DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
Press Briefing
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
20000725The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today's noon briefing by Fred Eckhard, Spokesman for the Secretary-General.
**Briefing Guests -- Joseph Connor and Toshiyuki Niwa
Good afternoon. The audio-visual display being prepared here is in connection with a briefing by Joseph Connor on my right, the Under-Secretary- General for Management, and his deputy, Toshiyuki Niwa, the Assistant Secretary- General for Central Support Services, and they'll be talking to you shortly about the Capital Master Plan.
**Security Council
The Security Council is meeting in closed consultations this morning on Sierra Leone, Georgia and Lebanon. The Council heard a briefing by Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Hédi Annabi, on the latest developments in Sierra Leone. A draft resolution of the extension of the United Nations mission in that country was introduced by the United Kingdom.
Then on Georgia, Council members were expected to hear a briefing by the Special Representative, Dieter Boden.
The Secretary-General himself is expected to go down to the Council about now to brief on Lebanon.
**Lebanon
The Lebanese Government -- in the meantime -- has informed the Secretary- General's Special Envoy, Terje Roed Larsen, that they found a new violation along the line of withdrawal. The Deputy Force Commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), General Sreenan, is meeting with Lebanese army officers along the line of withdrawal as we speak. We hope this issue can be cleared up as soon as possible so that the deployment of United Nations peacekeepers along the border can proceed tomorrow as scheduled.
The Secretary-General, as I mentioned, is expected to brief the Council shortly.
Yesterday, the Secretary-General sent a letter to the Council President, Ambassador Patricia Durrant of Jamaica, informing her that as of 24 July all Israeli violations along the line of withdrawal had been corrected.
[The Spokesman later announced the following: The Secretary-General has reported to the Security Council today that the violation in southern Lebanon reported at the noon briefing has been cleared up.]
**Sierra Leone Diamond Hearing
The Sanctions Committee on Sierra Leone will hold an exploratory hearing on 31 July and 1 August in the Trusteeship Council Chamber, to assess the role of
Daily Press Briefing - 2 - 25 July 2000
diamonds in the Sierra Leone conflict and the link between trade in Sierra Leone diamonds and trade in arms and related material. Representatives of interested States and regional organizations, the diamond industry and other relevant experts are invited.
The hearing was requested by the Security Council in the 29 June resolution (1306) on Sierra Leone.
The hearing will be an open one and the Chairman of the Committee, Ambassador Anwarul Karim Chowdury of Bangladesh, will hold a news conference at the end of the session. That will be around 1 p.m. on 1 August.
Interested States include all Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) members, as well as Angola, Belgium, India, Israel, Liberia, Sierra Leone, of course, and South Africa. The World Bank and the Organization of African Unity (OAU) are among the invitees, as are the Diamond High Council, the International Diamond Manufacturers Association, and the World Federation of Diamond Bourses. Individual experts on diamonds and arms are also invited. A list of participants should be made available by week's end.
**Global Compact
The Secretary-General will meet you here tomorrow at about 1 p.m. to give you a read-out of the meeting that will take place all morning from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the Global Compact.
The idea of a Global Compact, you'll recall, was launched by the Secretary- General in January 1999, when he called on global corporations to voluntarily comply with core international standards on human rights, labour rights and the environment.
A group of about 50 corporations has been joined by a number of international labour organizations and civil society groups. Tomorrow, the companies will make concrete commitments to best practices in these core areas.
The Secretary-General will only take questions tomorrow on the subject of the Global Compact.
After he leaves this room, you will have the opportunity to question representatives of the corporations, unions and civil society groups who are present for the meeting. We'll also have Juan Somavia, the head of the International Labour Organization, and possibly other representatives of the two other United Nations agencies involved in the Global Compact -- the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the United Nations Environment Programme. I understand Mary Robinson will be in the Building, although not at the press conference.
And also throughout the day you can request at any time access to any of these participants. If you want to interview them, do that through my Office or contact Tim Wahl of the Department of Public Information, on extension 3-5831.
**Kosovo Report
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) have issued a joint report on food production in the United Nations-administered province of Kosovo.
According to this report, the 1999/2000 cropping season has seen a sharp rise in agricultural production. The current assessment shows that food crop production is on the rise, and thus a further phase-down of food aid in the July to September period can be scheduled.
The full press release is available.
**Iraq Programme
We have the update from the Office of the Iraq Programme.
**Holbrooke Addresses Global Youth Leaders
The Department of Public Information has asked me to tell you that Ambassador Richard Holbrooke of the United States will address the Global Youth Leaders Conference. That will be at United Nations Headquarters, that's today -- 25 July -- is that today? Why are they giving it to us now? 10:45 to 11:30 a.m. Pick up more information on that from the Department of Public Information.
**Spokesman's Office Staff Changes
And just a few things on staff changes. The Secretary-General today appointed Hannah Yilma, formerly of my Office, as the new Director of the United Nations Information Centre in Pretoria, South Africa.
I think you know that Hannah has been replaced as Associate Spokesman by Stephane Dujarric. Stephane has nine years' experience with ABC Television and brings a new level of TV expertise to our Office.
Sad news. Betty Perry-Carpenter of my Office is leaving the United Nations after two years. Her last day will be Friday. We'll be very sorry to see her go.
And some of you probably got to know Elizabeth Phillip who was a stand-in for two months. Did a terrific job, and we thank the United Nations Press Service here on the second floor for lending her to us. She goes back to the Press Service now.
**Statement by Secretary-General
One last thing which maybe should have been the first thing. I have here a statement by the Spokesman for the Secretary-General concerning the Camp David talks.
"The Secretary-General is disappointed that, despite strenuous efforts at the Camp David Summit, the parties were not able to reach an overall agreement. Given the seriousness of the issues involved and their importance for reaching a comprehensive peace in the Middle East, he encourages Prime Minister Barak and Chairman Arafat to persist in their efforts to find compromise solutions with courage and vision. The Secretary-General commends President Clinton and Secretary Albright for their extraordinary efforts to facilitate progress."
Any questions before we go to Joe?
Questions and Answers
Question: Do you have a full list of the companies that will be participating - - you said there were 50?
Spokesman: Yes. You can check my Office for that. We gave that out when John Ruggie gave a briefing I think earlier this week.
Question: Is there any reaction or a statement at all from the Secretary- General on the crash of the Air France Concorde jet today?
Spokesman: No, he's aware of it. I did check with the United Nations Travel Office. There were no bookings on that flight by the United Nations in New York. And the latest information seems that it might have been a charter in any case. The only United Nations person I'm aware of authorized to travel on the Concorde is the Secretary-General, and, where appropriate, his wife. Security always travels with him too. So I don't think there were any United Nations personnel on the plane. It's obviously a tragic development. There appear also to be casualties on the ground. We're still waiting to see what the situation is there.
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