokesman: He comes back to New York this week. As you know, he had a longer than usual stay in Indonesia and East Timor, then he went to countries in the region and he's on his way back to New York now.
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