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 John Mills, Acting Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

Good afternoon. I'd like to welcome to our briefing today visiting journalists from the Middle East, North Africa and Malaysia. I hope you are enjoying your stay in New York and you find your time here to be informative and useful.

**Secretary-General: Day Two in Thailand, Tomorrow UNCTAD X

As you know, it's the second day of the Secretary-General's official visit to Thailand. We have a detailed note of his programme upstairs.

One of the main events was a speech on peacekeeping at Thamassat University where the Secretary-General also received an honorary degree. In that speech, the Secretary-General called for a new consensus on what peacekeeping can and cannot do. Policing a ceasefire is one thing, he said, fighting a war is quite another. Along the same line, he said that the Security Council must provide mandates that are realistic, credible and backed by sufficient resources.

Copies of the speech are available upstairs, as is an embargoed copy of the speech the Secretary-General will give tomorrow at the opening of the tenth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD X).

His speech there will draw attention to the protests that occurred in Seattle during the World Trade Organization's ministerial meeting. He will urge governments and the private sector to address the anxiety that many sectors of the population feel about globalization. The main losers of globalization, he says, are those who have been excluded from its benefits by barriers to trade.

We also hope to make available embargoed copies of a speech the Secretary- General will deliver Monday --Sunday night in Singapore -- on the United Nations and the rule of law in the next century.

**UNHCR Releases Independent Evaluation on Kosovo Emergency Preparedness Response

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has today released an independent evaluation it commissioned during the emergency last spring when serious concerns were raised about its initial response to the crisis. The UNHCR said critics believed at the time that the agency was overwhelmed by the huge refugee influx -- a contention that it said it does not dispute. The UNHCR said its goal now is to find out why, and to ensure that it does better next time.

The evaluation examines the initial 11-week period from late March until mid-June, when the bombing campaign ended and everyone began going home. The evaluation is critical in some crucial areas -- particularly in examining UNHCR's preparedness and response capacity. For its part, the UNHCR said it acknowledges it has to strengthen its strategic planning and leadership capacity and speed up its response in emergencies.

The UNHCR said the conclusions and recommendations made by this evaluation match many of its own internal criticisms and that it is now completing new guidelines to improve performance.

The Kosovo Evaluation is posted in its entirety on UNHCR's Web site. There is a summary of conclusions, and UNHCR's response can be found in one of the appendices.

**Note from Kosovo

Meanwhile, the UNHCR, together with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), released in Pristina today their most recent report on ethnic minorities in Kosovo.

The UNCHR says that the ethnic violence in the divided city of Mitrovica has led to an exodus of ethnic Albanians from the city's Serb-populated northern half, deepening division of the city along ethnic lines. More than 639 Albanians have formally registered with the UNHCR since violence erupted in the city last week. The UNHCR believes the actual number of those who have fled is much higher, as most people leave quietly to join friends and family in other parts of Kosovo, without registering.

**Security Council

There is no Security Council meeting here at Headquarters today. The next scheduled meeting of the Council is on Tuesday, when it is expected to hold informal consultations on Cyprus.

**Francis Deng Urges Cooperation to Ensure Basic Humanitarian Assistance in Burundi

The Secretary-General’s Representative on Internally Displaced Persons, Dr. Francis Deng, has now concluded his six-day visit to Burundi.

Today, he visited Maramvya regroupment site, which was dismantled during the week, as well as the area to which its inhabitants had returned. He also visited Kabezi regroupment site, where problems of overcrowding, inadequate shelter and the need for medical care were evident.

Dr. Deng urged the Government and the international community to work together to ensure that, at a minimum, their basic humanitarian and protection needs are addressed. In particular, he encouraged measures to ensure that the displaced have regular access to their fields -- most of them are farmers -- in time for the planting season this month. It's been the inability of the people to go to the fields and plant that has exacerbated the shortage of food and the suffering in these regroupment camps. There is a press release available on Francis Deng's mission.

**Sudan Update

A follow-up on the Sudan episode we reported yesterday: The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has just confirmed that the fourth person -- a Sudanese local staff member -- who was also released in the Sudan yesterday, has now joined his colleagues in Lokichokio, Kenya.

**Notes From East Timor: Treaty Signing Sets Stage for Oil Exploration in Timor Gap

In East Timor today, the Transitional Administrator, Sergio Vieira de Mello, and Australia's representative, James Batley, signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the Timor Gap Treaty. The memorandum aims to set up a legal arrangement between East Timor and Australia on the exploration for oil in the Timor Gap. It is based on the provisions of the treaty signed in 1989 between Australia and Indonesia.

Meanwhile, the forensic examination of the 37 bodies taken from the Passabe site in the Oekusi enclave is continuing. The forensic experts say that the age of the victims varies from 15 to 45 --all men -- but that one third of the victims were under 22 years old.

On a happier note, in Dili, reconstruction is under way on the new cultural centre -- a precursor to a full national museum for East Timor. The World Bank and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) are funding the rebuilding. One of the first exhibits will be of photographs depicting the events in East Timor during the last 12 months.

**High Commissioner Robinson ‘Concerned’ by Violence against Migrant Workers in Spain

In Geneva, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, says she is concerned by the recent violence against migrant workers in El Ejido, in southern Spain. She is following the situation especially closely, as she was in Spain last month and, while there, had discussed the situation of migrant workers in that country and Spain's contribution to the forthcoming World Conference against Racism.

There are more details in the briefing note from the Information Service in Geneva.

**Washington Drug Summit Concludes; Initiatives to Combat Money Laundering Discussed

In Washington D.C., the International Drug Summit, co-sponsored by the United States Congress and the United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, concluded yesterday.

Pino Arlacchi, Executive Director of the United Nations Drug Control Programmes, discussed a new initiative on money laundering. He announced a meeting to be held in the Cayman Islands next month, where offshore centres will be asked to commit to the adoption of common global standards to deal with money from criminal sources.

I'm pleased that Mr. Arlacchi's spokesman, Sandro Tucci, is in the room with us, and if you have any questions on this just-concluded meeting, he would be happy to talk with you after the briefing.

**UNAMSIL, Sankoh in Joint Effort to Recover Weapons

I had a question yesterday about what was being done about the disarming of peacekeepers and other soldiers in Sierra Leone. There is no change. The United Nations is continuing its efforts to recover weapons that were taken.

Our colleagues in Sierra Leone tell us that everyone involved is making an effort, and Mr. Foday Sankoh, the former rebel leader, had promised to investigate the issue and went to the area where the incident with the Guinean soldiers happened. But there has been no visible result. The United Nations is in continuous contact with the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) on this issue. The Force Commander has reminded the battalion commanders that it is not acceptable for the troops to surrender their weapons.

**Update: Contributions

Today, three more Member States have paid the full balance of their regular budget dues for this year. Fiji, paid just over $42,000; Poland paid more than $2 million; and Switzerland -- which is not a Member State, but has observer status -- paid more than $3.8 million. So far, 51 States have paid their full dues for the year 2000.

Outstanding contributions now stand at just under $3.4 billion, of which about $1.1 billion is owed to the regular budget.

**Report on Population and Gender Out Today

There's a report out today on population, gender and development, which has been prepared for next month's session of the Commission on Population and Development. It notes that although women continue to have universally higher life expectancy than men, increased levels of smoking by women has led to higher rates of tobacco-related mortality. Still, at ages 80 and older, the report says there are nearly twice as many women as men.

**One Million Afghans May Face Severe Food Shortages, WFP Warns

There is a press release from the World Food Programme (WFP), which warns that more than 1 million Afghans could face severe food shortages in the next few months. It also notes, rather grimly, that funding for food appeals is meeting with a very lukewarm response. Food stocks in Afghanistan are very low, with only enough to feed targeted Afghans until April. Last month, the WFP launched an appeal for $88 million to feed nearly 2.6 million people.

**In Mexico, Daes to Assess Human Rights of Indigenous Population

The Chairperson of the Human Rights Working Group on Indigenous People, Mrs. Irene Daes, is currently in Mexico in order to assess the living conditions and the situation of human rights of the indigenous populations in that country. We have a press release from the United Nations Information Centre in Mexico with details on her visit.

**The Week Ahead at the United Nations

For the week ahead, I've already given you details of the Secretary- General's programme, so here are some other highlights: **Sunday, 13 February

Carol Bellamy, Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), begins a visit to Namibia.

**Monday, 14 February

At 11 a.m., here at Headquarters, Theo-Ben Gurirab, the President of the General Assembly, will hold a press conference in room S-226 on the preparations for the Millennium Assembly.

**Tuesday, 15 February

As I've told you, the Security Council has scheduled informal consultations on Cyprus. And, of course, the full note on the week ahead is available upstairs. That's what I have to conclude the week. Do you have any questions?

**Questions and Answers

Question: A Sudanese news agency says that the United Nations has officially apologized to the Government and to the militia for the use of the plane. Is that true?

Acting Deputy Spokesman: I'm not aware of there being any apology. It's something we have been looking at this morning, but we haven't heard this. But we'll follow up and get back to you or make an announcement, if that has been the case. But I have no information now to confirm that.

Question: The Lebanese Government has asked [in a letter] that the Secretary-General contact concerned parties as a matter of urgency and to take necessary steps to prevent Israel from perpetrating any further attacks. Has he taken any action regarding this escalating conflict?

Acting Deputy Spokesman: As you know, the United Nations has a peace mission in Lebanon, UNIFIL, which has as its mandate the maintenance of peace and security in that area. As to the point of whether the Secretary-General or the Secretariat, subsequent to that letter, have taken special steps, I'll check and I'll get back with you, if that is indeed the case.

Question: The Secretary-General has been complaining about not having a clear mandate on some issues. Has anything been done to correct this situation?

Acting Deputy Spokesman: I think we all recognize that there's not much point in continually complaining and hand-wringing; there needs to be some concrete, solid work done. You know that in the last few months there have been reports, both on Rwanda and the events in Srebrenica, which have highlighted perceived failings of United Nations peacekeeping. There have also been a number of concerns about shortcomings in other missions, both in the performance of those missions and the nature of their mandates. In the same speech, the Secretary-General made a reference to plans he has under way to address these issues in a more systematic way. There's nothing I can announce today, but there will be answers to your questions forthcoming in the next few days or weeks.

If there's nothing else, welcome again to our guests, and have a good weekend everyone.