DAILY PRESS BRIEFING BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

The following is a near-verbatim transcript of the noon briefing by Fred Eckhard, Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

Thanks for waiting.  Good afternoon.

**The Secretary-General in Africa

The Secretary-General this morning hitched a ride from Accra, Ghana, to Abuja, Nigeria, with the President of Ghana, John Kufuor.  In Abuja he will be attending the African Summit on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Other Related Infectious Diseases, and he will address that conference tomorrow.

This afternoon, he is expected to hold a number of meetings with UN staff, starting with Dr. Peter Piot, the head of Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), and then with the Executive Director of the Economic Commission for Africa, K.A. Amoako.  He is also expected to meet with heads of United Nations agencies attending the summit.

**Reverend Leon Sullivan

We have the following statement, attributable to the Secretary-General, concerning the death of the Reverend Leon Sullivan:

“It was with great sadness that I learned of the death of Reverend Leon Sullivan.  Reverend Sullivan was known and respected throughout the world for the bold and innovative role he played in the global campaign to dismantle the system of apartheid in South Africa.  He since went on to show remarkable commitment to improving education, fighting AIDS and building up civil society in Africa.  Reverend Sullivan showed us all how much one individual can do to change lives and societies for the better.  I extend my condolences to Reverend Sullivan's family, friends and others touched by this loss.”

**Security Council

Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo are the main agenda items of today’s Security Council consultations.

The Secretary-General’s Special Advisor on Africa, Ibrahim Gambari, briefed the Council on the latest developments in Angola as reflected in the most recent report of the Secretary-General.  Mr. Gambari, who is scheduled to visit Angola next week, should be joining me here so he can brief you in person.

As you’ll recall, in the latest report on Angola, which we reported on earlier this month, the Secretary-General had recommended that the mandate of the United Nations Office in Angola be extended by six months until 15 October.  There is a letter on the racks today from the Council President to the Secretary-General concurring with that recommendation.

At the Angola briefing, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Kenzo Oshima, told the Council about the dire humanitarian situation in Angola,

saying that only 16 per cent of the required $230 million had been met.  He appealed for greater support.

Oshima is also scheduled to brief on his recent mission to the Democratic Republic of the Congo at the Secretary-General’s request.  He is expected to flag the lack of access to vulnerable populations and the need for increased donor support for humanitarian operations in that country.

**Chernobyl

The following statement is attributable to the Secretary-General, marking the fifteenth anniversary of the Chernobyl accident.  And I’ll only read part of the statement:

“After fifteen years, the devastating impact of the explosion of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor continues to affect the daily lives of millions of people in Belarus, the Russian Federation and Ukraine.  Indeed, the legacy of Chernobyl will be with us, and with our descendants, for generations to come.”

The full text of the statement, which also mentions that at least three million children will require physical treatment, is available in my office.

The fifteenth anniversary of the nuclear power plant accident in Chernobyl is being marked here in New York by a press conference this afternoon by Kenzo Oshima, the Under Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs.  He will be joined by three ambassadors: Sergey Lavrov of the Russian Federation, Valeriy Kuchinsky, the Acting Permanent Representative of Ukraine; and Sergei Ling, the Permanent Representative of Belarus.

Tomorrow, in the visitors’ lobby, Mr. Oshima will open an exhibition called “Black Wind White Land: Living With Chernobyl”, highlighting the continuing catastrophe.  We also have a press release from Vienna with information on events taking place there tomorrow.

**East Timor

The United Nations has received a copy of a Presidential Decree, issued on Monday by Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid, which says that an ad hoc human rights tribunal will be established in the Central Jakarta District Court to try serious human rights violations that occurred in East Timor after the popular consultation in September 1999.  The United Nations welcomes the step forward in prosecuting individuals for crimes committed in 1999.

Meanwhile, in East Timor yesterday, a member of a pro-integration militia, Manuel Gonsales Bere, was sentenced to fourteen years in prison for the murder of an independence supporter in September 1999 near the town of Maliana.  That sentence was passed down by the Special Panel for Serious Crimes in Dili's District Court.  We have more details in the notes from Dili.

**Kosovo

The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Kosovo, Hans Haekkerup, welcomed back to Kosovo today more than 140 Kosovar Albanians held in Serb prisons

since 1999.  Haekkerup travelled to the boundary and told the group that it was a historical day for Kosovo and that, as a father and a husband, he shared with their families the wealth of emotions and joy in meeting them.  Their release came after Serbia’s Supreme Court on Monday threw out their convictions and ordered their immediate release.  They were arrested in 1999 on suspicion of terrorism.

**Bosnia and Herzegovina

At one minute after midnight last night, a small amount of land in the Bosnian suburb of Dobrinja was transferred from the control of the Republika Srpska to that of the Bosnian Federation, following a decision yesterday by an arbitrator appointed by the Office of High Representative Wolfgang Petritsch.

The Republika Srpska police withdrew to their new positions following the adjustments made to the inter-ethnic boundary line, and the United Nations Mission's International Police Task Force, as well as police from the Canton Sarajevo, are patrolling those areas today.

The United Nations Mission reports its general satisfaction with the way the respective authorities have handled the adjustment in the boundary line, with no incidents reported at Dobrinja today.  United Nations police are still monitoring the situation.

**International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia

This morning, Carla Del Ponte, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, signed a letter to the Justice Minister of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY), Momcilo Grubac, asking whether former President Slobodan Milosevic has been served with an arrest warrant and an indictment.

You'll recall that the Tribunal's Registrar, Hans Holthuis, met earlier this month with the Justice Minister in Belgrade and had received a commitment from him that the Tribunal's arrest warrant would be served on Mr. Milosevic.  Today's letter is a legal procedure to follow up on that promise.  We have more information in the notes from the Tribunal.

**Africa Malaria Day

Today is the first ever Africa Malaria Day.  A World Health Organization (WHO) report issued to mark the occasion states that insecticide-treated bed-nets have been found to be an effective prevention measure, reducing the risk of transmission by up to 63 per cent.  Several African countries have already reduced or abolished taxes and tariffs on the nets in an effort to make them more affordable.

Malaria kills over one million people worldwide each year, and most of these deaths are among African children.  Malaria continues to cause 20 per cent of deaths in children under five in Africa, and accounts for 40 per cent of the total public health expenditure.  We have more information in a press release and also on the WHO Web site.

**Middle East

As we reported late yesterday, Terje Roed Larsen, the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, met with Syria’s Foreign Minister Farouk al-Shara last night in Damascus.  We made available yesterday afternoon a read-out of that meeting.

**United Nations Commission on Human Rights

This morning, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights adopted by consensus a resolution on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights.  The resolution, put forward by Italy and co-sponsored by thirty-five other countries, encourages, among other things, all Member States to develop a sustainable plan of action for dissemination of human rights education and information, including the expanded use of new and modern technologies to disseminate information.

It also calls upon the United Nations Department of Public Information to further develop mass media strategies for an effective promotion of Human Rights.  The Commission also passed resolutions on the death penalty and on torture.  We have copies of all those resolutions upstairs.

      **Afghanistan

The World Food Programme (WFP) today said that about 40 per cent of the farmland in Afghanistan will be left uncultivated this year due to seed and water shortages.  The WFP Country Director for Afghanistan, Gerard van Dijk, said, “The grim prospects for the harvest this year could lead to a worse humanitarian situation than last year.”  About three million Afghans are dependent on food aid and half of the 21 million population is affected by the current drought.  Last month WFP launched a $76 million appeal to help 3.8 million Afghans avoid starvation.  So far 55 per cent of the funds have been raised.  We have a WFP press release on that.

**Press Conferences

Tomorrow, Marcel Marceau, the internationally-renowned artist-pantomimist, often referred to as the world’s greatest mime, will accept his designation as Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Second World Assembly on Ageing, to be held in Madrid, Spain, from 8 to 12 April 2002.  Mr. Marceau’s designation will be announced at a press conference at 11:15 tomorrow morning, in this room, by Nitin Desai, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs.  A press release and Mr. Marceau’s biography are available at the documents counter.

Urban Jonsson, the United Nations Children's Fund Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa, and David Morrison, the Head of NetAid.org, will be in this room tomorrow at 12:30 to launch the “Say Yes for Children” campaign, which is an unprecedented global campaign which will enable people all over the world to sign a pledge expressing support for ten actions essential to improving the lives of children everywhere. The world’s pledges will then be presented to national leaders at the General Assembly Special Session on Children in September.  We’ve got a media kit with more details.

**Department of Public Information (DPI)

Finally, I know that many of you have wanted to know about the leadership question in DPI. In answer to some of your questions, I can say that for the present the Secretary-General has decided that Shashi Tharoor will continue as Interim Head of DPI.  You'll recall that we made the original appointment in January for two to three months.  The Secretary-General is now extending that interim appointment.

We are told that Mr. Gambari is still in the Council and may not be able to make it here by the end of this briefing.  If not, we’ll arrange for him to come to the stake-out.

That is all I have.  Any questions from you?

**Questions and Answers

Question:  What kind of cooperation is there with the United Nations regarding the Indonesian Tribunal for Timor?

Spokesman:  The Security Council left it to Indonesia to set up some mechanism to prosecute the violators of human rights in East Timor, postponing any decision by them to set up an international tribunal.  We have been watching and waiting for Indonesia to take action in this direction, and this is a first step.

Question:  Are there any kind of recommendations?  Will the United Nations be involved in providing witnesses or evidence?

Spokesman:  I think there has been close cooperation between our mission in East Timor and the Attorney General’s Office in Jakarta.  I believe they have worked out formal arrangements for the exchange of witnesses.  I can give you more details on that after the briefing.

Question:  Are there concerns that the court will look only into crimes that were committed after the vote for independence in August 1999?

Spokesman:  There is a concern about the dates and I think that is why I said, this is a first step.

Question:  Concerning the dates, what would the United Nations like to see?

Spokesman:  We would like to see a broader range of time included within the mandate of this special court, so that all the violations that occurred in East Timor could be prosecuted in this court.

Question:  Is there any kind of time-line on it?

Spokesman:  I don’t have the details with me.  Why don’t you come up afterwards?  It may be a confidential document.  Anyway, we’ve got the information.  We’ll share as much of it with you as we can.

Question:  On Thursday, an Iraqi TV programme said that Kuwait has been stealing oil from Iraq.  They back that claim with paragraph 10 of the Secretary-General’s latest report on the United Nations Iraq-Kuwait Observation Mission (UNIKOM).  Do you have a reaction to that, and how does the Secretary-General feel about being used this way?

Spokesman:  I don’t think the report mentions stealing.  That paragraph says that our Mission observed increased activity at both Kuwaiti and Iraqi oil installations on both sides of the border at Abdali.  It makes no mention of the stealing of oil from one side or the other.

Question:  Who is taking the place of El Amir in the radio division of DPI?

Spokesman:  I don’t know, I’ll have to find out.  I assume that the vacancy has been advertised and that they are in the process of selecting a successor.  I don’t know where that process stands, frankly.

Question:  Why has Mr. Milosevic, who has been detained by the Yugoslav authorities, not been sent to The Hague?

Spokesman:  You’ll have to ask the Yugoslav authorities.  You are talking about the former President Milosevic, right?  We have served him, we, the Tribunal, with an indictment and we made it clear -- both the Secretary-General and more loudly Carla Del Ponte, the Prosecutor –- that we expect Mr. Milosevic to be sent to The Hague for trial.  The Yugoslav authorities have indicated that they want to try him on charges of their own.  While we recognize their right to do that, we are still pressing them to turn him over to The Hague.

Thanks very much.

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