DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
Press Briefing
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
20001101The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today's noon briefing by Fred Eckhard, Spokesman for the Secretary-General, and Susan Markham, Spokeswoman for the President of the General Assembly.
Briefing by Spokesman for Secretary-General
Good afternoon everyone. I would like to welcome to the briefing Peter Hansen, who is the Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, better known to us by its acronym UNRWA, and he will be telling you about some of the humanitarian work being done in his region as soon as we finish our regular briefing. [Mr. Hansens briefing was issued separately.]
**Secretary-General's Gulf Region Visit
I was asked yesterday about the Secretary-General's visit to the Gulf and today I can confirm that he will be travelling first to Geneva next Tuesday, where he will attend the ongoing Cyprus proximity talks. He will then leave for Qatar to attend the summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference which will take place from 12 to 14 November. He will also make an official visit to Qatar at this time. En route to Qatar he will stop briefly in Bahrain, where he will open a new United Nations House in premises donated by the Bahraini Government. He is expected to return to New York on Wednesday, 15 November.
**Kosovo
We just got word from the United Nations Mission in Kosovo that Kosovo Albanian activist Flora Brovina has been released from prison in Serbia, and is about to cross over into Kosovo. We have a statement from the Secretary-General's Special Representative Bernard Kouchner welcoming her back home.
Kouchner applauded the move by Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica who ordered her release today as "a crucial step towards healing the wounds that exist between the Serb and Albanian communities". Kouchner urged him to take further action and release all Kosovo Albanian political prisoners who remain in Serbia.
"That would be justice", he said. "That would be a major stride towards meaningful dialogue and a lasting peace."
Brovina had been charged with terrorism and sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Earlier today Kouchner visited Mitrovica, where he held one of a series of meetings with Kosovo Serb leaders regarding their participation in municipal assemblies. The United Nations Mission in Kosovo is in the process of compiling lists of candidates to assemblies in those municipalities where Serbs are a majority. The Mission says it hopes to have all these people named and agreed upon by 11 November, which is the planned date for the swearing-in ceremonies of all municipal assemblies.
Daily Press Briefing - 2 - 1 November 2000
**Lebanon
The Secretary-General's interim report on the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) is out as a document today -- it is expected on the racks later today. In the report, the Secretary-General outlines the developments in southern Lebanon since his last report, which was issued at the end of July this year.
He notes that during the last three months there was further movement towards the implementation of Security Council resolution 425 on southern Lebanon. The situation in UNIFIL's area of responsibility is described as "relatively calm", with the notable exception of 7 October, when three Palestinian demonstrators were killed by Israeli soldiers near Marwahin and, in a separate incident, Hezbollah crossed over to the Israeli side of the Blue Line and captured three soldiers.
In relation to the Lebanese detainees held in Israel and the Israeli soldiers taken by Hezbollah, the Secretary-General says he remains ready to work with the Israeli and Lebanese Governments with a view to resolving the matter.
The Secretary-General notes that since the Israeli withdrawal, the Government of Lebanon has sent in military and administrative personnel, but that near the so-called Blue Line the authorities have, in effect, left control to Hezbollah.
If effective control is not taken by the Lebanese Government of the whole area vacated by Israelis, Lebanon, the Secretary-General writes, may once again be an arena, albeit not necessarily the only one, of conflict between others.
**Sierra Leone
The Secretary-General has approved the latest report to the Security Council on the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone and therefore it should be coming out as a document shortly. We hope by the end of today.
**Deputy Secretary-General
The Deputy Secretary-General, Louise Fréchette, this morning addressed the Fifth Committee as it considered human resources management.
She told the gathering that none of the goals of the United Nations would be achieved without staff of the highest calibre, who are motivated and given the fullest opportunity to develop their talents.
Two areas of human resources management were emphasized in the Secretary- General's report -- recruitment, placement and promotion, and mobility. In outlining new plans for the recruitment of staff, the Deputy Secretary-General said the United Nations needs to "act more quickly and better anticipate needs". The new system would have the authority and accountability of managers at its core and would reduce the number of steps involved in the placement process.
The growing importance of field activities required a staff that is "well- rounded and multi-skilled, able to cope with diverse challenges and demands". The
new mobility policy, she said, would involve movement between functions and occupations as well as between duty stations.
The full text of her address is available in my office.
**Cyprus
The Cyprus proximity talks resumed today in Geneva under the coordination of the Secretary-General's Special Adviser, Alvaro de Soto. Before meeting separately with His Excellency Rauf Denktash and His Excellency Glafcos Clerides, De Soto held a press conference at the Palais des Nations. He told journalists not to expect any major breakthroughs in the talks but he added that both parties are conscious of the fact that there are opportunities that exist now.
In response to a question, De Soto said that he did not see any early prospects of face-to-face talks between the parties. The proximity talks are expected to be suspended on 10 November.
**Security Council
The Security Council has not scheduled any meetings for today. The President for the month of November, Ambassador Peter van Walsum of the Netherlands, is holding bilateral consultations with Council members to discuss the programme of work for this month. Van Walsum has taken over from the Council President for last month, Ambassador Martin Andjaba of Namibia.
The Council's working group on the Brahimi report on peace operations will hold closed consultations this morning and this afternoon.
**UNEP
A press release is available on the racks today from the United Nations Environment Programme announcing this year's winner of the UNEP Sasakawa Environment Prize. It is Dr. Michel Batisse, a French scientist noted for his outstanding contributions to the conservation of the earth's natural resources, the protection of the terrestrial and marine environments and the promotion of sustainable development.
That award will be presented Friday, 17 November.
**Treaty Signings
Peru this morning signed the two optional protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child. And this afternoon, the United Nations and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany will sign a Memorandum of Understanding concerning standby arrangements.
**Press Conferences
Mark Malloch Brown will give a press conference in this room right after this briefing at 12:30. He is the Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme. He will be joined by Danilo Turk, the Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, and Joel Adechi, Permanent Representative of Benin, and they will launch the Secretary-Generals report on "Support by the United Nations System of the Efforts of Governments to Promote and Consolidate New or Restored Democracies".
And finally our guest tomorrow at the noon briefing will be Jayantha Dhanapala, the Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs, and he will give us a wrap-up of the General Assembly's First Committee.
That's all I have for you. Questions before we go to Sue?
Question: Fred, the Palestinian Observer circulated a working paper giving more details of this proposal for a United Nations observer force in the Middle East. What would it take to actually trigger the Peacekeeping Department to come in and assist with the elaboration of any plans?
Spokesman: I think we would be looking to the Security Council for a signal that they would want us to begin some kind of conceptual planning for such a mission. I dont think we would do that on our own before we had an indication that they would want some input from us.
Question: Fred, I wonder if you could put on the record exactly what has been Yugoslavia's status here at the United Nations. Were they suspended? Are they expelled? If either of those is true why do they have representatives who make speeches continuously in the Security Council? Was their flag flying?
Spokesman: All of that is a matter of record, Joe. I'll pass the question to Sue, seeing its her area, but there is no secrecy about it. I'll ask before we give that to Sue whether there are any other questions for me? OK, Sue, you have your first question.
Briefing by Spokeswoman for President of General Assembly
Spokeswoman: I was just looking for the right resolution. It's always safe to quote a resolution. The resolution of the General Assembly which was the decision they took in September 1992 says: "Considers that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia [Serbia and Montenegro] cannot continue automatically the membership of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the United Nations and therefore decides that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia [Serbia and Montenegro] should apply for membership in the United Nations and that it shall not participate in the work of the General Assembly. That is the decision of the General Assembly from September 1992. They can't participate in the work of the General Assembly.
Question: What about the Security Council?
Spokeswoman: The Security Council is free to invite anyone to speak in the Security Council that the Security Council wishes.
Question: So up until now they never applied for membership?
Spokeswoman: No. This is the first application that we've received.
Question: Was the flag flying outside the building?
Spokeswoman: Today the flag is flying, yes.
Question: Was it flying in the last few years?
Spokeswoman: Yes, I believe so.
Question: It was flying. What State did it represent?
Spokeswoman: The State was the former Socialist Federal Republic Yugoslavia.
Question: But there was an ambassador?
Spokeswoman: No, there was no ambassador here. There was a Chargé d'affaires I believe. There is no ambassador now.
Question: There was no permanent representative but there was an ambassador?
Spokeswoman: I believe he was called the Chargé d'affaires.
Question: So he represented an entity that was not recognized by the General Assembly?
Spokeswoman: Right, he was not allowed to participate in the work of the General Assembly. I think its fairly clear, that it shall not participate in the work of the General Assembly -- that's the wording. The new wording, since we are on the issue, is "decides to admit the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to membership in the United Nations", so it will become a Member and it will sit behind the Yugoslavia nameplate and the flag will be the new flag.
Question: Who decides whether a country is alive or dead, because we have a big case here?
Spokeswoman: Well I can only read you what the Security Council said on the issue. It says: "considering that the State formerly known as the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia has ceased to exist".
Question: Also relating to the flag thing, will the flag of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia stop flying after the present Yugoslavia is adopted as a Member of the United Nations or after the former Yugoslavia is inherited by a certain Member?
Spokeswoman: I believe the old flag will come down once the General Assembly decides to admit the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the new flag will go up after that decision is taken by the General Assembly, which we don't expect until late this afternoon. The new flag will be raised in a ceremony today. Because there are more than 35 speakers listed for the first item of the General Assembly schedule today, which is Causes of Conflict in Africa, the discussion will go on this afternoon. We don't expect the second item, which is Admission of New Members, to come up until around half past four or five o'clock. Then we expect there will be some speakers on the admission of the new Member and when the General Assembly adjourns for the day they will then go and raise the flag outside the front of the General Assembly entrance. It will be a temporary place because they do it in a ceremonial style: they take down another Member State's flag to put the new flag up in that particular place for the ceremony and then tomorrow it would be in the normal order of flags. I hope that's clear. The Special Envoy of the President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia will be here. I think he will speak in the General Assembly after the membership has been agreed to. He is Goran Svilanovic. He is a Special Envoy of the President.
**Fifth Committee
Another thing I wanted to draw your attention to this morning was the Fifth Committee. Fred has already told you the Deputy Secretary-General introduced the report of the Secretary-General on Human Resources. There were a number of other
speakers as well from the Secretariat: Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management Rafiah Salim spoke, as well as Angela King, the Special Adviser on Gender Issues. Then there were a couple of reports of the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) that were introduced by Under-Secretary-General Dileep Nair. I know we have some journalists particularly interested in OIOS reports in the audience, so I thought I would mention that. There was also the introduction of a couple of other reports. It was a very busy morning in the Fifth Committee. We have a programme of work for the Fifth Committee for the rest of the week, if you are interested. They also have some appointments to various committees and bodies coming up on Friday which you might find of interest.
**First Committee
As Mr. Dhanapala is coming tomorrow, you might also want to know about the last of the resolutions going through the First Committee this morning. I think that they will finish this morning deciding on the final nine resolutions that I mentioned yesterday. The list is available in the Spokesman's Office if anyone is interested in that. Thank you.
Spokesman: Any more questions for Sue? Then let me again welcome Peter Hansen. Peter, over to you.
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