DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
Press Briefing
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING OF OFFICE OF SPOKESMAN FOR SECRETARY-GENERAL
20001103The 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, our guest at the briefing today will be Dennis McNamara who is the United Nations Special Coordinator on Internal Displacement and who will be talking about the recent inter-agency mission to Ethiopia and Eritrea which he led.
**Security Council
The Security Council has a busy day today. On its agenda are Afghanistan, Kosovo and Sierra Leone.
The Personal Representative of the Secretary-General, Francese Vendrell, briefed the Security Council this morning on the military and political developments regarding Afghanistan, including the outcome of his discussions with the Taliban and the United Front. Vandrell will brief you in room 226 that is here, at 3:30 p.m. in advance of his meeting with the Six-Plus-Two group this afternoon. And we will have to embargo his remarks at that briefing until the start of the Six-Plus-Two meeting, which is roughly at 4 p.m..
Erick de Mul, the Humanitarian Coordinator for Afghanistan, briefed the Council on what he describes has been an exceptionally difficult year for most Afghans. He also warned that the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan is poised for a sharp downward spiral. De Mul will come to the stakeout microphone to take your questions.
On Kosovo, Hédi Annabi of the Peacekeeping Department will brief on the municipal elections held in Kosovo last weekend. Final election results are expected to be announced in Pristina on Monday.
This afternoon at 3:30 p.m. Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Marie Guéhenno will brief the Council on the Secretary-General's latest report on Sierra Leone. Council members will also discuss the report of the Security Council's mission to the region and a draft presidential statement that is circulating.
UN to Assess Sudan Electoral Assistance Needs
The Electoral Assistance's Division of the Department of Political Affairs is planning to send a needs assessment mission to the Sudan in advance of upcoming parliamentary elections scheduled for 11 December. The mission is travelling following a request by the Sudan for observers for these elections. It is standard procedure for the Electoral Assistance Division to send a needs-
Daily Press Briefing - 3 - 3 November 2000
assessment mission prior to assuming any responsibility in the organizing or observing of an election.
**New UNEP Web site
On Monday, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) will launch a new Web site for its Global International Waters Assessment (GIWA) programme, and that will be on the first day of the Third Global Meeting of Regional Seas Conventions and Action Plan in Monaco. The Web site includes major reports, detailed maps of water regions and a catalogue of projects in all regions. The four-year GIWA programme began in June 1999 and will produce a comprehensive and integrated global assessment of environmental conditions and problems in international waters.
Two other items from the Environment Programme. The first is an announcement that a team of experts is being sent on Monday to Kosovo to assess the impact of ordnance containing depleted uranium used during last year's Balkans conflict. The aim of the assessment will be to determine if there are health or environmental risks now or in the future due to the use of depleted uranium during the conflict, and to make public a report early next year on their findings.
The second item from UNEP concerns the Monaco meeting on protection of the world's oceans and coasts. The Global Meeting of Regional Seas Conventions and Action Plans will be looking at enhancing collaboration amongst the various global and regional treaties that are working on marine environment issues. You can pick up the press releases.
**East Timor
Following negotiations with Indonesia's Attorney General, Mavzuki Darusman, the United Nations Mission in East Timor will be able to interview 39 selected witnesses in Indonesia as part of its ongoing investigation into the violence that erupted last year after the East Timorese opted for independence from Indonesia. They also agreed to undertake jointly an exhumation of ten bodies buried on the Indonesian side of the border in West Timor.
Also from East Timor, environment experts from Norway and the Philippines will arrive in the territory next week to begin a four-month stay. They will work with East Timorese environmentalists on a study that is expected to produce a first draft of an environmental policy for East Timor.
**Briefing Notes
We have the briefing notes from the United Nations mission in Kosovo and from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
The note from Kosovo says UNHCR's Special Envoy, Eric Morris, is scheduled to meet with President Kostunica next Tuesday in Belgrade to discuss assistance to some 500,000 refugees from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia, as well as 220,000 displaced persons from Kosovo.
**Friendship Run
On Saturday, more than 25 United Nations staff members will be participating in the twenty-second Annual International Friendship Run, which is organized by the New York Road Runners Club and the United Nations Athletics Club. Some 12,000 runners are expected to participate in the 5 kilometre race, which will leave from the United Nations Visitor's Plaza and end at the Tavern on the Green restaurant in Central Park. The Assistant Secretary-General for External Relations, Gillian Sorensen, will greet the runners. This race, by the way, is used as a warm-up by many of those who participate in the New York marathon, which will take place on Sunday.
In that marathon, there will be four members of the United Nations Athletics Club participating. The most experienced runner in that United Nations team is Brian Gleeson of the UNDP, with more than 20 marathons under his belt. This is his first New York Marathon, however, and follows closely on the heels of the Venice Marathon, which he ran only two weeks ago.
**Mary Robinson on World Chronicle TV
The World Chronicle TV programme, featuring Mary Robinson, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, will be shown today on in-house television channel 3 and 31 at 2:30 p.m..
**The Week Ahead
And we have the week ahead for you, which you can pick up in my office. I will mention just two items.
On Tuesday, the Secretary-General is expected to come here to room 226 to introduce his new Special Representative for the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea, Legwaila Joseph Legwaila of Botswana, who will be leaving for the region that same day.
And then on Wednesday, the Security Council has scheduled consultations on the Middle East.
That's all I have for you. Do you have any questions?
Question: Fred, there is a report from an International Crisis Group in Washington that there are apparently 75 people accused of war crimes in Bosnia. What is the actual number of those really accused and how many of those are on secret or any other indictment?
Spokesman: I think that press release alleged that these 75 people were under secret indictment. If they are under secret indictment and if its indeed a secret, then I am not going to say whether its true or not that those 75 are secretly indicted. As for the number of publicly indicted, I'll have to check after the briefing and give you that number. [The reporter was later told that there are a total of 64 indictments made public by the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia.]
Question: Do you have any comments that most of them are at large?
Spokesman: No. I would only second the comments made by the Prosecutor for the Tribunal calling on SFOR and KFOR, but primarily in Bosnia and Herzegovina SFOR to be as vigorous as possible in pursuing these indicted criminals. She has been unhappy for some time that many of them are still running around free, but I can't add to that.
Question: Is there any possibility that there would be a statement on Sierra Leone after the 3:30 briefing?
Spokesman: It's hard to say. They are working on a draft presidential statement, as I said, but earlier this morning the expectation was that they wouldn't conclude their consideration of that today. So, that may not be ready for issuance until next week.
Question: Fred, now that Yugoslavia has been admitted as a member of the United Nations and the Secretary-General is going to name a new Special Representative, are you going to proceed with other stuff?
Spokesman: We have an office in Belgrade that is connected to our Balkans operation more generally. I don't think the Secretary-General has any intention at this time of extending that office. I think what you will see, though, is the United Nations system coming in quite aggressively on the humanitarian side. The objective is to help put the whole of the Balkans region back on its feet economically. There has always been a big hole in the middle of that development plan, because the FRY wasn't part of it for political reasons. And yet, the economy of the FRY is essential to that region and the hope is now that it's politically acceptable to work with the FRY, to give it economic assistance, we'll be able to develop a comprehensive development strategy for the whole of the Balkan region. Dennis, welcome. Have a seat. We will be with you in just a minute. Any other questions before we go to Sue? Okay Sue.
Question: What is the number of staff in the Belgrade office?
Spokesman: [The reporter was later told that the Belgrade United Nations Liaison office has a staff of 20.]
Briefing by the Spokeswoman for President of General Assembly
Thank you. The plenary this morning heard the final speakers on the HIV/AIDS debate. It then adopted the resolution to hold the special session of the General Assembly next year on 25 to 27 June. The resolution says that this is a matter of urgency and that the special session will review and address the problems of HIV/AIDS and intensify efforts to combat it.
Following the adoption of this resolution, the General Assembly also adopted a resolution on the formula for the closure of this General Assembly and the opening of the new General Assembly; the formula being that the opening will be on the Tuesday following the second Monday in September. So this session of the General Assembly will close on 10 September and the next session, the fifty- sixth session will open on 11 September next year.
They are now discussing the final item on the agenda for this morning: the cooperation between the United Nations and the Organization of American States (OAS). There are four speakers listed and a resolution for that.
Daily Press Briefing - 5 - 3 November 2000
This evening the President of the General Assembly leaves for a quick trip to Finland on his way to Vienna, where he will be the keynote speaker at the general assembly of non-governmental organizations meeting there. His schedule is available in the Spokesman's Office.
**Third Committee
The Third Committee this morning was scheduled to take action on a number of draft resolutions but after meeting briefly, the Chair, Ms Yvonne Gittens- Joseph of Trinidad and Tobago, adjourned the meeting to allow further consultations on the draft resolutions. The particularly contentious ones relate to honour crimes against women and violence against women. So, we expect them to come back at 3 p.m. We are not sure exactly what will happen on those resolutions at this stage.
**Fifth Committee
The Fifth Committee held elections for three of the five vacancies for the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ). Mr. Msellle of Tanzania was re-elected. He has been a member of the ACABQ since 1971 and the Chairman of the ACABQ since 1975. Also elected today were Mr. Mabilangan of the Phillipines and Mr. Abraszenski of Poland. Endorsed by acclamation were Mr. Ahounou of Côte d'Ivoire and Mr. Maycock of Barbados for the five vacant seats on the ACABQ. There were a number of other appointments to other bodies, but none of them were contested so there was no election. That's all I have for now.
Question: Do you know what happened to the United States' pledge of $100 million to fight AIDS?
Spokesman: A pledge from the United States to UNAIDS? No, I don't, but I can find out for you.
Question: What is the secret of Msele, to be re-elected so many years to the ACABQ? Thats not very democratic to be Chairman for 20 years.
Spokeswoman: Well he was re-elected democratically by a vote 98 to 67 for the other candidate.
Question: But its been over 20 years.
Spokeswoman: Yes, he must be doing a good job.
Spokesman: Okay, Dennis, welcome to the briefing. I think we have a handout concerning the general work of your office, which we will make available at the end.
NOTE: On page 3 of the press briefing on the financial implications of the Brahimi Peace Operations Report, issued 30 October, the first sentence in the third paragraph should read: He added that today, in the regular budget, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations had only 55 posts at Headquarters in New York.
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