DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
Press Briefing
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
20000210The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today's noon briefing by John Mills, Acting Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General, and Shirley Brownell, spokeswoman for the General Assembly President.
**Secretary-General's Meetings in Thailand
Good afternoon. The Secretary-General began his official visit to Thailand today with an hour-long meeting with Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai. The Secretary-General said that he was looking forward to the first-ever meeting between the United Nations and members of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), which is the only regional organization that does not have formal ties with the United Nations.
The Secretary-General in his meeting recalled the phone conversation he had with the Prime Minister last year "when East Timor was burning", as he put it, and thanked the Prime Minister for the speed with which Thailand had deployed 1,000 troops to East Timor.
The Prime Minister raised the issue of refugees in Thailand, mainly from Cambodia, Lao Peoples Democratic Republic and, most recently, Myanmar. The Secretary-General urged Thailand to continue offering asylum to those fleeing oppression.
In a toast before lunch, the Secretary-General praised the "remarkable job" Thailand had done to climb out of the deep recession of two years ago, saying that Thai economic reform could serve as a model for other nations.
In the afternoon, the Secretary-General, with his wife Nane, travelled two hours outside Bangkok to Klai Kangwol Palace for a private audience with His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej. The 72-year-old King has been on the throne for 50 years. He's the world's longest-serving monarch. Throughout that time, he's been a stablizing presence on the Thai political scene and a powerful force for progressive change in the country.
**Children Released in Sierra Leone
And some good news from Sierra Leone, where the United Nations mission there has successfully negotiated the release of another group of 15 children from the Occra Hills area, that's about 65 to 70 miles north-east of Freetown. There were 11 boys and four girls between the ages of eight and 15, all of them in apparently good physical condition. Eight said they had been fighting with the rebels. They were taken to a disarmament camp for child soldiers near Lungi. The other child abductees were taken to a child-care centre. All of them had been behind rebel lines for more than a year.
So far, 81 children have been released this year. Our peacekeepers were promised by the rebels that a larger group of children would be released tomorrow. We have a press release from the mission in Sierra Leone.
**Security Council discusses Central African Republic
In the Security Council this morning, there were closed consultations regarding the United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic (MINURCA). As you know, the mandate of that Mission expires on Tuesday, 15 February. The Council is considering a draft presidential statement on the Mission, and may go into a formal meeting to adopt the statement.
Under "other matters", the Council is expected to hear a briefing by Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Hédi Annabi on the situation in Kosovo. If you remember, this was requested following the violent incidents over the weekend.
No Council meetings are expected for tomorrow.
**Notes from East Timor
On East Timor, there's a report on the racks today from Australia on the International Force in East Timor, or INTERFET.
The report covers the period from 10 December to the end of January and previews the handover to the United Nations military force. That handover, as we've reported, is under way and will be completed by the end of this month.
The INTERFET report suggests that the problems posed by militia groups are generally coming under control, but warns that ensuring security in the Oekusi enclave will be a high priority for the incoming United Nations force. The report notes the cross-border nature of these incidents and says the matter will need to be resolved primarily by the Government of Indonesia.
You will recall that yesterday INTERFET reported the arrest by the Indonesian authorities of a person implicated in at least some of those raids.
Overall however, INTERFET concludes that the security situation in East Timor, with the exception of the border areas of Oekusi, remains benign.
**Deng Visits Regroupment Camps in Burundi
Turning to Burundi, the Representative of the Secretary-General for Internally Displaced Persons, Francis Deng, is in Burundi and hopes tomorrow to visit a former regroupment site in Bujumbura Rurale. This follows independent confirmation we've received that the Burundian authorities have dismantled this camp, which was holding 4,800 people. Last week, the Government in Burundi announced its intention to begin dismantling regroupment camps starting this week. There are at present a total of 53 camps with more than 320,000 people in the province of Bujumbura Rurale.
Mr. Deng, who is in Burundi from 6 to 11 February to follow up on his last visit, which was back in 1994, has expressed his strong opposition to forced relocation in Burundi. And you'll remember the Secretary-General's comments in the Security Council in January describing the use of regroupment camps as an inhuman practice.
**United Nations Electoral Team to Go to Tajikistan
In Tajikistan, the United Nations will deploy an electoral expert team to monitor the electoral process in the forthcoming parliamentary elections. The elections are to be held on 27 February. They mark the completion of the transition phase envisaged under the peace agreement between the Tajik Government and the United Tajik Opposition. That agreement was signed in June 1997.
The United Nations Electoral Expert Team will monitor the electoral process jointly with the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) observation mission, which is already deployed in Tajikistan. Their activities will be supported by the United Nations Mission of Observers in Tajikistan (UNMOT).
**Hurricane Names
And on a lighter note, hurricane names. Thanks to the work of two United Nations agencies, the next time that typhoons sweep across eastern Asia, they could have Asian names like "Usagi" or "Kirogi", instead of Western names like "Ted" and "Gloria". Previously, the names of tropical cyclones in East Asia were determined by the United States Army and Navy Joint Typhoon Warning Centre, based in Guam.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO), a United Nations body based in Geneva, has, in its recent regional expert meetings, been asking for each region to provide its own list of names for such weather patterns. A typhoon committee organized by the WMO and the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) has come out with a new list of names. They include "Damrey", the Cambodian word for elephant; "Usagi", the Japanese word for rabbit; "Kirogi", a North Korean type of wild goose; and a number of others.
There's a copy upstairs of some of the names which are being proposed.
**Canada Signs Terrorism Treaty
At 10:30 this morning, Canada's Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy signed the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism. Canada is the twelfth country to sign the treaty. It needs to be ratified by 22 before it can enter into force.
**Press Releases
We have some press releases, including one from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), announcing a conference on "Women's Right to Education", which will take place tomorrow here at Headquarters from 9:30 a.m. onwards in Conference Room 4. The Assistant Secretary-General for Women's Affairs, Angela King, and the Assistant Secretary- General for External Relations, Gillian Sorensen, will be speaking. You're all invited.
We have a release from the International Court of Justice, on the composition of the Court's Chambers and Committees for the remainder of the year.
And a press release in English and French from the International Tribunal of the Law of the Sea, providing details on their ruling on Monday to allow a Panamanian fishing vessel, which had been detained by France at Réunion Island, to be released on a bond of 8 million French francs.
**Press Conferences
There are two press conferences for tomorrow. At 10:30 a.m., the Division for Sustainable Development is sponsoring a press conference for the non- governmental organizations participating in the Intergovernmental Forum on Forests (IFF-4).
And at 11:15 a.m., the co-chairs of the Forum, Bagher Asadi of Iran and Ilkka Ristimaki of Finland will discuss the issues under discussion at the Forum itself.
That's all I have for today.
**Questions and Answers
Question: Did I understand it well about Burundi when you said that no one went there since 1994?
Acting Deputy Spokesman: No, -- the United Nations has had a presence for some considerable time in Burundi, most particularly, an office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
What I said was that Francis Deng, in his capacity as the Secretary- General's Representative for Internally Displaced, was visiting now, and that his previous visit was in 1994.
Question: Why did it take so long?
Acting Deputy Spokesman: There are internally displaced people as you heard discussed here and elsewhere in many, many countries. Francis Deng is an independent expert, that is, he's not a United Nations staff member. There's a limited number of visits he can make, and he can only visit those countries which invite him. The issue of internally displaced and regroupment camps in Burundi is a serious issue. You've had, I think, many speakers in the Council denounce it in the strongest possible terms. So it's important that he's there at the moment. And it will be important to see the comments he makes in his observations when he is able to see what is happening, in terms of dismantling these camps.
Question: There's a report on the wire today that the Iraqi Government is declaring its opposition to weapon's inspectors in any way, shape or form. What are the Secretary-General's response to the quite firm and pointed refusal by Iraq?
Acting Deputy Spokesman: At this stage, we're not going to get involved in direct responses to statements made on this issue. I make the point, which I made before, and that is that at the moment the question of UN inspectors entering Iraq hasn't been asked. The next step will be for Dr. Blix to take up his duties, to prepare the report that he has to submit to the Secretary-General for approval and also approval by the Security Council, which is the programme of work, the composition and staffing of the new body, the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission in Iraq. And it will only be then that the question will be asked. So, as far as a direct comment to these wire reports, there isn't one, but that is the situation we're in at the moment.
Question: What exactly is the question that hasn't been asked?
Acting Deputy Spokesman: There isn't an inspection mechanism up and functioning at the moment, knocking on the door, asking to go into Iraq and carry out the mandate given in resolution 1284. That mechanism will be set up along the lines laid out in that resolution over the coming weeks.
Question: I have three questions. First of all, is there any follow-up of what has happened to the Guinean soldiers that were disarmed by rebels in Sierra Leone? Secondly, I see by one of our stories the Secretary-General is going to see Hun Sen on the Khmer Rouge tribunal in Bangkok. Has that happened yet? And third, I think there's been some action on the plane in the Sudan? Do you have anything on that?
Acting Deputy Spokesman: On the Guinean soldiers, as I think Associate Spokesman Marie Okabe told you, when they were disarmed they were not wearing blue berets, they weren't under United Nations control. However, the overall issue of their disarming and that type of confrontation with rebels is a matter of serious concern. It's been addressed from here and by the Force Commander, saying that this needs to stop, there needs to be a message sent out that United Nations will not accept its soldiers being disarmed in this way. There's also a responsibility on the rebel leaders to live up to their side of the Lomé Agreement. So as for a specific follow-up on that incident, I'll see if there's something more specific. But that is the United Nations position on that type of episode.
Yes, the Secretary-General will be seeing Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia. I don't have the date and time. It certainly didn't happen today. It's midnight in Cambodia at the moment. Well seek a readout of the meeting when it occurs. The Secretary-General had Hun Sen on his list of people he wanted to see, and it's good that the meeting will take place. He's looking forward to a constructive exchange with the Prime Minister.
On the Sudan, we have news that the negotiations have resulted in what's being described as a breakthrough regarding the hostage situation. We're trying to confirm at the moment what is happening on the ground. We don't have other details at the moment, and when we have them, we'll make them available.
[Marie Okabe, the Associate Spokesman, reported the following after the noon briefing:
The United Nations can confirm that the four people detained at Old Fangak in the Sudan on 3 February have been released.
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) reports that three of the four have been flown on a United Nations aircraft to the Operation Lifeline Sudan base at Lokichokio in northern Kenya. The flight touched down at 2138 hours local time.
The four include one United States national, who is a staff member of UNICEF, and two Kenyan pilots. The fourth person, a Sudanese national, is now at Malakai -- about 150 kilometres from Old Fangak.
The UNICEF reports that the men looked okay, but exhausted. They are being examined now.]
Question: On Hédi Annabi's briefing on Kosovo, will we get any more kind of detail, because certainly some of the reports on the wires have United Nations police officers extremely critical of KFOR and their behaviour?
Acting Deputy Spokesman: I'll leave Mr. Annabi to report first to the Security Council. I asked the question myself whether we'd be able to get a readout or the ability to distribute perhaps the comments he makes. I haven't got an answer from them yet. Sometimes, he doesn't speak from a text; he speaks from notes. But either way, we'll try to have a readout of what he's briefed the Council on regarding that issue.
Question: You indicated that ASEAN was the only regional organization without formal ties to the United Nations. Do you have any explanation for that?
Acting Deputy Spokesman: No I don't. I imagine it's something that could be discussed in the context of this meeting. It's perhaps a question better put to the 10 member States of ASEAN, as well. Thank you.
Briefing by Spokeswoman for General Assembly President
I wish to inform you that the President of the General Assembly, Dr. Theo- Ben Gurirab, will hold a press conference at 11 a.m. on Monday, 14 February, here in room S-226. The President will report on preparations for the Millennium Summit; on the Working Groups on Security Council reform and on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa; as well as on the two upcoming special sessions in June, on women and social development.
Yesterday afternoon, the President chaired an informal meeting on preparations for the Millennium Summit. Participants at the brainstorming and consultative session discussed the chairmanship of the Summit, its duration, sub-themes and format, non-governmental organization participation and the Summits outcome. The President said afterwards that he had convened the meeting to impress upon delegations the need for focus, speed and urgency on some of the outstanding matters that needed to be resolved. They included clarity on the sub-themes for the Summit and their number. Agreement on the latter would help in the planning and management of the format for the Summit which, it had been suggested, should be structured around a plenary and interactive round tables. The President urged delegations to reflect on ways to find solutions and to help illuminate the discussion. Copies of the readout from the meeting are available in room S-378.
This afternoon, the President will open the organizational session of the Preparatory Committee for the High-level International Intergovernmental Event on Financing for Development. The Preparatory Committee will elect its Bureau and two co-Chairmen. In opening remarks, the President will say that the election is all the more pressing because of the role all are expected to play in further consultations with all the relevant stakeholders regarding the modalities of their participation in both the preparatory process and the final event.
The Committee will discuss preparation for the substantive preparatory process and the high-level international event scheduled for 2001, and will have before it the report of the Secretary-General (document A/AC.257/1). The provisional agenda for the organizational session appears in document A/AC.257/2.
Last month, the Assembly President met with the Chairmen of the five regional groups, to discuss the setting up of the Bureau, as called for in resolution 54/196 of 22 December 1999. The President requested each of the five Chairmen to consult with their members and submit to him the names of three persons from each regional group to constitute the 15-member Bureau. It is that election which is taking place today.
In adopting resolution 54/196, the Assembly decided to convene, in 2001, a high-level intergovernmental event of political decision-makers on financing for development, which would address national, international and systemic issues relating to financing for development in a holistic manner in the context of globalization and interdependence, and, by so doing, address development through the perspective of finance. It decided to establish an intergovernmental Preparatory Committee, open to all States, to carry out the substantive preparations for the event. In that connection, it decided to constitute a Bureau of the Preparatory Committee, consisting of 15 representatives of Member States, selected according to the principle of equitable geographical representation, to be presided over by two co-Chairmen.
Question: What has happened to the inclusion of human rights, the only interesting issue, as a sub-theme for the Millennium Summit?
Spokeswoman: Human rights is one of the sub-themes proposed by the Secretary-General in his report. However, there are those delegations who see human rights as a cross-cutting issue that will have to be discussed under whatever sub-themes are eventually agreed upon - whether they be peace, security and disarmament, development and poverty eradication, globalization or strengthening the role of the United Nations.
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